Halo Wars

Halo is not exactly one of the first games you'd expect to be made into an RTS, and I was certainly surprised. This game was in production for a long time, and I imagine Bungie really wanted an RTS version done (probably because they used to make RTSs themselves). For some reason it is not developed by Bungie however, it is done by Ensemble Studios (Age of Empires III), I imagine Bungie are busy enough working on Halo 3: ODST which I'm greatly looking forward to. Anyway, I bought the Limited Edition so as to obtain the Halo 3 Mythic Maps and I must say I'm not disappointed.

If you were a fan of the first Battle for Middle Earth game - which I strongly recommend - this works in a similar way; you get a central base and you have a certain amount of building slots. Players may find this annoying but it makes you build tactically, for example building a lot of supply pads will get you a strong economy, but will leave you less space for barracks, vehicle depots etc to build your army from. What's great about the units is that they're just about all recognisable from the Halo series - Warthogs remain my favourites and there are also Scorpions, Hornets etc. I nearly cried when I found you couldn't get Mongooses, though. In Skirmishes and on the Live Multiplayer you are also able to play as the Covenant and Ensemble have really pulled out the stops here. They run in a completely different way and it requires a different type of thinking to win as them. Units are generally weaker, such as the obvious grunts and jackels, but they work in a much more horde-like way as max population is larger. With enough Resources you are also able to build Scarabs which are definitely a bitch for your enemy to bring down. A few unseen units are introduced, minaly in the form of vehicles, and they fill the gaps when needed.

The campaign is set a decade or two before the first Halo game, so Spartans are far from extinct (and prove VERY useful). It follows the role of the frigate 'The Spirit of Fire' during the war, ranging all across the galaxy. You will encounter huge Covenant armies and the dreaded Flood. The storyline is great, but I must say there is a little repetition, with objectives that don't vary much from 'pick up Squadron Omega' or 'cleanse this area'. The maps can also seem fairly dreary. All round, not an awful experience, but could have been better. This can all be done on Co-Op over Xbox Live which I think livenes it up considerably. The cutscenes are also a huge plus, the graphics are sensational (some of the best I've ever seen, about as good as Resident Evil 5), and the cutscene before the very last mission is just fantastic. The multiplayer, however, is what I would buy the game for. Matchmaking has 1v1, 2v2 and 3v3 games which can be done with friends or random people, and you can play normal games starting off with next to nothing or deathmatches where you start off with enough resources to build an army in minutes. It doesn't get old, and it really engages with your strategetic side, especially with its tactic-based maps. It takes practise and there is a certain nack to it, so no lucky shots, but one of the most satisfying games to win at I think.

As an overall rating I think it deserves 7/10, it's not a bad RTS at all. There's a slight lack of really powerful units so you sometimes feel you have to keep throwing weak units until the enemy can't take any more, but it's a good many hours of fun (there's even an achievement for playing for a total 24 hours :D). However, for people liking fast, pacy shooters this isn't your game at all.