HALO WARS - Xbox 360 (2009)
With the FPS trilogy now complete, Microsoft began exploring other avenues for the Halo brand. One of the most obvious was to turn the epic conflict between humans, Covenant and Flood into a Real-Time Strategy game. And with Age of Empires developers Ensemble Studios at the helm, Halo Wars was guaranteed great gameplay to match the series' epic scenario.
Story: 20 years before the events of Halo, human forces are locked in battle with the Covenant across the known universe. Halo Wars sees players controlling the forces of UNSC warship the Spirit Of Fire and uncovering Forerunner technology to aid in the interstellar struggle.
Gameplay: Typical RTS fare, with a few efforts at streamlining the genre for the console crowd, and controls tailored specifically to the Xbox 360 pad. A story-driven campaign (which could be played in co-op), plus online multiplayer Skirmish mode made Halo Wars one of the few strategy titles to succeed on console, and easily the best RTS on Xbox 360. At the same time the plot, characters and ambience all allowed Halo Wars to fit snugly into the franchise, meaning it also appealed considerably to existing FPS Halo fans.
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