Hands-On With Halo Wars

The Opposable Thumbs blog got some hands-on time with Halo Wars, the upcoming RTS from Ensemble Studios. The early look is promising; concerns about the controls and the game's adherence to Halo's style have effectively been laid to rest. Now that work on the game is complete, Ensemble is shutting down, its employees splitting amongst at least two new game studios. "Thanks in large part to the game's control and Ensemble's clear consideration for the limitations of a controller when playing an RTS, Halo Wars manages to achieve a level of playability and accessibility that truly is fitting of the Halo dynasty. As Halo brought console FPS games to the masses in a way that Goldeneye couldn't, so too will Halo Wars introduce RTS games to a whole new league of gamers. ... Ensemble has done a great job at emulating what made Bungie's titles so great; from the orchestral themes to the massive battles and the ongoing drama of the Covenant war, Halo Wars is a Halo title through and through."

Comments

Bring back Myth!

[Cathoderoytube]

I think Bungie, or Microsoft or whoever thinks that Halo is so bloody popular because it's Halo. Which is probably true, but only in the realms of first person shooters. Once you take all that generic space marine action and bring it into the realm of giants like Starcraft, and Dawn of War, and even Command and Conquer (though not really a space marine RTS). Halo starts to look a lot more stale, and it becomes obvious that the developers are more interested in making money than innovative games. If they were interested in good games they'd bring back Myth.

Re:Bring back Myth!

[Anonymous Coward]

it becomes obvious that the developers are more interested in making money than innovative games.

Ever played the Marathon games by Bungie? A huge proportion of Halo was a rehash of the Marathon games. A pretty good rehash mind, but a rehash all the same. They just altered the story a bit and dressed it up in modern graphics.

Sometimes, things are successful because people *like* more of the same.

Re:Bring back Myth!

[Spatial]

This isn't flamebait you idiot mod.

I've played Marathon. It's an FPS where your home gets invaded by a consortium of alien races; you play as a green cyborg who can dual-weild and you take guidance from a female AI. Sound familiar?

It's a pretty good game too, you should get it.

Re:Goldeneye couldn't?

[Spatial]

Yes the mouse is faster and there are more buttons on a keyboard to bind to, but my bed and tv with the controler is where i want to be. Not having my hand and ass go numb in my chair.

This isn't a problem inherent to the mouse and keyboard, but with your desktop arrangement and posture.

I sit at a PC nearly 12 hours a day and never have my hands become sore or numb. You should definitely look into fixing up your desk or how you sit if your hands are getting numb.

Re:Goldeneye couldn't?

[0100010001010011]

Not having my hand and ass go numb in my chair.

Not a fan of the stranger?

Who wrote this?

[Anonymous Coward]

Did someone from Ars Technica write this or really...did someone from Ensemble Studios write this piece? This piece glorifies, nearly deifies, the Halo brand. This reads more like a three page commercial than an objective preview.

Thanks in large part to the game's control and Ensemble's clear consideration for the limitations of a controller when playing an RTS, Halo Wars manages to achieve a level of playability and accessibility that truly is fitting of the Halo dynasty.

So controller limitations are truly fitting of the Halo dynasty? I hope this game has a demo as I can't possibly believe the controls will be half as responsive and effective as a mouse and keyboard setup. And what level of playability and accessibility are they talking about? How is Halo as a FPS easier to pick up than a fighting game or puzzle game? How does that possibly relate to its RTA counterpart?

As Halo brought console FPS games to the masses in a way that Goldeneye couldn't, so too will Halo Wars introduce RTS games to a whole new league of gamers.

Wow such objective language here. You might as well put that in the Halo Wars advertising campaign. Where is the objectivity in video game previewing and reviewing. I want to read about a game in an objective way, not be subjected to blind praise, and worship. I'm not a 360 or PS3 or Wii fan, I'm an objectivity fan. I own all three consoles, and a (moderately adequate) gaming PC. But my god am I getting really sick of 'independent' video game writers.

In the long run, the ability for the game's campaign to differentiate itself from the pack as something other than just a ho-hum, run-of-the-mill RTS in MJOLNIR armor, as well as the game's multiplayer experience, will determine whether or not Halo Wars has the success and longevity of its FPS predecessors

What ho-hum, run-of-the-mill RTS games are they referring to? Starcraft? Warcraft III? C&C? Warhammer? Just because those games don't use 360 Pad controllers?

Ensemble is closing, so...

[Dutch Gun]

Am I the only one who is wary of purchasing this game because Ensemble is being shut down? There are two reasons for this:

1) It feels like I'm rewarding Microsoft for shutting down one of my favorite studios.
2) It pretty much guarantees no substantial post-game support.

I'm normally not counted among the "I hate M$" crowd, but I simply don't want to reward this behavior. I suppose management would look at poor sales as an indication that they did the right thing anyhow, but at least they wouldn't have my money...