Halo Wars (Xbox 360) Review

Posted by John Curry on 03.05.2009

How does the universe of Halo stack up when the genre changes from a First Person Shooter to a Real Time Strategy Game? The full review is inside.



Title: Halo Wars
Publisher: Microsoft
Developer: Ensemble Studios
Type: Real-Time Strategy
Players: 6
Rated: T for Teen

There are certain games that are considered the flagship titles of specific systems. Super Mario for the Nintendo, Final Fantasy for Playstation (at least until this year that is) and for the Microsoft Systems it is the world of Master Chief known as Halo. Since Halo’s inception on the original Xbox, the game has developed a devoted cult of followers who swear by the games and often cite them as the reasoning for the superiority of the Xbox 360. Halo is also the game most cited by those who prefer the Playstation systems as the perfect example of an overhyped game being unfairly pandered to the masses as a 10/10 game. Regardless of your opinion as to who is right, you cannot deny that Halo is the game that made the Xbox and one of the most popular games of all time, as evident by the late night gatherings of legions of fans who crowd the local Best Buy and Wal-Mart with hopes of being one of the first people to experience the newest adventure in the Halo Universe.



As the marketing world goes, anything with a large following will be expanded and exploited to the point that there are Halloween costumes, school supplies, bedroom sets, action figures, movies and spin offs galore. Halo is no exception to this concept. With the massive success of Halo 2 and Halo 3 on the Xbox 360, fans need something to satisfy their addiction to the Master Chief, as Huey Lewis one said “a new drug,” and a new drug we have been given. With Halo Wars, our addiction to the Halo universe has been changed. No longer are we indulging in a first person shooter, gleefully running around killing the Covenant while driving our Warthogs. All of this has been replaced by a real time strategy game. Aside from the name and characters and cut scenes this is where the similarities between all previous Halo games end.

Graphics

While this game may not be the pinnacle of game play graphics it is definitely the pinnacle of cut scene graphics. From the onset of the game you will be enthralled by the supreme quality and detail of the video introduction and cut-scenes. The cut-scenes are absolutely spectacular in 720p and I found myself actually wanting to see more and more of the storyline given during the cut-scenes than actually playing the game. The hues and colors are bright, vibrant and vivid down to the smallest pixilation. The quality of the cut-scenes and introduction video actually are evidence of how close we are to replacing our actors with CGI. There is one thing I do want commend the produces for taking in to account the various interruptions that happen during cut-scenes and included a pause button so that those of us who want to enjoy it can.



The game play graphics, however, are nowhere near as impressive. The best way to describe the top down graphics are three years behind where they should be and lacking any innovation. While they are not horrendous, they are almost identical in quality to Marvel Ultimate Alliance which came out with the original Xbox 360. The landscapes are done well but nothing any more innovative or better than any other top down turn based strategy game such as the Civilization or Command and Conquer series. One of the largest flaws I found with the game is the monotony of the character designs with the exception being the special selections such as the Cyclops or vehicles. You will spend most of the game identifying yourself by color rather than by unit.

Offline Game Play

The game offers single player, offline multiplayer, and online multiplayer.

The offline game play focuses on several missions in which you are essentially fighting the same for forces that you have been battling since the inception of the Halo series. Now rather than assuming the role of the Master Chief you are now assuming the role of a hero, each with its own special and unique capabilities and the entire army. With each cut-scene you learn of the story of the continuing battle in the Halo universe from a more global perspective rather than an individual perspective. The game-play itself focuses on establishing bases, building armies, researching technology and development, gathering supplies, and conducting military operations with set objectives that you are to achieve. The base development is imperative in order to gather supplies which serve as your “money” to buy additional soldiers, vehicles and upgrades.

While the game itself is not poorly done it has been done before and as a result seems as if something is missing. After about twenty minutes of playing an individual level or mission you begin to grow bored and actually start thinking to yourself that you might actually have something better to do than play this game. Consequently, the game seems to drag on as a result of this. Is it bad? No not really, but it is a lot like eating flavorless chicken, you know it’s food, its keeping you from being hungry but it is missing the excitement and flavor that makes you want more.



One of the biggest issues the game has is with the airborne weapons. I did not enjoy trying to select the aircraft while trying to control the ground forces simply because they were not easy to select. Every time you try to select one during a battle you will attempt to click it only to end up clicking on the artillery nearby. The only other large complaint I have about the game play is the inability to have one unit wait near a fight without engaging. If your unit is anywhere near a fight it will begin to pursue the enemy.

The controls are simple to use. There are no complex actions that will cause your fingers to cramp up or require any real gaming skills to maximize your experience. The game is simply a point and click then make your decision. If you want to normal attack just push X, special attack Y and LB selects all units for example. Nothing complicated…nothing special.

Online Game Play

The online gaming community for this game will be astronomical with no shortage of opponents to challenge during the initial release period of this game. The battles are highly dependent on who you chose to lead your forces as they each have a unique ability such as half priced units, faster upgrades, or free research and development. Once you have selected your group the objective is simple: build up your army to destroy your opponent by destroying their base.

The online community and fans of online gaming will love this game. There is no lag whatsoever and the graphics are the same as offline game play which attests to the quality of the game. Halo Wars is also one of those games that justify the cost of an Xbox Live account as one single match can last upwards of an hour or more depending on the quality of the competition which is a very big plus.

Sound

The sound quality of this game is a double edged sword. While the voice acting and music during the cut-scenes is on par with anything to hit the theater, while the game play sound is droll and monotonous with little to no real excitement. While some people will be a fan of the emphasis on the battle sounds there will be a majority of people who would prefer some music that implies you are under attack or when you enter into a real battle. Other than that, the only sounds that you are graced with are classical music which actually seems to counter the mood the game tries to set.

The weapons and vehicle sounds are done extremely well with a distinguishable difference between firing a laser and firing a rifle for example. The weapons also blend into a great harmony of war when it does ensue.



Fun Factor

Establishing how fun this game is hard. For me, as I mentioned earlier, there seems to be something missing. Regardless of how many times and how many various ways I tried to play Halo Wars, the same result always came about, I was enjoying it for about twenty minutes or so and then I just hit a wall of boredom. However, to ensure that I wasn’t being biased, I invited my neighbor over to test out his opinion and he absolutely loved all facets of this game, which tells me that this game is going to be a hit or miss. If you enjoy the top down real time strategy game in the mold of the Command and Conquer series with a little StarCraft flavor then you will love this game. However if you are expecting anything close to the original Halo FPS you will most likely grow bored with this game rather quickly .

Lasting Appeal

Depending on which side of the spectrum you fall on this game can have a great lasting appeal or it may not last outside of the day. For those who enjoy the Halo universe and partake in the books, videos and more will play this game from all aspects, namely the Covenant, and will revel in the chance to play as a many different characters who will add a little flavor to each different multiplayer game. Unfortunately, outside of the multiplayer (both online and off) there is really no lasting appeal. If you beat the solo mission then aside from simply wanting to unlock achievements there is nothing to bring you back to playing it again.

The game does lend itself to having different maps available to download frequently and with the previous Halo’s serving as an example, one can assume these maps will start rolling out quickly.

Overall, what it comes down to is whether you enjoy multiplayer and how frequently new map packs come out to change up the landscape so you can enjoy battling your friends using different methodology and tactics. If Halo Wars does not release map packs and upgrades consistently then there will be very little replay value after a week.

The 411

Rent. Rent. Rent this game before you spend the 60 dollars or more on it. The game is not a must have or a blow you out of the water kind of game for everyone. Make sure you at least take the risk of renting the game for five or six bucks to make sure that you are okay paying the sixty bucks. If you are like me then you definitely regret spending the sixty dollars on this game to get what should have been the five days worth of excitement for six dollars.

Graphics	8.5	The cut-scenes and opening video are the saving grace of the graphics for this game
Gameplay	8.0	Monotonous game play with little innovation was a letdown, however the online game play is a 9 easy
Sound	7.0	Nothing special during game play. Voice acting/ cut scenes are a 10 and the best quality of any game on any system.
Lasting Appeal	8.5	(See Fun Factor)
Fun Factor	8.5	if you love online this is the game for you. If not bump this down to a 6)
Overall	8.1   [ Very Good ]

Screenshots
All 9 Halo Wars Screenshots