E3 2013: Hands-On With ‘Halo: Spartan Assault’

I’ll be honest. I almost passed up the change to play Halo: Spartan Assault out of spite. After a course correction filled E3 press conference showcasing nothing but games, Microsoft’s booth was the one that had the smallest amount of playable titles… by far. When I walked through the Xbox area, I saw lines for demonstrations on Project Spark, Dead Rising 3 and a new dance game (they all kind of run together), but nothing that was really hands on except the Windows Phone 8 Halo game Spartan Assault. You’ve got to be kidding me. After all of the hemming and hawing about their new system and a focus on games, the only big game that they were showcasing as playable, that an entire fourth of their booth was devoted to, you didn’t even need one of their systems to play?!?

Thank goodness they were giving away shirts. And thank goodness that our Halo-loving writer Jacob Lopez wasn’t attending and probably wanted one of those Halo: Spartan Assault shirts, because that’s what made me play it… that and my own questions about whether or not a touchscreen Halo game could hold the same level of depth and action as the console version. Well, the questions are now behind me and the answer to all of them is a definite yes. My short time with Halo: Spartan Assault was one of my most surprisingly fun times at E3 this year (and I got Jacob Lopez a shirt).

The game is a top down action game that looks a bit like a PC RTS game but has the traditional touch controls of most touchscreen games in that it tries to replicate dual thumb pads for movement and firing. Heck, put that way, it’s almost a throwback to Smash TV, one of my favorite arcade games ever. The story of the game is in canon with the Halo universe we know and love and before being deployed on a mission players go through a series of weapon, power up and mission select screens where they can pick and choose how to approach different parts of the overall campaign. You can also select and deselect the popular Skulls, in order to modify your experience. Some of these additions cost credits, which you unlock and accrue through playing… and I also saw a place where you could use a credit card to buy more if you want to follow the Pay to Win model popular in a lot of mobile games.

I played through two missions in my time with the game, a defense level in which I led my squad in the defense of a base against Covenant troops that were being dropped on our heads and an offensive mission in which the goal was to get across a valley teaming with Prometheans, Wraiths and Elites. In each, the controls were very easy to pick up and play with, with separate touch buttons near the thumb spaces for things like throwing grenades, swapping out your weapons for those dropped by dead enemies and piloting a Wraith. Nothing felt out of place and the gameplay was really well designed. The missions were also fun, the graphics were great and at times they reminded me a little bit of playing Halo Wars (although the top-down view probably had a lot to do with this as well). The missions could have been a bit longer, but the ones that I played might have been parred down for use as a demo. Ultimately, Spartan Assault is a game that every Halo fan should get, as it adds a new facet to the rich tapestry of the Halo universe and does so in a fun and engaging way. Those who aren’t as glued to the Halo experience should still check it out, as it’s one of the best mobile games that I’ve ever played and even rivals most of what the consoles have to offer.

Now, if Microsoft would just tell us that this is coming to iOS and Android as well, we’ll be all set.