帝国时代即将以社交游戏的面貌重新回归。在原创开发者Ensemble Studios的指引下，微软公司宣布这款风靡一时的策略游戏将迎来一个“新的时代”，玩家们将进入一个永恒的网络世界。

Age-Of-Empires

有趣的是《帝国时代在线 Age of Empires Online 》正在由Robot Enterainment进行开发。这是一家由Ensemble的共同创始人Tony Goodman创办的工作室。整件事情似乎回到了原点，当初原创公司AoE的解散也似乎成了累赘之举。

Halo Wars是Endemble在解散前的最后作品，但据称在此之后工作室仍致力于Halo MMO，并与World of Warcraft相竞争。

不管真假情况如何, 与原版游戏的传统现实风格不同，《帝国时代在线》展现了一种截然不同的视觉风格。斑驳的古希腊文字装饰着测试版注册页面，汲取了FarmVille等社交游戏的美学元素。

游戏开始，玩家便可以建立自己的希腊文明，将其从村落发展成帝国，并逐步开始自己的征服史。在任务中，既可以单刀赴会也可以集结联盟。除此之外，更有史诗、神奇的文字、冒险、历史和战略等有待玩家的发掘。更有甚者，玩家可以连接到Windows Live的游戏，体验多人游戏的乐趣。

目前我们尚不知道《帝国时代在线》何时将结束测试，但如果您对此感兴趣，可以直接访问官方网站查询相关信息。

Why Ensemble Studios Died? Age of Empires Reborn as Social Game

Ensemble debacle comes full circle.

Age of Empires is coming back. as a social gaming experience. Following the booting of original developer Ensemble Studios, Microsoft has announced a “new era” for the popular strategy series, by letting players participate in a persistent online world.

The funny thing is that Age of Empires Online is being developed by Robot Entertainment – a studio founded by Ensemble co-founder Tony Goodman. So it seems the whole thing has come full circle, making the closure of the original AoE developer seem entirely unnecessary.

Ensemble’s last project before its closure was Halo Wars, but it was revealed that the studio was also working on a Halo MMO to compete with World of Warcraft.

For what it’s worth, Age of Empires Online sports an entirely different visual style to the traditional realistic nature of the original series – blocky, cartoony Greek characters adorn the Beta signup page, joining the social gaming aesthetic of Farmville and many others.

Saddening stuff, for sure, but perhaps the bullet points contained in this press release may quell your fears. You start your journey of conquest by establishing a Greek civilisation, and turning it from a village into an empire. Quests can be enjoyed alone or with friends, and there are “epic tales, quirky characters, adventure, history and strategy” to discover too. You can also connect to Games for Windows Live and enjoy online multiplayer action that way.

No word on when the game will be out of Beta, but if you ever get curious head straight to the official website and check it out. （source：spong）