Geekness moments.
Gaming review: Mechwarrior Online.
So. Some who know me, know I’m a huge Battletech Fanboi and that the MechWarrior Sims are my personal favorites when it comes to games.
MechWarrior 5 became “Mercs/ MechWarrior Online” back in 2010(?). It was open beta until official launch in the fall of 2013. I finally pulled it down and started playing it a bit. It is a free-to-play online PVP Mech sim. It’s got a lot of the dynamics of MW2/MW4.
Basically, you start out with 4 Mech Bays and 0 C-bills. You have access to 4 Trial Mechs, a light, medium, heavy and assault. The trial mechs can’t be changed or modified. You start out running in them and you earn XP and C-bills. You can then buy Mechs with either C-bills or MechWarrior Credits (MC). MC is like the Azure Crystals in Neverwinter: you buy them with real-world cash. If you spend $50, the cost of most game titles, that’ll buy you an Atlas and 3 extra Mech bays. (you get 4 by default.) You also can’t use MC to buy equipment, only Mechs. To buy weapons, modules, etc: it’s all C-bills. You never need to spend real-world cash and you can be competitive .. considering that it’s a free-to-play game, not bad.
Once you OWN a Mech, it goes into a Mech Bay and you can modify it. Each chassis has dedicated hardpoints and certain equipment limitations. For instance, you can’t buy a chassis that isn’t equipped with jumpjets and add them. If you want to jump, the chassis you buy has to have them. For example: say A Raven RVN-2X has 4 energy weapon hardpoints and 1 missile hardpoints, and an AMS hardpoint; where a Raven RVN -3L has an ECM module (scanner shield..makes it harder to target friendlies within 200m of you) 3 energy hardpoints, 1 missile hardpoint, and no AMS hardpoints. What that means, is if you have an RVN-2X, you won’t’ be able to buy an ECM module but can carry 4 energy weapons (mostly lasers) and the AMS Anti Missile system. However, if you have the RVN-3, you can have the ECM but not the Ams, and only three energy weapons. You can also customize the colors and camos.
I like the customization limitations. It prevents folks from super-munchkining the things and making twin AC-20 carrying 35 ton mechs that can jump with ECMs and NARC beacons.
Gameplay is simple: Click Launch. You go into a 12 v 12 match that is either: Skirmish (kill all the badguys), Assault (capture their base before they capture yours) or a third one I can’t remember the name of but is the MW equivalent of Call of Duty's Domination. (5 capture points.. first one to 750 resources). With each game you earn Mech XP, General XP and C-bills. The more you win and the more you do, the more of each you earn. Mech Xp unlocks things like extended torso twist, Speed boost, quick brake, etc. General XP gains MUCH more slowly and opens special module slots for all Mech or you can use it for Mech-specific unlocks. C-bills are straightforward, and you use them to buy materials, equipment, etc.
If you have a group, you can go in as a group. If you don’t, then it’s pug. Really, it’s pretty much just like Call of Duty. Building your Mech is like equipping your soldier, but figure each soldier has different loadout possibilities.
Pros:
1) Decent balance and consistency with Fluff. Has the best loadout flexibility and limitations of all the MWs I’ve played.
2) Very fast between skirmishes. Pretty much like C.O.D. Once you hit "launch"..you're powering up in less than a minute.
3) Learning curve is quick, but getting good takes some work.
4) Did I mention; free to play?
5) Good Balance. No C.O.D. hoppy-skippy-jumpy-knifey boys. (Although some Spider or Raven pilots can be really annoying. You only need a couple of good shots to squish them, tho.) No insta-kill Arrow IV missiles. No super-stealth. ECM can be countered with NARC and TAG.
6) Cadet bonus: 25% increase of Cbills and XP for the first 25 games.
7) Your stats are tracked online.. and they’re VERY detailed. Weapon specific details, Mech specific details, what maps you’ve been on, etc. Pretty cool
8) Daily XP bonus. Each Mech chassis gets an X2 Xp and Cbills modifier each day until you get your first win. You fight in Mech 1 until you get your first team win.. then the X2 bonus is gone for 24 hours on that chassis. It helps.
Cons:
1) Earning XP and Cbills is SLOW. With the cadet bonus, I was able to earn enough Cbills to get a medium Mech… but I should have done the trials first. I would have gotten much more familiar with the mechs and gotten more Cbills during the cadet bonus time.
2) The social interface is clunky. Munchkin and I played a couple games together, and grouping up took a little to figure out. There isn’t a “general social chat” like many games (Diablo, etc) had. In fact, the more I think on this, the more it’s EXACTLY like C.O.D.
3) Limited map options. Again, very like C.O.D. I think there are 10 maps, and you can get either Day or night time. Weather is not variable. If you’re in “Frozen City,” it’s snowy..always. If you’re in “Forest Colony” ..it’s always sunny or clear night. Never rainy or foggy.
4) Fights are ALWAYS 12 v 12..never more, and only less if someone disconnects. Your Lance appears to be based on your rating. (how good you are). I am mostly Charlie Lance.. although I’ve been getting more and more Beta assignments.
5) Can’t really test out certain weapons without buying them. You have a sampling via the 4 trial mechs, but that’s very limited. I want to try an AC-5 vs an AC-10. I have to buy both since none of the trial mechs have either. (fortunately, there is a Mech builder out there online so you can see what each chassis has and if a combination you like is possible… I wish that was in-game though, not on a different website.) The trial mechs are supposed to rotate, but apparently they don't do that very often. Weeks, if not months.
Overall: 3.9 out of 5.
The theory is that persistence is coming. They are looking to put in regions, owning planets, etc. The Clan Mechs are coming in June. They are initially available only for MC. .. (ouch.) But there is supposed to be balance with them. Considering that I have been impressed with the balance so far, I believe it.
I keep referencing C.O.D. and really this is what it feels like the more I look at it. Pick your Mech, and go fight. Earn Rep. Earn Cbills.. The physics are good, and the gameplay is good (in my opinion.) I know, I’m very partial to MechWarrior Sims.. but I like this one. It’s not the end-all/be-all of games, but it’s fun (to me.)
So. Some who know me, know I’m a huge Battletech Fanboi and that the MechWarrior Sims are my personal favorites when it comes to games.
MechWarrior 5 became “Mercs/ MechWarrior Online” back in 2010(?). It was open beta until official launch in the fall of 2013. I finally pulled it down and started playing it a bit. It is a free-to-play online PVP Mech sim. It’s got a lot of the dynamics of MW2/MW4.
Basically, you start out with 4 Mech Bays and 0 C-bills. You have access to 4 Trial Mechs, a light, medium, heavy and assault. The trial mechs can’t be changed or modified. You start out running in them and you earn XP and C-bills. You can then buy Mechs with either C-bills or MechWarrior Credits (MC). MC is like the Azure Crystals in Neverwinter: you buy them with real-world cash. If you spend $50, the cost of most game titles, that’ll buy you an Atlas and 3 extra Mech bays. (you get 4 by default.) You also can’t use MC to buy equipment, only Mechs. To buy weapons, modules, etc: it’s all C-bills. You never need to spend real-world cash and you can be competitive .. considering that it’s a free-to-play game, not bad.
Once you OWN a Mech, it goes into a Mech Bay and you can modify it. Each chassis has dedicated hardpoints and certain equipment limitations. For instance, you can’t buy a chassis that isn’t equipped with jumpjets and add them. If you want to jump, the chassis you buy has to have them. For example: say A Raven RVN-2X has 4 energy weapon hardpoints and 1 missile hardpoints, and an AMS hardpoint; where a Raven RVN -3L has an ECM module (scanner shield..makes it harder to target friendlies within 200m of you) 3 energy hardpoints, 1 missile hardpoint, and no AMS hardpoints. What that means, is if you have an RVN-2X, you won’t’ be able to buy an ECM module but can carry 4 energy weapons (mostly lasers) and the AMS Anti Missile system. However, if you have the RVN-3, you can have the ECM but not the Ams, and only three energy weapons. You can also customize the colors and camos.
I like the customization limitations. It prevents folks from super-munchkining the things and making twin AC-20 carrying 35 ton mechs that can jump with ECMs and NARC beacons.
Gameplay is simple: Click Launch. You go into a 12 v 12 match that is either: Skirmish (kill all the badguys), Assault (capture their base before they capture yours) or a third one I can’t remember the name of but is the MW equivalent of Call of Duty's Domination. (5 capture points.. first one to 750 resources). With each game you earn Mech XP, General XP and C-bills. The more you win and the more you do, the more of each you earn. Mech Xp unlocks things like extended torso twist, Speed boost, quick brake, etc. General XP gains MUCH more slowly and opens special module slots for all Mech or you can use it for Mech-specific unlocks. C-bills are straightforward, and you use them to buy materials, equipment, etc.
If you have a group, you can go in as a group. If you don’t, then it’s pug. Really, it’s pretty much just like Call of Duty. Building your Mech is like equipping your soldier, but figure each soldier has different loadout possibilities.
Pros:
1) Decent balance and consistency with Fluff. Has the best loadout flexibility and limitations of all the MWs I’ve played.
2) Very fast between skirmishes. Pretty much like C.O.D. Once you hit "launch"..you're powering up in less than a minute.
3) Learning curve is quick, but getting good takes some work.
4) Did I mention; free to play?
5) Good Balance. No C.O.D. hoppy-skippy-jumpy-knifey boys. (Although some Spider or Raven pilots can be really annoying. You only need a couple of good shots to squish them, tho.) No insta-kill Arrow IV missiles. No super-stealth. ECM can be countered with NARC and TAG.
6) Cadet bonus: 25% increase of Cbills and XP for the first 25 games.
7) Your stats are tracked online.. and they’re VERY detailed. Weapon specific details, Mech specific details, what maps you’ve been on, etc. Pretty cool
8) Daily XP bonus. Each Mech chassis gets an X2 Xp and Cbills modifier each day until you get your first win. You fight in Mech 1 until you get your first team win.. then the X2 bonus is gone for 24 hours on that chassis. It helps.
Cons:
1) Earning XP and Cbills is SLOW. With the cadet bonus, I was able to earn enough Cbills to get a medium Mech… but I should have done the trials first. I would have gotten much more familiar with the mechs and gotten more Cbills during the cadet bonus time.
2) The social interface is clunky. Munchkin and I played a couple games together, and grouping up took a little to figure out. There isn’t a “general social chat” like many games (Diablo, etc) had. In fact, the more I think on this, the more it’s EXACTLY like C.O.D.
3) Limited map options. Again, very like C.O.D. I think there are 10 maps, and you can get either Day or night time. Weather is not variable. If you’re in “Frozen City,” it’s snowy..always. If you’re in “Forest Colony” ..it’s always sunny or clear night. Never rainy or foggy.
4) Fights are ALWAYS 12 v 12..never more, and only less if someone disconnects. Your Lance appears to be based on your rating. (how good you are). I am mostly Charlie Lance.. although I’ve been getting more and more Beta assignments.
5) Can’t really test out certain weapons without buying them. You have a sampling via the 4 trial mechs, but that’s very limited. I want to try an AC-5 vs an AC-10. I have to buy both since none of the trial mechs have either. (fortunately, there is a Mech builder out there online so you can see what each chassis has and if a combination you like is possible… I wish that was in-game though, not on a different website.) The trial mechs are supposed to rotate, but apparently they don't do that very often. Weeks, if not months.
Overall: 3.9 out of 5.
The theory is that persistence is coming. They are looking to put in regions, owning planets, etc. The Clan Mechs are coming in June. They are initially available only for MC. .. (ouch.) But there is supposed to be balance with them. Considering that I have been impressed with the balance so far, I believe it.
I keep referencing C.O.D. and really this is what it feels like the more I look at it. Pick your Mech, and go fight. Earn Rep. Earn Cbills.. The physics are good, and the gameplay is good (in my opinion.) I know, I’m very partial to MechWarrior Sims.. but I like this one. It’s not the end-all/be-all of games, but it’s fun (to me.)