Age of Empires: Definitive Edition
- Developer
- Tantalus Media
- Publisher
- Microsoft Studios
- Released
- 20 February 2018
- Age rating
- PEGI 12
- UK price
- £14.99
Platforms: PC
Genres: real time strategy rts , simulator , strategy , adventure
Age of Empires, the pivotal RTS that launched a 20-year legacy returns in definitive form for Windows 10 PCs. Bringing together all of the officially released content with modernized gameplay, all-new visuals and a host of other new features, Age of Empires: Definitive Edition is the complete RTS package. Engage in over 40 hours of updated campaign content with new narration and pacing, jump online in up to 8-player battles with new competitive features and modes, experience 4K HD visuals with overhauled animations, get creative with the scenario builder and share your creations with easy mod support. There’s never been a better time to jump in to Age of Empires. Welcome back to history.
Best gaming PC for Age of Empires: Definitive Edition in 2026
Full buyers guide →Below are the four PC tiers we'd actually recommend for Age of Empires: Definitive Edition today. These are our 2026 hardware picks, not the dated publisher minimums you'll find on Steam.
Budget
1080p · 60fps
- CPU
- AMD Ryzen 5 7600
- GPU
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 8GB
- RAM
- 16 GB
- Storage
- 1TB NVMe SSD
Mid-tier
1440p · 60fps
- CPU
- AMD Ryzen 7 7700
- GPU
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Super 12GB
- RAM
- 32 GB
- Storage
- 2TB NVMe SSD
High-end
1440p · 144fps
- CPU
- AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
- GPU
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16GB
- RAM
- 32 GB
- Storage
- 2TB NVMe SSD
Enthusiast
4K · 60fps
- CPU
- AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D
- GPU
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 32GB
- RAM
- 64 GB
- Storage
- 4TB NVMe SSD
Official system requirements
These are the minimum and recommended specs as published by Microsoft Studios on Steam. They tend to be conservative — usually "what ran the game at 1080p when it shipped". For what you should actually buy in 2026, see the tier cards above.
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 64bit | Windows 10 64bit |
| CPU | 1.8 Ghz+ Dual Core or greater i5 or AMD equivalent | 2.4 Ghz i5 or greater (4 HW threads) |
| RAM | 4 GB | 16 GB |
| GPU | DirectX 11.0 compatible card with Direct3D Feature Level 11_0 or higher support and 1GB of free memory - Intel: HD 4000 (Ivy Bridge CPU)or better GPU - nVidia: GT 430 or better desktop GPU, or GT 425M or better mobile GPU - AMD: Radeon HD 5500 or better Desktop GPU, or Mobility Radeon 5650 or better mobile GPU | Nvidia GTX 650; AMD HD 5850 |
| Storage | 20 GB | 20 GB |
| DirectX | 11 | 11 |
Verified 16 July 2026 against the Steam store page.
Can your PC run Age of Empires: Definitive Edition?
If your CPU is roughly equivalent to 2.4 Ghz i5 and your GPU is at or above Nvidia GTX 650; AMD HD 5850, you'll hit recommended settings at 1080p/60. For 1440p or higher, see the tier picks above.
Best gaming PC for Age of Empires: Definitive Edition → · Can I run it?