Starting next week, 343 Industries will let players try out a multiplayer beta of Halo Wars 2 that runs January 20-30. In addition, you can now see how your current PC build stacks up against the game’s hardware requirements.
During the beta, you’ll be able to try out "Blitz," a faster version of the game’s real-time strategy mechanics that involves card-based gameplay. With a deck of 12 cards, you have to summon different units and abilities to take over three zones on the small map. You also don’t have to play alone, as there’s room for up to two additional players to join your team for some chaotic three-versus-three action. Even though you have to compete against other players in the beta, there is a single-player variant called "Firefight" that you can play in the final version.
As for the hardware requirements, you’ll need the Windows 10 OS because the game is part of Microsoft’s Xbox Play Anywhere program. As a sidenote, you’ll get only the console and PC versions of the game if you purchase a digital copy of Halo Wars 2. Unlike most major titles in today’s market, the game requires only 25GB of space on your PC. Surprisingly, the team didn't mention a specific Nvidia GPU for the game's minimum specs. However, the spec sheet does mention that an Intel CPU with HD 4000 graphics or AMD's Radeon HD 7750 is the low standard. Check out the rest of the requirements below.
| Halo Wars 2 | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-2500 (Sandy Bridge, 3.3 GHz)AMD FX-4350 (Vishera, 4.2 GHz) | Intel Core i5-4690K (Devil's Canyon, 3.5 GHz)AMD FX-8350 (Vishera, 4.0 GHz) |
| GPU | Intel HD 4000AMD Radeon HD 7750 | Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060AMD Radeon RX 480 |
| RAM | 6 GB | 8 GB |
| Storage | 25 GB | 25 GB |
| OS | Windows 10 (64-bit) | Windows 10 (64-bit) |
If you want to get a primer on Blitz mode, be sure to check out our preview of the game from last October. The story also includes some gameplay footage so that you can see how the fast-paced mode works.
