Halo Wars 2

Fast and easy to grasp RTS which has a lot to offer for Halo fans and PC strategists alike.

Superior to its predecessor in every way. Amazing cutscenes, a fun (yet very short) campaign, lots of fan service and decent multiplayer come together in a robust RTS package. Due to its lack of depth and content, it probably won't win the hearts of many C&C or Starcraft 2 veterans, but at the same time it presents a great entry point for newcomers to the genre.

Halo Wars 2 on the PC is not the deepest RTS ever but It is still a fun and compelling game.

Halo Wars 2 is a fun strategy game with epic action moments and addictive multiplayer, but its gameplay is not very complex and feels a bit limited.

I enjoyed my time with the first Halo Wars, so I’m glad that Microsoft took a chance with a sequel. Unfortunately, aside from Blitz, I don’t feel like Creative Assembly pushed the envelope. Simplified base building, smaller maps, and outdated level design keep Halo Wars 2 for achieving great heights. However, if you loved the first Halo Wars, this entry delivers more of the same.

Creative Assembly did their best to make Halo Wars 2 accessible without dumbing it down too much, but as it’s a console game at heart, some simplification to the RTS formula was inevitable. Apart from that the PC version is more than decent, as it features a different UI and the game’s pace was tweaked. Besides the single player campaign (13 really good missions) it offers a multiplayer mode, which unfortunately is tainted by a pay-to-win factor. [04/2017, p.70]

Halo Wars 2 is a decent title for newcomers to the RTS genre, who will be the ones that will mostly enjoy the game, especially in the innovative and fast-paced Blitz mode.

Halo Wars 2 is a competent RTS game. It has its fair share of issues, and in some minds might be deemed simple. However, if you’re willing to look past the convoluted and frustrating UI, or maybe you want an RTS to get into, but are intimidated by the offerings on the market, Halo Wars 2 is a great place to start. Its story is good, delivering a true Halo narrative on the platform for the first time since Halo 2, and while the issues with the RTS elements might annoy some, it doesn’t meant the game isn’t fun to play. Additionally, the replay value is there thanks to the myriad of matches, the unlockable skills the game has for you, as well as multiplayer modes to take advantage of. And while Blitz mode does post a pay to win threat to the game itself, the mode on its own, taken at face value, is a frenetic blast to play.

Halo Wars 2 is an ideal strategy game for beginners. There's little doubting that the action is solid and it looks fantastic, but other strange choices mar what would be a great title. From downright bad writing, to the inclusion of pay to win microtransactions in a premium game, there are some absolutely perplexing decisions.

Today’s strategy market is dominated by grand-scale games, like Ashes of the Singularity or Total War series. Compared to them, Halo Wars 2 feels like an echo of the glorious RTS past: small cozy bases, tiny unit limit, heavy focus on story in single-player and APM – in multiplayer. [Issue#218, p.54]

If you are ready to forgive Halo Wars 2 for its console limitations, you will enjoy crushing your enemies in the Halo universe.

Halo Wars 2 is a good RTS for those who wants to discover the genre, but for old-timers, it is still too classic and lacks depth.

Halo Wars 2 will scratch a real-time strategy itch and give you a dose of Halo-Universe flavor with a decent story, but it won’t go much deeper than that. A run-of-the-mill campaign, controls that hamper micromanagement, conspicuous bugs, and multiplayer that relies on luck limit its long-term appeal, but its fast and flashy action makes it fun for a while.

A bombastic but simplified RTS with great set-pieces and interesting new ideas in Blitz mode, but a lack of depth that'll shorten its longevity with PC players.

Halo Wars 2's cutscenes are pretty, but the controls remains too console-focused for PC and the strategy is a little thin.

Solid RTS with perfect controls and some interesting multiplayer modes. The positive impression is unfortunately ruined by an uninteresting story campaign and micro-transactions. Good choice only for RTS novice, experienced strategists would be bored. [Issue#272]

A typical example of the game that shouldn´t have left its home platform. Although Halo Wars 2 is relatively functional console strategy in the core, it basically does not have much to offer in comparison with PC competition. I would recommend it only to hardcore fans of the Halo universe, the rest of you should rather reach for Dawn of War or Company of Heroes series.

Halo Wars 2 is just a perfectly average release in a genre suffused with perfectly average releases nowadays. I think every RTS fan is waiting for “That Game,” the one that’ll turn it all around and make us RTS believers again. I know I’m waiting for that moment. Halo Wars 2 isn’t it. It’s competent, it’s shiny, and it’s got the Halo universe to draw people in, but there’s nothing so “Oh wow it’s brilliant!” about this package to really get excited. The one aspect that should do that is Blitz Mode, and it’s hampered by the small PC multiplayer population and the nakedness of its Pay-To-Win-esque systems...On consoles, where the RTS genre is woefully underrepresented, I expect people will be a bit more impressed by Halo Wars 2. But on PC, it’s just another sign of a fading king.

Halo Wars 2 isn't a bad game, but compared to the wealth of excellent strategy games we've been spoilt by over the last few years, it feels positively ordinary. Exceptionally well-handled Halo fan service obfuscates a mediocre game that doesn't really have any new ideas. Fans of the franchise will appreciate what is here, but RTS buffs will be better served elsewhere.