What we have hear is a near perfect example of how to make an RTS for a console. The controls although simple, still allow for a detailed and immersive combat experience. Gone are the days of having to micromanage your base building and supply gathering. You start off with a main base that has 5 slots for building your supply and production facilities as well as researching higher technology with the exception of Captain Cutter leader. The bonus for choosing his character allows for a full 7 slot base at start. His additional bases also start at 5 slots while the other leaders start at 3.
There are 3 Covenant leaders and 3 UNSC leaders to choose from and each with their own special bonuses. Covenant is kind of a throwback to Warcraft 3. Their leaders are an actual playable character. Each leader gets one special ability that's controlled by the Y button and aimed with the analog sticks. Covenant are also able to build Scarabs. They take up a massive portion of your population. They have a lot of health and their beam is only second to an army of Locusts. In contrast the UNSC don't have their leader on the field of play but they get a slew of leader powers, accessed by pressing UP on the d-pad. The D-Bomb is one power that's used to neutralize other leader powers within say a 10m radius. It throws down a distortion field that negates any leader powers for up to 2 minutes in that area. Next is an area of effect heal which heals units within say a 5m radius. Next is a troop transport which is used for shuffling units across your visible areas of the map. UNSC are also able to produce Vultures. These are similar to Battle Cruisers from Starcraft but instead of that big fireball, they shoot a huge volley of missles called Mega Barrage. Finally there's the 3 unique leader powers which I'll describe here:
Arbiter(Covenant): Probably the most powerful of the 3 Covenant. His power is Rage. When in this mode the Arbiter's power dramatically increases and he'll hop from unit to unit causing damage. It's hard for units to hit him when he's jumping across the screen. When fully upgraded, Rage mode will heal the arbiter for every unit he kills while making his army do a lot more damage. His special units are suicide grunts. They can counter air like normal grunts but they're main purpose is doing a kamikaze into buildings and blowing them up.
Prophet(Covenant): The most annoying of the 3 Covenant. When fully upgraded the Prophet has flight capabilities along with this Cleansing Beam. It's a laser that comes from the sky that you use to beam down anything from ground to air units to buildings. He also gets these protector drones that follow him and shoot enemies at random for extra damage as well as his main plasma weapon. His special units are elite honor guard. They're just anti-infantry covenant with swords. They are able to cloak and have shields.
Brute Chieftain(Covenant): The most battle hungry of the 3 Covenant. His Vortex is probably the most devastating power when fully upgraded. It's sort of like a black hole in that it sucks up debris and will instant kill units at low hp if they get sucked in. The debris swirls around the distortion he creates and will damage nearby units. When you release Vortex, the debris explodes in all directions and damages everything within say a 10m radius. The BC also has a hammer that will stun units and his full upgrade will allow him to draw in one unit at a time and one shot them. His special units are the Brutes. They're a very balanced unit for dealing with air, ground and buildings. They are able to randomly stun units and they can jump to a target that's half way across the screen.
Cutter(UNSC): Along with the upgraded bases, he gets the Elephant unit which is basically a mobile barracks with turrets. When planted down, it's defenses increase to that of a building and allows for training of infantry units. Cutter's super unit are ODST. You only need tech level 3 to upgrade to them. They can be dropped in from the sky or produced from the elephant. His unique leader power is the MAC blast. It drops like a giant meteor on the ground and can be upgraded to 4 shots. It does massive damage to anything it lands on and can easily turn the tide of battle.
Anders(UNSC): Her economy bonuses are halved cost to research new techs plus halved research time. Her main building unit is the Gremlin which is used for disabling vehicles. It also does anti-vehicle damage. Her super units are Hawks. They are an upgraded version of Hornets which are kind of like attack helicopters. Hawks are basically faster Hornets with Gauss canons. Her unique leader power is Cryo Bomb. It freezes "any" units in it's area and will instant kill air units at random. The more upgrades it has, the longer the freeze lasts and the more units that will be instant killed.
Forge(UNSC): His eco bonus is the ability to build heavy supply pads from the start. He saves money by not having to upgrade normal supply pads and his resources will come in faster than all the other leaders. His main building units are Cyclops which can repair other units and do anti-building damage. His super units are Grizzlies. They are tanks with very high hp and their main guns can lay waste to most infantry. Forge's unique leader power is called Carpet Bomb. A plane swoops by for a bombing run in the direction you tell it to. I mostly use Scorpions(tanks) and it comes in handy for weakening Hunters so I can finish them off with Y buttons from the Scorpions.
I never played through the campaign but I'm sure it's good. Multiplayer consists of 1v1, 2v2, and 3v3 for standard play as well as other game types. There's also a Deathmatch for 1v1 and 2v2 for players who just like to get max tech level before fighting. Everything starts off fully upgraded and you start off with a lot of resources. /walloftext
Its a very challenging game my son can play for hours and still enjoy doing it. its a great game.
This is not part of the halo series instead it's a intagrated RTS on the 360. This might be the best rts on the 360, but the controls are too sensitive and it's easier to play on a computer with a mouse. For example if your selecting your troops and you have to move your toggle stick to get there you might slip off a inch and press something else instead. A RTS is basically a topview game where you control all your troops. I did not finish the campaign or play online yet, but it's easy to see that the graphics from the cutscenes are outstanding! Every little detail is perfected and you might confuse the cutscene for a tv show.
"Very awsome game. If you are into gamnes like "age of empires" then this is the game for you!!!!!"
"Great game. Very similar to all others like it. Example: star craft. Story line a must know"
