Let's have a look, shall we?

Erik Brudvig:
Ensemble Studios always delivered. Always.

We start out with clear signs of fanboyism. Not surprising, I suppose, as everyone's a fanboy of something, but let's hope this doesn't affect his review.

Erik Brudvig:
Halo Wars is no exception. It isn't the deepest real-time strategy game on the block, and the campaign could have been more inspired, but that shouldn't be enough to deter anybody.

Shouldn't be enough to deter anybody? The game has shallow gameplay and a bland campaign, and that isn't a clear sign of subpar-ness?

Erik Brudvig:
The spirit of Halo was successfully captured

I don't know. To successfully capture the Halo spirit, I'd have thought you'd need to actually pay attention to existing Halo media.

Erik Brudvig:
and the multiplayer game is a blast.

I don't know. From what I can tell, multiplayer devolves to spamming units, because the rock-paper-scissors build was inherently flawed, with hard counters for units not actually countering them.

Erik Brudvig:
Halo Wars quickly became one of my favorite online games and then grew into a several-months-long addiction.

Only several months? When I encounter a really good game, I play it for longer than a couple months. Hardly what I would call an addiction...

Erik Brudvig:
Late night intense strategy sessions followed by bleary-eyed mornings were my entire life.

Spamming units is not really strategy... The game's interface doesn't even lend itself to strategy.

Erik Brudvig:I'm glad Ensemble Studios went out with a bang -- one last great set of memories – before Microsoft could shut them down.

I can't believe Microsoft shut down Ensemble Studios, but I definitely regret Halo Wars being the last memory we'll have of them.

David Clayman:
Halo Wars may have benefited from its tie to an insanely popular franchise but it deserved every bit of attention it received.

Frankly, no game deserves all of the hype it gets, and Halo Wars was no exception.

David Clayman:
Many have tried, and failed, to shoehorn an RTS onto the consoles, but Halo Wars' simplified gameplay structure was perfectly suited to a controller and the faster pace of an Xbox Live match.

And terribly suited to the RTS genre. They probably did better than the hard ports of EA, but the point stands that RTS games do not belong on console. Halo Wars has not changed my opinion of that.

David Clayman:
I probably logged more hours into the multiplayer mode than any other game released this generation and I enjoyed every second.

Surprising, considering the options he had. He could have played a real RTS and probably had a more enjoyable experience. He could have even played a previous title by ES and had a more enjoyable experience.

David Clayman:Unfortunately this was the swan song of the acclaimed developer Ensemble, so it's possible that Halo Wars will be the only game of its kind.

If you aren't anticipating Microsoft milking another RTS out of Halo, then I question your qualifications as a game reviewer.

David Clayman:MAC Blast!

Please don't remind me about that horribly innaccurate feature...MAC blast indeed.

Aloysius:I think the IGN Reviewers disagree that it was sub par. They mention why they rated it so high in their article.

Overall, I see evidence of Halo Wars being an ok game, to be sure, but I see no evidence in the reviews that show why it warranted such a high place on the list.