AoE2 arrived on console years after its PC launch. We're talking about developing AoE 4 at the same time on PC and console. It's a very different scenario.

Also, AoE 2 was the last great Age of Empires games. Mythology was entirely different with the heroes and God powers, and AoE 3 wasn't very good (imho).

AoE 2 launched on console in 2002 and AoE 3 launched in 2005, a clear sign that working on that console port damaged the studio .

And we're only talking about an hypothetical launch of AoE 4 on console, we're not suggesting that it will come or anything.

AoE: The Age of Kings was the last great AoE title.
Eat your heart out, PC!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvDspdZqoiM

As long as the game is cut down, from the PC version (meaning, the core design wasn't compromised), I don't really care what platforms it goes to.

And you complained about the Halo Wars graphics...

I complained about the visuals.
Though the graphics are lacking too.

Keep in mind:
I hate Halo's art style.
I have very fond memories playing the AoE franchise.

I am pretty biased in this matter.

Age of Empires was my first RTS game, from a time when I didn't even know what an RTS was. I'm also biased, but not blind.

The news:

SALES & "SALES"/DEALS

Electronic Arts reveals its Q3 FY18 financial results, Battlefield 1 surpasses 25 million unique players
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/electronic-arts-reveals-its-q3-fy18-financial-results-battlefield-1-surpasses-25-million-unique-players/
Electronic Arts today announced preliminary financial results for its third fiscal quarter ended December 31st, 2017. According to the results, Battlefield 1 now has more than 25 million unique players life to date, and nearly 70% of players engaged in the single-player campaign in Star Wars: Battlefront 2.

Resident Evil 7 has shipped 4.8 million units worldwide
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/resident-evil-7-has-shipped-4-8-million-units-worldwide/
Capcom has announced that Resident Evil 7 has shipped 4.8 million units worldwide. In other words, the Japanese company has shipped 700k more units in its 3rd Quarter FY3/2018. For what it’s worth, Capcom targets 10 million lifetime unit sales for RE7 and it appears that this latest Resident Evil game won’t hit that goal.

Time now to see some deals:

• At GOG there's a new sale centered in spiderweb's games: https://www.gog.com/promo/20180131_spiderweb
• At Steam we have the Midweek Madness sale with:
  • Scrap Mechanic at 40% off: http://store.steampowered.com/app/387990/Scrap_Mechanic/
  • Tooth and Tail at 50% off: http://store.steampowered.com/app/286000/Tooth_and_Tail/

SOFTWARE

Godot Engine 3.0 is a free open-source engine that supports most modern techs & is available to everyone
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/godot-engine-3-0-is-a-free-open-source-engine-that-supports-most-modern-techs-is-available-to-everyone/
The Godot Engine Team has released a brand new version of its Godot Engine, Godot Engine 3.0. Godot Engine 3.0 is a free open-source engine that comes with a brand new rendering engine with state-of-the-art PBR workflow for 3D, an improved assets pipeline, GDNative to load native code as plugins, C# 7.0 support, Bullet as the 3D physics engine, and many other features.

>>Here's the official website.

MODS/EMULATORS

This Divinity: Original Sin 2 mod will add a new world, new mechanics & a real-time strategy system
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/this-divinity-original-sin-2-mod-will-add-a-new-world-new-mechanics-real-time-strategy-system/
The Abyss Team has just detailed a new ambitious mod for Divinity: Original Sin 2, called Divinity: Into The Abyss. Divinity: Into The Abyss is a new campaign that will take the player to a whole new land, add some new systems to the game, improved and customized AI and above all a new R.T.S.(Real Time Strategy) mode where the player gets to create a faction and lead it across the new and some old maps.

Dark Souls Overhaul Project is a huge texture overhaul pack and is now available for download
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/dark-souls-overhaul-project-is-a-huge-texture-overhaul-pack-and-is-now-available-for-download/
Modder ‘SageIchigo’ has released Dark Souls Overhaul Project version 4.5 for Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition. According to the modder, this mod changes all the textures in the game with HD versions or re-imaginings of the textures, while still trying to retain the Souls feeling.

>>Available through moddb.

GAMING NEWS

Attack on Titan-inspired game, Extinction, to be released on April 10th
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/attack-on-titan-inspired-game-extinction-to-be-released-on-april-10th/
Iron Galaxy and Modus Games have announced that their Attack on Titan-inspired game, Extinction, will be released on April 10th. In Extinction, players will be able to use a variety of tactics and skills.

Battlefield 2018 coming this October, Anthem officially releasing in early 2019, monetizations will return in Battlefront 2
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/battlefield-2018-coming-this-october-anthem-officially-releasing-in-early-2019/
Electronic Arts has officially confirmed today that Anthem will be releasing in early 2019. This official statement basically confirms the earlier rumours that we shared last week. However, the big publisher denied that this delay was due to development issues. Instead, EA confirmed that a new Battlefield game is coming out this October.

DCS World 2.5 – Free open beta phase launched, PC system requirements
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/dcs-world-2-5-free-open-beta-phase-launched-pc-system-requirements/
Eagle Dynamics has launched the open beta phase for Digital Combat Simulator World (DCS World) 2.5. This open beta is described as a free-to-play digital battlefield game and the “release” version will be available shortly after Open Beta testing is complete.

Destiny 2 patch 1.1.2 is now available for download, full patch release notes unveiled
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/destiny-2-patch-1-1-2-is-now-available-for-download-full-patch-release-notes-unveiled/
Activision and Bungie have released a brand new update for Destiny 2. This new patch will update your game’s version to 1.1.2 and features a number of balance tweaks. Furthermore, and thanks to this patch, raid encounters drop at least one armor or weapon item and all raid encounters now have a chance to grant an Exotic reward.

Assassin’s Creed Origins patch 1.21 is now available, adjusts Horde Mode progression system
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/assassins-creed-origins-patch-1-21-is-now-available-adjusts-horde-mode-progression-system/
Ubisoft has released a brand new update for Assassin’s Creed Origins. This latest patch will update your game’s version to 1.21 and comes with some fixes and tweaks, as well as adjustments to the progression system in the Horde Mode.

World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth Official PC System Requirements
https://www.dsogaming.com/news/world-of-warcraft-battle-for-azeroth-official-pc-system-requirements/
Blizzard has just https://eu.battle.net/support/en/article/137431" target="_blank">revealed the official PC requirements for the seventh expansion of World of Warcraft, Battle for Azeroth. According to the specs, PC gamers will at least need an Intel Core i5-760 or an AMD FX-8100 with 4GB of RAM and an NVIDIA GeForce GT 560 2GB or an AMD Radeon HD 7850 2GB or an Intel HD Graphics 530.

The news, the sequel:

GTA Online gets a new electric sports car and assassination mode with double $GTA and experience
http://www.pcgamer.com/gta-online-gets-a-new-electric-sports-car-and-a-target-assassination-mode-with-double-gta-and-experience/
Not long after the release of GTA Online's Air Quota mode comes another addition to its extensive list of adversary modes this week: Hardest Target, where 4-16 players across two teams have to kill the other's target while guarding their own. That's live in the game now, and you can get double experience and $GTA when playing it until 5 February—which is pretty standard with the debut of new competitive modes.

Chilean war chief Lautaro will lead the Mapuche into battle in Civilization 6: Rise and Fall
http://www.pcgamer.com/chilean-warchief-lautaro-will-lead-the-mapuche-into-battle-in-civilisation-6-rise-and-fall/
The latest in the long line of new groups arriving in the Civilization 6: Rise and Fall expansion is the Mapuche, who fought back against Spanish colonists in Chile in a war spanning three centuries. They will be led by Lautaro, a revered warchief who escaped Spanish capture before leading a fightback from the native people.

The Elder Scrolls: Legends is getting another small-but-spicy expansion
http://www.pcgamer.com/the-elder-scrolls-legends-is-getting-another-small-but-spicy-expansion/
Due on 1 February—that's next Thursday!—the new set is called the Forgotten Hero Collection, and it's one of those smaller affairs, much like the Madhouse Collection. That means you get 12 new cards to collect, three of which will be unique legendaries. Forgotten Heroes will cost $10 or 1,500 in-game gold, for which you get full playsets of all the cards, with no need to buy packs.

Rainbow Six Siege: Operation Chimera's new operators bring drones and nanobots to the fight
http://www.pcgamer.com/rainbow-six-siege-operation-chimeras-new-operators-bring-drones-and-nanobots-to-the-fight/
Ubisoft has shared a sneak peek into the upcoming Rainbow Six Siege Year 3 Season 1 expansion Operation Chimera, which will add a pair of new operators to the game and the co-op Outbreak mode, set on a new map based in a small town in New Mexico that's struggling with some unusual problems.

Overwatch patch nerfing Mercy and Junkrat is now live
http://www.pcgamer.com/mercy-valkyrie-nerf/
As of the latest patch, now live, Mercy's Valkyrie now only lasts 15 seconds (down from 20). It also no longer grants an extra charge of Resurrect or remove its cast time. The speed boost that Valkyrie grants to Guardian Angel has also been decreased by 50 percent.

You're glued to the floor in 2D platformer Dandara
http://www.pcgamer.com/youre-glued-to-the-floor-in-2d-platformer-dandara/
The titular protagonist of 2D Metroidvania platformer Dandara is glued to the floor. Admittedly, I don't know if it's actually glue, but I'll be damned if it doesn't look like it. That might sound like a pretty big problem for the protagonist of a platformer, but two-man Brazil-based developer Long Hat House has worked out a clever solution: bouncing.

Hollow Knight's third free expansion will add new boss fights and an extra game mode
http://www.pcgamer.com/hollow-knights-third-free-expansion-will-add-new-boss-fights-and-a-new-game-mode/
Hollow Knight, the best platformer of 2017, is getting a third free expansion pack called Gods & Glory, which will add new characters, boss fights and an extra game mode. It'll arrive at some point in the next few months. Sadly, it sounds like this might be the last expansion for the game: developer Team Cherry says it's the "final chapter of the Knight’s journey".

Epic giving away Fortnite freebies to make up for downtime
http://www.pcgamer.com/epic-giving-away-fortnite-freebies-to-make-up-for-downtime/
Fortnite has had its fair share of problems over the past week, what with a 14-hour downtime followed by multiple issues for people trying to play with friends. The game seems to be over the worst of it for now, but Epic is keen to make it up to players, and to that end it's giving away some freebies.

Titanfall developer Respawn's Star Wars game likely to release by March 2020
http://www.pcgamer.com/titanfall-developer-respawns-star-wars-likely-to-release-by-march-2020/
It's been nearly two years since we found out that Titanfall studio Respawn Entertainment was working on a third-person action game set in the Star Wars universe, and we still know very little about the project. But we do at least now have a rough release window: it's likely to arrive at some time between April 2019 and April 2020.

Murderous Pursuits is a Victorian-era multiplayer assassination game in the style of The Ship
http://www.pcgamer.com/murderous-pursuits-is-a-victorian-era-multiplayer-assassination-game-in-the-style-of-the-ship/
Remember 2006's The Ship? It was a rather good assassination game about identifying your target (another player) among a sea of NPCs milling about a cruise liner and taking them out without anybody noticing, all the while making sure you didn't end up with a knife in your back. Blazing Griffin bought the game in 2011 and took to Kickstarter to fund a follow-up called The Ship: Full Steam Ahead, but fell short of its goal. However, now the developer is back with Murderous Pursuits, which looks impressive and is a sequel to The Ship in all but name.

The final decision is upon us, people!

https://geizhals.de/?cat=WL-921980

Flip a coin between an RX560 and a 1050ti and tell me what you got!

1050ti, I swear I flipped a coin and aren't an Nvidia fanboy.