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Age of Empires 2 is coming to Steam? [Update: Evidence continues to mount, 4-pack]

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Nazgul11

Member
GAF we need to do a little detective work here.

If you look at the post from a year ago discussing the issues with hardware configurations, software compatibility and wide screen resolutions.

It was all posted by a guy named ES_MATTP

That obviously stands for Ensemble Studios, first name: Matt, last name initial: P

If you go and watch the Age of Empires 2 credits, you see a guy on there named Matt Pritchard.

We need to pick up the trail and see what this guy is up to now.

Oh jeez, I think I might've blown this one wide open...

Apparently he works at a little company known as...Valve Corporation.
 

Fred-87

Member
My first pc game i got for my b-day as a kid. Too difficult at the time, but still i played it a lot. Love it, will buy right away on steam. Hopefully it gives multiplayer new life.
 

Grief.exe

Member
Ok I think I may have found something. Who has a LinkedIn profile?

On that Moby Games link he is accredited with working on CS:GO.

Hidden Path entertainment is the company working on CS:GO, if you go to their website nothing.

If you search Matt Pritchard + Hidden Path you get this linkedIn profile http://www.linkedin.com/pub/matt-pritchard/1/42/282

On google it says, 'Programmer at Hidden Path Entertainment'

LinkedIn says, Greater Seattle Area Computer Software'

Not everyone in the company is listed there.

Example: Icefrog or Doug Church.

That list is like 100 or so people out of close to 400.

Good point, but IceFrog does value his anonymity.
 
Ok I think I may have found something. Who has a LinkedIn profile?

On that Moby Games link he is accredited with working on CS:GO.

Hidden Path entertainment is the company working on CS:GO, if you go to their website nothing.

If you search Matt Pritchard + Hidden Path you get this linkedIn profile http://www.linkedin.com/pub/matt-pritchard/1/42/282

On google it says, 'Programmer at Hidden Path Entertainment'



Good point, but IceFrog does value his anonymity.

Not anymore. He started using his real name last year (it was in the credits for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive).
 

Nazgul11

Member
Ok I think I may have found something. Who has a LinkedIn profile?

On that Moby Games link he is accredited with working on CS:GO.

Hidden Path entertainment is the company working on CS:GO, if you go to their website nothing.

If you search Matt Pritchard + Hidden Path you get this linkedIn profile http://www.linkedin.com/pub/matt-pritchard/1/42/282

On google it says, 'Programmer at Hidden Path Entertainment'



Good point, but IceFrog does value his anonymity.

What Google is pulling up is the "Viewers at this profile also viewed..." part of his LinkedIn page. The same thing also happens if you search "Matt Pritchard Valve".

Someone with a LinkedIn account would definitely be able to confirm though.
 

Grief.exe

Member
I went ahead and created a LinkedIn account, Matt Pritchard confirmed working for both Valve and Ensemble.

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/matt-pritchard/1/42/282

iZWwpv2gLihnh.png
 

cohrs

Neo Member
woow, this is fantastic news. This was my first RTS game and I loved every minute of it.

Does anyone remember the cheat code for the machine gun car?
 
I hope it gets Steam Workshop support, so you can easily download and install custom scenarios and campaigns. I also hope that there is some sort of official support in terms of additional content and patches because the fan support for this game is still huge, despite this being a 13 year old game so that there could be uniformity between clients when official patches are released. I remember patch deployment being one of the bigger problems when it came to online play (people had different versions of the game running when playing online and would only find out when they couldn't click the "I'm Ready" button in the ingame lobby), not to mention the rampant cheaters.

In fact, hackers had to create an anti-cheating patch (1.0e) to counteract online cheaters once official support was dropped.
 

Grief.exe

Member
I hope it gets Steam Workshop support, so you can easily download and install custom scenarios and campaigns. I also hope that there is some sort of official support in terms of additional content and patches because the fan support for this game is still huge, despite this being a 13 year old game so that there could be uniformity between clients when official patches are released. I remember patch deployment being one of the bigger problems when it came to online play (people had different versions of the game running when playing online and would only find out when they couldn't click the "I'm Ready" button in the ingame lobby), not to mention the rampant cheaters.

In fact, hackers had to create an anti-cheating patch (1.0e) to counteract online cheaters once official support was dropped.

Steam Workshop report would be massive.

Custom units, campaigns, races.

But that would likely be too much work to implement.
 
Free 2 Play please. or at least $15
Editor expanded with sellable units, weapons, civs and buildings, all sellable through workshop
2D intact
*faints*
 

Auto_aim1

MeisaMcCaffrey
British Longbowmen: "Prepare for battle... we come"

Delicious, delicious arrow spam. Will purchase this.
 
Steam Workshop report would be massive.

Custom units, campaigns, races.

But that would likely be too much work to implement.

Making custom units and races are a real pain for Age of Empires 2; I recall overwriting entire *.dat files that were hundreds of megabytes in size just to get one or two units installed or using a third party software like Mod Pack Studio, which would essentially do the same thing but by using a script file to backup and overwrite these large files.

Custom scenarios and campaigns are not, though, and it is a breeze to install them manually as well, so Steam Workshop support for those wouldn't be that difficult.

The game already has a built in file transfer thing, where when a host of a multiplayer game selects a custom scenario (remember the "blood" maps, like Castle Blood?) or a custom random map script (remember Green Arabia?), it is automatically transferred to the other players. If this could be extended to Steam as well as allow for installing additional audio files (e.g. for voiceover work in custom scenarios/campaigns), it would be amazing.
 
J

Jotamide

Unconfirmed Member
Ok guys. Keep calm and wololo.

EDIT: Actually, I rather have it on GOG.
 

Grief.exe

Member
The Steam Registry has been delivering lately.

AoE2, Fez, and Dust are all but confirmed.

If Halo 1-3 comes out, Steamworks, optimized, no mouse acceleration, dedicated servers.

I will explode.
 

Nazgul11

Member
Nice. So what does this all mean if Microsoft is willing to start releasing PC ports on steam? They Give up on GFWL?
 

speedpop

Has problems recognising girls
I saw an Age of Empires anthology collection last night. I almost rebought everything there and then.
 

Grief.exe

Member
Nice. So what does this all mean if Microsoft is willing to start releasing PC ports on steam? They Give up on GFWL?

GFWL is effectively dead.

The last major publisher has dropped the service almost entirely, Capcom.

The last 3 Microsoft Published games on PC have been Steamworks.

Halo 1-3, Fez, AoE2, and Dust all rumored/confirmed to be coming to Steam. AoE2 looks to have Steamworks integration.
 

Tehalemi

Member
I put AoE 1 in as a non-Steam game a week ago, and now I hear this? >:|

Now you listen to me:

All I want...ALL I WANT, is to have Age of Empires 1...on Steam and this is the critical part for me personally...with the original soundtrack in the game as it was before. No bloody MIDI's! You can WOLOLO right off with those. I want to hear those beautiful songs as I pummel an entire village into non-existence. >xD

On topic, putting Steam Workshop into these games would be insane if users are creative about it.
 

Aaron

Member
Still have the disc for AoE II. It's worth hanging onto, though playing it on Win7 was a no go. Gladly buy it again to experience perfection.
 

Nazgul11

Member
GFWL is effectively dead.

The last major publisher has dropped the service almost entirely, Capcom.

The last 3 Microsoft Published games on PC have been Steamworks.

Halo 1-3, Fez, AoE2, and Dust all rumored/confirmed to be coming to Steam. AoE2 looks to have Steamworks integration.

Yeah, these Steam leaks have been pretty huge.

Best case scenario is that they use these re-release opportunities to add more long term multiplayer solutions to some of these titles. Halo 2 and AoE2 could especially use this.
 

Grief.exe

Member
Yeah, these Steam leaks have been pretty huge.

Best case scenario is that they use these re-release opportunities to add more long term multiplayer solutions to some of these titles. Halo 2 and AoE2 could especially use this.

Yes agreed.

Put in dedicated server options for Halo 2.

AoE2 seems like it would be fine to set up a server on someone's IP and play through that.
 

ToD_

Member
Funny, I was just listening to the soundtrack yesterday, which was the first time since I heard (or played) since it came out. And now this happens.
 
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