After more than a decade of waiting, Age of Empires finally returns with a fourth game in the series, one that looks to walk a delicate tightrope of nostalgia and new ideas while still setting the benchmark for the RTS genre.

Real-time strategy? For many of us, the first taste of that delightful franchise came through Microsoft’s Age of Empire series. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it sure as hell was burnt to the ground within minutes if your construction skills weren’t up to scratch. Decades after release, and Age of Empires II is still the definitive version of that franchise.

So what’s the origin behind the classic Age of Empires II cheat code? Old-fashioned hunger from Age of Empires II developer Ensemble Studios and appreciation for one of the finest meals that American cuisine has ever produced

The first casualty of October then is Age of Empires: Definite Edition, whose original October 19 release date has been left in burning away. With like those tiny little flames. The Age of Empires flames. Dammit you know what I’m talking about.

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.

An expansion for the HD remake of Age of Empires II is on the way. It’ll be the second new expansion, after 2013’s The Forgotten that took a fan mod and made it all official-like. The African Kingdom will introduce four new factions to the series, each with their own campaign.

Microsoft job listings suggest we could see the classic historical RTS Age of Empires resurrected for a new generation.

But it won’t be Age Of Empires 4. HEYOH! Instead, it’ll be a new mobile game dubbed Age Of Empires: Castle Siege that is less click click and more touchy touchy.