Software:Age of Empires II: The Forgotten

Short description: 2013 video game expansion to Age of Empires

Age of Empires II: The Forgotten
File:Age of Empires II - The Forgotten logo.png
Developer(s)	SkyBox Labs, Forgotten Empires
Publisher(s)	Microsoft Studios
Series	Age of Empires
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Release	November 7, 2013
Genre(s)	Real-time strategy
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Age of Empires II: The Forgotten is the first expansion pack to the 2013 real-time strategy game Age of Empires II, having been released 13 years after the first expansion for the original Age of Empires II, The Conquerors. The Forgotten originated as an unofficial modification for the game known as Forgotten Empires. The expansion pack was developed by the team that created the mod with the assistance of SkyBox Labs, based in Vancouver. The Forgotten introduces five civilizations (the Italians, Indians, Slavs, Magyars, and Incas), seven campaigns, units, technologies, gameplay modes, maps, improved AI and other tweaks to gameplay. It was released on 7 November 2013. The next expansion, The African Kingdoms was released in November 2015.

Gameplay changes

The Forgotten introduces various new gameplay features, tweaks and previously undetected bug fixes, including the new game modes Capture the Relic and Treaty. Additional maps, including an expanded maximum map size that is four times bigger than the previous largest. Over 30 new technologies and 9 new units are included. Custom creations can be shared directly to the Steam Workshop. Artificial Intelligence has been improved, modeled on competitive players.

Campaigns

Screenshot showing the Slavic civilization.

The Forgotten adds seven additional single player campaigns (Alaric, Bari, Sforza, Dracula, El Dorado, Prithviraj, and Battles of the Forgotten) which are partially based on historical events. The "Battles of the Forgotten" campaign is, like the "Battles of the Conquerors" campaign in Age of Empires II, a set of unrelated scenarios relating the stories of several medieval battles: the Honfoglalás, the Battle of Langshan Jiang, the Battle of Bukhara, the Battle of York, Dos Pilas, the Battle of Kurikara, the Battle of Bapheus, and the Conquest of Cyprus.

Battles of the Forgotten

An additional campaign in the game is Battles of the Forgotten. It is, unlike the other campaigns, not a collection of related events. Instead, Battles of the Forgotten features eight individual conflicts or events from across the world. A similar "campaign" was included in the previous expansion, Age of Empires II with Battles of the Conquerors.

• Bukhara (557)

This stage is inspired by the Battle of Bukhara. The player takes the role of Khosrow I as he leads the Sassanid Persians into battle against the White Huns while they are at peace with the Byzantines. Khosrow must ally with the Gökturks to do so, while taking advantage of the Silk Road trade to achieve a solid economic base. Once the White Huns are defeated, Khosrow must then defeat the Gökturks, who have turned against him.

• Dos Pilas (648)

The player must defend the Mayan city of Dos Pilas from Calakmul. The player then has the decision to defect to Calakmul or to remain loyal to Tikal.

• York (865)

In this scenario, the player assumes control of the sons and kin of Ragnar Lodbrok, as they seek to avenge their father and comrade with the invasion of the Great Heathen Army. There are many ways to win this scenario, from conquest to constructing a Wonder to capturing relics to accumulating gold. This scenario is famous among the playerbase for its large, detailed map of the British Isles; loading this whole map can be challenging for a computer to run and can cause lag.

• Honfoglalás (895)

This scenario follows the migration of the Magyar people from an area east of the Caspian Sea in the Eurasian steppes to the Carpathian Basin in modern Hungary. There are many unique features of Honfoglalás that make it resemble a small campaign; the player is advised to keep many saved games, and may even have to be defeated a few times to complete the objectives. Honfoglalás also allows the player to create cattle and sheep at the Town Center as a way to showcase the Magyars as a nomadic people.

• Langshan Jiang (919)

The player and all AI forces play as the Chinese. It depicts the Battle of Langshan Jiang.

• Cyprus (1191)

The player controls Richard the Lionheart as he invades Cyprus during the Third Crusade.

• Bapheus (1302)

In this scenario, the player plays as Osman I as he works to defeat the Byzantine Empire at the Battle of Bapheus and establish the beginnings of the Ottoman Empire.

Online play

Multiplayer is supported on Steam. The Forgotten introduces an "observer" mode, allowing for spectators to view online multiplayer matches, and also allows for streaming direct to Twitch.

Additional content

In April 2015, Microsoft announced through a blog post that a patch, as well as new downloadable content (DLC), was in development as a follow-up to The Forgotten. This expansion was released with the name The African Kingdoms, and includes new civilizations, campaigns, game modes, and units.

External links

• Official website