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Halo Wars screenshots

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By Justin Robinson
Feb 12, 2009 | 9 Comments
Tags: Halo | Wars

Fourteen new Halo Wars images, hot off the presses!

Today Atomic was lucky enough to be invited to Microsoft's Aussie headquarters to play for a few hours in their brand-spanking new game, Halo Wars.

We weren't the only ones to get a go though, with five lucky Atomicans also getting their chance at all-out war.

We've played through the majority of the campaign, and have played multiplayer extensively today - it's a blast.

RTS games have been previously ill-suited for the console market, but Halo Wars has been built and coded specifically for a console first - and it definitely shows.

Don't all leap up at once though - this is not an FPS and certainly not Halo 3 - but it's not bad either.

Jump into the gallery to see some pics of the game in action, keep your wits about you for the issue with the full review in it and keep your hand on your Assault Rifle ready - who knows what could be out there?

Halo Wars is due out on Thurdsay, 26th Feb 2009 - two weeks from today.

 

 
 
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Want to learn all about Diablo III? Want to find out what the best Solid State Drive is on the market today, and how to look after it? Want to catch up on the latest hardware, games and in depth tech from Australia's best enthusiast mag?

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9 Comments
Thoughts on this article? Add a comment below.
nesquick
Feb 12, 2009 6:28 PM
 "Check out that Scorpion tank in the bottom right of this screenie - our lips are zipped, but this is one of the coolest abilities of the UNSC."

let me guess... its what the overlord tank was to the Chinese in C&C Generals? big, twin cannons and very upgradeable in the armor and firepower department?
MrInsaneBuff
Feb 12, 2009 9:15 PM
 I was one of the lucky ones to go to the preview this afternoon at MS HQ, and just thought you might like to hear my thoughts

Well it’s on my instant buy list.

But if you aren’t into Halo then it’s going to be a bit of a same old same old for RTS people. If you are into halo but not RTS’s then it might prove interesting in fleshing out the story lines for you a bit, but not much more than that.

But for me and alot of other people it’s the best of both worlds. Upgradeable units aplenty, a resourcing system that’s very simple and borrows heavily from C&C Generals from a few years ago. Letting you focus on building units and whooping butt.

You are able to research up to Mammoth tanks, along with heavily armed Vultures. SPARTANS!!! You can build three of them for hero units. It was awesome watching one (controlled by its own A.I) take on a covenant hover tank with a Spartan laser and winning by itself just because it was standing nearby when the tank spawned.

Plenty of choices in how to flesh out your units, and upgrade them. I didn’t get as far as I would have liked in that, because I got my butt whooped before I was able to really do anything. Mainly because I wasn’t familiar with the way to play and spent too long playing around with making pretty buildings. The others there had played the demo online already and had winning strategies which they were just able to take to their obvious conclusions.

Nuke it from orbit, it’s the only way to be sure!

One of the leader weapons for the humans is an orbital strike. If the game was nothing else id love it just for that alone. The covenant leader weapons are very interesting and very different to the human ones in their execution but the results are no less deadly for those poor schmucks caught in the crosshairs.

This will be a must have game for me, and I think I can see it allowing me to do what I like best in RTS games. Build a HUGE fcuk off army and then steam roll the enemy and grind their bones into dust. My Conan quote can’t be any more accurate. For what is best in life is truly to Crush the enemy, drive them before you, and hear the lamentation of their women.

And I’m going to be able to do that all from the machine gun turret of a mammoth tank!
bowlen
Feb 13, 2009 12:22 AM
 Can't wait for this game to come out!

I reckon i will be getting it on release day.

Do you know how long the campaign is though?
Is it short?
Truckasauras
Feb 13, 2009 8:47 AM
 That looks awesome to me, and I'm not a huge RTS fan either.
Hawkeye
Feb 13, 2009 12:20 PM
 Good write up, there, man!

- DH
MrInsaneBuff
Feb 13, 2009 6:35 PM
 Bowlen, from what the MS rep said there are arround 13 main missions, but if i understood him correctly there are also a few side missions that you can do.

The story line for single player looks very solid, and the cut scenes look truely amazing. Remember the movie Final Fantasy: The spirits within? Think that level of animation.

There were some truely fantastic vista's in the cut scenes. Howeevr im afriad to say in the game play some of the units looked a little jaggy from a distance. Which was a little strange.

All in all though this is a very exciting extension of the franchise, and opens up a whole new way to deliver the "lore" of Halo.

Because as we all know the movie aint going to answer any of our questions any time soon.
Periander
Feb 14, 2009 1:31 AM
 "If you're not in to Halo...", okay, so let's deconstruct that.

Who is in to Halo? If anyone, why? Is it simply because you didn't play a half decent FPS on the PC before Halo came out and were caught up in the marketing hype?

Secondly, if that's the only compelling reason to buy over other franchises, uh, why do so? Why not buy C&C Generals in the bargain bin???
MrInsaneBuff
Feb 14, 2009 11:11 AM
 Err did you even bother to read the rest of the sentance? Or for that matter the rest of what i wrote?

This is a targeted game, for the people who LIKE Halo, and also LIKE RTS games. A target audience which statistics alone dictates a profitable project, due to the number of Halo fans. Its an extension of the franchise which allows them to develop more of the story line, and gives quite alot of people something they are going to enjoy.

Why are you dumping shit on Halo? I played TONS of decent FPS games on PC before Halo came out and after. Im not some rabid fanboi who thinks that there is only Halo and everything else is garbage.

Unlike yourself who seems to just dismiss it because its a console FPS. Get over yourself mate. Wake up to the fact that everyone has different tastes and that what you think is pure win is someone else's meh.

Nothing gives that meh person the right to dump crap on what you think is win, so what makes you think you can do the same?

Oh and why not buy C&C Generals? Because there isnt anyone playing it online anymore. So its pretty retarded buying a Multi Player game when there is no one to play against.

All i said was the resourcing was in that style. It self manages once you set it up like C&C:G did. But there are limitations to it which you would clearly understand if you took even one minute to give the thing a try before you just go off half cocked and make yourself look like an idiot.
Argotha
Feb 15, 2009 8:08 PM
 Periander:
I am into halo. Why? becuase is has create a very intruiging story line that is not just about blowing shit up. And before you ask yes i have played other FPS that have been half decent, (HL for example, one of the best FPS ever, or COD (1)) and i was not caught up in teh marketing hype, in fact i did not play Halo properly until about 2-3 years ago.
Secondly, becasue you want to flesh out the "Lore" of halo is great reason to buy the frachise. Like a series to a book, you buy it becasue you want to find out more about it, to learn the history that the creators have created.
Look at the half life franchise, why would you buy the new half lifes? well despite having a newengine to kill people with, it continues the story that alo of people loved. Dungeon siege (the same), Warcraft 3 and frosen throne, the same.
Expanding the lore of a franchise is the reason you keep buying it.
/end rant
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