Hands-On With Halo Wars 52
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."
Re:Bring back Myth! (Score:4, Informative)
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:Goldeneye couldn't? (Score:2, Informative)
Other than the people who aren't old enough, who played Halo that didn't play Goldeneye first? I don't get that statement.
Goldeneye was the first console FPS that was a lot of fun, until your friends left of course or you had to go home. It was on the N64 so there was no online play. Halo 2 brought online competitiveness to console fps though unreal did try on the dreamcast but 56k didnt cut it =P. And for the people that think they are ruining an rts by making it controller friendly i dont know about you but WOW has destroyed my wrists and I hate to sit at my pc anylonger then I need to. 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.
Re:Bring back Myth! (Score:4, Informative)
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. [bungie.org]
Er (Score:3, Informative)
I'm actually quite a big XBox fan, I think the 360 is the best console out there quite honestly because it simply has so many fun games.
But even I have to wonder what they mean by Halo brought console FPS to the masses in a way Goldeneye couldn't? Halo 2 only just sold as many units as Goldeneye and they're roughly the join top selling console FPS of all time. Whilst I think the Halo series rocks, suggesting they were over and above Goldeneye in terms of their success is outright false unless you're considering the entire series of Halo vs. the single release of Goldeneye which is like comparing apples and oranges.
I'm really looking forward to Halo Wars, but I'm a little puzzled by that particular comment. I just find it odd of all the console FPS games on the market, the only one they could think to compare against was the only one that has actually sold as many units as the highest selling Halo game!