Windstorm Studios' president and founder Dusty Monk saw an opportunity when Microsoft closed down his former employer, Ensemble Studios. An opportunity to create something new in the massively multiplayer online game he loves. The studio is currently contracting industry talent to work on a project shrouded in mystery, but incredibly appealing, even in textual teaser form.

Are you tired of online games filled with depressing predictions of post apocalyptic destruction? Are you weary of walking through grey streets beneath grey skies and killing grey zombies? Have you had your fill of dank cellars and dark caves? Well so have we! And we're ready to build a brighter world! A better online game - a game with the promise of of a hopeful future — cities of glass and steel, and most importantly, flying cars!

Wait, so not all futures have to be dark? What about the apocalypse? Aren't we supposed to have one? I could have sworn one was scheduled. It seems like Dusty here is talking about the sort of shining future city that writers used to dream about back in the 1950's. Towers of glass and steel, flying cars? I'm not exactly sure what Windstorm is selling, but I'm dangerously close to buying it, sight unseen.

You can find some more concept art floating about Windstorm's website. We'll be paying close attention as well.

Windstorm Studios - Tomorrow's Games Today [Official Site via IGN]

Nearly three weeks after the game's initial launch in Asia, Halo Wars has sold more than one million copies worldwide, which Microsoft says makes it the best-selling real-time strategy title on the current crop of consoles. Of course, real-time strategy titles haven't historically done too well on consoles in the first place, but still, a million is a pretty big number. Microsoft also offers up some more big numbers with the announcement. Did you know that 2.6 million multiplayer matches have been played since Halo Wars launched, or that 118 years worth of time have been spent playing the game on Xbox Live? Well now you do. You're welcome.

Putting Halo in the name of your game certainly does move a lot of copies, though nowhere near as many as an actual Halo first-person shooter title. To put things in perspective, Halo 3 had 1.7 million preorders.

The Halo universe isn't just Master Chief. I know, I know; that's a hard fact for some fans to swallow. Between the novels, the first-person shooter trilogy, and now Halo Wars, there's a pretty rich universe to explore, and this video series aims to explore it, from the Spartans origins as a force to keep humanity in line to Master Chief's last stand.

Halo Wars takes the familiar setting of the first-person shooter series Halo and translates into a console-based real-time strategy game, in which players build up and army, gather resources, and participate in large-scale battles for the future of humanity.

Of course, having played through the Halo trilogy, we know how things turned out, just as we know the fate of most developers who attempt to translate the often complicated real-time strategy genre to the console. Was Ensemble Studios successful in their taste, or did they go out with a whimper instead of a bang?

GameSpot UK
-After shooting through scores of Covenant and Flood soldiers in three Halo first-person shooters, the United Nations Space Command's story rewinds a few decades in Halo Wars. The game grants you command of both the human UNSC forces and their archenemy, the theocratic alliance of the Covenant. Halo Wars offers quality cinematic presentation and a simple control scheme that makes the game easy to pick up and play, but the limited amount of units, short campaign, and dearth of multiplayer modes make it ultimately feel stripped. Halo Wars is a fun playthrough for casual real-time strategy and Halo fans, but there's not enough depth to win over hardcore strategy buffs.

Gameplayer
Now, for those of you who are fans of First Person Shooters, but don't know a power generator from a plasma grenade – don't panic. Halo Wars is quite rookie friendly, and it features very comprehensive tutorials that go so far as teaching you what a cursor is. Handy! After ten or fifteen minutes you can learn all there is to know about busting Covenant chops and setting up pimping command bases – this can be both a good thing, and a bad thing.

Wired
...deciding what to build and where is the bulk of the strategic experience. Upgrading your base will net you a maximum of seven building sites, but a single base simply won't provide enough space to support a well-rounded army. It's a simple system, designed to make fielding an army as painless as possible. But Halo Wars' design suffers a bit from the fact that it is designed to be a more casual experience. If you understand rock-paper-scissors, you understand the combat: Vehicles beat infantry, infantry beat aircraft, and aircraft beat vehicles.

IGN
Like the Halo FPS games, the Halo Wars campaign is all about quick bursts of fun strung together, and that means missions with carefully defined objectives. For many PC RTS players, the draw to the genre is the ability to step into the shoes of a powerful general with every little bit of the situation at his or her command. But there aren't that many ways to complete the missions in Halo Wars. There wasn't a point where the game really took off the training wheels and said, "There's the enemy – go get him however you see fit."

TeamXbox
So the story is good, the controls are great, it does right by the Halo license, what's left? How about the A.I.? Is it challenging? Unfortunately, this is one arena in which Halo Wars stumbles a bit. It's not that the game is too easy or too hard. The problem is, it's both. It's either too easy or too hard. It's never in-between, where I feel like I'm truly evenly matched with the A.I. It never once surprised me or made me think, which is a bummer. I may always have multiplayer, but I would love an A.I. match that felt even.

Kotaku
It's odd, being a long-time fan of both strategy games and Ensemble Studios, to love the single-player experience of a game they made, but feel so flat about the multiplayer sessions. Halo Wars is a fun ride, an action strategy game that delivers on everything but, perhaps, where it needs to deliver most to succeed: multiplayer gaming.

Too simple, or simply brilliant?

Taking the stage at this year's DICE get-together in Vegas, Shelley's address was devoted to pondering aloud how a studio that had only ever made highly-acclaimed games would be shut down. And while he doesn't settle on a single, over-arching thing that can be blamed, he does a good job of being honest and highlighting the flaws - both internally at at former owners Microsoft - that, combined, led to the studio's demise.

These include:

- Failure to diversify. Ensemble were responsible for many of the finest strategy titles ever developed. And...that's all they were responsible for. Strategy games don't make money like they used to.

- The studio grew too big. It had always employed around 40 people, and those 40 were a close-knit team. But as the years progressed, staff numbers swelled to around 75, meaning that much of that strong feeling was diluted.

- Two major projects the company were working on - one the Halo MMO - were canned by Microsoft. Yet after they were canned, Ensemble didn't downsize, which would have increased overhead and may have contributed to Microsoft's decision to let the studio go.

You know what it sounds like to us? This is like when you see a couple who have been married for 20-30 years get divorced, and there wasn't any one thing you could blame. Nobody slept around, nobody hit anybody, they just...grew apart. Weren't as right for each other as they once were.

There doesn't always have to be a reason.

Live Blog: DICE 2009 - Bruce Shelley, Ensemble Studios Post-Mortem [G4]

Now it's definite. A press release issued by the company today has confirmed that Robot will be continuing work on Halo Wars, supporting Age of Empires multiplayer and, most interestingly, are at work on a new IP. Which begs the question: if Robot are the new Ensemble, and Robot are working on new IP, who's been given the keys to the Age of Empires franchise?

PLANO, Texas - February 17, 2009 - Robot Entertainment announced today the formation of its new game development studio in Plano, Texas. Founded by many of the original founders of Ensemble Studios, Robot has a staff of 45 comprised entirely of former Ensemble employees. Robot's team developed the hit franchise Age of Empires™, selling over 20 million units worldwide, and the soon-to-be released Halo Wars for Xbox 360™. Tony Goodman, the founder of Ensemble, is the CEO of Robot.

"The video game industry is in a state of upheaval," said Mr. Goodman, "not just games, but the entire landscape. Everything is changing: where we buy games, how we buy games, how much we pay, how long we play, who we play them with. As a fast-moving independent team of game developers, industry leaders and market experts, Robot Entertainment is ideally positioned to play a transformative role in the industry's future."

Robot Entertainment is working with Microsoft Game Studios to develop additional content for Halo Wars and support online gaming and community for both Age of Empires and Halo Wars. Additionally, Robot is developing its own original IP.

About Robot Entertainment
Based in Plano, Texas, Robot Entertainment is a world-class independent game development studio owned and operated by many of the founders of Ensemble Studios. With a team that has proven experience and expertise in creating games that appeal to massive audiences, Robot Entertainment is focused on titles that set new standards for their respective genres as well as groundbreaking original IPs. Robot can be found on the web at www.robotentertainment.com.

It's called Robot Entertainment, and has been established by Ensemble co-founder Tony Goodman, along with "a number of veterans" from the former Microsoft-owned studio.

Is this the new studio - the one that will continue work on Halo Wars and other first-party titles - Microsoft spoke about when the Ensemble shuttering was first announced? Certainly looks like it, so we could possibly be looking at the future home of Age of Empires as well.

Ensemble Veterans Form Robot Entertainment [Gamasutra]

Having obviously not paid enough attention during the early days of Halo 3 development, I was a bit surprised to learn that developer Ensemble first went to Microsoft with the idea for a console strategy game before the Halo license even came into the picture. I imagine it must have been a very pleasant surprise, which quickly gave way to a feeling of oh my god, we have to please Halo fans.

Not that Halo fans aren't easy to please. I mean, look at...you know what? Just going to leave it at that before I get myself shot. Enjoy the video!

UK tech news site Electricpig spoke with Halo Wars producer Jason Pace at the preview event for the game, who indicated that while there are no definite plans yet, the studio is committed to supporting the franchise. While that isn't exactly a yes as far as DLC goes, he did mention that "additional downloadable content is something we’re looking in to."

Looking into is much better that breaking down in tears or punching the journalist in the face, so we're going to go ahead and put a check in the "Definitely Maybe" column.

Halo Wars DLC a maybe, says Microsoft [Electricpig]

The Halo Wars gold master is on its way to manufacturing, well in time for its late February / early March release dates. While excited fans of the Halo series dream of discs sliding out of a giant, magical disc pressing machine, Microsoft is readying a playable demo of the game to help ease the wait. On February 5th the Halo Wars demo will be available for download, featuring the first two levels of the single player campaign along with "Chasms", one of fourteen multiplayer maps shipping with the full game. Note that the multiplayer map looks to be only playable against the A.I. is Skirmish mode, so you'll have to wait for the full game in order to hop online.

Along with the news of the demo, Microsoft Game Studios also launches a new video documentary for the game today, with the first episode now available for download via Xbox Live.

Genre Defining Xbox 360 Exclusive “Halo Wars” Goes Gold

New video documentary series and Xbox LIVE demo details revealed

Microsoft Game Studios and Ensemble Studios announced today that “Halo Wars,” the highly anticipated action strategy game based on the legendary “Halo” universe, is finished and sent to manufacturing! Created from the ground up for the Xbox 360 console and controller, “Halo Wars” combines a peerless control scheme and gameplay with an incredibly rich, epic story set 20 years prior to the story told in “Halo: Combat Evolved.” The result is a commanding experience that is a must-have for “Halo” fans and a title that is sure to become a classic amongst fans of strategy games.

As fans eagerly await launch day, a video documentary series announced today will explore defining themes of “Halo Wars” and give viewers a behind the scenes look at the game’s development and some of the people involved in its creation. The premier episode captures key elements that frame “Halo Wars” gameplay: the controls, perspective and strategy. The “Halo Wars” video documentary is available for download on Xbox LIVE and can be viewed at Xbox.com/Halo.

In addition, the recently announced Xbox LIVE public demo for “Halo Wars” will be available beginning on Feb. 5 at 2 a.m. PST in Xbox LIVE enabled regions worldwide. In the demo, players will be able master Ensemble’s groundbreaking control scheme in optional beginner and advanced tutorials or jump right into the action to experience the beginning of the “Halo Wars” story with the first two campaign missions. The demo will also include “Chasms,” one of “Halo Wars’” 14 multiplayer maps, wherein players can battle it out in Skirmish mode vs. A.I., playing either as the UNSC with Captain Cutter’s leader powers, or as the Covenant with the Prophet of Regret’s own unique abilities. Don’t forget to set your Xbox to download this demo!

“Halo Wars” is rated T for Teen by the ESRB and 16+ PEGI, and will be available starting Feb. 26 in Asia, Feb. 27 in Europe and March 3 in the Americas. For more information, visit Xbox.com/Halo or HaloWars.com.

The fast, visceral combat is definitely there – but at the expense of some of the more “hardcore” elements of real time strategy games. For example, instead of being able to stay in a zoomed-out view where tiny minions explode quietly as you pump more out of your base, Halo Wars keeps the camera focused pretty far in on the battlefield so the action is in your face. There’s a level of detail to people, aliens and vehicles that makes explosions more vivid; and because your units level up to gain new abilities (instead of, say, unlocking new types of units), you become more attached to them instead of coldly sending units off to die like meat shields.

Hit the jump for more.

It also seemed to me like the combat was more urgent in Halo Wars than in other RTS games – but that might be me buying into the “epic storyline” that evolved out of Halo lore. I’m a nerd who has read the books because I crave back story and I’m a sucker for a good cut scene; Halo Wars offers up plenty of both. The story takes place about 20 years before the events in Halo, when the United Nations Space Command is trying to take back the planet Harvest from the Covenant.

We weren’t given too many details on the storyline – but here’s what I can follow based on the three cut scenes I got to watch between levels: Captain Cutter commands both Sergeant Forge and scientist Professor Anders. Something is going on down on Harvest that has the Covenant very upset: an Arbiter and a Prophet are having it out about some kind of “infection” spreading that might force them to abandon the planet. Meanwhile, Anders cops an attitude with Cutter when he tells her not to go planet-side to investigate the infection (and either they’re related or he’s sleeping with her, because I can’t fathom snapping at a commanding officer like that and still being able to keep your rank). She heads down to the planet anyway where Forge is also telling her not to be and proceeds to get the Marines in all kinds of trouble as she investigates some sort of temple-looking thing. After blowing it up (because that’s what the UNSC does best), Anders and Forge leg it to an extraction point and I was tapped on the shoulder by an Ensemble employee and told to move on to the skirmish mode.

There will be co-op campaign mode on Xbox Live multiplayer – but skirmish mode is where versus happens, so I’m sure that’s where most RTS fans will be getting their fix. Players can either be Covenant or UNSC and the two factions are different enough that you’ll have to change tactics for each, but also similar enough so that you can swap back and forth between them without having to suffer a learning curve.

Skirmish mode is where I started to see what Ensemble had done with Halo Wars to make it different than Age of Empires. On PC, RTS games live and die by hotkeys – more hotkeys means more units, more units means more specialization of factions, more specialization means more resources to manage, and that of course mean a more complex system of “rock-paper-scissors” balancing between resources, units and combat. Well, we don’t have hotkeys on the Xbox 360 and Ensemble was not about to try and cram a PC game onto a console – other RTS games have tried and the experience just doesn’t port well. So instead, Halo Wars gets its complexity from map layouts and unit advancement and focuses on the core elements of strategy. For example, you can pump out all the Grunt forces you want, but until you level your ranged fighters up enough to get the right kind of gun, you cannot take out the sniper in the tower that’s preventing you from crossing a choke point on the map.

What worries me about Halo Wars is not that it won’t be fun – three hours flew by before I had to be told my appointment was over. What worries me is that RTS fans and Halo fans both will be so turned off by the very idea of a Halo RTS that they won’t even give the game a chance. RTS gamers will complain because of the lack of resource competition: “It’s too easy,” I can hear them whine. Meanwhile, the Halo hardcore fans will cry, “No Master Chief? Wtf?!”

But there is something in Halo Wars for both; the skulls represent that idea. In campaign mode, there are certain optional objectives you can complete to earn a skull (e.g. “Kill 45 Hunters”). The skull will appear at some point on the map that you’ve got to fight to in order to obtain it – adding a whole degree of difficulty to combat. Once you get the skull, you can access it in a menu (either in the campaign or in skirmish mode) and activate it to trigger a special effect. The two that I got my hands on made Grunts burst into confetti when killed (Party Skull) and upped the visual effect of explosions so everything appeared to go up in fiery spouts whenever it blew up (Cowbell Skull).

Halo Wars is out on Xbox 360 in February 2009. No word yet on a demo, but rest assured there will be downloadable content.

On the downloadable content side of things, the LE also comes with a bonus in-game "Honor Guard" Wraith, with folks who pre-order from select retailers receiving a code for a special flaming Warthog. It's a very exciting package, but then again so was Fable II when they started out. Think I'll wait and see.

Standard and Limited Collector’s Edition versions of “Halo Wars” arrive at retailers worldwide February 2009

Today, Microsoft Game Studios and Ensemble Studios announced that the much-anticipated strategy game “Halo Wars” will be landing at retailers worldwide this February in both a standard and Limited Collector’s Edition format. Taking the “Halo” battle beyond the first person, “Halo Wars” puts players in command of the battlefield and combines the intensity of “Halo” with a riveting new story that precedes the events of “Halo: Combat Evolved.”

Developed by Ensemble Studios, the creators of the critically-acclaimed “Age of Empires” series, “Halo Wars” was designed specifically for Xbox 360 and brings a genre that has typically thrived on the PC seamlessly to consoles. From specialized controls to redesigned resource management and unit command, “Halo Wars” will give players the fluid strategy experience they’ve been waiting for on a console.

In addition to the standard retail version, “Halo Wars” will be offered in a Limited Collector’s Edition through participating retailers and will feature:

* Three New “Halo 3” Multiplayer Maps – Be one of the first to experience the Mythic Map Pack from Bungie which includes three new maps, “Assembly,” “Orbital” and “Sandbox”
* Halo Wars: Genesis – a beautiful graphic novel by Phil Noto, Graeme Devine and Eric Nylund chronicling the first military campaign against the Covenant. The novel centers around the Sprit of Fire on a mission to discover why the Covenant are so interested in the world of Harvest
* Unique In-game Vehicle – “Honor Guard” Wraith
* Six Leader Cards – Leaders possess elite skills which can turn the tides of battle
* Spirit of Fire Patch – Start the journey as an official Spirit of Fire crew member

As an added bonus, fans eager for their chance to battle the Covenant will be able to pre-order “Halo Wars” and receive a pre-order card to download a special in-game Warthog vehicle with flame decals from select participating retailers.

The standard edition of “Halo Wars” will have an estimated retail price of $59.99 and the Limited Collector’s Edition will retail for an estimated price of $79.99. “Halo Wars” is rated “T” for Teen.

More information on “Halo Wars” can be found online at www.Xbox.com/HaloWars or www.HaloWars.com.

Exclusive: Ensemble Studios' Canceled Project Was Halo MMO [Gamasutra]

Bungie seems excited about the Ensemble-developed Halo Wars. The game is planted firmly in the RTS genre, so, for example, it's not necessary to have players moved in and out of cover. Gushes Bungie AI maven Damian Isla:

We've done a lot of talking with Ensemble guys, and we're all really excited about Halo Wars, because from everything we've seen so far it's a very cool, faithful adaptation... Everything we've seen has been very, very encouraging — we're very excited about it. And of course, [Halo Wars is] also getting right the basics, the general roles — even fictionally. What role do grunts play in the Covenant fighting forces, what role do the Elites play, what role do Warthogs play, what role do Spartans play... All this kind of thing. I think they really nailed that. It's encouraging.

Great news, this.

Bungie "very excited" about Halo Wars [Eurogamer]

Somers speaks at length about the pitfalls of RTS design, the responsibility the dev team feels in working with Bungie's existing Halo universe, and other things that make up a great RTS game experience. But he doesn't drop much in the way of confirmable news tidbits, just:

• Halo Wars and Ensemble Studios will have a presence at E3 this year. (We'll keep our eyes peeled).
• The game will ship "when it's ready," so, nothing specific on the date.
• No promises, but developers are aware of Machinima enthusiasm and may ship Halo Wars with tools to assist in its creation.

Halo Wars Addict Exclusive Interview: Ensemble Studios

UNSC Forces

Marines
Flamethrower Marines
Spartans
Warthogs
Scorpions
Cobras (anti-vehicle artillery)
Hornets
Wolverines (anti-aircraft vehicle)
Elephants (!!)
Cyclops (enormous UNSC mech unit)
Vultures (mysterious, enormous vehicle)

Covenant Forces (not all units revealed)

Grunts
Jackals
Hunters
Ghosts
Banshees
Scarabs
Elites

GamePro July 2008 [thanks Tom!]

Age of Empires III Makes it Gold [gamedaily]

Halo Wars takes place before the events of the first Halo title, during the 27 year war that followed the UNSC's first contact with the Covenant, which for the uninitiated did not go well. The player takes control of the resources and crew of the UNSC ship Spirit of Fire as she participates in the first battles against the aliens.

Drop It Like It's Hot

The demo began with a troop transport being escorted by two fighter aircraft to an UNSC base. The fighter jets are USC Hawks, just one of the new vehicles created for Halo Wars. Much like the more well-known vehicles they look heavy, angular, and functional. The troop carrier lands in the middle of the base and deploys a group of soldiers, and we are given a look at the control mechanics behind this console-centric RTS.

Graeme explains to us that the most important aspect of any RTS is selection. How and how easily you are able to select units is paramount to the feel of the game. Halo Wars actually has three options for selecting units. Hitting A selects single units, with X issuing move and attack orders. Double tapping A selects all similar units on the battlefield, while holding down A and moving the left stick acts as a unit selecting paintbrush. Throughout the demo Rippy, who was driving things from off to the side, seemed to have no problem selecting units in the heat of battle and issuing orders on the fly.

All Your Base

They took a moment to show us the various buildings around the UNSC base, noting the little details put into giving the structures a very alive, very human feel. Little people waved aircraft into position while behind a supply depot a group of soldiers were running through an exercise routine. All purely aesthetic of course, but nice little touches here and there make an RTS seem less like a board game and more like a real battle.

Speaking of battle, it was time to send our soldiers against some Covenant troops encroaching on the base. A couple squads of grunts with elite leaders quickly take out our puny soldiers. Master Chief they are not. Time to call in the big...wheels.

Enter the Warthog

Highlighting one of the structures, Chris brought up the circle menu, which is the heart of the game. It is a rotary menu controlled by the thumbstick which displays what options you have depending on what you have selected. In this case a vehicle depot is selected, and the option chosen is a Warthog. With seconds a puma-like vehicle shoots up a ramp and comes skidding to a halt in mid-base. Yep, it's a Warthog all right. The guys show off some of the physics behind the warthog, clicking out a path with the select tool and then watching as the nimble vehicle fishtails and swerves to follow, just like the 'real' thing. Sending the Warthog up against the enemy troops pretty much works like you'd expect it to. The first group of enemies was rammed into and decimated, while another Warthog blew grunts all over the screen to the sound of those distinctive cartoonish screams.

The enemies having been dispatched, the Warthogs were faced with a seemingly impassable ravine. Graeme explained that while tanks and troops could never cross such a gap, the jeepish vehicle had no problems whatsoever, gracefully leaping the chasm and rushing headlong into another conflict, already in progress.

Escalating Conflict

What followed was pretty much a demonstration of how units escalate from grunts to gargantuans. First the Warthogs take on troops, but Banshees arrive to destroy the 'hogs, which brings out the UNSC anti-air unit the Wolverine. Those are in turn attacked by Ghost tanks, which are countered by Scorpion tanks, and then finally the Covenant unleash a Scarab, the walking fortresses equipped with anti-everything guns. All hope seems lost, but an orbital strike from the Spirit of Fire cooks the Scarab and ends the demo.

But Is it Halo?

Halo Wars is basically an arcade RTS, a term used by one of my fellow members of the press and quickly taken up by Graeme. It is meant to be a fast and dirty RTS without the player having to worry about harvesting endless resources and micromanaging to have fun. An RTS the average Halo fan could pickup and enjoy. Would they? From what I saw the game had a high level of polish, and the music was downright excellent at tying the whole Halo feel together, but I worry that there might not be enough variety in the game to appease the RTS fan, while at the same time not being sure how long Halo fans will get a kick of clicking to move their Warthog around before going back to just driving it. Creating the game is basically a balancing act, and it is hard to tell from the short time I saw the game playing whether they can pull it off. I liked what I saw, but I think I'm maintaining a cautiously optimistic opinion of Halo Wars until I can see more.