thats true. But hats not enough to make a game sell, especially if a very similar one is available for 1/6th of its price at times.
Believe me, I would have gotten Age 4 anyways.
But from a marketing and financial standpoint, as well as from saving bad reputation of the IP !Age of Empires" it would not need to exists. Doing such thing would be quite counter-positive.
As said, ppl already complain about age 2+2, just because its in the same time persiod. If it also simmply offered the same general gameplay and only added special features like walls (which should shake up how the game is played in general) it would probably be called 2+2 by MANY more. And they would be quite right.
However if like all the general gameplay stayed with some addition, and the time period would be different, that would work.
However in 10, 20 years, after age 4 didnt grow as succesful as MS hoped and a potetial age 5 failed, I can see them doing an Age 2 3D Remake. With all the issues fixed and maybe some additions like mannable walls however that would not work currently because we “just” got age 2 DE 2 years ago. and it especially wouldnt work if called age 4.
I think gameplay won’t be truly unique for all factions, but more like 3 or 5 different styles and then lots of special functions and units that add flavour but do not dictate the playstyle and balacing too much.
Very much like in company of heroes 2 where you have five different factions that do actually tech very different and have different playstyles from the beginning to the end. There were very few commanders in each factions that make a completely different playstyle, like Assgrens, Asstommies or Osttruppen, but in the end they nerfed them finally to balance the game better.
Off-map Abilities like artillery, passive abilities like radio interception, sector based effects or slightly different special units are all good and nice, but they don’t actually change the gameplay of a faction that much.
Everything else would be way too hard to balance. Coh balancing was the beste when only wehr and USF and in coh2 only Ost and Soviets were available. So more than 2 faction balancing is already a big nut to crack. But i am pretty sure Microsoft will have the financial backing to secure ongoing balancing as the community and strategy evolves around the game…
im just happy and eager to have a new game of age of empires , hope it will bring us modern gameplay (or at least good rts gameplay like coh2) bc aoe2 that is the game that represents better the whole series has and old and obsolete gameplay , is just boring , the game its 20 years old and its time to give a new solid main representative of the series , imo ao3 just chose a diferent path in the series of aoe , hope this new game bring the old simplicity of aoe2 wiht fresh and modern gameplay like relic bring on the highly recomended game coh2
however that would not work currently because we “just” got age 2 DE 2 years ago. and it especially wouldnt work if called age 4.