Halo Wars 2 Beta Paints a Clear Picture

The announcement of Halo Wars 2 has caused a stir in the gaming community. It's been 6 years from the previous one, and players weren't really sure what to expect. That uncertainty has ended though, as the multiplayer beta for Halo Wars 2 became available during E3.

Bonus: All those Gold REQ packs!

Youtube and Twitch are filled with Let's Plays of the beta, giving all of us a look at how it's going. I remember when the first Halo Wars launched, players worried about having a strategy game on the console. It proved itself, though, taking a more simplistic approach to cater to the controller. The same seems to be true with the new title, especially with the legendary Creative Assembly on board.

Okay, so here I am... winning?

Of course, the game comes with a new campaign. Taking place after the events of Halo 5: Guardians, The UNSC Spirit of Fire has been adrift for some time. When they find themselves on the iconic Ark, they discover they aren't alone. Atriox and his Banished are there, and they don't intend to play nice.


But he has such a friendly face...

The multiplayer seems to be where most of the effort was placed. Halo Wars 2 promises to provide plenty of challenges to player with its variations of battle modes: Skirmish, Strongholds, Domination, Deathmatch, and Blitz. The most interesting newcomer is the Blitz mode. All we know about that is it is supposed to give a unique approach to RTS gameplay.


I'm down to some unique gameplay

Finally, there are absolutely content upgrades. New units of all types are available. The combat reaches a new level as this brings much more variation to gameplay. However, there is still no free form base building. The beta is playable until the 20th for Xbox Gold members. PC gamers aren't entirely left out, though. A beta is in the works for the PC, but it will be closer to launch. That is still good news, as the original Halo Wars was exclusively for the console. Good news, though! For those of us unable to check the beta out ourselves, there are plenty of videos out there to show us how it's going.


Whoa, I feel like I'm actually there!

It is clear to see a lot of work has been put into this game, and there is still a lot left to discover. By launch, there's no telling how big Halo Wars 2 will end up.