It's finally almost time for Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition to launch on Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S as part of Xbox Game Pass for the very first time! The strategy masterpiece will be joined by Age of Empires 4 on Xbox consoles later this year, but for now, it's just the second game that's arriving on the service.
Here's everything you need to know about the Age of Empires 2 launch on Xbox Game Pass, including the release date, release times and preload details. We're finally almost there!
Age of Empires 2 Xbox Release Date
The official release date for Age of Empires 2 on Xbox is Tuesday, January 31st.
Age of Empires 2 is included with Xbox Game Pass on the same day as release, or you can choose to buy it separately on the Xbox Store in Standard or Deluxe editions, with the latter featuring various bits of DLC.
Age of Empires 2 Release Time For Xbox
Age of Empires 2's release time for Xbox is 12pm ET / 5pm GMT on January 31st according to the Xbox Store.
We'll let you know if anything changes with this in the run up to launch.
Age of Empires 2 Preload Time For Xbox
You can already preload Age of Empires 2 on Xbox Game Pass right now ahead of launch, but it's not the full install as of yet. For the time being, it's just a placeholder file of around 300MB that will automatically update very soon.
Age of Empires 2 Xbox Download Size
The Age of Empires 2 Xbox download size is around 18.26GB at launch according to the Xbox Store.
Keep in mind that this doesn't include any potential day one updates that we might see.
Age of Empires 2 Xbox: Mouse & Keyboard Support?
Good news! Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition does support mouse and keyboard on Xbox.
This was confirmed back in October of last year:
"For those players who are loyal to keyboard and mouse, we’ve ensured that those inputs are supported in the console version. We also considered the functionality Xbox players have come to expect from their games and so the game will include optional crossplay between platforms, allowing you to play with your friends on Xbox and on PC."