I’ve got many a fond memory of Age of Empires, a series of real-time strategy games from Microsoft that were pitch-perfect in their balance of exploration and conquest. While Age of Empires II was the highlight for me, I never quite got into its third instalment. It was a fine game, but something just felt…off. Maybe it was the dramatic shift to 3D visuals in an age where such graphics were still in their infancy in that genre, or maybe it was the odd resource-gathering system. Perhaps the fourth time is the charm then, as Microsoft unveiled Age of Empires IV last night.