Christmas will come a little later than expected for Age of Empires fans as the game's sequel, Age of Empires II, has been bumped from its late '98 release date to sometime in the spring of '99.

　　"Ensemble and Microsoft jointly made this decision after design documentation and feedback" indicated that the title the two companies wanted to see wouldn't be possible by the end of the year, David Hufford of Microsoft told GameSpot News on Tuesday.

　　Hufford said the development and publishing teams looked at "what was possible by the end of the year" and decided more time would be needed to make sure the game was properly balanced.

　　Ensemble Studios in Dallas, Texas, is the developer on the title, and Microsoft is publishing.

　　Hufford emphasized that when dealing with a sequel, attention is closely paid to what gamers like and dislike about the lead title. Hufford said Microsoft monitors all forms of user feedback including e-mails and Usenet posts.

　　Regarding the delay, Hufford said, "We like to look at what we gain." Microsoft will certainly lose out on holiday sales, but based on Hufford's comments, Microsoft seems willing to forgo the likely revenue spike in order to deliver a title that will ultimately drive sales throughout the life of the product.

　　Age of Empires, released in September 1997, has shipped more than a million copies. Age of Empires II is currently the only Ensemble Studios title Microsoft is publishing. Hufford said the publishing agreement with Ensemble is currently on a title-by-title basis.