The Game Census
Halo Wars: Definitive Edition cover art

Halo Wars: Definitive Edition

Ensemble Studios · Xbox Game Studios · 2017-04-20

SteamMicrosoft StoreGame Pass

Strategy

Franchise: Halo · Modes: Single player, Multiplayer, Co-operative · Perspectives: Bird view / Isometric

Releases: Apr 20, 2017 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), Dec 20, 2016 (Xbox One)

Halo Wars: Definitive Edition is an enhanced version of the real-time strategy classic, Halo Wars, updated to run natively on PC. Halo Wars: Definitive Edition includes improved graphics, new achievements and all of the DLC created for the landmark real-time strategy game.

Halo Wars: Definitive Edition is a Strategy game released in 2017, priced at $19.99, with an owner estimate of 500,000 .. 1,000,000 and a review sentiment of Very Positive (91% of 9536 reviews).— census verdict as of 2026-09-20

83
playing now
91%
positive of 9.6k reviews
Very Positive
steam's rating (official)
500,000–1,000,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
78/100
critic score (2 outlets, IGDB)
77/100
IGDB user rating (26 ratings)
27
Nexus mods (130k downloads)
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
Verified
Steam Deck (Valve)
SteamOS: Playable
$19.99
steam price (US)

83 players in-game as of 2026-10-14 11:00 UTC (census sample)

Halo Wars is a real-time strategy (RTS) video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360 video game console. It was released in Australia on February 26, 2009; in Europe on February 27; and in North America on March 3. The game is set in the science fiction universe of the Halo series in the year 2531, 21 years before the events of Halo: Combat Evolved. The player leads human soldiers aboard the warship Spirit of Fire in an effort to stop an ancient fleet of ships from falling into the hands of the genocidal alien Covenant.

Trailer

Halo Wars: Definitive Edition trailer thumbnail

Halo Wars: Definitive Edition Trailer

≈424,896 YouTube results for this game's trailer search

Health check

Healthy
  • · 83 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 608 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~76/week).
  • · Review velocity up 33% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 4% of 14,087 Strategy games in the census by review count.
Estimated sales: 240k–576k copies

Review-multiple estimate from 9,599 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

Microsoft Store$4.99-75%

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $4.99 at Microsoft Store (2021-05-11)via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $19.99 · on sale 9 of 21 observed days (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
19819820182026Week of 2018-01-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2018-01-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2018-02-01: 45 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2018-03-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2018-04-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-05-01: 23 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-06-01: 42 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2018-07-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2018-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-09-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-10-01: 81 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 103 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 45 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 166 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 198 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 111 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 131 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 96 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 57 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 66 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 103 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 85 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 73 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 137 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 89 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 53 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 57 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 61 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 97 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 95 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 70 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 64 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 88 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 78 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 75 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 95 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 59 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 52 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 54 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 88 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 122 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 102 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 71 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 49 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 89 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 48 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 65 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 126 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 25 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 60 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 79 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 62 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 49 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 52 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 82 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 51 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 74 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 57 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 64 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 66 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 41 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 58 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 63 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 57 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 68 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 73 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 112 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 98 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 55 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 77 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 71 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 52 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 51 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 43 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 55 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 84 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 53 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 59 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 56 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 43 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 63 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 54 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 33 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 61 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 63 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 75 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 76 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 37 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 77 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 88 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 58 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 76 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 80 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 54 positiveWeek of 2026-08-01: 7 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

397832026-09-15 12:00 — 101 players2026-09-16 21:00 — 184 players2026-09-18 04:00 — 192 players2026-09-19 12:00 — 119 players2026-09-20 19:00 — 264 players2026-09-22 03:00 — 213 players2026-09-23 10:00 — 92 players2026-09-24 18:00 — 163 players2026-09-26 01:00 — 330 players2026-09-27 09:00 — 207 players2026-09-28 16:00 — 205 players2026-09-30 00:00 — 324 players2026-10-01 07:00 — 157 players2026-10-02 15:00 — 189 players2026-10-03 23:00 — 335 players2026-10-05 07:00 — 163 players2026-10-06 14:00 — 138 players2026-10-07 22:00 — 224 players2026-10-09 05:00 — 155 players2026-10-10 13:00 — 139 players2026-10-11 20:00 — 306 players2026-10-13 04:00 — 191 players2026-10-14 11:00 — 83 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).
83373Apr 2017Aug 2026Apr 2017 — avg 833 · peak 2,266Jul 2017 — avg 176 · peak 484Oct 2017 — avg 161 · peak 881Jan 2018 — avg 144 · peak 389Apr 2018 — avg 90 · peak 178Jul 2018 — avg 136 · peak 344Oct 2018 — avg 364 · peak 3,187Jan 2019 — avg 143 · peak 427Apr 2019 — avg 101 · peak 202Jul 2019 — avg 188 · peak 472Oct 2019 — avg 73 · peak 139Jan 2020 — avg 147 · peak 351Apr 2020 — avg 216 · peak 681Jul 2020 — avg 189 · peak 318Oct 2020 — avg 99 · peak 176Jan 2021 — avg 145 · peak 338Apr 2021 — avg 182 · peak 652Jul 2021 — avg 171 · peak 314Oct 2021 — avg 115 · peak 199Jan 2022 — avg 183 · peak 427Apr 2022 — avg 184 · peak 422Jul 2022 — avg 269 · peak 974Oct 2022 — avg 129 · peak 281Jan 2023 — avg 173 · peak 343Apr 2023 — avg 183 · peak 426Jul 2023 — avg 174 · peak 314Oct 2023 — avg 156 · peak 309Jan 2024 — avg 186 · peak 403Apr 2024 — avg 168 · peak 334Jul 2024 — avg 162 · peak 291Oct 2024 — avg 134 · peak 255Jan 2025 — avg 216 · peak 596Apr 2025 — avg 165 · peak 423Jul 2025 — avg 166 · peak 314Oct 2025 — avg 185 · peak 413Jan 2026 — avg 201 · peak 439Apr 2026 — avg 230 · peak 601Jul 2026 — avg 232 · peak 462Aug 2026 — avg 205 · peak 355
Monthly average players (source: steamcharts.com) — history via steamcharts.com; live census sampling since Aug 2026.

Price history

$19.99$4.992017-04-212026-10-082017-04-21 — best price $19.992017-11-22 — best price $9.992018-02-19 — best price $19.992018-10-18 — best price $9.992018-11-27 — best price $19.992019-01-04 — best price $19.992019-11-26 — best price $7.992020-01-27 — best price $19.992020-08-13 — best price $7.992020-11-25 — best price $7.992021-01-05 — best price $19.992021-02-16 — best price $19.992021-06-10 — best price $4.992021-09-21 — best price $19.992022-01-05 — best price $19.992022-04-08 — best price $4.992022-06-23 — best price $4.992022-08-01 — best price $19.992022-12-15 — best price $4.992023-01-31 — best price $19.992023-05-09 — best price $4.992023-06-20 — best price $19.992023-10-05 — best price $19.992023-12-14 — best price $4.992024-02-13 — best price $19.992024-06-09 — best price $4.992024-08-01 — best price $19.992024-12-03 — best price $19.992025-01-24 — best price $4.992025-04-18 — best price $4.992025-09-29 — best price $4.992025-12-18 — best price $4.992026-04-30 — best price $19.992026-08-25 — best price $4.992026-09-24 — best price $19.992026-10-08 — best price $4.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Attention

4561542026-05-29 — 163 pageviews2026-06-02 — 193 pageviews2026-06-06 — 203 pageviews2026-06-10 — 254 pageviews2026-06-14 — 267 pageviews2026-06-18 — 224 pageviews2026-06-22 — 238 pageviews2026-06-26 — 235 pageviews2026-06-30 — 211 pageviews2026-07-04 — 215 pageviews2026-07-08 — 209 pageviews2026-07-12 — 190 pageviews2026-07-16 — 189 pageviews2026-07-20 — 216 pageviews2026-07-24 — 343 pageviews2026-07-28 — 411 pageviews2026-08-01 — 450 pageviews2026-08-05 — 385 pageviews2026-08-09 — 366 pageviews2026-08-13 — 312 pageviews2026-08-17 — 326 pageviews2026-08-21 — 220 pageviews2026-08-25 — 236 pageviews2026-08-29 — 193 pageviews2026-09-02 — 189 pageviews2026-09-06 — 203 pageviews2026-09-10 — 163 pageviews2026-09-14 — 207 pageviews2026-09-18 — 180 pageviews2026-09-22 — 456 pageviews2026-09-26 — 290 pageviews2026-09-30 — 236 pageviews2026-10-04 — 242 pageviews2026-10-07 — 210 pageviews
Daily Wikipedia pageviews (attention proxy, census-recorded).

Completion

60+
achievements tracked
70.6%
earned "Meet Sergeant Forge"
11.8%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsFull controller supportSingle-playerMulti-playerPvPOnline PvPCo-opOnline Co-opSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam Trading CardsCaptions available

11 supported languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Czech, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Xbox One, Windows (Xbox)29,1013%75
Steam (Steam)11,8332%75

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Where its players are

Share of Steam reviews by language (top languages measured) — a proxy for where the player base lives.

Player tags

RTSWarCo-opActionAliensSci-fiSandboxMilitaryStrategyTactical

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Players also track

Distant Worlds: UniverseStar Control®: OriginsImagine EarthPlanetbasePolaris SectorSuper Seducer 2 - Advanced Seduction TacticsAge of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition

Similarity via IGDB.

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