‘Halo Wars 2’ Developer Teases Improved Leader Powers, Bases And Controls Ahead Of Early 2017 Release

“Halo Wars 2” developer 343 Industries values its game’s fans so much that it once again gave in to what they wanted to see in Microsoft Studios' strategy game. On Thursday, the studio head of 343 Industries Strategy Games department, Dan Ayoub, took to the official Halo site to thank the fans who sent them feedback and teased about the things they have changed within the game.

The feedback Ayoub was referring to was the one for the open beta 343 launched in June. At the time, the developer even decided to extend the open beta to June 22, instead of wrapping it up on June 20 as scheduled, because of the high demand for the “Halo Wars 2” multiplayer beta, as pointed out by an IGN report published that time.

Now Ayoub feels that he and the team working on “Halo Wars 2” are indebted to the fans, since the latter gave them useful insights on how to enhance the game to its full potential in time for its official release. Hence, he emphasized in his post that the fans who took the time to send their feedback on the open beta made a direct impact on them.

Ayoub admitted that the “Halo Wars 2” beta was more than just a beta, for it served as a technical preview for fans to see how far they were in the development of the video game. He also acknowledged that the development beta enabled them to respond to the concerns and issues fans had pointed out.

In response to the feedback 343 Industries got from fans, the population cap of the game, which was “purposely lower” for the beta, has been increased, and it could be further increased when the game officially hits the market.

Ayoub also revealed the improvements they made to the Leader Powers, Bases and Controls. For the Leader Powers, the team is working on making them easier to understand and more straightforward, so players can enjoy their different uses. On the other hand, the Bases will most likely get new appearances and damage depictions. Meanwhile, the Controls will have an adjusted layout to make it easier and faster for players to familiarize.

In the end, Ayoub teased that there is more to come that fans should watch out for and pointed out that there are other high level changes that will be incorporated into the official version that is due to be released on Feb 21, 2017 on Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs. Furthermore, he revealed that what the multiplayer beta testers saw in June were only two of the different modes that will be featured in the game.

This could not be the last time Ayoub will be thanking fans for their feedback though, since another “Halo Wars 2” beta is scheduled for early 2017, according to Gamespot. Though the schedule of the beta is still unknown, it was already confirmed that this beta will be available for both Windows 10 and Xbox One, unlike the June beta that was only available on the latter platform.