# Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition Age of Empires IV – Update 16.1.9737 and Yue Fei’s Legacy DLC Release Preview - Product: Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition (https://whatsnew.fyi/product/age-of-empires-iv-anniversary-edition) - Vendor: World's Edge - Date: 2026-04-30 - Original notes: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1466860/view/497226756796711889 - Permalink: https://whatsnew.fyi/product/age-of-empires-iv-anniversary-edition/releases/2026-04-30-age-of-empires-iv-update-16.1.9737-and-yue-fei-s What's New is an index, not a publisher: every entry below links to the vendor's own release notes, which are the authoritative source. Entries are labelled where they are hand-curated sample data, pre-releases, or drawn from a secondary source such as a developer blog. Reuse: the summaries, labels and curation here are © What's New. Quote freely with attribution and a link back; wholesale republication of the corpus is not permitted — terms: https://whatsnew.fyi/terms. The vendors' own release notes remain their publishers'. --- - **added** — Add Jin Dynasty civilization and 8-mission campaign with Yue Fei's Legacy DLC - **added** — Add four new maps: Ascension, Fangs, Snake River, and West Lake - **changed** — Make all previously available seasonal game modes, biomes and maps available at any time in custom games - **removed** — Remove seasonal game modes, biomes and maps from Quick Match to allow for more effective matchmaking - **changed** — Switch ranked seasons from being tied to updates to a fixed calendar with four three-month seasons per year starting on the first day of a month at 10 a.m. PT and ending three months later on the last day of the month at 10 a.m. PT - **changed** — Update ranked map pools with new 1v1 pool featuring Dry Arabia, Sunkenlands, Rocky River, King of the Hill, Archipelago, Waterholes, Relic River, Wasteland, and Hill and Dale - **changed** — Update team ranked map pool featuring Dry Arabia, Rocky River, Sunkenlands, Forts, Archipelago, African Waters, Gorge, West Lake, and Hedgemaze - **changed** — Update sheep distribution on new DLC maps, Dry Arabia, Baltic, and Gorge to place more sheep near each player's starting base while leaving fewer neutral sheep across the map - **changed** — Introduce quality of life features and balance changes Big changes are right around the corner! In addition to [_Age of Empires IV: Yue Fei’s Legacy_](https://www.ageofempires.com/games/age-of-empires-iv/yue-feis-legacy/) officially shipping and bringing the [Jin Dynasty](https://www.ageofempires.com/games/age-of-empires-iv/civilizations/jin-dynasty/) and a new 8-mission campaign with it on May 7th, we will also roll out some great quality of life features as well as balance changes, AI improvements, stability fixes, and more. With this update, we’re also introducing even more changes to the way Ranked Seasons and Events are managed to allow for more predictability in the future. Read on to learn more before jumping in game! > **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!** [](https://www.ageofempires.com/news/age-of-empires-iv-update-16-1-9737-and-yue-feis-legacy-dlc-release-preview/) > > 💬 **DISCUSS:** [ Official Forum](https://forums.ageofempires.com/c/age-of-empires-iv/) 💬 **DISCUSS:** [ Steam Forum](https://steamcommunity.com/app/1466860/discussions/) 🗣 **JOIN:** [ Official Discord](https://discord.gg/ageofempires) > Thanks 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 > Please Note: As part of updating to this latest build, any saved games and observable matches made on previous builds will be unable to be loaded or replayed. > --- ` ##### ◆Update 16.1.9737◆ ` --- > ##### Season Thirteen --- ##### Ranked Season and Events Update ##### Ranked Season and Events Update Back at the start of Season Twelve, we mentioned we’d be unlocking seasonal content (biomes, maps and modes) across the board to allow them to be enjoyed more while also starting an event rotation to ensure there are plenty of chances to earn a specific profile portrait or banner item. With this season, all previously available seasonal game modes, biomes and maps are now available at any time in custom games – note that we have removed these options from Quick Match to allow for more effective matchmaking. And starting this season, we’re also rolling out a comprehensive calendar for Ranked Season and Event rotations. In the past, Ranked Seasons have generally been tied to an update; however, to enable more predictable ranked seasons in the future, we’re switching away from this format. Moving forward, there will be four three-month seasons per year, all accompanied by a variety of event challenges. While we’re kicking off this year’s Summer Season early on May 7th, **in the future, all ranked seasons will start on the first day of a month at 10 a.m. PT and end three months later on the last day of the month at 10 a.m. PT. ** ##### Ranked Season Calendar **Spring Season:** 1st March → last day of May **Summer Season:** 1st June → last day of August **Fall Season:** 1st September → last day of November **Winter Season:** 1st December → last day of February ##### Event Calendar > > ##### Map Pool Rotation We’re excited to share a new Ranked Map Pool rotation, featuring a fresh mix of maps and a new sheep spawn distribution. This update adds new maps to the pool alongside returning favorites. We’re looking forward to seeing how these additions and balance changes shape the ranked ladder. **1v1 Ranked Map Pool ** - Dry Arabia - Sunkenlands - Rocky River - King of the Hill - Archipelago - Waterholes - Relic River - Wasteland - Hill and Dale **Team Ranked Map Pool ** - Dry Arabia - Rocky River - Sunkenlands - Forts - Archipelago - African Waters - Gorge - West Lake - Hedgemaze > > ##### New Map Spotlight - Coming with Yue Fei's Legacy DLC We’re thrilled to be **releasing four new maps alongside _Yue Fei’s Legacy_ on May 7th**, some of which will be included in ranked pools. You can find more details on each map below. [table noborder=1]**Ascen _[Truncated at 4000 characters — full notes: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1466860/view/497226756796711889]_