Welcome to an exciting update for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition! This patch brings bug fixes, balance changes, plus paves the road for the Empire Wars 1v1 ladder reset that will become the Red Bull Wololo: Londinium ladder from January 2nd to 18th, 2026. Be sure to dig down into the post below to get all of the smaller details before hopping in-game and checking them out firsthand.

This is just a small taste of what is coming in the latest update. For a more complete list, please visit our site and check out our blog. Happy Gaming!

💬 DISCUSS: Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Forum
🗣 JOIN: The Age of Empires Official Discord

Thank you again to our amazing community members, all of whom have helped to make Age of Empires what it is today!

—The Age of Empires Team

---

[h1] ◆ Update 162286 ◆[/h1]

---

Build Spotlight

Temporary Reset of Empire Wars 1v1 Ladder During Red Bull Wololo: Londinium

This patch is mainly paving the road for the Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Empire Wars 1v1 ladder that will become the Red Bull Wololo: Londinium ladder from January 2nd to 18th, 2026, 17:00 UTC. The rating will be reset, and players may compete for a slot in the main event. The top four players advance into the main event, while 5th-12th place finishers gain an advantage for the last-chance qualifier.

Why is the ladder being temporarily reset?
To ensure an even playing field for all competitors, the leaderboard has to be temporarily reset. The four with the highest ELO rating achieved on the leaderboard on January 18th, at 17:00 UTC, will be directly invited to the Red Bull Wololo: Londinium event taking place in London, UK.

How does this affect you?
Your experience will remain the same; however, you may find that your EW 1v1 rating will require 10 games before being shown on the leaderboard. With this change, you will be able to experience what it’s like to play on the settings and maps of one of the biggest tournaments for Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition. The ladder holds no restrictions—anyone is free to play on the ladder whether they intend to participate in the tournament or not.

Please be aware, there is a controller-only ladder visible for Red Bull Wololo: Londinium for those playing on Xbox and PS5 consoles. However, this ladder will not be eligible for qualification. Remember to enable cross-play, as qualification will only be available to those on the cross-play-enabled ladder.

This is just a small taste of what is coming in the latest update. For a more complete list, please visit our site and check out our blog. Happy Gaming!

:alertalert: DISCLAIMER

This list is subject to change and should not be considered a comprehensive list of all the known issues we’re tracking. The above is to inform you of the team’s current priorities, which will change as other issues arise or take precedence.

For the latest updates and announcements, please visit our social channels.