Age of Empire’s latest blog post outlines a huge 2026 roadmap, with new expansions, major esports events, and the long‑awaited Aztec pantheon coming to Age of Mythology: Retold. It follows a record 2025 and previews Red Bull Wololo: Londinium, a South American expansion for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, two new Age of Empires IV expansions, and a packed Expansion Pass for Age of Mythology.
For fans on console, PC, and mobile, 2026 is shaping up to be one of the franchise’s biggest years yet.
2025: A record year sets the stage for 2026
2025 was one of the busiest years ever for the Age franchise. The teams shipped six expansions across Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, Age of Empires IV, and Age of Mythology: Retold, added new civilizations and campaigns, and brought the series to PlayStation 5. Releases like Immortal Pillars and Heavenly Spear for Age of Mythology: Retold, Knights of Cross and Rose and Dynasties of the East for Age IV, and The Three Kingdoms and Chronicles: Alexander the Great for Age II showed that, even decades in, there’s still plenty of room to experiment and grow.
It wasn’t just content that grew in 2025; the Age franchise also expanded its audience to more than 70 million players across PC, Xbox, mobile, and now PlayStation 5. The team pushed beyond the games themselves by becoming the first gaming partner of the Louvre in Paris, using Age of Empires to help tell real historical stories like those of the Mamluk Dynasty. All of that momentum sets up a 2026 roadmap that aims to go even bigger in esports, expansions, and cross‑platform play.
Red Bull Wololo: Londinium brings Age to Royal Albert Hall
One of the headline announcements for 2026 is Red Bull Wololo: Londinium, the next major stop in Age of Empires’ premier esports series. Scheduled for April 1–6, 2026, the event is moving from castle venues to the heart of London, with the grand finals set inside the legendary Royal Albert Hall. That alone is a huge statement: a classic RTS series taking over one of the world’s most iconic performance venues for a week of high‑level competition and spectacle.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires IV will both be featured at Londinium, with playoffs hosted at Leicester Square’s ODEON Luxe, a cinema best known for movie premieres that will now double as a battleground for pro‑level villagers, knights, and trebuchets. The in‑game ladder for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition kicks off on January 2, 2026, giving competitive players a clear runway to grind ranks and sharpen builds ahead of the event.
While tickets for the playoffs and grand finals are currently sold out, the team notes that refunded tickets may occasionally return to the pool, and fans are encouraged to keep an eye on the official ticketing pages and the Red Bull Wololo Discord for any openings.
Don’t Wait! Get Your Red Bull Wololo: Londinium Tickets
Some tickets may become available if some are refunded, with limited availability.
Age of Mythology: Retold gets an Expansion Pass and Aztec gods
For Age of Mythology: Retold, 2025 wrapped up the content promised in the Premium Edition with the release of Heavenly Spear, but the blog post confirms that the story is far from over. In 2026, Retold will receive an Expansion Pass that bundles four new “mythic releases” and culminates in the game’s most ambitious expansion yet: the arrival of the Aztec pantheon. For fans who were worried that support might slow down after Heavenly Spear, this roadmap is a strong reassurance.
The Expansion Pass includes four major drops. First is the New Gods Pack: Demeter, which lets players harness the harvest goddess in new ways, bringing fresh god powers and myth units that turn nature itself into a weapon. Second is the Ultimate Fan Pack, a cosmetic‑focused bundle that lets dedicated players deck out their cities with shimmering gold, unique pantheon icons, and other supporter‑themed flourishes. Third comes the Blood & Bones Pack, a visual overhaul that adds dynamic blood effects, prismatic essences for myth units, and more dramatic transitions and visuals during battles—exclusive to Expansion Pass owners.
The centerpiece, though, is Obsidian Mirror – Rise of the Aztec Gods. This full‑scale expansion introduces one of the most requested pantheons in franchise history, complete with a 12‑mission campaign that spans both earthly and celestial realms. Players will command divine monsters, call on gods such as Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl, and guide their civilization through an era defined by obsidian fire and ritual sacrifice. Pre‑orders for the Expansion Pass begin on December 18 with a 15% discount available until the first item goes live, making it an enticing deal for fans who already know they’ll want everything the pass offers.
Age of Empires Mobile: PC Edition targets early 2026
Age of Empires isn’t just a PC‑and‑console story anymore, and the upcoming Age of Empires Mobile: PC Edition shows how seriously the team is taking that reality. Originally launched on Google Play and the Apple App Store in October 2024, Age of Empires Mobile has already built a massive audience of players who build cities, wage large‑scale battles, and chase rewards through events and alliances. Early 2026 will see that experience officially land on PC via Steam and the Microsoft Store.
This is more than a straight port. The PC Edition is being optimized with full mouse control, keyboard navigation, a refined UI, and enhanced 4K visuals so it feels like a proper PC‑native strategy game instead of a blown‑up mobile app.
Seamless cross‑play will let players move between phone, tablet, and PC while keeping progress intact, so existing mobile players can jump onto PC without starting over.
Pre‑release, the team is encouraging fans to wishlist the game on Steam and the Microsoft Store and to follow Age of Empires Mobile community channels for the latest launch details.
Age of Empires II: The Last Chieftains heads to South America
For Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition, 2026 opens with a journey to medieval South America in a new expansion called The Last Chieftains, arriving in February. This DLC dives into a region and era that Age II has only brushed against before, blending documented history and local folklore into a set of campaigns and civilizations that feel fresh while still fitting the classic Age II formula. It’s a natural extension of the game’s long‑running mission to spotlight under‑represented cultures and conflicts.
The Last Chieftains adds three new playable civilizations—Mapuche, Muisca, and Tupi—each with unique units, technologies, and a shared South American architecture style. All three will be available in Ranked play, giving competitive players fresh builds and strategies to master as soon as the expansion launches.
On the campaign side, players will command folk heroes such as Lautaro, Pacanchique, and Arariboia against colonial powers, internal rivals, and legendary figures like the berserker Galvarino and swashbuckling adventurer Nicolas Durand. The Muisca campaign even offers two perspectives depending on whether you support the noble Nemequene or the greed‑driven Quemuenchatocha, with pre‑orders for The Last Chieftains opening in January ahead of more detailed civ and campaign reveals.
Two big expansions and more Crucible for Age of Empires IV
Age of Empires IV also has a busy 2026 ahead. After the strong response to Knights of Cross and Rose and Dynasties of the East—now the franchise’s fastest‑selling expansion pre‑order—the team is lining up two more expansions.
The first arrives in spring 2026 with a new campaign inspired by Chinese history, adding another cinematic, documentary‑style story to the game’s library. Later in the year, a second expansion introduces two new base civilizations, including the long‑requested Vikings, and further builds out the Crucible mode. The team notes that co‑op Crucible missions are a major community request and confirms they’re exploring co‑op options alongside these expansions, even if timelines aren’t locked in yet.
Later in 2026, a second expansion will introduce two new base civilizations, including the long‑requested Vikings. The Vikings have been near the top of fan wishlists for years, so their addition should shake up both campaign and multiplayer metas. This expansion will also build on Age IV’s Crucible mode, the hero‑focused, roguelite‑flavored experience that players have embraced since its introduction.
The team acknowledges that co‑op missions for Crucible are a frequent community request and confirms that they are exploring co‑op options alongside the two major expansions, although they are not ready to share specific dates or modes yet.
Across all of this, the developers take a moment to thank the community for making 2025 a record‑setting year and for helping Dynasties of the East secure its place as the franchise’s fastest‑selling expansion pre‑order to date. That success is clearly fueling the confidence to invest in more campaigns, civs, and experimental modes as Age IV matures.
A confident roadmap for a thriving RTS franchise
The 2026 roadmap is a clear signal that Microsoft and the World’s Edge team see Age not as a nostalgia brand, but as a living, expanding ecosystem. Esports is scaling up with Red Bull Wololo: Londinium at Royal Albert Hall, single‑player and co‑op fans are getting fresh campaigns and civs across Age II and Age IV, mythology enthusiasts are finally seeing the Aztec pantheon ascend in Age of Mythology: Retold, and mobile fans are getting a fully‑realized PC Edition with cross‑play.
For players, it means there’s something to look forward to no matter how you like to experience the franchise. Competitive types can grind the in-game ladder for a shot at Red Bull Wololo: Londinium, while mythology fans min-max new gods and myth units like Demeter or the Aztec pantheon.
Single-player enthusiasts will dive into fresh campaigns—from South American folklore in The Last Chieftains to Chinese history in Age of Empires IV—or kick back on console and mobile with seamless cross-play. With pre-orders and wishlists opening soon, 2026 keeps Age of Empires and Age of Mythology dominating the RTS scene.
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