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Homeworld 2

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7.4 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 31 critic reviews
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Based on 36 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Sierra Studios

Developer: Relic

Genre(s): Real-Time Strategy, Space Combat

Players: 6

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: September 16, 2003

Summary

Combining elements of real-time strategy and space combat, Homeworld 2 delivers an evolutionary step in gameplay and technology. Cinematic-quality graphics, stunning special effects, brilliantly rendered ships and an innovative interface combine to create an immersive 3-D experience. [Sierra]

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: Homeworld Homeworld: Cataclysm

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central

Also On The Web: Adrenaline Vault Preview Armchair Empire Preview Games Domain Preview GameSpot Preview(s) GameSpy Preview IGN Preview Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Da Gameboyz

A refreshing challenge in the genre of real-time strategy games that started with games like Warcraft, and it does its best to provide da gamer with a powerful, fully featured, intuitive control interface for commanding all those units.

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Gamezilla!

With an improved interface, graphics, and other gameplay issues you’ll once again find yourself immersed trying to defend the Mothership and the home world.

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GameZone

Everything that made the first one memorable is expanded upon ten fold! It has an engrossing storyline, breath taking graphics, and a wonderful music score. This game is not to be missed!

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Game Informer

The backgrounds are absolutely amazing, and you may find yourself studying your ships to admire their incredible detail. [Nov 2003, p.172]

PC Gameworld

Simply an amazing game. I can’t say it any clearer than that. Nearly every aspect of the game is perfect, polished, and most importantly, fun.

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Gamers' Temple

Homeworld 2 has established itself as the benchmark game in real-time strategy space combat. Its intense difficulty will be a turn off to many casual gamers, though.

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GameNow

You're really going to have to learn which units to use, when to use them, and how to use them effectively. [Nov 2003, p.64]

PC Format

This year’s best RTS.

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Game Chronicles

From its finely honed user interface to its nearly flawless campaign and PvP modes, Homeworld2 is a breath of fresh air when most games of its ilk are bogging themselves down with needless complexity.

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Cheat Code Central

It can be a little slow going at times but that's because the focus is on real time strategy. The whole game is about conflict, but it goes about it in a more sophisticated way.

IGN

A damn fine game. Those that are looking for some huge new thing will probably be disappointed, but Relic was never going for the next evolution, they were just looking to make the formula a bit better, and certainly succeeded.

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Games Radar UK (Pre-2006)

The clincher that transforms Homeworld 2 from a good game into a great one is the depth of detail. Every battle is an epic worthy of Lucas' early days; every backdrop a mind-blowing kaleidoscope of nebulae which constantly rams home the very vastness of space. [PC Gamer UK]

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PC Arena

If you’re into what we call the thinking man’s (or woman’s) RTS, you owe it to yourself to check out Homeworld 2. If you’re tired with the seemingly never-ending stream of first person shooters, give it a try - chances are, you will enjoy every bit of this as we have.

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GameSpot

It may not be the ideal real-time strategy game for the player looking for another quick rush of multiplayer battles, but its production values are impeccably well done, its campaign is long and captivating, and its core gameplay is complex, tactical, and rewarding.

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Armchair Empire

The only real disappointment I had with Homeworld 2 was with the missions themselves.

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GameSpy

Though Homeworld2 may technically be a sequel, it too doesn't distance itself very far from the original, and in some ways feels like a mission pack itself. However, that doesn't stop it from being a completely addictive -- if sometimes incredibly difficult -- addition to the Homeworld universe.

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PC Gamer

A terrific game...Not a revolutionary leap like its predecessor, but it's still a satisfying experience. [Dec 2003, p.128]

ActionTrip

What struck me as a bit disappointing is that even if you devote enough time to the sequel, you will be treated to a relatively short single-player campaign.

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G4 TV

It offers up some solid improvement but doesn't stray too far from what made it so loved to begin with. It's not the groundbreaking title that the original was, but it's an excellent follow-up that delivers as promised.

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Gamer's Hell

While it might not be groundbreaking, this game has style and a developer that is capable of showing off what he can do – and that's more than enough to redefine space RTS games once more.

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GMR Magazine

The the story for Homeworld 2 is a rehash of old themes, this spaced-based RTS plays far better than the story deserves. [Dec 2003, p.80]

Edge Magazine

Relic has spent four years honing a distracting interface, revitalising a less-than-perfect control system and, above all, recreating anew the sense of majesty and scale that originally distinguished this deep-space strategy title. [Nov 2003, p.103]

Yahoo! Games

Ideal if you're looking for a game with rather more challenge than other recent RTS offerings. The single-player levels should offer a stiff trial to just about everyone, and the skirmish AI, on the higher difficulty settings, puts up a hell of a fight.

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FiringSquad

I utterly hated the singleplayer aspect but enjoyed the multiplayer.

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Game Revolution

I do wish there had been a bit more after four years of waiting. It's like rediscovering a long lost friend, and while he’s still the same lovable guy, it turns out he hasn't matured much or traveled around Europe in the intervening years. He simply never left home.

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Playboy

Along with the intergalactic action of the mission-based single-player game, Homeworld 2 supports online play for up to six gamers and includes tools to build custom ships and levels. [Sept 2003, p.33]

netjak

The overall size of the maps, the idiocy of finding all the remaining units down to the last probe before moving on, and the sheer imbalance and poor tactics brought it down.

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Computer Games Magazine

For all its clumsy new baggage and rushed feel, Homeworld 2 takes itself seriously, designed from the ground up as a reward to the faithful rather than an olive branch to the casual newcomer. [Dec 2003, p.84]

Adrenaline Vault

The core gameplay is involving and well executed, and bolstered by a great camera, solid controls and an intuitive interface. However, the sequel lacks any decisively outstanding or revolutionary features that truly invest the player in the storyline.

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Eurogamer

The key problem is that just about all the good things about it are lifted straight from the original Homeworld, and there's really not a lot in the "enhancements" to this sequel which distinguish themselves above the first game.

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Computer Gaming World

A sort of misguided reworking of "Homeworld," halfway between a rehash and a remodeling job, but with the intersting bits sanded off. The vividly distinct sides added in the "Cataclysm" expansion are gone, the clean interface is now a mess, and much of the strategy has been methodically cut out. [Dec 2003, p.126]

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 7.4 (out of 10) based on 36 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Michael M. gave it a9:
First about all the whine about the interface: Get over it! Adapt and adjust. One should think humans didn't have these abilities, the way you rant on about the interface. It works fine and is the most logical interface of the three games. Gees.. About the game: As with the others sound and grafics are just awsome. As simple as that. The gameplay is the same, although the formation bit is just useless, compared to Homeworld. Swarm combat is what winnes the battles for you and it gets a bit repetitive, but still leaves you with a good feeling of power. The storyline isn't as deep and compelling as in Homeworld, but it still is fare better then 95% of all other games made today. It just goes to show just how brilliant Homeworld is. The story is wrapped up nice and clean and even leaves room for a Homeworld 2 sequal (Age of S'Jet). All in all it is well worth the time and it is a true Homeworld game. The Homeworld Trilogy is still the best Sci-fi story I have played.

Jason S. gave it a6:
The game is seriously oversimplified and totally ruined much of what made Homeworld a great game.

Fred E. gave it a2:
The audio&visual artists did a fine job on this title and the engine looks good. On the game design side I have to say it showed little intelligence. Truly amateurish. The tactics and strategies of this game can only be interresting to a computer. For me it looks like hard work playing this game. The bottom line of the game seems to be this: harvest, build, build; throw your pretty little toys at his; repeat... Perhaps in the next 5 years the RTS copycat industry would learn something from games like Opperation Flashpoint.

Stephen D. gave it a10:
Excellent sequel. The graphics are unbelievable and are much more advanced then any other RTS space based game. Excellent game for good space-time battles of the fleets.

Lokesz H. gave it a 4:
Real downer this one. Try to play bad! Loose almost everything before you just win a scenario. The AI is 'adaptive' and throws 4 times your amount of ships in the next scenario.

Ravind K. gave it a 3:
I played HWC, and i loved it. You really had to think, the AI level was well balanced-easy at first, much much harder later. There were some levels that were easy, some hard. but always there was space to breathe. IN HW2, there is no room to breathe. yeah great graphics, great gameplay, but whats the point if the game is bad? the AI only knows one thing-build build build build build build. And you can only build build build build build. theres no end to it. at the third level, when the three carriers appear, i had 5 bomber squadrons. i hit on fighter facility, went to the next, and when i got that, the other was rebuilt! i give up.

Eron gave it a 6:
Kinda blah after playing HW1 and HWC, nice graphics but I would have perfered if they kept the old interface and options for formations. It was an ok game but it just didnt stand out.

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Homeworld 2

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