I like what I’ve played of Halo Wars 2 on Xbox One, but I’m positive I’ll enjoy it even more on Windows PC.
Directly after its E3 2016 press conference, Microsoft and 343 Industries pulled their best Oprah impression, telling everyone to look under their metaphoric seats. You get a copy of the Halo Wars 2 open beta! You get a copy of the Halo Wars 2 open beta.
I too, of course, got a copy of the Halo Wars 2 open beta.
Although the latest Halo-themed RTS game, developed by Total War’s The Creative Assembly, is one of the first titles in Microsoft’s new Xbox Play Anywhere scheme – meaning that it is cross-play, cross-buy and cross-save between PC and the Xbox One – the aforementioned beta is only available on console. While it serves a very specific purpose – to allow for player feedback and network testing – it also proves that the RTS genre is best with a traditional mouse and keyboard.
I have never felt so clumsy in my life; we’ll get to that in a minute.
HW2’s singular offering is a mode called Domination, played on a single, generic map called Ricochet. Two teams of two players are pitted against each other. The objectives are simple. You have a finite number of tickets per side. Five domination points are littered across the map; taking those objectives reduces your opponents’ tickets. You’ll need to develop and upgrade your base to do the same for infantry units, and those are used to capture points and wage war against those of the enemy. Standard RTS fare, and solid stuff at that, considering The Creative Assembly’s pedigree.
The beta throws up a tutorial video that’s as mind-numbing as it is faulty. Most of the time, it causes your Xbox One to simply lock up; on the odd occasion it works, myriad commands are thrown at you. I had trouble keeping them all straight. A highlights a single unit, but holding A lets you grab a group. Holding A on other objectives… does… something. I’m still not sure. You’re almost best to head out to the virtual battlefield and bluff your way through a match (hoping your Domination partner is doing the same thing so you don’t throw a UNSC-branded spanner in their game).
Through trial and error, things get easier. It’s simple enough to find power around the map – it’s represented in-game as massive towers that scream out for you to walk up to and hit X to harvest (or whatever it’s actually called). Less obvious (at least for me) were the yellow boxes scattered around the place. Those are supplies, and they’re equally, if not more important than power. As you progress, you’ll learn the hard way that you shouldn’t blow your load on soldiers early on, instead harvesting what’s around you and beefing up Supply and Power chains.
Once you’ve amassed a suitable army, that’s where you feel like a bumbling idiot. RB selects “local” units, though that doesn’t mean all that you can see on the screen at one time. Thus, a mini-game begins – move your left thumbstick and mash RB until you’ve highlighted all you intended to. Alternatively, holding RB highlights every unit – EVERY unit – which is easier, but means you’re throwing all of your weight at an objective. Some units have specials that are used with the Y button, though you have Command Powers which require LT and some fancy thumbstick work. Command points are tied to a tree that makes little to no sense, and points sometimes are used to purchase abilities, and other times not (I think that’s just a bug).
The entire problem revolves around the fact you can look at the screen at any given time and just imagine the far easier way to do something with a simple mouse and keyboard. RTS titles were made for the combo.
That’s not to say Halo Wars 2 isn’t good on Xbox One; it’s simply inferior. Look beyond that all and you’ll find what’s sure to be a complex set of systems wrapped in skins ripped straight from Halo 5. Tons of ’em too, from soldiers to mechs, Warthogs to any number of aerial vehicles. That’s bound to please the die-hard franchise fans alongside enthusiasts of the genre.
I just need to beef up my Windows PC ahead of its full release.
Expect Halo Wars 2 on PC and Xbox One, as part of Xbox Play Anywhere, from 21 February.
The game’s beta runs until 21 June. Domination makes way for a Team Deathmatch mode soon.
This article may contain affiliate links, meaning we could earn a small commission if you click-through and make a purchase. Stevivor is an independent outlet and our journalism is in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative.
