"Halo Wars 2" will offer more than just the traditional real-time strategy (RTS) gameplay that the original is known for. It looks like it will also offer some eSports vibe in the mix.
Speaking to Red Bull, 343 Industries studio head of strategy games development Dan Ayoub and Creative Assembly executive producer David Nicholson talked about the competitive elements of the highly-anticipated game.
Ayoub and Nicholson said that they developed "Halo Wars 2" with eSports in mind. With the expectation that gamers will demand it, the studios found it best to provide the community the tools to make it into an eSports game.
The new Blitz mode for "Halo Wars 2" is believed to be one of the modes in the game with competitive potential. It mixes the elements of a digital card game like "Hearthstone" with MOBA-type RTS gameplay.
"A deathmatch mode can last easily two hours, and that can be a little tricky from a viewing perspective, whereas we've seen Blitz matches end in as little as four minutes, which kind of lets you do a few interesting things," Ayoub said.
This could lead to "Halo Wars 2" players getting into best of seven and games of the same type. The 343 Industries executive believes that this additionally adds a "different level of professionalism" as far as eSports is concerned.
Nicholson added that the readability of the Blitz mode for "Halo Wars 2" captures what an eSports title is all about.
"We worked really hard to look at not making an eSports game, but what makes a game good for eSports. We've built a lot of that certainly into Blitz and it's bleeding into all of the modes, as well," the Creative Assembly executive added.
"Halo Wars 2" will be released on Feb. 21, 2017 on the Windows 10 PC and the Xbox One. A few days back, Australian Classification board rated the game as having violence and online interactivity.
