The News
New Halo Wars Trailer & Gameplay!
Wow, a whole load of new goodness for you guys to drool over today. First up, the "A Field Trip To Harvest" cinematic trailer, which gives us a nice little intro to what we can expect from the Halo Wars storyline.
Secondly, two new gameplay videos have surfaced. The "Chasm" demo showing off the VTOL abilities of the Hornets in Halo Wars and the "Beasely Plateau" demo, showing off some pretty spectacular looking explosions plus plenty of nice unit animation. Enjoy!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated October 5th
Field Manual Updates!
The UNSC field manual has been updated with three new units and two new buildings over at HaloWars.com.
The Airpad and Barracks add to our already solid knowledge of game buildings, while the Marine, Hornet and Flamethrower now have a special place in the Field Manual, cool stuff! Read up on it all in the UNSC Field Manual over at HaloWars.com.
Sorry news has been a little slow folks, lots of moving around as of late!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 29th
Looking Brutal
SOLUS has added two new pieces of Brute concept art to the galleries over at HaloWars.com. The Brutes shown in the two added pieces of artwork look a little different (at least to me) to the Brutes we've seen in Halo 2 & 3, but formidable nevertheless.
You can see the two Brutes in all their high-res glory here and here. Enjoy!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 16th
A Statement from Pottinger
Dave Pottinger, Halo Wars' lead designer, released a statement concerning the recent news that Ensemble will be shutting its doors after the release of Halo Wars next year. There's not really much to say here, have a read for yourself:
- Is Halo Wars gonna suck now that ES is getting closed after Halo Wars is released?
That’s a totally fair question. The Ensemble Studios’ closure announcement certainly affects the perception of Halo Wars. Despite that risk, we put our people first. Telling our employees ASAP was the right thing to do. I give Microsoft quite a bit of credit for letting us do that.
We’ve worked with Microsoft to create the best set of options for every employee’s future. For example, there is a deal in place for a new company that will employ some people from Ensemble. It’s premature to announce much about that venture, but it is definite that the new company will pickup and support Halo Wars going forward.
That said, I’m sure some folks will leave before Halo Wars ships. I’ll applaud them for doing what is right for their happiness. Ensemble has always been about our commitment to employees. We’re not going to forget that at the last minute.
We’ve done everything possible to retain everyone through the end of Halo Wars. Any reports about people already being laid off are 100% false. Full timers are still employed and have a job until well after Halo Wars. Contractors still have their contracts. Our goal is to keep everyone here until the game is done.
Halo Wars is going to ship. We want Halo Wars to be awesome. If you’ve read any of the E3 or Leipzig press coverage, you know the game is good. Plus, the new company will support Halo Wars via title updates and DLC.
Finishing the game will be harder now, but it will get done and be great.
Dave Pottinger
Halo Wars Lead Designer
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 11th
Say it ain't so!
This hasn't actually been confirmed yet, but rumors have been flying that Microsoft will be shutting down Ensemble Studios following the release of Halo Wars next year. According to Shacknews, which was the first to report the story, there have been reports from multiple independent sources that state that anyone not involved with the development of Halo Wars at Ensemble has been "laid off", while those involved have been offered "incentives to stay" until the release of the title next year.
More on this as it develops, hopefully we won't have confirmation for you soon and this will all turn out to be a bad dream. Hang in there.
Update:
It's been confirmed, let's hope this doesn't adversely affect Halo Wars' development. :-(
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 10th
Halo Wars At PAX
Graeme Devine has written us up a little look back on his experiences at PAX 08. For those of you who don't know PAX, or the "Penny Arcade Expo" has quickly become the premiere event in the gaming calendar for you, the players, since E3... lost it's appeal a couple of years ago.
It seems those who made it out to PAX were very keen to see Halo Wars in action, seats were full and fans were eagerly anticipating the two demos given by Graeme. Read all about it over at HaloWars.com.
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 7th
Halo Wars August Update
Well, it's September, which means we're just about due for the August monthly update. Totally kidding, but August's update has been posted over at HaloWars.com. Among topics discussed in this month's update are upcoming goals and site changes, but more importantly the news that Thunder, long-suffering community manager has left Texas, and his position at Ensemble, to be back home in Canada. You'll be sorely missed, Thunder. Read on.
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 4th
Dave Pottinger on Spartans
SOLUS has posted the latest "Diary" entry over at HaloWars.com which details the implementation of the green ass-kicking guys in Halo Wars. There's probably more thought that goes into this kind of stuff than you realize, go check it out!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 4th
The Leipzig Diaries
SOLUS has posted The Leipzig Diaries over at HaloWars.com, the Diaries cover three days worth of geeky goodness with Graeme Devine, Stephen Rippy and Bill Jackson at Leipzig, demoing, drinking and generally having what looks like an awesome time. It looks as if the folks over at halowarsaddict.com made it out there too for a hands-on with the game!
You can check day one here and days two and three here. Enjoy!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated September 2nd
Halo Wars Box Art Released
The Halo Wars Box Art has been officially unveiled to the public! You'll want to keep an eye out for the following box on store shelves near you next year:
Here's what Microsoft had to say in their official press release:
"The crew of the Spirit of Fire are gearing up for combat and to prepare you we have a special first-look at the newest chapter in the “Halo” saga. Microsoft Game Studios and Ensemble Studios unveiled official “Halo Wars” box art and visual ID today."
No word on any special editions of the game or what they'll look like as of yet, it's still early days though!
News Source | Permalink | Posted by Mr Sprout | Last updated August 27th