Halo Wars

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Halo Wars is a Real-Time Strategy game that takes place in 2531 during the Covenant eradication of the Outer Colonies in the Human-Covenant War.

Background

A SPARTAN in Halo Wars from SPARTAN Group Omega

In Halo Wars, players can command armies and hordes of familiar and new UNSC units in its first encounters against the Covenant, a polythestic alien coalition that threatens to obliterate the whole of mankind. "Halo Wars" will immerse gamers in an early period of the storied "Halo" universe, allowing them to experience events twenty years prior to the first "Halo" title for Xbox.

With the guidance of Serina, a spirited artificial intelligence (AI) persona, gamers will direct legions of UNSC soldiers, Warthogs and Scorpions against Covenant Grunts, Elites, Ghosts and Scarabs, each group having its own strengths and uses in battle. Strategic-minded players who react well under pressure will emerge victorious.

Created from the ground up for the Xbox 360 console and Controller, "Halo Wars" is being developed by the veteran of real-time strategy developers Ensemble Studios, the team responsible for the best-selling and critically acclaimed Age of Empires franchise on the PC. "Halo Wars" can be played online via Xbox LIVE and through the single-player campaign. Published by Microsoft Game Studios, "Halo Wars" is an exclusive title for the Xbox 360. Despite speculation of a version for the PC, Ensemble and Microsoft have repeatedly said that no such plans have been made or even considered for it.

Ensemble Studios began recording the music for the game in March, with Ensemble's Music and Sound Director Stephen Rippy flying to Prague for the orchestral and choral parts and Seattle for the piano and mixing. At this point in time, they are working on in-game units and how they interact with each other. Alpha testing has also begun, with testers having been reported as playing the game over Xbox Live.

The Alpha testing for the game is believed to possibly have ended.

Plot

"If they want war, we'll give 'em war."

— Unknown Spartan in the Halo Wars cinematic trailer

File:HaloWarsGameplay2.jpg

UNSC and Covenant units clash in-game. Note in particular the apparent Halo in the background.

The game's story is told through in-engine cutscenes and in-game moments, as with the other Halo games. The game is set in 2531, it focuses around the Marine forces of the UNSC Spirit of Fire as they engage Covenant ground forces after the discovery of an ancient artifact during a journey to the planet Harvest, the first planet to be attacked by the Covenant.

The majority of the campaign (15 missions in total). will take place in the polar/mountainous and parts of the jungle and ruin regions of the world, allowing Ensemble Studios to "do some great stuff with mountains, snow, ice, forests and some Forerunner structures.".

It has been confirmed that Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 will not be in the game, although some characters from the Halo games will make brief but important appearances . There will be a group of SPARTANs that are called SPARTAN Group Omega. In contrast, the Spirit of Fire is set to be "full of new characters," such as the AI Serina and the Spirit of Fire's commander, Cutter..

Early Plot

File:Mining.jpg

The asteroid that never was...

Originally the storyline was going to feature a Covenant mining asteroid that was located at a Forerunner ore refining machine, this concept tries to show the scale of the large Forerunner machinery in place, machinery that it is still operational (although now controlled by the Covenant). In the end the mining aspect of the story was cut out of the game.

Possible Elements

File:Unsc basecamp 1900.jpg

Concept Art released on the 12th of December. Note the large tanks and the building in the distance with a strong resemblance to the Library. Also there's a spartan on the right side of the pelican.

File:Halowars-bkg1.jpg

UNSC forces attempting to combat a Scarab.

The following are elements that may appear within the game. These have been shown in concept art and pre-rendered trailers for Halo Wars.

• It has been confirmed in the February Monthly Update that there will be no space battles in Halo Wars

• Halo Wars may incorporate the concept of "Socket Bases," in which only specific areas can be used to build specific buildings.

• 'Supply runs' are set to be featured, allowing a regular rejuvenation of supply for the production of units as opposed to a resource gathering system.

• Each multiplayer map apparently takes place on a different "world", each with its own musical theme and playlist. Currently, the only known multiplayer map is Sway.

• During the Alpha test, anti-air units were glitched so that their effectiveness was lessened, and Scorpion tanks and aircraft were extremely powerful. Aircraft strength was lessened to prevent players from sending in airstrikes against the enemy Command Center and crippling them too easily.

• Forerunner structures have been added into the game.

• Ensemble has stated in game, the camera angle and zoom can be adjusted so that the player can zoom in on one unit, and then see the whole battlefield.

• That downloadable content has been planned for the game, ranging from new units and maps to potentially new campaign levels.

"We have plans for extra units and extra maps, and then beyond that we’ll look at what else we can add further down the track, such as extra campaigns and so on. I think it’s definitely a good way of consistently breathing new life into the product via DLC."

— Graeme Devine

• It may also feature a map editor, either shipping with the game, or downloadable from Xbox Live Marketplace.

"We actually talked quite a lot about that, we’ve got a very powerful map editor, so we’ve talked about whether we could release that with the game or via Xbox Live and allow people to make their own maps, and then work out a way for users to share the maps. I would love for that to be in the final product. Because I think user created content is just fantastic. I think it’s absolutely the future, because people love to tell their own stories, people love to make up their own little war campaigns, and there are a lot of people out there who are incredibly talented.”"

— Graeme Devine

Gameplay Elements

United Nations Space Command

• Infantry
  • SPARTAN Group Omega
  • UNSC Marines
  • possibly ODSTs

• Weapons
  • BR55 Battle Rifle
  • M6D Personal Defense Weapon System
  • M19 SSM Rocket Launcher
  • M90A Close Assault Weapon System
  • MA5B Individual Combat Weapon System
  • SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle

• Vehicles
  • M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicle
  • M808 Scorpion MBT
  • D77-TC Pelican Dropship
  • Shortsword-class Bomber
  • Sparrowhawk
  • Rhino
  • Wolverine
  • Transport Warthog

• Buildings
  • UNSC Supply Pad
  • Missile silo
  • Command Center
  • Vehicle Depot
  • Armory
  • Aircraft Pad
  • Drill Grounds
  • Barracks

• Other
  • MAC Cannon Bombardment : Can be used to call in a bombardment from space. Several MAC rounds batter an area, destroying both friend and foe within it, as shown in the E3 2007 Demo .

Covenant

File:Ilmhalowarstheme1SystemBlade.jpg

Concept art for the Elite.

• Infantry
  • Sangheili (Elites)
    • Minor
    • Major
    • Ranger
    • Zealot
  • Unggoy (Grunts)
  • Lekgolo (Hunters)
  • Kig-yar (Jackals)

• Weapons
  • Type-1 Energy Weapon/Sword
  • Type-25 Directed Energy Pistol
  • Type-25 Directed Energy Rifle
  • Type-33 Guided Munitions Launcher

• Vehicles
  • Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft
  • Type-47 Ultra Heavy Assault Platform
  • Type-32 Rapid Assault Vehicle
  • Type-25 Wraith
    • Unknown Wraith .

Alpha Test

A screenshot taken of an Alpha playtester in Sway.

An Alpha test was done for Halo Wars, concluding during May, 2008. The test was open only to several thousand Microsoft employees, including Bungie Studios, in order to locate any bugs or glitches for removal, and to test its performance over XBox Live. It consisted of a brief "tutorial" and multiplayer, and was "limited to a specific set of units." It is unknown how long the Alpha test was conducted, or when it was begun. The Alpha test is over now. Stated in the May Monthly update.

Ambient Life

Although only in the conceptual stages at this point, ambient lifeforms may and will be encountered in the gameplay. They may be found on the battlefield, and might react to the actions of the player's forces (such as firing a weapon, flying around or near them, etc.). Examples include the Space Owl, the Harvest Whale, the Arctic Beast, Ice Hound and some sort of eel-snake creature that has yet to be named.

Multiplayer

Such as the Halo 2 & 3, Halo Wars will have the strong characteristic of online gaming. Halo War's live gaming characteristics include Direct voice communication & Online leader boards. There's no specific information regarding to the player ranking. It has also been stated that online games would be relatively quick, estimated at around 20 minutes per game.

Multiplayer Maps

• Sway
• Unknown Map- Seen in deminstration with commentary

File:1209090473 Screenshots 1280 003.jpg

A possible multiplayer map showing Covenant as playable characters.

Cut Content

Two units, the UNSC Cougar and the Covenant Air Artillery, were under development early in the game, but were later cut, as the developers decided to focus on more recognizable Halo units.

Trivia

• It is still unconfirmed if any of the battles in Halo Wars are any real or factual battles from the Human-Covenant War timeline or if they are their own novel battles that the public has not yet been learned of.
• On April 1st, 2008, an "interview" with Graeme Devine implied that the Forerunner as a race would be playable, including a "Rampancy" in the AI and the ability to build a Halo and fire it if the player decided to give up. Although some people took it for truth, it was easily shown to be an April Fools joke due to the article's source which linked to the Wikipedia article for the first of April and Ensemble's own remarks about the articles.
• According to the E3 demo video, soldiers can shoot the Grunt's methane tanks and the Grunt will explode. This does not work in any of the Halo games.
• It is possible to run over enemies with the Warthog, and likely other vehicles.
• While there will be an economy mechanic for the game, it may play less of a role in the Campaign missions.
• There will be a unit limit.
• It has been confirmed that the Covenant will be a playable faction, at least in multiplayer.
• Halo: Combat Evolved was itself originally a real-time strategy game.
• The Doritos snack food held a sweepstakes where the winner got a voice role in the game.
• Each individual soldier will have his own separate reaction to background stimulation in what is an attempt by Ensemble to add a "human element" to the game.
• In truth, Halo Wars didn't start as a Halo game at all. Six months were spent developing a control scheme for a viable RTS for the XBOX 360, which was later pitched to Microsoft, asking to use the Halo IP, to which Microsoft agreed.
• It appears that 'parking lots' of UNSC vehicles were set to be featured. This looks set to be dropped from the final version.
• Orders can be given for troops to take cover and/or take shelter in buildings.
• It is likely that Easter Eggs will feature in a manner similar to the previous three Halo games.
• During the introductory level in the E3 demonstration video, UNSC Marines can be seen doing push-ups behind the barracks, being drilled by a Drill Instructor.
• The Halo Wars Alpha has begun testing on Xbox LIVE among internal testers on the map Sway.
• The Bungie staff played in the Alpha.
• The D77-TC Pelican is the model used in Halo Wars, not the D77H-TCI which is only introduced during Halo 3.
• The Scarab is confirmed to be playable for Multiplayer.
• At this point in time, there are over 5000 sound files for sound and voice in the game. Three more voice-over sessions set to be held over the summer will raise this number significantly.
• The Alpha has ended now, staeted in the May monthly update on www.Halowars.com

Gallery

• HarvestT-1-.jpg

  A scene from Halo Wars

• GruntEncounterT-1-.jpg

  Grunts encountered in the game

• HaloWarsCanyon.jpg

  Covenant and UNSC forces in-game

• Emag halowarsqa 4 d96d0-1-.jpg

  Trouble coming down the hill. Notice the Scarab on the ridge.

• HaloWarsTanks.jpg

  Scorpions and Warthogs vs Wraiths and Ghosts

• 

  A titanic clash between dozens of ground and air units (the battle seems to be taking place on a Halo installation)

• Concept08 11 1280.jpg

  Concept Art for Forerunner structures.

• Concept08 10 1280.jpg

  More concept art of Forerunner structures.

• 1207654255 Concept08 12 1280.jpg

  More concept art of Forerunner structures.

• 

  An Elite holding a dead marine that it has just killed.

• 1209877878 1154 0002.jpg

  Elites up close.

• Spartan.JPG

  MJOLNIR Mark IV armor

• HWscreen.jpeg

  Multiplayer Screenshot, revealing that Scarabs will be usable for multiplayer.

Links

Internal

• Circle Menu
• Halo: Contact Harvest
• Halo Wars Announcement Trailer
• Halogen

External

• Official website
• Halo Wars announcement
• Halo Wars Fansite
• Halo Wars E3 Trailer
• Extended Halo Wars E3 montage
• Heavengames.com
• Halo Wars Profile Page