# Homeworld 2
**Homeworld 2** is a real-time strategy video game developed by [Relic Entertainment](https://www.edgepedia.org/relic-entertainment) and published by [Sierra Entertainment](https://www.edgepedia.org/sierra-entertainment), first released for PC and Mac on September 16, 2003.[1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) It is the sequel to the 1999 game *Homeworld*, continuing that game's three-dimensional deep-space fleet combat in which the player's mothership serves as base, factory, and command center.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | September 16, 2003, PC and Mac[1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) |
| Developer / publisher | Relic Entertainment; Sierra Entertainment and Global Software Publishing[1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) |
| Genre | Real-time strategy with full three-dimensional movement of fleets[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) |
| Campaign | 15 chapters following the mothership *Pride of Hiigara* against the Vaygr, built around a prophecy of three hyperspace cores[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/) |
| Economy | A single resource, resource units (RUs), harvested from asteroids by resource collectors[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) |
| Production | Small ship classes built in squadrons of three or five rather than individually[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/) |
| Reception | Metacritic 83; GameSpot review score 8.7 (Greg Kasavin)[1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) |
| Remaster | Included in the Homeworld Remastered Collection, released February 25, 2015[4](https://store.steampowered.com/app/244160/Homeworld_Remastered_Collection/) |
## Gameplay
The basic structure of Homeworld 2's gameplay matches the original's. The mothership is the player's base and factory, and a single resource must be harvested from nearby asteroids to fuel fleet construction.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) Ships can be set to passive, defensive, or aggressive behaviors, and combinations of behaviors and tactics produce different fleet formations.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/)
Several changes distinguish the sequel from *Homeworld*. In a typical skirmish, multiplayer match, and most of the campaign, the player commands a fleet carrier in addition to the mothership, allowing building and research from two separate points on the map.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) Inexpensive defensive structures, including anti-fighter gun turrets and anti-capital ship ion turrets and missile platforms, can be built and moved once to a position where they automatically fire on enemies in range.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) Fighters, bombers, and most corvettes are constructed in squadrons, and all ship classes can be upgraded through research into enhancements such as engines and armor.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/)
Subsystem targeting is a signature mechanic: ships may optionally target the weapons, engines, fighter facilities, and other systems of larger enemy vessels, shutting down production or mobility without destroying the hull.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) • [5](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-remastered-collection-review/1900-6416056/) Late-game capital ships such as destroyers and battlecruisers are extremely powerful and require sustained, concentrated fire from many smaller ships to defeat, though early-game units remain useful throughout a battle.[2](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/) Reviewers noted a heightened attention to balance, with an effective counter available for nearly every ship.[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/)
The user interface was judged noticeably improved over the original, with nearly every action executable by either keyboard or mouse, mouse-wheel zooming, and control groups assigned to number keys.[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/)
## Story and setting
The player controls the mammoth, self-sufficient mothership *Pride of Hiigara* and attempts to ward off the Vaygr, an imperial race intent on destroying the ship and occupying Hiigaran land.[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/) An ancient prophecy revolving around three hyperspace cores that have recently been uncovered drives the plot, and each of the game's 15 chapters advances the story one revelation at a time.[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/)
According to Relic vice president Dan Irish, the game tells the story of the Hiigarans and their leader Karan S'jet; where the first game saw the Exiles reclaim their homeworld, Homeworld 2 is about them reclaiming their destiny, as they encounter a new enemy wielding a cruel ancient power in the Inner Rim.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html) Irish stated that no knowledge of *Homeworld* or *Homeworld: Cataclysm* is required, since the full story is contained within the game.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html)
## Development
Homeworld 2 began its second phase of development in February 2002.[7](https://media.gdcvault.com/GD_Mag_Archives/GDM_November_2003.pdf) Around 32 developers were working on the game by 2003; most had not been involved with the original, but the art team was the same, and the visual style remained familiar to fans of the first game.[8](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/homeworld-2-preview/1100-6029832/)
Relic began developing a new engine for the game roughly four years before its 2003 release, applying lessons from the original [Homeworld](https://www.edgepedia.org/homeworld) engine. The technology included highly compressed textures, a special-effects system, dynamic lighting, and new path-finding for unit movement across large 3D maps.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html) The game shipped with modding support built on Maya 3.01 as the level editor and ship-building tool, and Relic planned a Maya Personal Learning Edition exporter so players could create custom content; Irish also said the engine was available for licensing to other developers.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html)
Irish cited artistic influences including the painters Chris Foss, Peter Elson, John Harris, and [Syd Mead](https://www.edgepedia.org/syd-mead); the manga artists Katsuhiro Otomo and [Masamune Shirow](https://www.edgepedia.org/masamune-shirow); the films *Tron*, *Blade Runner*, and *Star Wars*; and music by [Brian Eno](https://www.edgepedia.org/brian-eno) alongside bhangra, traditional Islamic, and Western classical music.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html)
A 4gamer preview published before release listed a US release date of August 27, 2003, while GameSpot and Worthplaying record the release as September 16, 2003.[6](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html) • [1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) • [3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/)
## Reception
GameSpot's review by Greg Kasavin scored the game 8.7, calling it a visually stunning and highly challenging real-time strategy game, and Metacritic recorded a critic average of 83.[1](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/) Worthplaying scored it 8.5/10, praising the rendered scenery, orchestrated soundtrack, and voice acting while observing that the game is similar to its predecessor in nearly every way.[3](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/) Relic's own history describes the 2003 release as delivered to critical acclaim.[9](https://www.relic.com/article/1452) Some later commentary criticized the campaign's difficulty, with players citing missions as punishingly hard and unfair toward the player.[10](https://www.mobygames.com/game/10403/homeworld-2/reviews/)
## Legacy
Homeworld 2 was Relic's last entry in the series for over a decade; THQ bought Relic in 2004, and no direct successor followed at the time.[11](https://arstechnica.com/video/watch/homeworld-extended-interview/) • [12](https://gamesbeat.com/why-developer-teampixel-is-making-a-bid-for-the-homeworld-series-interview/) The game returned to circulation in the Homeworld Remastered Collection of February 25, 2015, which includes remastered editions of both *Homeworld* and *Homeworld 2* with updated textures, models, audio, and support for HD, UHD, and 4K resolutions, along with archival "classic" versions of the original releases.[4](https://store.steampowered.com/app/244160/Homeworld_Remastered_Collection/) The remaster's unified multiplayer combines the competitive modes of both games, allowing Homeworld races against Homeworld 2 races with up to eight players on 23 maps.[4](https://store.steampowered.com/app/244160/Homeworld_Remastered_Collection/)
Mechanically, the game's influence persisted: the remastered *Homeworld 1* campaign runs on an updated version of the Homeworld 2 engine, and reviewers noted that Homeworld 2's control of units in 3D space was superior to the original's, even as it dropped some of the first game's formation options.[13](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/02/homeworld-remastered-impressions-a-refined-masterpiece/)
## References
1. [Homeworld 2 Reviews, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/games/homeworld-2/reviews/)
2. [Homeworld 2 Review, GameSpot (Greg Kasavin, September 16, 2003)](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-2-review/1900-6075223/)
3. [PC Review - 'Homeworld 2', Worthplaying (September 30, 2003)](https://www.worthplaying.com/article/2003/9/30/reviews/12811-pc-review-homeworld-2/)
4. [Save 85% on Homeworld Remastered Collection, Steam](https://store.steampowered.com/app/244160/Homeworld_Remastered_Collection/)
5. [Homeworld Remastered Collection Review, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/homeworld-remastered-collection-review/1900-6416056/)
6. [Homeworld 2 Questions, 4Gamer.net interview with Dan Irish](https://www.4gamer.net/specials/homeworld2/homeworld2int.html)
7. [Game Developer Magazine, November 2003 (Homeworld 2 postmortem)](https://media.gdcvault.com/GD_Mag_Archives/GDM_November_2003.pdf)
8. [Homeworld 2 Preview, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/homeworld-2-preview/1100-6029832/)
9. [Relic Entertainment history](https://www.relic.com/article/1452)
10. [Homeworld 2 reviews, MobyGames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/10403/homeworld-2/reviews/)
11. [Homeworld Co-Creator Rob Cunningham: Extended Interview, Ars Technica](https://arstechnica.com/video/watch/homeworld-extended-interview/)
12. [Why developer teamPixel is making a bid for the Homeworld series, GamesBeat](https://gamesbeat.com/why-developer-teampixel-is-making-a-bid-for-the-homeworld-series-interview/)
13. [Homeworld Remastered impressions: A refined masterpiece, Ars Technica](https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/02/homeworld-remastered-impressions-a-refined-masterpiece/)
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