Halo Wars

Did You Know?

• The pre-release demo was downloaded by more than 2 million Xbox Live Gold members in the first five days, setting a record for most demo downloads on the service.
• The first DLC package, Strategic Options, added three new multiplayer modes: Keepaway, Tug-of-war, and Reinforcement.

Gameplay

Halo Wars is a real-time strategy game developed exclusively for the Xbox 360, where players command armies from a bird's-eye view of the battlefield. The game focuses on military combat but includes streamlined resource management and base construction elements. It was designed with the Xbox 360 controller in mind; for example, the A button selects units, with a single tap selecting one unit and a double tap selecting all units of the same type. The d-pad navigates to current battles and cycles through bases, while the right analog stick adjusts the camera angle, and a radial menu is used for base construction. The game features a story-based campaign mode playable alone or cooperatively over Xbox Live, and a plotless skirmish mode for competition against human or computer opponents. Players control two factions: the human UNSC (as Captain Cutter, Sergeant Forge, or Professor Anders) and the alien Covenant (as the Prophet of Regret, the Arbiter, or an unnamed Brute Chieftain). Each faction has different units, strengths, and special abilities, with three selectable Leaders per side that allow specific units and upgrades. Covenant Leaders appear on the battlefield as units, while human leaders do not. Combat is balanced by a rock-paper-scissors system: ground vehicles are effective against infantry, infantry against aircraft, and aircraft against vehicles. Most units have unique special abilities, such as human Marines throwing grenades or the Warthog running over enemies. Humans can use the Spirit of Fire's special abilities, including a powerful coilgun called a M.A.C. Covenant units are generally weaker but can use inexpensive shield generators for base protection. Players build and expand bases to train units and allocate resources for upgrades, with limited base locations on each map making fortification a priority. A player is defeated if all bases are destroyed and either their army is destroyed or 60 seconds pass without building a new base.

Synopsis

Set in the Halo universe during the 26th century, Halo Wars unfolds in 2531, about two decades before Halo: Combat Evolved. The Covenant, a coalition of alien species, attacked humanity in 2525, and years later, UNSC forces are still fighting on the colony of Harvest. Captain James Cutter commands the UNSC warship Spirit of Fire; he is a respected leader whose lack of political drive keeps him from higher rank. Under him is Sergeant John Forge, a tough Marine who has been jailed twice for disobeying orders to protect his men. Scientist Professor Ellen Anders joins the mission, fascinated by ancient Forerunner ruins. The ship’s AI, Serina, assists with a sardonic wit. Leading the Covenant’s search for Forerunner technology is the Arbiter, a holy warrior assigned by the Prophet Hierarchs to oversee humanity’s destruction. The Spirit of Fire heads to Harvest to probe Covenant activity, where Cutter learns the enemy has dug up something at the planet’s north pole. After the main UNSC outpost falls, Cutter orders Forge to reclaim it. Forge then scouts the Covenant dig site and finds a Forerunner facility under the Arbiter’s direction. His troops stop the Covenant from destroying it, and Anders arrives. She identifies the structure as an interstellar map and spots coordinates leading to the human colony of Arcadia.

Development

Bungie originally conceived Halo: Combat Evolved as a real-time strategy game, but after Microsoft acquired Bungie in 2000, it became a first-person shooter. Bungie produced Halo 2 and Halo 3 before separating from Microsoft, though the rights to Halo remained with Microsoft. In 2004, Microsoft-owned Ensemble Studios, developers of the Age of Empires strategy series, began work on the game that would become Halo Wars. The studio confirmed in April 2006 it was working on a console-based RTS. CEO Tony Goodman said they spent a whole year reconstructing how controls would work on an RTS game. Halo Wars was originally not a Halo series title. Ensemble spent 12 to 18 months working on the control scheme using the Age of Mythology engine, hacking an Age of Mythology expansion, The Titans, as a prototype for control experiments. The team found managing Age of Mythology's resources, units, and buildings too difficult with the console's controller. Jason Pace, Microsoft Game Studio's lead producer, stated that a PC-style strategy game cannot be effectively brought to console because the fundamental game mechanic is tied to mouse and keyboard input devices, requiring adaptation of the underlying strategy mechanic. Senior designer Justin Rouse said the team kept the controls from their research but scrapped the rest to build from the floor up what they needed: the basics, the core of a strategy game. Ensemble was closed by Microsoft before the game's release, but Robot Entertainment, founded by many former Ensemble employees, continued to support Halo Wars with updates and downloadable content.

Reception

Halo Wars received generally positive reviews, with an average score of 82/100 on Metacritic. Critics were split on whether it was a successful console translation of the RTS genre. GameSpy's Allen Rausch argued that, as Halo: Combat Evolved showed first-person shooters could work on consoles, Halo Wars proved an RTS could work on a console. Tom Price of TeamXbox said gamers had waited a long time for a console RTS to get it right, and Halo Wars did so. Official Xbox Magazine credited Ensemble with creating a strategy game that felt at home on the console rather than a poorly shoehorned port. 1UP's Thierry Nguyen called it a solid beginning for a console RTS. Digital Trends' Scott Steinberg said it made a strong case for RTS viability on consoles. Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle dismissed the game as a remedial real-time strategy for dummies with little innovation. Reviewers generally praised the controls, with less experienced RTS players like Darren Zenko of the Toronto Star appreciating the streamlined experience. In contrast, Luke Anderson of GameSpot said the game lacked depth for seasoned RTS players. Some critics were frustrated by the lack of control features such as group management, hotkeys, rally points, and the need to return to base to adjust production. Brett Molina of USA Today said experts would find the action oversimplified but that the game was an excellent choice for Halo fans and new RTS players. Reviewers from GameSpy, G4TV, and Eurogamer stated the controls worked well because developers omitted features to make options quickly available, such as limiting base construction to select areas.