Ensemble's swan song Halo Wars nears, shows off gameplay footage.
Halo Wars is the last game Ensemble Studios will ever make, at least in the developer’s current form, and we’re now seeing some decent footage of the Xbox 360 real-time strategy game in action. I’m not the world’s biggest Halo fan, but it does look like it’s shaping up to be fairly polished. Of course, this is no surprise for the title, considering Ensemble is a veritable real-time strategy god.
Being a god, of course, isn’t good enough for Ensemble’s current owner. Microsoft has decided to pull the plug on the studio because, strangely enough, it’s heavily invested in gaming. It kindly let Ensemble finish Halo Wars first, though, so it could squeeze the developers for all the coffer stuffing they’re worth.
Why Microsoft has limited the title to the Xbox 360 is yet another mystery. With no plans to hit the PC, it boggles the mind, as strategy games are far more accustomed to the precision offered by the mouse, if only for all the micro-management that’s involved. Additionally, making a real-time strategy game an exclusive for the Xbox 360 is unlikely going to help move consoles, as that audience is practically all PC-based.
Ensemble is clearly aware of the challenge, with the lead designer, Dave Pottinger, saying Ensemble wanted to “actually bring strategy gaming to the console” with this game, saying that it just wanted to show the Halo story and universe in a different way. Even with its excellent pedigree, I have my doubts. One can only hope that the developer has managed to do the impossible and pull out one hell of an intuitive control system.
The Master Chief Zerg rush begins in a month’s time. See below for an interview with the team behind the game and its story as well as gameplay footage.
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