There are actually several RTS attempts on console--none of them successful.
jaded_alyx, you refer to Battle For Middle Earth II (BFMEII), which was decently rated on PC but didn't sell anything on Xbox 360. The control scheme was actually decent (they figured out ways to use an Xbox 360 controller to call up build orders instead of using a pointer and clicking on things on the screen). You can download the demo on XBL.
The controls were workable, but partly because BFMEII was a dumbed down RTS. If you were trying to play something with lots of micro-management, say Warcraft III, the controls would've been unworkable because you simply couldn't select specific units fast enough and use specific abilities.
However for RTS games like BFMEII and C&C, the control scheme can be workable because the games require no tactics--you just attack move (if you don't play RTS games, that means you mass an army, move them to a place on the map to engage the enemy, and sit and wait until they exchange fire til one side dies). If you don't need to micromanage your units, then the console may work. Unfortunately, from previous Age of Empires games, I can see Halo Wars being a dumbed down RTS where you just attack move. Mass trebuchet anyone?
Halo Wars, is looking like it would be a really good game. i just dont know if they made the right move putting it on the 360. I would buy it if it came to the pc, which, I hope it will, because it is extremely difficult for someone to make an rts for a console. The last one i remember was Starcraft for the N64, and, maybe, Pikmin, if you think that counts. (G-cube) Thing is, having an rts on a console is just awkward, not just for the gamers, the programmers too. Did Ensemble Studios bite off more than they could chew? I think im waiting for a demo. You just cant be sure.
I didn't play Halo because it was an FPS, I played it because it was captivating. In fact, Halo is rather unfit to be an FPS. Master Chief, the character, is well suited for the genre but the actual universe could much better be captured in an RTS environemnt.
I have great doubts the Halo Wars will be anything revolutionary, but if the veterans working in Ensemble feel a little innovative they might find a few ways to pack ina little more automation and personailty into the modern RTS.
Will say that I'm rather excited to see the inclusion of the Spartan IIs. Its all specualtion now.
I said it was "becoming" Microsoft's Mario, not that it already was. Most other console RTSs have just been ports of PC games (command & conquer, starcraft etc.), and bad ports at that. The graphics never seem as good and there is rarely substantial multiplayer.
Halo Wars fixes ALL the gripes listed above. And perhaps the fact that it isn't being made by Bungie is a good thing as Ensemble Studios are the makers of the Age of Empires series, and thus experienced in making good RTSs.
Abras, Halo has a long way to go before being synonymous with Mario...there's only been 2 games. At this point in the Matrix movie series we also thought they could do no wrong. Being 2 for 2 does not guarantee anything, especially spinoffs. Final Fantasy has had decades of blockbuster RPGs, but no spinoff has been successful.
The only thing we are basing this stock on is the Halo brand...people who like Halo also like it because it is a great first person shooter on console. Can Ensemble studios make a good RTS for console? There have been ZERO successful RTS games on console to date. There has been no evidence that console gamers are interested in RTS games. Also note this game is NOT made by Bungie.
Not really surprising, RoommateDave, that once a good, nex-gen shooter came out, it quickly overtook the 2 year old Halo 2. This is a halo game, so it would do well even if it were only mediocre.
Even if Halo 1 wasn't on live, it was still played on online on the pc. Too bad it wasn't on live though. This game, i am guessing should do EXTREMELY well compared to other xbox 360 games.
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jaded_alyx, you refer to Battle For Middle Earth II (BFMEII), which was decently rated on PC but didn't sell anything on Xbox 360. The control scheme was actually decent (they figured out ways to use an Xbox 360 controller to call up build orders instead of using a pointer and clicking on things on the screen). You can download the demo on XBL.
The controls were workable, but partly because BFMEII was a dumbed down RTS. If you were trying to play something with lots of micro-management, say Warcraft III, the controls would've been unworkable because you simply couldn't select specific units fast enough and use specific abilities.
However for RTS games like BFMEII and C&C, the control scheme can be workable because the games require no tactics--you just attack move (if you don't play RTS games, that means you mass an army, move them to a place on the map to engage the enemy, and sit and wait until they exchange fire til one side dies). If you don't need to micromanage your units, then the console may work. Unfortunately, from previous Age of Empires games, I can see Halo Wars being a dumbed down RTS where you just attack move. Mass trebuchet anyone?