Halo Wars 2

 PC
User Score
6.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 157 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 82 out of 157
  2. Mixed: 26 out of 157
  3. Negative: 49 out of 157
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  1. Antioch
    Feb 19, 2017
    6
    Pc gamers looking to get this game has to realise that this is a very casual RTS compared to what they might have been used to on pc with games like f ex the Starcraft franchise.
    You will not have even close to the same control and ability to micromanagement either your units or base. Not that a more casual RTS is necessarily a bad thing, alot of people might be put of by games such as    Pc gamers looking to get this game has to realise that this is a very casual RTS compared to what they might have been used to on pc with games like f ex the Starcraft franchise.
    You will not have even close to the same control and ability to micromanagement either your units or base. Not that a more casual RTS is necessarily a bad thing, alot of people might be put of by games such as starcraft because it is more indepth and has a steeper learning curve.
    My main issues with Halo Wars 2 is not that it is more casual, it's because it puts so much frustration and idiotic obstacles in your way that sometimes it even requires more clicks to do simple stuff than in more indepth games.
    The UI is attrocious for pc and it has alot of controller diseases despite choosing m&k in the options menu. Speaking of optionsmenu... omg... it is an utter mess... I kid you not there are 15 tabs for keybinds with most of them not even making sense. Other options menues lags when you cycle through tabs and some tabs are even empty!
    Some hotkeys are worthless ingame, for instance you have to see your base to build stuff, and the hotkeys for building depends on where your buildings are placed. Wich makes them utterly useless because it is quicker to just click on the buildings.
    If you want to demolish a building a huge ass warning asking "are you sure" pops up on screen blocking your view. Console radial menues also plague this game, and they are huge blocking everything as they are selected.
    There is no attackmove either, your units do engage everything within range and give a short chase automatically and are generally smart enough in their targeting but half the time you try to micromanage they don't do what you want. Also their pathfinding is trash around 25% of the time.
    Also descriptions of various sort are missing so half the time you don't know what a level up does etc.
    You also have to bear in mind that there are microtransactions in the game, and not the good kind either.
    If you can stomach the horrendous UI and microtransactions there are alot of content in this package though. There are several online modes and a cardgametype mode (wich is where the microtransactions ruins this mode). And of course there is a campaign that so far offers pretty varied missions, it's not a starcraft lvl campaign but pretty good.
    Do note though that there is no crossplay between xbox one and pc and given this is a windows store exclusive (not the most popular store on pc) and there are alot of modes, so I'm worried multiplayer might turn out to be useless for pc gamers because it will be hard to find players after a while.
    Performancewise it runs okay on my i7 4770K, 16GB Ram and Titan Black (save for the lagging menues) but I did note that for a game that visually isn't anything amazing it hogs alot more resources than it should.
    To me the game is held back ALOT by the retarded console UI. If this is patched in the future for proper pc m&k control I would consider a higher score but as it is now, no, to many obstacles for such a simple casual RTS.    … Expand
  2. Erniedoo
    Feb 22, 2017
    8
    I was very skeptical to buy this game as I always tend to choose good games due to the limited time I have to do so. Anyway, I did and I have been positively surprised.
    I read many bad reviews regarding connection problems. I am happy to say that I have no suffered of that, thankfully and I have enjoyed it a lot. I have just finished one campaign and the rest of my time I have been    I was very skeptical to buy this game as I always tend to choose good games due to the limited time I have to do so. Anyway, I did and I have been positively surprised.
    I read many bad reviews regarding connection problems. I am happy to say that I have no suffered of that, thankfully and I have enjoyed it a lot. I have just finished one campaign and the rest of my time I have been dueling on-line. I have had a lot of fun with this game. I never write reviews but I thought this game deserved a little of my time to make justice of it    … Expand
  3. jackfg
    Feb 28, 2017
    10
    Story on the other hand is better than Halo 5 and i dare say Halo 4 and personally that isnt saying much considering that the plot really has no defining moments and barely esculates at all with Atriox being hyped as the most intimidating villian in Halo history to ending up as a really forgettable character. The significant change in apperance and sound of the spirit of fire crew is alsoStory on the other hand is better than Halo 5 and i dare say Halo 4 and personally that isnt saying much considering that the plot really has no defining moments and barely esculates at all with Atriox being hyped as the most intimidating villian in Halo history to ending up as a really forgettable character. The significant change in apperance and sound of the spirit of fire crew is also noticable with characters feeling foriegn to what they were in the original and sure there are moments where it seems like there one and the same again but ultimately differences in personality make them all too different… Expand
  4. morventhus
    Feb 17, 2017
    8
    Its a Babys first RTS. But still super fun. Oddly the game looks and feels more like a halo game than the last two halo titles did (4 and 5). Campaign is short but with the skulls and mission objectives on higher difficulties makes it have lots of replay ability. I started playing on XBOX but switched to my PC since I wanted to try the Cross-buy feature. Game runs and controls better onIts a Babys first RTS. But still super fun. Oddly the game looks and feels more like a halo game than the last two halo titles did (4 and 5). Campaign is short but with the skulls and mission objectives on higher difficulties makes it have lots of replay ability. I started playing on XBOX but switched to my PC since I wanted to try the Cross-buy feature. Game runs and controls better on pc. like you would think it would. But the games story is better than most stories we get now adays (which is not saying much) and its overall a decent fun romp.
    Id give the game a 81/100.    … Expand
  5. Hotrod192
    Feb 22, 2017
    7
    The campaign, while not as downright awful as Halo 5 (It would take a special kind of terrible to be worse than that game), is still mediocre at best. The story asks a few questions, but answers none. The plot is simple and somewhat unengaging, and the antagonists have about a minute of screentime and development. The Banished and their leader were described to us as being cunning andThe campaign, while not as downright awful as Halo 5 (It would take a special kind of terrible to be worse than that game), is still mediocre at best. The story asks a few questions, but answers none. The plot is simple and somewhat unengaging, and the antagonists have about a minute of screentime and development. The Banished and their leader were described to us as being cunning and ruthless, yet none of that is ever shown in the game.

    The gameplay is fun though, and I'm enjoying the variety that multiplayer has to offer. On that side of things, Halo Wars 2 really builds on what made the first game so great, and offers a solid experience. That being said, the PC port is very poor. The UI is clearly not optimized for a mouse and keyboard, and the controls don't work very well. Unlike many modern RTS games, Halo Wars 2 is clunky and not always obvious to play.

    If anything, this is the final nail in the coffin for me, and I think I'm done with the Halo franchise. While Creative Assembly are technically the developers here, 343 Industries was clearly calling the shots here with everything else. Once again, 343 Industries shows to us that they do not know how to handle Bungie's legacy, and are more interested in making a quick buck than to give fans a quality game. It's sad, Halo went from being my absolute favourite franchise to some low quality generic series that fails to stand out. Halo Wars 2 is just the latest victim of 343 Industries's incompetence.    … Expand
  6. SoulFaurzak
    Mar 20, 2017
    10
    Epic Game, juego épico tiene un gran potencial y sabe unir y cruzar la historia de Halo, Un rts maravilloso tanto en pc y consola, mecánicas refinadas y un gran control de manejo, además un sonido exquisito y una gran dirección artística.. Lo malo es que mucha mierda de fansboy de sony que jamás van o tocaran el juego se atreven a puntuarlo sólo porque de Xbox ya lo mal puntúan, ademásEpic Game, juego épico tiene un gran potencial y sabe unir y cruzar la historia de Halo, Un rts maravilloso tanto en pc y consola, mecánicas refinadas y un gran control de manejo, además un sonido exquisito y una gran dirección artística.. Lo malo es que mucha mierda de fansboy de sony que jamás van o tocaran el juego se atreven a puntuarlo sólo porque de Xbox ya lo mal puntúan, además están paginas vendidas a sony le darán mala nota.… Expand
  7. Deperon
    Feb 21, 2017
    10
    Прошел на одном дыхании. 1ю часть проходил еще на 360м, как я обрадовался когда запустил ее на ПК. 2я часть серии стала намного лучше. Ожидал худшего... С жанром РТС в последнее время все очень плохо, Но Halo Wars 2 мастхэв к покупке! За 2 600 получить 1ю и 2ю часть+сизн пасс и копии на хуан. Вообще ништяк. 10 Логвиновых из 10, а то и 11, и даже 12, игра года, и.т.д.Прошел на одном дыхании. 1ю часть проходил еще на 360м, как я обрадовался когда запустил ее на ПК. 2я часть серии стала намного лучше. Ожидал худшего... С жанром РТС в последнее время все очень плохо, Но Halo Wars 2 мастхэв к покупке! За 2 600 получить 1ю и 2ю часть+сизн пасс и копии на хуан. Вообще ништяк. 10 Логвиновых из 10, а то и 11, и даже 12, игра года, и.т.д.
  8. Vasot
    Feb 17, 2017
    5
    With a heavy price tag, a relatively flat story with a short campaign and with console gameplay mechanics i can't really recommend this there are tons of better RTS in PC
  9. Micky350
    Feb 19, 2017
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I'll cut right to the chase.
    Campaign: Bad- About a 6 hour campaign, terrible unit introduction, controls are brutal, next to no micromanaging ( I'm use to starcraft 2) and the key bindings are confusing, bonus objectives aren't obvious, I had to constantly keep opening the objective menu ( which I had to look up control to figure out how to even bring up).

    Game UI- This game is a mess, to talk to someone who isn't in my game I had to launch the xbox app and talk through that, some settings bring you to a browser, others to the store.. all in all to run this game you have 4 apps running ( xbox app, web browser, store app and the game) seems a bit much.

    Online- Basically what they've done is found that games like clash royale make a ton of money buy getting people to pay money for card packs to create a better higher level deck. Literally the same concept just with halo units. Just another micro transaction money pit.

    TLDR:
    If you liked halo wars one you'll like this but I would wait until it hits the    … Expand
  10. kagehyo6
    Jul 30, 2017
    2
    UPDATE 7/30/2017:

    Balance changes made this game one of the most poorly-balanced RTS games I've ever played. - An entire army of anti-vehicle infantry cannot take down an army of tanks or wraiths - Bases have very little health, making the 'rush' tactic highly viable compared to other RTS games - A full army of level 3 (max level) infantry can be wiped out in seconds by a leader    UPDATE 7/30/2017:

    Balance changes made this game one of the most poorly-balanced RTS games I've ever played.
    - An entire army of anti-vehicle infantry cannot take down an army of tanks or wraiths
    - Bases have very little health, making the 'rush' tactic highly viable compared to other RTS games
    - A full army of level 3 (max level) infantry can be wiped out in seconds by a leader power such as glassing beam
    - The maps are bland. It makes very little difference which map you choose because they are all so similar. The first Halo Wars had a special uniqueness to each map... these maps become very boring very quickly.
    - A defensive strategy with base turrets and a fair-sized army will almost always lose to a rush. Turrets are nearly worthless until they may be leveled.

    There's so much more I could say but these are a few examples. I've played this for over 80 hours because I really wanted to like this game as much as I did the first one, but I just can't. It feels like they tried too hard to cash in on the success of StarCraft by making a Halo clone of it. But this game isn't StarCraft, it feels like a very poorly done clone.

    Many of the bugs and glitches are fixed now and the game seems to be running much smoother and I haven't had a crash since the latest patch. Also, having multiple leaders to choose from keeps the game fresh for a while. This could be a really fun game if the maps felt as unique as the first game and if they made a few balance changes to support certain unit roles and offer alternative strategies other than favoring the 'rush' strategy the most.

    The game was fun during the pre-release, then they patched it and now its broken.

    Day 1 Patch:
    Horrible framerates
    long load screens
    black screen crashes
    units won't listen when you tell them to do something
    units will continue to chase enemies for long distances rather than staying put

    Patch update 3/7/17:
    Fixed a lot of framerate issues and crashes but introduced new problems...
    Units still won't listen at times
    Units will still chase enemies halfway across the stage even when you don't ask them to
    Units will randomly disappear off the map but still show up in your 'all units' selection. I lost 57 units off the map during a fight against legendary AI. Couldn't summon them, couldn't teleport them... the showed up as selectable units but were nowhere on the map... making my cap army size pathetic, insuring my loss.

    So far, every game I've ever preordered in the last 2 years has been a huge let-down with broken gameplay. I was hoping this would be different... but it is worse than most.    … Expand
  11. Hamburglar
    Apr 2, 2017
    8
    Great game, i got mine as part of an Xbox One S 1tb bundle for a great prize. Fun to play, more options than the original, but contains less HQ cut-scenes. I wish they would have had a full 1hr cutscene story like in Halo Wars.
  12. juanjp
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    Nothing revolutionary, but worthy of any strategy fan's attention, and a must for Halo devotees.
  13. Trankos2077
    Jun 13, 2019
    0
    Que porquería de juego ni siquiera lo pude jugar porque me obligaba a cambiarme a windows 10 un so que no me gusta no, es basura eh jugado juegos con mejores gráficos que no me pedían tanta basura.
  14. Xaphnir
    Mar 15, 2020
    0
    I'd love to be able to review the game itself, but the Microsoft Store does not recognize any devices that can download the game (and yes I did make sure my computer is a device connected to my account). So, entirely non functional product, therefore I must give it a zero.
  15. Mandulum
    Dec 14, 2017
    7
    Five Word Review: Simple though enjoyable Halo RTS.
    Favorite Thing: The outstanding cinematics. I'm looking at you Starcraft, you use to actually try.
    Least Favorite Thing: UWP? I can deal with it. Trivial base-building? Ugh but okay. A really short campaign with an unfinished story that may never see completion? I really don't like that. Date Completed: 2017-12-13 Playtime: ~5h    Five Word Review: Simple though enjoyable Halo RTS.
    Favorite Thing: The outstanding cinematics. I'm looking at you Starcraft, you use to actually try.
    Least Favorite Thing: UWP? I can deal with it. Trivial base-building? Ugh but okay. A really short campaign with an unfinished story that may never see completion? I really don't like that.

    Date Completed: 2017-12-13
    Playtime: ~5h
    Enjoyment: 7/10
    Recommendation: If it's on sale. It's just far too short for the full price.    … Expand
  16. Steyraus
    Aug 2, 2020
    4
    Beyond generic rts, the games I was playing in the 90 were more interesting and had more charm than this. And what is up with Isabele. Halo gave us one of the most interesting sexy and bad arse Ai female characters in gaming ever and This game followers her up with Isabelle, a borked out, little boy looking female AI , with about as much likability as a cold wet rag in winter. Serious youBeyond generic rts, the games I was playing in the 90 were more interesting and had more charm than this. And what is up with Isabele. Halo gave us one of the most interesting sexy and bad arse Ai female characters in gaming ever and This game followers her up with Isabelle, a borked out, little boy looking female AI , with about as much likability as a cold wet rag in winter. Serious you want me to look at that the whole Champaign,.
    Game play is exactly what you would expect just not fun and the whole story side is just generic aswell.    … Expand
  17. destinyfan1
    Nov 5, 2017
    7
    An rts that almost saw light of the classics....

    positive + campaign not amazing but still very good + some nice rts elements + cool units + the halo feeling + story is good ( compared to today's rts games) negative - micromanagement - short campaign - bad ending best rts in months but not an rts like starcraft or c&q so if you like rts games or halo then its a good reason    An rts that almost saw light of the classics....

    positive

    + campaign not amazing but still very good
    + some nice rts elements
    + cool units
    + the halo feeling
    + story is good ( compared to today's rts games)
    negative
    - micromanagement
    - short campaign
    - bad ending
    best rts in months but not an rts like starcraft or c&q so if you like rts games or halo then its a good reason to open your wallet ( be warned for pretty short campaign )    … Expand
  18. alejandra09
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    Microsoft need to have more strategy I was very skeptical to buy this game as I always tend to choose good games
  19. Pedroski2111
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    It adds to the original without breaking away from its roots to much pc excelent
  20. Ricardete
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    Blitz is a fresh take on RTS but slightly challenging to the fans of the mainline Halo games. A must buy for Xbox and Pc owners.
  21. Fabioski
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    Totally builds on the first game while expanding on the universe window 10.
  22. Carlosrat
    Apr 16, 2018
    10
    In typical fashion, the multiplayer in this Halo game is also very very good.
  23. GameJoin
    Mar 18, 2019
    3
    If you're into classic RTS games, then DON'T buy this. Oversimplified, clearly adapted to console, extremely casual. Combine this with no strategic depth and you get this...
  24. zNeverSleeping
    May 14, 2020
    9
    A historia é intrigante e funciona bem no seu proposito; as cutscenes são lindíssimas e são prazer de se assistir; a mecânica continua bem fiel ao jogo anterior, com exceção de algumas melhorias - acredito que elas podiam aparecer mais cedo no game, mas entendo que talvez deixaria-o fácil demais; a ost é maravilhosa e os gráficos são satisfatórios para o gênero. Meu PC sofreu um pouco emA historia é intrigante e funciona bem no seu proposito; as cutscenes são lindíssimas e são prazer de se assistir; a mecânica continua bem fiel ao jogo anterior, com exceção de algumas melhorias - acredito que elas podiam aparecer mais cedo no game, mas entendo que talvez deixaria-o fácil demais; a ost é maravilhosa e os gráficos são satisfatórios para o gênero. Meu PC sofreu um pouco em alguns momentos, com quedas até 50 fps quando havia muita coisa na tela, e o jogo não é exatamente leve para GPU's, mas nada que estragasse a experiencia, visto que muito fps não é lá necessário aqui.… Expand
  25. LordTiger
    Apr 30, 2020
    6
    It may be too late to play this game, unfortunately not many play this game right now and most times u match up with high rank players also beside the regular multiplayer mode there is another mode called blitz which is worth trying. sadly campaign is too short but cinematics are not bad for a RTS game.
    halo wars 2 might possibly be the best RTS for consoles.
    this game is currently    It may be too late to play this game, unfortunately not many play this game right now and most times u match up with high rank players also beside the regular multiplayer mode there is another mode called blitz which is worth trying. sadly campaign is too short but cinematics are not bad for a RTS game.
    halo wars 2 might possibly be the best RTS for consoles.
    this game is currently available in xbox gamepass for both PC and Xbox.    … Expand
  26. Corvomortal
    Jun 19, 2020
    9
    Verdaderamente se redimió mucho a diferencia del halo 5 y nos presentaron una historia interesante como a un nuevo enemigo,cinematicas hermosas además de un gameplay aunque más facil que el primero aun asi mejora mucho
  27. Tolson-Apollon
    Jul 22, 2020
    9
    Лучшие CGI-сюжетные ролики среди всех RTS и самая реиграбельная стратегия из жанра научная-фантастика. 9/10
  28. NewSith
    Jan 15, 2022
    9
    Several years in, the game is still great, but as a PC user, you have to understand that it was designed as an XBOX RTS, so don’t expect the classic UI a-la Starcraft or complicated macro a-la CoH.

    It’s simplistic, it’s true to its title and is totally worth a buy. Campaign maybe a bit short, but still pleasant, multiplayer is fun and offers 2 rather fun PvE modes and a kind of standalone    Several years in, the game is still great, but as a PC user, you have to understand that it was designed as an XBOX RTS, so don’t expect the classic UI a-la Starcraft or complicated macro a-la CoH.

    It’s simplistic, it’s true to its title and is totally worth a buy. Campaign maybe a bit short, but still pleasant, multiplayer is fun and offers 2 rather fun PvE modes and a kind of standalone Blitz mode with basic deck-building is a very cool multiplayer mode if you always wanted an RTS that has little macro to none.    … Expand
  29. Lexoww
    Apr 15, 2023
    0
    Most unbalanced RTS I ever played! The different fractions arent balanced at all, Invisiblity is insanly unbalanced!

Awards & Rankings

84
#84 Most Discussed PC Game of 2017

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
70

Mixed or average reviews - based on 21 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 21
  3. Negative: 1 out of 21
  1. PC PowerPlay
    Jun 8, 2017
    40
    Look, there is nothing wrong with Halo Wars 2... as a bonus game that comes free with Halo 6 or whatever. But as a premium, full-priced title? No. No, we deserve more than this. A franchise like Halo, with its rich fictional universe, its cool unit design, its super-clear mix of human and alien factions, deserves more than this.
    Read full review
  2. CD-Action
    Apr 5, 2017
    75
    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]
  3. Ragequit.gr
    Mar 27, 2017
    75
    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.
    Read full review
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