MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries

 PC
User Score
5.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 292 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 106 out of 292
  2. Mixed: 63 out of 292
  3. Negative: 123 out of 292

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Haddadm
    Dec 14, 2019
    3
    I was hype and after liking MWO I was hoping for at least good mech game. if it had mods it would be great but there are so many problems caused by non caring dev team.
    Only people who cared about the game were those who made the management and space map.
    Everybody else phoned it in: The missions are samey, the levels contain huge parts of copy pasted areas, massive glaring bugs like    I was hype and after liking MWO I was hoping for at least good mech game. if it had mods it would be great but there are so many problems caused by non caring dev team.
    Only people who cared about the game were those who made the management and space map.
    Everybody else phoned it in: The missions are samey, the levels contain huge parts of copy pasted areas, massive glaring bugs like control remapping doesn't remap the keys, story not just being bad but actively hidnering your enjoyment of the game, mission scripting being absolutely terrible and only working if you rush into the objective otherwise you can softlock the game, AI being stupid and limited, enemy forces teleporting into 300m range of the objective(that means if you find good battlefield they can spawn literally 20m behind you and double aC20 your back).

    Not to mention GLARING lack of polish and poor performance.

    And worst of all it's casualized: theres no radar system, no optics, no way to command your lance, customization is simplified, biomes don't affect heat of your mech at all.

    Feels like early access made by an indie dev team.    … Expand
  2. Syndr
    Dec 13, 2019
    4
    Not Impressed, and not made for serious Battletech / Mechwarrior fans. I have been playing the tabletop version since it's inception, and have played every iteration of it on the PC. Mechwarrior 4, still stands head and shoulders above this.

    PROS: The look, feel, and movement of the mechs is superb. I think most would agree. The problem is everything else. Where to begin: CONS: 1.    Not Impressed, and not made for serious Battletech / Mechwarrior fans. I have been playing the tabletop version since it's inception, and have played every iteration of it on the PC. Mechwarrior 4, still stands head and shoulders above this.

    PROS:
    The look, feel, and movement of the mechs is superb. I think most would agree. The problem is everything else. Where to begin:

    CONS:
    1. The game music is just bad.
    2. Story, meh.
    3. Enemy mech gets legged, drags leg for 10 seconds, starts running around as if there were never damaged.
    4. Missiles look like garbage when fired. More of an aesthetic thing, but to my eyes it looks cartoonish.
    5. We have better radar in WWII than the 31st century. Mechs / vehicles spawn in within a few meters right behind you. Mechs have 360 degree radar, not Direct LOS only. If I did not know that these devs made a Mechwarrior game already, i would guess they had never heard of Battletech / Mechwarrior before.
    6. The missions are uninteresting, repetetive, and boring.
    7. The mechbay, and mech customization....Holy lord what the hell is this? This was made for casual 10 year olds. There is no real mech customization, imo, at all in this game. The Battletech game by Hairbrained does it light years better, and even that is not that fantastic by comparison to actual Battletech, but at least you have a little wiggle room.
    8. Maps areas are small.
    9. When map is enlarged it looks like old tiled desktop wallpaper.
    11. Terrain, like the missions, are boring, lifeless, and repetetive.
    10. Lancemates run through the very buildings you are tasked to protect.
    11. Economy is almost arbitrary. I have yet to find myself in any kind of position of "Oh no, I'm about to be bankrupt." I rake in the dough as if I was playing GTA V.

    I am sure i have likely missed 10 more things, but you get the picture. I do not mind PGI retaining their current MWO licensing, but for the love of god, limit them to only that, and license it out to someone else to make a real Mechwarrior game.    … Expand
  3. Salamari
    Dec 11, 2019
    4
    I was so excited... Mechwarrior 4 is one of my all time favorite games, but after the intro missions and a few contracts I'm pretty disappointed. It seems the way the developer chose the make missions challenging is to spam smaller vehicles, while also giving them better range than your star league era battlemech built with lost tech... I keep getting shot by tanks I cant target orI was so excited... Mechwarrior 4 is one of my all time favorite games, but after the intro missions and a few contracts I'm pretty disappointed. It seems the way the developer chose the make missions challenging is to spam smaller vehicles, while also giving them better range than your star league era battlemech built with lost tech... I keep getting shot by tanks I cant target or damage because of range, most of the time they are at double my tactical overlay's sphere. Just in case that wasn't bad enough enemies will randomly spawn all around you so you have no ability to tactically move a "front line" within a mission. Squad command is limited and they don't seem to listen to you very well either. It appears that the ratio of small vehicles to mechs is 30ish/1, so you get chewed up by tanks before you even see a mech. The mech AI... close to point blank and run in a circle around you. All of this makes the inability to save within a mission truly game breaking. If the mechwarrior franchise is ARMA this is CoD.

    Over all this is gonna need a lot of polish. It kinda feels like a beta, right down to a couple of ctd's.    … Expand
  4. Rellin
    Dec 12, 2019
    2
    Low budget garbage. Terrible textures. Atrocious story dialog/writing. Repetitive quests. PGI are absolute sleaze balls and should never have been given the rights to this game. What a waste, what a shame.
  5. Harag
    Apr 30, 2021
    2
    No surprise PGI was unable to pull this off. The core game play, actual mech fighting is fine. The AI is useless in every form. The user interface suffers from the EXACT issues MWO has, in other words its terrible. This game is literally sabotaging itself no one who hasn't already played MW is going to find this game inviting or easy to learn. The terrain pop in is still present evenNo surprise PGI was unable to pull this off. The core game play, actual mech fighting is fine. The AI is useless in every form. The user interface suffers from the EXACT issues MWO has, in other words its terrible. This game is literally sabotaging itself no one who hasn't already played MW is going to find this game inviting or easy to learn. The terrain pop in is still present even though they have changed engines. This is a fundamental failure of the development team and an unwillingness to identify those issues by the management. If this is what they produced after delaying the game a year and taking all of Epic's money i shudder to think what they had planned to release prior to this...

    EDIT: 2 years later, games still buggy and none of the issues were addressed. Someone needs to take over the Mech Warrior license so it can actually be turned into a successful franchise.    … Expand
  6. Xalon
    Dec 10, 2019
    4
    More Mechwarrior is finally here, sadly, it's not great. While the combat is fun, there is a lot of cringe throughout (I seriously think a 12 year old wrote the script) and some poor design decisions. That the game is Epic exclusive and the studio has a history of bad decisionmaking makes me wish Microsoft had locked down this license.
  7. pleblah
    Aug 15, 2020
    9
    I had a lot of fun with this. It could have done with more hand crafted missions but overall the random missions are pretty decent and the combat feels great. The game definitely had some short comings (most notably the ai) but thanks to mods most of these have been addressed.
  8. cmfrip
    Jul 14, 2020
    8
    *If not obvious: a great -detail- shooter*

    I think this game is great. At first I was not so convinced and was sceptical, but over time, I have grown to like MechWarrior(MW) 5 alot! I like how it does in fact play like MW and most aspects of those games pan in with any other that was made. Procedural style of design is not so good in-comparison to MW4's linear Missions - which    *If not obvious: a great -detail- shooter*

    I think this game is great. At first I was not so convinced and was sceptical, but over time, I have grown to like MechWarrior(MW) 5 alot!

    I like how it does in fact play like MW and most aspects of those games pan in with any other that was made.

    Procedural style of design is not so good in-comparison to MW4's linear Missions - which is much more polished - but it works and I am enjoying playing the game.

    Its true, Most other design out side of Combat is like BattleTech or even Xcom -Enemy Unknown.

    I also like the characters and the way the story is laid out - though not the best- It is fields ahead of BattleTech imo.

    The one thing it handles better than MW4 is how AI teammates respond - sometimes - as it at times it just breaks... not sure if tha tis deliberate

    Game could be better optimised graphics wise and certanly does crash.

    I dont like : Mech editor's- Hard-point system
    the way the HUD illustrates a target mech's health – that is just not legible.    … Expand
  9. Ludewich
    Jul 22, 2020
    9
    I have just finished my second campaign play-through and the Epic Store reports a play time of "9 d" (which includes little to no AFK time).

    What I really like about the game is * excellently implemented combat * lots of ways to customize mechs (Reloaded mod, see below!) * high level of immersion * it feels good to be part of a team, even if it just consists of the AI lance mates *    I have just finished my second campaign play-through and the Epic Store reports a play time of "9 d" (which includes little to no AFK time).

    What I really like about the game is
    * excellently implemented combat
    * lots of ways to customize mechs (Reloaded mod, see below!)
    * high level of immersion
    * it feels good to be part of a team, even if it just consists of the AI lance mates
    * weather system and bioms works well
    * lots of "kaboom".
    * good visuals
    * great support for modding + great modding community

    It is the first game where I actually _use_ lots of mods: mods are such a big improvement over the base game which appears to be lacking in many aspects. Interestingly, much of which has been added by mods appears to be already hidden somewhere in the base game (like customizable engines, armor upgrades etc)... maybe it will eventually become part of the base game.

    What I do not like is
    * Something about the scaling is off. I am pretty sure that this is due to the scaling of the grass: it is too large. It makes mechs look... small. This might be fixed by mods, I do not know.
    * dull characters. The great mech hangar is essentially dead; I never felt any kind of relation to the characters (including the own figure and the lancemates).
    * the mission loading times are ... obscene. On my (mediocre) system, it takes about 2 minutes (!) to load a mission. This applies to every mission. It must be CPU bound since a friend of mine has a slower graphics card and a slower hard drive, yet it loads much faster on his intel CPU.

    My review is based on the following set of mods:
    * reloaded mod (mandatory!)
    * tabletoprules lance mate aI mod (mandatory!)
    * tabletoprules AI mod (mandatory!)
    * hellfire and brimstone (missile trails, smoke)
    * realistic weapon velocities 128
    * Kh0rns Sound mod
    * paint style savings
    * Weather fix mod
    * better spawns

    If you like mechs, destroying things, PvE combat, custom weapon loadouts then I strongly recommend this game!    … Expand
  10. ComandanteCobra
    Jan 6, 2021
    8
    Good!...not awesome...but good enough.
    It fill a void for a Battletech single player simulation game and in that aspect center his objective.
    I recommend it to old players and battletech fans...if your'not in those 2 categories lower the score a little toward "Mixed". I buy it on Sale on Epic , ended it and it keep me entertained for at least 2 months. I hope there will be DLC with    Good!...not awesome...but good enough.
    It fill a void for a Battletech single player simulation game and in that aspect center his objective.
    I recommend it to old players and battletech fans...if your'not in those 2 categories lower the score a little toward "Mixed".
    I buy it on Sale on Epic , ended it and it keep me entertained for at least 2 months.
    I hope there will be DLC with additional contents like iS faction Campaign or Clans addons.
    You can read about some limitation in other review..some of them i agree with (like enemy spawning, general lack of polish and dated npc interactions) but others not at all.
    I didn't have problems with graphics, AI, grinding, bugs, few cut-scenes, tonnage limit, few npcs, difficulty, missions variety...because those things wasn't bad enough to ruin my game.
    My expectation was maybe more realistic than others .
    I was looking for a sci-fi simulation game (a underground genre in this days especially about Mechs) and I find it.
    I wasn't expecting a AAA single player experiences of the calibre of Wing commanders series of 30 years ago...because that games had a different budget and those was different times.
    For a sale price it's a solid game, I buy it and will play this and other battletech game for time to time to support this project...maybe in this way this kind of game (and Battletech in general) will have a revival.... if there are enough interest and less complains.
    Like most buyer of this game i'm and old player and i'm into Battletech franchise...old Mecharrior or Mech Commander games, Fasa manuals, Ral partha miniatures, Mechwarrior online, youtube channels about Battletech lore Like Tex Talks Battletech, Mega mek...ad so on.
    Peace    … Expand
  11. EerieDemonble
    Dec 6, 2021
    6
    It's not a great game for sure.

    - Graphics are average to bad - Story is boring and full of cliches - Game balance are all over the place +++ Soundtrack on the other hand is absolute banger 10/10! I'm not sure when we gonna see next Mechwarrior game. At this moment this is the best we have. But after patches, 2 DLCs and some awesome community mods, I'm not gonna lie - I'm having    It's not a great game for sure.

    - Graphics are average to bad
    - Story is boring and full of cliches
    - Game balance are all over the place
    +++ Soundtrack on the other hand is absolute banger 10/10!

    I'm not sure when we gonna see next Mechwarrior game. At this moment this is the best we have.
    But after patches, 2 DLCs and some awesome community mods, I'm not gonna lie - I'm having fun with carrier mode.    … Expand
  12. Gere1987
    Feb 15, 2020
    10
    Engem leköt a játék, számomra tudja adni azt az élményt amit a régi részek is adtak és amit elvártam a játéktól, megérte az árát, főleg ha még lesz hozzá content.
  13. VoidWinter
    Jun 5, 2021
    5
    Ok, ok. The actual combat is fun, but really, that's where the good stuff stops. WHERE IS THE MOST ICONIC OMNIMECH IN THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE? You SERIOUSLY made a friggin mechwarrior game without the Mad Cat / Timber Wolf? WHAT THE EFF WERE YOU THINKING??? INEXCUSABLE! Really, looking at the lineup of mechs in the game just makes me grumble. Almost all my favorites didn't make the cut.Ok, ok. The actual combat is fun, but really, that's where the good stuff stops. WHERE IS THE MOST ICONIC OMNIMECH IN THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE? You SERIOUSLY made a friggin mechwarrior game without the Mad Cat / Timber Wolf? WHAT THE EFF WERE YOU THINKING??? INEXCUSABLE! Really, looking at the lineup of mechs in the game just makes me grumble. Almost all my favorites didn't make the cut. There are a few good ones here and there but by and large, the list is dominated by weaker, less fun-to-play mechs. There are parts that just boggle my mind, like being unable to both repair and refit a mech at the same time. It just feels like extra, unnecessary steps to slow you down and pad things out. Even how the mechs are organized gets on my nerves. You sort them by mass, not alphabetically. The tutorials also left a lot to be desired. FAR too much was left out, leaving me frustrated trying to figure out how to hire pilots, organize my mechs, and even put weapons on them. The mechs are far less flexible than in previous games and the execution of playing with your loadouts (what little you can do) was overcomplicated and difficult to understand initially. But when it comes down to it, it IS a mechwarrior game, even if only just barely. A game with good meat, sandwiched in terrible bread and strange, inappropriate condiments.… Expand
  14. ZoSo425
    Apr 9, 2020
    9
    It does what it sets out the do and satisfied my craving for a new single player mw mercs game. Any lack of depth in the game currently will improve as modding expands and new DLC comes out.
  15. quetzal1
    Oct 3, 2020
    7
    I understand why people are disappointed. In my opinion this game was saved by the modding community. I enjoyed playing with mods to remove all the annoying aspects, have a user-friendly interface, and acceptable AI. Would've given 10 if all the work by the modding community were already done by the developers.
  16. Urye
    Jun 21, 2022
    6
    the story is only okay and the battle map size isn't very impressive and too small
  17. valrond
    Jan 16, 2020
    4
    A very poor Mechwarrior entry.
    I have played every Mechwarrior game. I backed Mechwarrior Online and I've been playing it since 2012.
    This game has the same combat engine than Mechwarrior Online (but using Unreal instead of CryEngine), so it feels very similar than MWO. However, the rest of the game is quite lacking. First, the IA is laughably bad. Not even MWO noobs play this bad.    A very poor Mechwarrior entry.
    I have played every Mechwarrior game. I backed Mechwarrior Online and I've been playing it since 2012.
    This game has the same combat engine than Mechwarrior Online (but using Unreal instead of CryEngine), so it feels very similar than MWO.
    However, the rest of the game is quite lacking.
    First, the IA is laughably bad. Not even MWO noobs play this bad.
    Then, the enemy IA spawns in top of you.
    3rd, there is a lot of grinding. Yes, the maps are created procedurally, so they aren't the same, but they feel the same, as they are made from the same building blocks. So after a few missions, it feels very repetitive. And you have to play a lot of games to earn enough coin, and the expenses and time for repairs are really big.
    The UI is clunky and it takes a lot of time to do the most basic things.
    It is a shame, cause it could have been a really great game. I was looking forward to it, but, it didn't deliver.
    Keep playing MWO.    … Expand
  18. MagusGW1
    Dec 15, 2019
    4
    Knew this was gonna be a beta test until mod support and ai tweaks as well as additional missions and a second lance are added when steam release comes out. The AI is ATROCIOUS. not just enemy AI but your teams AI is seriously stupid. During defense missions your team will destroy more buildings than the enemy trying to get to them. Mission are bland and enemy spawns out of thin airKnew this was gonna be a beta test until mod support and ai tweaks as well as additional missions and a second lance are added when steam release comes out. The AI is ATROCIOUS. not just enemy AI but your teams AI is seriously stupid. During defense missions your team will destroy more buildings than the enemy trying to get to them. Mission are bland and enemy spawns out of thin air usually right on top of you. The times they do use a drop ship its right on top of your defense target but you had to walk all the way to said defense target. I got this for free so I don't really feel cheated but a lot of others are PISSED off. the one thin I can say is all the different mech variants were nice to see and the game does look pretty good but nowhere near what the first trailer showed. Wait until the steam release by then mod support and all the fixes that are needed will be included.… Expand
  19. acid_kiss
    Dec 15, 2019
    4
    The foundations of a good game are there. Combat is fun, plowing through buildings is a blast. Game looks great and weapons are beautiful. The game play and missions themselves are horribly repetitive. The maps feel small, even compared to the original MW2. Bad guys will literally pop into existence within view, at least in 1995 they came in on drop ships. Fun arcade experience, butThe foundations of a good game are there. Combat is fun, plowing through buildings is a blast. Game looks great and weapons are beautiful. The game play and missions themselves are horribly repetitive. The maps feel small, even compared to the original MW2. Bad guys will literally pop into existence within view, at least in 1995 they came in on drop ships. Fun arcade experience, but campaign and mission variety are abysmal.… Expand
  20. RynCage
    Dec 11, 2019
    6
    MechWarrior 5 does little more than provide the bare minimum to meet expectations, while doing very little to innovate or move the franchise into the modern era.

    While the game looks and sounds decent, you'll often be met with some awful pop-in and generic rock soundtracks. The story is serviceable enough to introduce newcomers to the setting, but nothing to write home about. The    MechWarrior 5 does little more than provide the bare minimum to meet expectations, while doing very little to innovate or move the franchise into the modern era.

    While the game looks and sounds decent, you'll often be met with some awful pop-in and generic rock soundtracks. The story is serviceable enough to introduce newcomers to the setting, but nothing to write home about.

    The gameplay while solid, is brought down by AI that somehow manages to be worse than games from 20 years ago.
    Such features include: Friendly AI getting stuck on terrain. Stuck on one another. Never using jump jets, Shooting you and each other in the back. Moving into your line of fire and blocking you constantly. Running into and damaging structures you are supposed to be protecting. Randomly decided to stop following you or engage in targets. Teammates just barely managing to follow instructions, if they aren't outright ignoring them.
    Let's not forget that enemy mechs and tanks will spawn out of thin air mere inches away from you during some missions.

    The mechlab is bare bones and a step backwards in the franchise. A system of hardpoint, size and slot limitations [multiple smaller weapons cannot fit into larger slots. 1 slot, 1 weapon.] mean that a very clear meta develops and you often find yourself ignoring or glossing over a large variety of mechs due to being limited to terrible loadouts. Neither is the progression system polished enough to really ever force you into using these less than optimal units outside of what the game starts you with.

    Since mission variety only ever boils down to "destroy the everything" and PGI's idea of difficulty is "throw more tonnage at you", Light mechs are quickly left in the dust and forgotten about, So you can go ahead and forget about buying that rare spider hero mech, it belonged in the trash before you ever even found it.

    Co-op is completely unbalanced due to the fact that the AI is sub 100 IQ, and with no other way to adjust difficulty outside of "take a light mech instead of a medium", you'll never be challenged outside of self-handicap.
    Never mind that the game is EGS exclusive for a year and lacks every quality of life feature you can think of.

    The framework for an amazing game is here, but what we were given is held back by various shortcomings that show that the project wasn't ready for release, The money behind it just ran out. Modding has the potential to turn this game into something incredible, but that might even be asking too much. As much as i love the franchise and wish to see it do well, i can't earnestly recommend the game in its current state. You'll be better off waiting for the steam release and seeing what mods are available at that time.    … Expand
  21. Fherot
    Dec 15, 2019
    2
    This game was released after 4+ years of development after originally debuting as a gameplay trailer in 2016. Which looks better than the current release game by far. Everything is mediocre at best and feels incomplete. The campaign was added on top of a repetitive ‘5 mission type’ sandbox Career mode and seems to blend in unnoticed. Lackluster UI/sounds/voice acting/graphics.

    The only    This game was released after 4+ years of development after originally debuting as a gameplay trailer in 2016. Which looks better than the current release game by far. Everything is mediocre at best and feels incomplete. The campaign was added on top of a repetitive ‘5 mission type’ sandbox Career mode and seems to blend in unnoticed. Lackluster UI/sounds/voice acting/graphics.

    The only redeeming point is that yes the mech combat can be really fun, but the lack of all the other polish just takes too much away from it to be enjoyable.

    Game might have potential with a lot more development to be worth picking up.    … Expand
  22. ace7five
    Dec 15, 2019
    1
    I created an account *just* to review this game. I've been waiting since MW4, have played 2, 3, 4, MWO, and Battletech.

    I've logged 20 hours of saddle time thus far and I'm amazed at how "phoned in" this game feels. Just unreal how they managed to make a vastly worse interface than MWO, generate a completely repetitive series of boring missions, a wholly absurd enemy spawn system    I created an account *just* to review this game. I've been waiting since MW4, have played 2, 3, 4, MWO, and Battletech.

    I've logged 20 hours of saddle time thus far and I'm amazed at how "phoned in" this game feels. Just unreal how they managed to make a vastly worse interface than MWO, generate a completely repetitive series of boring missions, a wholly absurd enemy spawn system (seriously, things spawn on top of you literally all the time, no concept of preset enemy pieces on the map, just waves of spawn around you with no option to work through in any remotely tactical fashion), useless sensors, and utterly boring weapon systems, mech concepts, and mobility/armor/damage. My impression is that a *ton* of time went into evaluating systems that could have gone into this during the silliness that MWO ultimately degenerated into. We're left with this ridiculously poor compromise between an action game and a sim with no real imagination and a grotesquely bad interface.

    That said, at it's heart, there is a great amount of potential. Revamping the economy, removing the "first person hangar experience" (what the hell were they thinking with that?), fixing the spawn system, re-balancing weapons, armor, sensors, and adding variety to mission types (which to my uneducated and admittedly simple thought process *seems* achievable?) would make this a pretty exciting and rewarding game to play.

    Who the heck tested this, signed off on it, and said "yeah, let's ship it, people are going to like it?"

    Or am I maybe answering my own question here and realizing just now that Piranha is pretty terrible, doesn't care, and shouldn't really be the caretaker of this franchise (as they kinda demonstrated with the tone deaf continual roll-out of new pay-to-win mechs rather than re-working the in-game experience as the player base died a slow painful death as the much-hoped-for faction play failed to deliver on what could have been a ton of fun)?

    Shame on all of us for supporting studios like this and shame on literally *anybody* who makes a product in any industry with such a lack of care for the end user and final appearance.

    Hey, they get a 1 for potential though! Keep chasing that rainbow! : )    … Expand
  23. Octomort
    Dec 15, 2019
    6
    OK, could have done better, after 17 years!

    This is an update from my review 24 hours after release. will leave the original. Imagine the Mona Lisa, all the elements of a classic. Grace, beauty, mystery, plus blowing the crap out of things!. Now imagine the Mona Lisa drawn with Kindergarden Crayons. Not a Christmas treat. Perhaps Easter or Summer Hols. I suggest you wait till the    OK, could have done better, after 17 years!

    This is an update from my review 24 hours after release. will leave the original.
    Imagine the Mona Lisa, all the elements of a classic. Grace, beauty, mystery, plus blowing the crap out of things!. Now imagine the Mona Lisa drawn with Kindergarden Crayons.
    Not a Christmas treat. Perhaps Easter or Summer Hols. I suggest you wait till the price drops at least 8 GBP/EURO/USD.
    Worth playing just not at the release price.

    below my original release day review.

    The intro is long and uninteresting.
    The voice acting is OK but the scripts are bland.
    Visually not magnificent but good for the genre. ( I have a PC which easily runs everything at max graphics)

    I do not feel as fully immersed as with previous titles. Ok 17 years later but I'm a middle-age gamer so not that much of a change in my outlook as say from 13 to 30 yoa.
    Mek AI bloody awful! they close and run around in a circle centred on your mek, most of the time.
    Lance mates have a habit of stealing your kills, which is OK as they, Lance mates, are much more effective than in previous titles. Oddly they seem to use dance (for position) and dodge tactics as you would in a mek, not running around in circles. So why don't the opponent AI's do the same?
    Mission always seem to end up in a base either defending destroying or assassinating. In bases you are constantly demolishing buildings as manoeuvring space is far more tight than even the city combat in MW4.
    After each mission you have to do a first person walk through the mek hall up the stairs to get to the bridge (where all out-of-mission management takes place) every time, every sodding time!

    Burst fire projectile cannons are now worth having, good in mission sound and graphics when firing them. There is a version of the Auto cannon (5 and 10 and 20) that fires a burst of shells in one go and it is actually balanced, heavy on the ammo but not so as to put you off tweaking your mek.
    The mission landscape feels small. I know I am in a 10m tall mek but mountains are usually a bit taller than that. The scale feels wrong. Quite easy to get stopped by pieces of landscape.
    The pilot interface works for me. All meks now have a 2x zoom on the mouse wheel by default.

    The star map is huge, I mean really big, I mean huge!
    i like the way the actual contract side works. you can negotiate between extra money, extra salvage or insurance for damage to meks. yep you can get your employer to pay for your repairs.
    The star-map is divided into the various houses/factions but there are also clearly defined war zones. The latter is where you get contracts. But in a war zone materiel is scarce and so repairs and upgrades cost more, maybe even a third more. There are industrial planets where things are cheaper, but this takes you out of the warzone and away from C-bill making contracts. So far I would give the strategic side an 8/9.

    I will soldier on (pun intended) with the campaign (had it just 24 hours at time of posting this).

    if you have not yet bought it hold back and see what others say or if the price drops.    … Expand
  24. itmo
    Dec 17, 2019
    3
    This game is complete crap compared to the previous games from 20+ years ago. The people that worked on this should be ashamed of releasing such an underdeveloped and lazy attempt of a modern version of a series that had a lot of potential. Some of the issues I have listed below, which the previous games had, but due to complete laziness this game doesn't.

    -You only get one lance = 4    This game is complete crap compared to the previous games from 20+ years ago. The people that worked on this should be ashamed of releasing such an underdeveloped and lazy attempt of a modern version of a series that had a lot of potential. Some of the issues I have listed below, which the previous games had, but due to complete laziness this game doesn't.

    -You only get one lance = 4 mechs, and in some missions you go up against, not kidding 29 mechs
    -The A.I is dumb and runs around in circles
    - You can't make way points and make strategic decisions on how to tackle each mission
    - You can't pick where your drop ship lands or picks you up from
    - Mechs and tanks spawn all the time behind you, within a few feet = Great immersion
    - You can't run passive radar, a basic feature from previous games that allowed you to stay
    undetected
    - I have never seen any A.I use jump jets once in over 30 hours of play time
    - The enemy can continuously send drop ships down to unload more mechs, but the spare 8 pilots
    and 8 mechs you have, you can't call down to assist you
    - The laziness of the difficulty increase = Just throw more and more Mechs at the player, and send the
    biggest ones in last, when your lance is just about dead from killing 25 mechs prior

    The core of this game is very poor, and this has not progressed the genre in any way what so ever. It is in fact a massive backwards step. There are also plenty of bugs, but even when they fix those, the core of the game is complete garbage. There is no hand crating to the missions, its just the same thing for 30+ hours. The campaign is truly stupid, but you can't expect much when the rest of the game is garbage. DO NOT BUY, even if you love the Mech series and Lore.    … Expand
  25. Fistan
    Dec 12, 2019
    3
    Jesus, what a terrible game. Its the same studio that made MechWarrior online but for some reason they made combat feel far worse than it was in MWO. (Which is a shame because combat mechanics was the only reason people played that game that had literally no content). Movement is janky, UI is terrible, AI is complete garbage so they resort to having dozens of them and spawning themJesus, what a terrible game. Its the same studio that made MechWarrior online but for some reason they made combat feel far worse than it was in MWO. (Which is a shame because combat mechanics was the only reason people played that game that had literally no content). Movement is janky, UI is terrible, AI is complete garbage so they resort to having dozens of them and spawning them literally behind you to provide challenge, voicework subpar and writing is so terrible, i think studio just tried to do it amongst themselves to cut the cost. And the music, jeez man, it was so bad that i preferred silence over what game had the offer. This game is a travesty. Should be the tombstone of Piranha games.

    Man, all they had to do was carry over the assets and the animation/movement they built with MWO into a good random map designer + kickass AI and music. That is it. That would've made the game but no. They failed at everything, literally. Even things they've accomplished in the past. Dont buy it, just play the previpus game, Mech Warrior 4 (oddly enough the game microsoft made in 2003 was also named mercenaries, unlike this one that game is still playable and quite enjoyable as well.)    … Expand
  26. Pinkiesbrain
    Dec 12, 2019
    3
    TLDR: Long loading times, sub par graphics, dull environment, out of proportion assets, VERY repetetive game loop, idiotic spawning of enemies.

    MWM5 does not succeed in any of its genres basics. The graphics look like about 8 years old, the mechs feel all similar, the environment is dull and without detail and so are the mechs- still it takes a hell of resources and long loading    TLDR: Long loading times, sub par graphics, dull environment, out of proportion assets, VERY repetetive game loop, idiotic spawning of enemies.

    MWM5 does not succeed in any of its genres basics.
    The graphics look like about 8 years old, the mechs feel all similar, the environment is dull and without detail and so are the mechs- still it takes a hell of resources and long loading times. You change a sector in tactical view? 20 seconds loading time. Serioulsy, the only thing that changes when cahnign a sector is fonts. How can that need 20 seconds loading?!

    The grind is real. The missions are procedually generated without any love or thought. It plays like an arena shooter against very bad AI. Most enemies spawn just beneath you or in your back. So it often happens that you check your surroundings just to get shot in the back from three tanks and a mech 1 second later since the engine stupidly just spawns enemies where you are currently not looking at. This renders long range rockets and other long range builds almost useless since everything spawns in close quarters.

    The only thing fun in the game is "hunting" for new mechs, and trying different outfits and lances.
    If the missions would at least be of minimal quality then the game could reach maybe a 5 or 6.

    I really hope they skip the planned raytracing patch for january and instead make the game less of a pain in the haleluja    … Expand
  27. rshoff
    Dec 14, 2019
    4
    On par with the online game in terms of combat. Missions are overloaded with tanks, vtols, scripting bugs, path finding bugs and there seems to only be 3-4 biomes that look like they belong or came from earth.

    Game feels like it was made with a skeleton crew and no budget.

    No way to review the game on epics site which is interesting...
  28. Kazurath
    Dec 10, 2019
    7
    Are you a Mechwarrior/Pilot Sim fan? Guess what, no big surprise, you'll enjoy this game. It's Mechwarrior, it's a pilot sim, it exceeds no expectations and meets most.

    It needs major improvement in 3 areas: 1) HOTAS control management, recognition, and customization. While present, it feels like a grudging addition. Personally I want one-directional throttle control with a reverse    Are you a Mechwarrior/Pilot Sim fan? Guess what, no big surprise, you'll enjoy this game. It's Mechwarrior, it's a pilot sim, it exceeds no expectations and meets most.

    It needs major improvement in 3 areas:
    1) HOTAS control management, recognition, and customization. While present, it feels like a grudging addition. Personally I want one-directional throttle control with a reverse modifier. I can't do this in the base settings.

    2a) Targeting. HOTAS targeting is an insultingly bad joke. There needs to be a targeting reticule for auto-lock inside said reticule. Mouse targeting is superior as if comparing it to controller targeting.
    2b) Target acquisition. I'm not sure if radar is a thing in this game. It is, but it isn't. You can only track what's actively shooting you or if it's in your LoS. Did it move behind a building? Might as well have a cloak engaged. The game also has an annoying habit of spawning enemies in behind you.

    3) "Human" piloting. I would have been happy with a copy/paste of mech controls for the human walk about portions, but no, not even that is there. You need to break out WSAD if you're using a HOTAS for these sections.    … Expand
  29. Hawkcircle
    Jan 5, 2020
    4
    It's simply overwhelming hard, too many enemies, an non intuitive interface, etc etc. Just too much of an exercise in frustration.
  30. ltdaryth
    Feb 22, 2020
    0
    Lifeless game. So majorly disappointing after a 20 year wait... A Remastered version of Mechwarrior 4 would of been so much better. It's a shame they didn't have a quality development team working on it.

    - In game characters are lifeless mannequins. - Quests are procedurally generated kill & defend quests - Main story quest line is boring and so cliche'd - AI works the same as the    Lifeless game. So majorly disappointing after a 20 year wait... A Remastered version of Mechwarrior 4 would of been so much better. It's a shame they didn't have a quality development team working on it.

    - In game characters are lifeless mannequins.
    - Quests are procedurally generated kill & defend quests
    - Main story quest line is boring and so cliche'd
    - AI works the same as the original doom. Magnetically attracted to your position... So no AI.
    - Thoughtless enemy additions to the map has the teleport in on top of you..

    Piranha Games doesn't deserve to hold this IP. They should release it so a decent developer can make some quality Mechwarrior games again.    … Expand
  31. contris
    Apr 4, 2020
    9
    well im a biased fan.
    + graphics
    + patches
    +++ MODS (some are musts like yet another mech mod)
    - AI (friendly fire is rly frustrating, u need to manualy possition them via move orders)
    - its not fully priced AAA title which is a shame
    dont play repetitive autogenerated missions (feels like fillers) but high reward quest lines and campaing quests!
  32. Moebium
    Dec 21, 2019
    2
    first of all how on earth is noone actually talking about whether this is actually MechWarrior or not? This most definitely is not it is more like a kids version. Clearly this IP has been absent long enough none of these kids really knows what real MechWarrior is like. With the reviews, there are Oooh I love it’s and Oooh I hate it because of the lack of graphics etc.. I have all of thefirst of all how on earth is noone actually talking about whether this is actually MechWarrior or not? This most definitely is not it is more like a kids version. Clearly this IP has been absent long enough none of these kids really knows what real MechWarrior is like. With the reviews, there are Oooh I love it’s and Oooh I hate it because of the lack of graphics etc.. I have all of the MechWarrior games and this is not MechWarrior in any way except in name! for starters as the leader of your clan you get all of the scrap/mechs and weapons that survive a sortie from all missions period! and if you are being paid/hired for a job the boss would pay for all damages incurred period! the movement speed is jacked. everything moves at the same speed? how? when a small mech is under you and you cannot shoot them and they can easily kill you. so if that is the case you should be able to plow them over like the tanks etc... these is only a few tiny things. then there are many larger flaws. For instance where are the different armors reflective ablative etc? where? where is the options to choosing engine types this helps shed tonnage and increase speed etc? where are the different skeleton metal types also for tonnage requisites? open slots should allow for any weapon type to fit in any slot that those slot types allow. so if I want to shed armor to increase my amount of weapons it is not allowed!!? no chaffs? hmn? or overheating in an ice biome ROFL just... no! the weapon fire is almost indiscernible from one another except the obvious AC vs laser. and the lasers and missiles are nothing to write home about they look awful. From what I have seen the missile types are missing several. radar is borked! theres so many things .. um there is no local LAN play? a key component to Mechwarrior! ? RORL .. there is no auto lock limb targeting - where is it? I mean…………………ARRGH! what the F is this abomination? I may not be 100% correct but anyone who has played MechWarrior knows this stuff. So talking about ooh.. i'm mad because is strictly an exclusive to epic or cry the graphics aren’t absolutely awesome, that is ridiculous who cares! Where is mechwarrior 5 at? I will keep playing MechWarrior 4 black knight instead of this. Ill get a refund. Perhaps they will fix this mess in future updates but I do not see it happening. Which is too bad as many of us have been waiting a long time.… Expand
  33. Tirecex
    Dec 24, 2019
    2
    * Update * I changed the Score from 5 to 2. This is the worst Mech game in the series, even worse then MechCommander 2. Avoid this game like the plauge.

    Mechwarrior 5 is actually at times quite fun but right now it is more or less broken. It is held back by repetitive missions, boring grindning, very unbalanced difficulty, buggy graphics and bad A.I. It is actually quite ok 15-20 hours    * Update * I changed the Score from 5 to 2. This is the worst Mech game in the series, even worse then MechCommander 2. Avoid this game like the plauge.

    Mechwarrior 5 is actually at times quite fun but right now it is more or less broken. It is held back by repetitive missions, boring grindning, very unbalanced difficulty, buggy graphics and bad A.I. It is actually quite ok 15-20 hours in and then it starts to sink in what a grindfest this game is. it is like a MMO game with daily grind quests since you literary do the same thing over and over again to raise your reputation.

    The game would need 6-12 months more in development. #Fix loading times, #Improve A.I, #Fix texture pop-ins and wierd graphics artifacts, # Improve in the reinforcements/spawning mechanic (you could for instance use more dropships, mechs hidning in buildings, powered down mech that are hiding etc.

    # Pros #
    * The mech modells and terrain destruction are quite alright.
    * Combat can be quite fun and hectic at times.
    * Checking out your mechs at full size in the mechbay is some thing I like to do.
    * The economic part is also quite ok.
    * A lot of mechs and weapons.

    # Neutral #
    * The mechbay feels empty of life. There are some characters and soilders there but they never move and look at you with dead eyes.
    * Bland music and voice acting. While it works the rock/riff guitar music if soon forgettable when every song sounds the same.
    * The main story is more or less the same as Mechwarrior 4. Your friends / family has been killed by evil mechwarriors and now you must find out who they are and get revenge.
    * Slow pacing. I can understand it can take time to travel and repair your mechs after each mission. But it quickly gets boring waiting your mech to get repaired. I dont know where I am in the game, perhaps 75% finished and I have played for ~8000 days. Everyone will be old or dead when its finished.

    # Negative #
    * Light and medium mechs is pointless in the end game since every mission is about destroying everything you see. And ECM and radar is nonexistent.
    * The campaign will mainly consists of procedurally generated grind missions just to get you reputation up to a higher level. Then when you do you will get new missions to continue the story.
    * The real story mission is more or less as the grind missions but with vioceovers. Defend that, destroy that. What about escort missions?, what about recon missions?. Well there is none.
    * Loading times is very slow, even on a SSD.
    * Texture pop-ins all the time.
    * The A.I has not really improved in 20 years. Your companions still shoot you in the back, destroy buildings you must protect and get stuck all the time.
    * After a mission you end up down in the mechbay and not at the command table where you make all the decisions. Then you have to run up some stairs everytime.
    * Where is the radar ?
    * Unbalanced difficulty *
    Lets say you take a level 10 defence mission. After completion you take some medium damage but you still go 1mil+. Repair and go back and take another defence mission at the same place. This mission on the same planet is more or less impossible to complete due to the massive unbalanced reinforcements mechanic. Now you will fight 14-20 enemies at the same time instead of 4-8 at the last mission. You can not kill all of them in time before they destroy the base. So mission difficulty is very unbalanced. And sometimes the reinforcement never stop comming, they will literary land the mechs on your head with a dropship. And since the dropships is indestructible there is not tactics involved at all.
    * Range weapons is more or less useless since most enemies land or spawn very close to you.
    * Radar is useless so you do not see enimies popping in behind you. They will almost always get the first shot
    * In the later end game most enemies just target you instead. Your lance can be mostly undamaged and you will be dead or destoryed.
    * Where do you change the difficulty , well you can't.

    # Terrible #
    * The enemy spawning is easy the worst thing in the entire game. Mechs and tanks can literary pop up right behind you can score some nasty hits, and it happens all the time.    … Expand
  34. PlaD777
    Dec 12, 2019
    3
    - Графика 10-летней (а то и 15-летней) давности. Основные отличия от Mechwarrior 3 - наличие деревьев и менее мыльные текстуры. Я понимаю, у разработчика денег нет, но ЗАЧЕМ тогда делать эпизоды, когда Ваш персонаж ходит вне меха? Видишь других персонажей, а у них анимации нет. Вообще игра напоминает визуально недавнюю Battletech (которая мне понравилась куда больше), да вот беда - жанр- Графика 10-летней (а то и 15-летней) давности. Основные отличия от Mechwarrior 3 - наличие деревьев и менее мыльные текстуры. Я понимаю, у разработчика денег нет, но ЗАЧЕМ тогда делать эпизоды, когда Ваш персонаж ходит вне меха? Видишь других персонажей, а у них анимации нет. Вообще игра напоминает визуально недавнюю Battletech (которая мне понравилась куда больше), да вот беда - жанр другой, и требования к картинке тут сильно выше.
    - Физика мехов на нуле. Следов на земле они не оставляют. Упал с огромной высоты - никаких повреждений, никакой анимации (хоть бы мех присел, что ли. А, я забыл - садиться нельзя. И бинокля нет вроде бы). Автопушки здесь не авто- - пушка "Центуриона" стреляет одиночными выстрелами. РДД по своей механике выглядели лучше в Mechwarrior 3 (см. год выпуска последней). Рукопашный бой на мехах не предусмотрен.
    - Сюжета по сути нет (то, что здесь сюжетом зовётся, пишут дети лет пяти).
    - В игре есть напарники, но обучения групповому бою нет. В начале Вас попытаются обмануть, во время обучения показывая в кокпите меха от первого лица руки пилота. Думаешь - прикольно, во время боя руки что-то будут нажимать, визуализируя нажатые кнопки. На самом деле нет.
    - Отвратный перевод на русский (напр., "войны за Престол" вместо войн за Наследие). Часть текста не переведена вообще.
    - Основным средством придания динамики боям служит саундтрек. Правда он несколько однообразен.
    Пока Вы одобряете и покупаете ТАКОЕ, хороших игр будет крайне мало. Зачем разработчикам напрягаться?    … Expand
  35. nandmaster
    Dec 12, 2019
    0
    Extremly repetitive gameplay, bad UI, bad AI, bad story, bad voice acting, long load times all the times (even on fast ssd), enemies spawning unpredictably wherever. But hey, battlefield graphics are nice. You've killed mechwarrior franchize Piranha Games. Its a heap money grab.
  36. Garingo41
    Dec 17, 2019
    1
    crazy amount of enemies spawn directly in front of you, out of thin air. wave after wave. the latest patch didnt fix anything. uninstalled and waiting until this game comes out of this uncomplete state of mess. maybe in a year or so.
  37. Chezidek
    Sep 26, 2021
    4
    Mediocre, cheap craft at the level of 2008!
    In the game about giant robots, you don't feel the scale at all! because of what the impression of the game is like from some children's arcade game about bionicles!
    The landscape, terrain, textures were created for the height of a person and not for huge robots, the detail is disgusting! It's just funny to see the huge grass under the robot's    Mediocre, cheap craft at the level of 2008!
    In the game about giant robots, you don't feel the scale at all! because of what the impression of the game is like from some children's arcade game about bionicles!
    The landscape, terrain, textures were created for the height of a person and not for huge robots, the detail is disgusting! It's just funny to see the huge grass under the robot's feet... The only thing that reminds us of the scale is the terribly detailed, ugly, small cars, trees, buildings and enemy tanks... There is absolutely no immersion in the world and faith in what is happening on the screen!
    Another completely stupid, unnecessary and boring element is a hangar in which you constantly need to run up and down the stairs, probably they wanted to dilute the fights with this, but this is just boring nonsense! it would be better to just have a static interface with dialogs, settings, and tasks!
    The interface is also terrible and generally incomprehensible! it is difficult to navigate, it is difficult to understand and remember what to do and how to do it!

    My wife saw how I was playing and asked why I was playing a children's game about some robots(the game really looks extremely frivolous against the background of modern games!), she had to explain that this is a well-known series of games with a long history, books and a deep plot...    … Expand
  38. Brargayrriss
    Dec 15, 2019
    0
    Я вот не понимаю, почему люди ставят этой неплохой игре низкие оценки.
    Ну смотрите, графика передовая, разрушаемость реалистичная, даже кабину меха проработали, мелочь а тепло на душе становится, у каждого меха она разная.
    Далее, очень понравились большие карты в разных биомах, разнообразные миссии и даже проработанная глобальная карта. Иногда даже встречаются нелинейные квесты. В    Я вот не понимаю, почему люди ставят этой неплохой игре низкие оценки.
    Ну смотрите, графика передовая, разрушаемость реалистичная, даже кабину меха проработали, мелочь а тепло на душе становится, у каждого меха она разная.
    Далее, очень понравились большие карты в разных биомах, разнообразные миссии и даже проработанная глобальная карта. Иногда даже встречаются нелинейные квесты.
    В кой-то веки проработанный ИИ, в других играх напарники раздражают, а тут видимо применили нейронные сети.
    Ну и стрельба, б-же это просто ммм 10 из 10.
    Короче у меня просто Ж О П А порвалась от того какая эта игра классная, надеюсь игроки спустят рекордной прибылью прямо на довольное лицо Тима Суини.    … Expand
  39. Vortyrion
    Dec 13, 2019
    6
    This is not a MechWarior simulator, this a not well done arcade game for children that want to go pew-pew-pew with giant "robots".
    There isn't enough Mech equipment customization. The "build and maintain your own mercenary Mech company" element is shallow. Diplomacy with the different houses is irrelevant. The game economic is totally unbalanced.. The mission are also poorly done. The    This is not a MechWarior simulator, this a not well done arcade game for children that want to go pew-pew-pew with giant "robots".
    There isn't enough Mech equipment customization. The "build and maintain your own mercenary Mech company" element is shallow. Diplomacy with the different houses is irrelevant. The game economic is totally unbalanced.. The mission are also poorly done. The only challenging think that they came up with is to spawn more enemies around you. Often popping up to existence just several meters behind youq on in some cases just in front of you. The UI looks like was left unchanged from the Alpha version
    Honestly I'm flabbergasted how this game is so unfinished and not well made. The game was in development so much time , with the experience and the assets from the MWO    … Expand
  40. supe
    Jan 1, 2020
    5
    Even as a veteran of the MW series (including the original MW on floppy disk), I can't recommend this mess. The first few hours of the game feels good. But the gameplay is repetitive and the design is frustrating.

    Pros: - Hilariously amateurish intro cutscene, which is a pro for the laughs - Mech variety, piloting, and shooting mechanics are excellent Cons: - Limited mech    Even as a veteran of the MW series (including the original MW on floppy disk), I can't recommend this mess. The first few hours of the game feels good. But the gameplay is repetitive and the design is frustrating.

    Pros:
    - Hilariously amateurish intro cutscene, which is a pro for the laughs
    - Mech variety, piloting, and shooting mechanics are excellent

    Cons:
    - Limited mech customization, since each mech has specific equipment hardpoints
    - Only two mission types: defense, and several variations of blow-something-up-at-waypoint-X
    - Randomly generated maps are so devoid of features they might as well be the same
    - Difficulty spikes towards mid-game because of several flaws:
    --- Enemies spawn out of thin air near you, sometimes right in front of your line of sight
    --- As your reputation (effectively your level) increases, you get access to bigger mechs. But enemies have bigger mechs x greater numbers x greater accuracy. Most mission types become unplayable, and even expertly skilled players will be hard pressed to break even on C-bills factoring in repairs. I think they play tested in god mode.

    There's a foundation for a good game here, as I did enjoy the first few hours. Hopefully the modding community can do something with it.

    If you like MW, revisit in a year.    … Expand
  41. DarkSnowy
    Dec 13, 2019
    1
    As a huge fan of Mechwarrior I really want to support the idea of CO-OP Campaigns. That's why it breaks my heart to give a poor score. I can't play with my friends because joining keeps failing and when they do get in they are soon disconnected. My partner is on the same network as me and gets kicked.
    I understand verifying an account through an external server but why not then steam the    As a huge fan of Mechwarrior I really want to support the idea of CO-OP Campaigns. That's why it breaks my heart to give a poor score. I can't play with my friends because joining keeps failing and when they do get in they are soon disconnected. My partner is on the same network as me and gets kicked.
    I understand verifying an account through an external server but why not then steam the game directly between computers? Or can they not even get that working correctly?
    If their single player was good I'd still give a better score than 1, but enemy detection works like either the mech doesn't have a radar or every enemy has stealth amour. You only see what's in a cone in front of you. That's not even how radars work.
    The game forced me to play a tutorial and crashed right at the very end. I had to do it all again. Any company stupid enough to not give players the option to skip the tutorial deserves low scores.
    I could write an essay about all the minor problems but suffice to say that the game could be fixed. The question then is will they fix it? I'd suffocate first if I held my breath. You know... because development takes time ;P    … Expand
  42. LaserReaper
    Dec 12, 2019
    1
    fun game, but its terribly flawed.

    - there is no practical control over your AI lance mates - no way pointing, no retreat orders, no defend location no nothing, so expect you lance to be constantly tripping over itself and definitely don't expect to be pulling of any advanced tactics - you have a map with grid lines... but no grid references - AI is dumb - friendlies will do more    fun game, but its terribly flawed.

    - there is no practical control over your AI lance mates
    - no way pointing, no retreat orders, no defend location no nothing, so expect you lance to be constantly tripping over itself and definitely don't expect to be pulling of any advanced tactics
    - you have a map with grid lines... but no grid references
    - AI is dumb
    - friendlies will do more damage to the base you are protecting then the people attacking it
    - enemies can and will spawn on top of you and the objective
    - because of the limited control over your lance, the poor AI, and enemy pop in the game is pure brawn over brain. whats the point of setting up a long range mech if the AI can just spawn 500m in the open field behind you.
    i could keep going...    … Expand
  43. stgreylv
    Dec 11, 2019
    4
    Battle is fun, really fun. But script was written in a toilet by 10 yo kid. Voice acting has been done by neighbors and friends. And game is not optimized at all. Graphics and physics are old and at the same time game requires some good hardware to run. On a minimum hardware it will not work at all probably.
    I will wait for a week, if there wont be patches that would fix crashes that i'm    Battle is fun, really fun. But script was written in a toilet by 10 yo kid. Voice acting has been done by neighbors and friends. And game is not optimized at all. Graphics and physics are old and at the same time game requires some good hardware to run. On a minimum hardware it will not work at all probably.
    I will wait for a week, if there wont be patches that would fix crashes that i'm having, then i will take a refund.    … Expand
  44. Terrorcore
    Dec 12, 2019
    0
    unoptimized piece of **** with curve control, i7-7700 16gb gtx 1070=40-100~ fps on minimum graphics settings
  45. Jofrey
    Jan 3, 2020
    0
    Easily the worst Mechwarrior ever released. I recommend any mechwarrior's fan avoid this unfinished project or wait until PGI release a complete overhaul.
    They have stripped all simulation's elements and turn it in to a giant turkey shoot hut.
  46. Bandeeto
    Jan 5, 2020
    1
    I've been trying to like MW5 but I'm sorry this game is just awful. What an EPIC fail by PGI. For years I have loved playing with my big stompy mechs. So I have tried to fool myself into liking this drivel. This game is MWO with graphics upped, a destructible environment and the same story line, that is NONE...Oh and its not ONLINE outside of 3 buddies, on the same team which make the gameI've been trying to like MW5 but I'm sorry this game is just awful. What an EPIC fail by PGI. For years I have loved playing with my big stompy mechs. So I have tried to fool myself into liking this drivel. This game is MWO with graphics upped, a destructible environment and the same story line, that is NONE...Oh and its not ONLINE outside of 3 buddies, on the same team which make the game a joke. The AI is absolutely the worst implementation on the planet, hell I think the AI in CONTRA on NES was better then this. How do we make it harder? lets just throw more and more enemies at you! Really!??!? And the AI for your lance mates...HAHAHAHAH!!! Run a DEFENSE mission and watch them happily stomp through the base your defending and miss shots with zero regard for grandma on her walker in the background. Hell they do way more damage then the enemies. Of course, PGI will spawn wave after wave on opposite sides of the base so you are never in the right position and your window licker lance mates will destroy half the base trying to reengage. But screw all that and let me go back to what this game was supposed to have that MWO lacked.....A STORY!!!! something that gripped you and made you want to find out how it ends! That's why I fell in love with Battletech, it was the novels and great story telling. Play any other game out now and its quick to realize that they blew it! If this was a platform for a battle royale game it would be a start...but its NOT! This game is a complete joke. Oh but its Mechwarrior so you need to to leave the cockpit... having to run upstairs to talk to that girl on the bridge when I can tab to everything else is pathetic. 2019 graphics with 1994 game play and a 1978 console story line...no no wait...the story line in Pong was better for its time!!!!… Expand
  47. Arzumanyan
    Dec 16, 2019
    0
    Russ, how could you screw up a gorgeous game like mech warrior online???
    I was hoping as the other community that you would make a cake of game.
    You better used that crisis engine. It is far more beautiful. Just have a look at Hunt Showdown! Unreal engine makes you feel like in a cartoon, which is intolerable for a simulation like this. Lack of multiplayer is awful. The game makes no sense    Russ, how could you screw up a gorgeous game like mech warrior online???
    I was hoping as the other community that you would make a cake of game.
    You better used that crisis engine. It is far more beautiful. Just have a look at Hunt Showdown!
    Unreal engine makes you feel like in a cartoon, which is intolerable for a simulation like this.
    Lack of multiplayer is awful. The game makes no sense without it. AI is nothing interesting to play with for a rather experienced pilot. It feels like a big tutorial for a Mechwarrior Online. Which we already had in the MWO Academy.
    VR can help the game a bit, but as said, without multiplayer it has no sense.
    P.S.: For paid reviewers. Please, I think nobody gives a **** whether it is an Epic exclusive or any other. As for me, I think Epic is better because of the prices. The game is just crap for anyone who liked playing Mechwarrior Online. The only things that became better are the transparent lasers and melting armor. Nothing more. The game is probably for the young scholars who like to play arcade games.
    P.S.S: want to say something very rude as I was waiting for this game like crazy.    … Expand
  48. Xolbadur
    Dec 12, 2019
    5
    Overall, this is a pretty mediocre game, which is a suprisingly amount of fun.

    Pros: -Mechs feel great to control -guns feel powerful -nice hit feedback -good sound design -effects look great Cons: -long loading times -enemies spawn often right behind or even inside you -coop in campaign feels like a late edition, since the people joining can't even hear the story NPCs talk,    Overall, this is a pretty mediocre game, which is a suprisingly amount of fun.

    Pros:
    -Mechs feel great to control
    -guns feel powerful
    -nice hit feedback
    -good sound design
    -effects look great

    Cons:
    -long loading times
    -enemies spawn often right behind or even inside you
    -coop in campaign feels like a late edition, since the people joining can't even hear the story NPCs talk, neither can they modify mechs
    -graphical glitches with a weird pixelation ghosting effect    … Expand
  49. Sprew
    Dec 15, 2019
    0
    What PGI has essentially made is a lifeless bare-bones sandbox expecting modders to fill in the details. Almost two decades since a proper MechWarrior game and this is all they have to show? Pathetic.
  50. Pimmelschilz
    Dec 26, 2019
    4
    This game is a slap in the face for all Mechwarrior Fans. Even the nearly 20 years old MW3 and MW4 are more fun than this piece of crap. Just a few Things which really annoyed me:
    -Extreme poor enemy spawn System. Enemies just spawn out of nowhere in overwhelming numbers when you reach certain triggers.
    -Poor Lance AI. The only Thing they are perfect in is Blocking your line of fire.    This game is a slap in the face for all Mechwarrior Fans. Even the nearly 20 years old MW3 and MW4 are more fun than this piece of crap. Just a few Things which really annoyed me:
    -Extreme poor enemy spawn System. Enemies just spawn out of nowhere in overwhelming numbers when you reach certain triggers.
    -Poor Lance AI. The only Thing they are perfect in is Blocking your line of fire.
    -unnecessary Mech Hanger. I mean, all what you do is running between the Hangar and the Bridge. For what? There is Nothing to do there. You spend your time in the menu anyway.
    -Very poor depiction of the timeline. If you are not familiar with the Battletech Universe, you notice that the Map and the factions are changing over the Course of time. But you do ot get any Explanation why. Events like the disovery of the Helm Memory Core, the fourth succession war, the war of 3039 or anything like that are not even mentioned in anyway.
    -Poor Endgame. Lots of the high difficulty contracts do not pay of well as you have immense repair Costs. So you have to pay > 1 Million for repairs, have a very Long outtime and your running Costs which leaves you with barely a Profit.
    -Poor Story missions. Most of the "Campaign" Missions feel exactly like the random generated missions.
    -Grinding. Mostly you Play the random generated missions over and over again, which means "Go to Waypoint X and destroy everything"
    -Poor Story. The Story starts as an average "I will avenge my father´s death" and keeps that low Level over the most time of the game. I don´t remember anything of the Story because the Campaign missions were nearly the same as the random generated missions. Towards the end it gets a Little better just to make a crash Landing after the last Mission.

    I know that PGI is not a AAA-Studio, but seriously, this could have been done much better.
    It has some potential, but at this state it feels like a beta test.    … Expand
  51. tspjunk
    Dec 10, 2019
    2
    Graphics are better than MWO but not by much. But the horrible clunky UI and AI make this game tedious and boring. I mean can the enemies do more than just circle around me or fly in straight lines? Also, seems like all the buildings, heli, and tanks are made out of paper. Missions become repetitive fast. I'd wait till this is 90% off on steam, definitely not worth full price on EPIC.
  52. Mitchicon
    Dec 14, 2019
    3
    I've played the game for four hours and am a BT/MW fan.
    Pros: - starmap you can explore
    - incentive to balance where you handle repairs - reputation system that affects pay, salvage, and insurance Cons: - enemies spawn on top of you, next to you, making long range weapons useless - spawn system also leads to your mechs back armor quickly being stripped without warning - radar does not    I've played the game for four hours and am a BT/MW fan.
    Pros: - starmap you can explore
    - incentive to balance where you handle repairs
    - reputation system that affects pay, salvage, and insurance

    Cons:
    - enemies spawn on top of you, next to you, making long range weapons useless
    - spawn system also leads to your mechs back armor quickly being stripped without warning
    - radar does not work
    - awful AI
    - UI looks alpha stage level developed
    - repetitive - awful ui that looks like its in an alpha stage    … Expand
  53. SeloJRPG
    Dec 12, 2019
    5
    This game is just Mechwarrior Online with updated graphics.
    ALL the sounds are directly taken from MWO.
    The UI and controls are exactly the same, but looks worse. The story is exactly like Battletech, This game is pretty much the FPS version of the same game. The hangar graphics is laughable and the NPCs looks like they are taken from Half Life 1. I would give this game 5/10 and thats    This game is just Mechwarrior Online with updated graphics.
    ALL the sounds are directly taken from MWO.
    The UI and controls are exactly the same, but looks worse.
    The story is exactly like Battletech, This game is pretty much the FPS version of the same game.
    The hangar graphics is laughable and the NPCs looks like they are taken from Half Life 1.
    I would give this game 5/10 and thats beeing kind tbh.    … Expand
  54. Cortax
    Mar 29, 2020
    4
    I had high hopes, having played and enjoyed MWO from the same developer but is sorely disappointed in this game. Endless waves of enemies that spawns sometimes right in front of you, less customization of mechs then previous games as different engines or armor types is now gone. Also in earlier games as well as MWO you had radar system and ecm...so far I have seen neither as line of sightI had high hopes, having played and enjoyed MWO from the same developer but is sorely disappointed in this game. Endless waves of enemies that spawns sometimes right in front of you, less customization of mechs then previous games as different engines or armor types is now gone. Also in earlier games as well as MWO you had radar system and ecm...so far I have seen neither as line of sight is the ONLY way to detect enemies.

    Don't know what Piranah games did with this game but this is not the mechwarrior game I waited 17 years for........its several steps backward when a new games in a series should move forward.

    Nuff said.

    PS: I'm putting this game on a shelf until some moders can actually make this game into something that is worthy of the name of Mechwarrior while going back to Battletech.

    Edit 29 Dec 2019: Tried to play some again just the other day and noticed they patched it so its not endless waves now and while some mobs still spawn to close, I haven't had the experience of them spawning just behind me during the few hours I played. That said, all other concerns still remain and my next main concern is the lancemates AI....mainly friendly fire and the fact that the AI doesn't seem to realize that ain't a good thing.    … Expand
  55. AzureArmure
    Dec 14, 2019
    1
    Developers require ALL users to use a launcher with no features, with none of their friends on it, run by a shady Chinese-friendly megacorp. The kicker? This launcher has no effective DRM. The devs made this decision to get a small amount of money pre-release, at the massive cost of sales post-release. The pirating scene for this game is larger than the legitimate scene. That is how badlyDevelopers require ALL users to use a launcher with no features, with none of their friends on it, run by a shady Chinese-friendly megacorp. The kicker? This launcher has no effective DRM. The devs made this decision to get a small amount of money pre-release, at the massive cost of sales post-release. The pirating scene for this game is larger than the legitimate scene. That is how badly the devs failed the customer base.

    Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

    The custom/hacked servers for this game are now more active than the official ones. Any sanctioned online play is plagued by hackers and disconnects.

    Of the 35 friends in my MW group, 2 of us bought the game. We've been into MW/BT since the 90s.

    If you want to play this title, and I don't blame you because the game is fun when it's not destroyed by its stupid launcher and terrible developer, obtain it via less legitimate means and show the developers that their stupid store is not happening without the necessary features and integration for a title like this.

    Pros:
    Movement can feel good sometimes
    Overworld design is great for the most part
    Long game in hours

    Cons:
    Graphics are a total failure, looking 10 years old
    Radar is totally unacceptable for a MW/BT game
    Missiles look weird
    Enemy spawns are off
    Map design is half-assed and copy-pasted everywhere
    Customization is a joke
    Official servers deserted
    MTX$$$$$$$$$$$$
    Massive, massive optimization issues
    No mods(!!!) for no reason other than dev laziness
    Overpriced af for a broken cut down half assed mess that the fans don't want

    1/10 works, might entertain a 3 year old for a moment.    … Expand
  56. timg528
    Dec 15, 2019
    2
    I really wanted to like this game. I'm not writing it off yet, because I'm holding out hope that they'll patch some of the stupid out.
    If you've played HareBrainedScheme's Battletech, the overworld systems will feel familiar to you. HBS is leaps and bounds better in the management aspect though. I'd say the one thing PGI got right is the mech movement and feel, but that shouldn't be    I really wanted to like this game. I'm not writing it off yet, because I'm holding out hope that they'll patch some of the stupid out.
    If you've played HareBrainedScheme's Battletech, the overworld systems will feel familiar to you. HBS is leaps and bounds better in the management aspect though. I'd say the one thing PGI got right is the mech movement and feel, but that shouldn't be surprising since they've been doing MechWarrior Online (MWO) for years now.

    Honestly, this game is a combination of the HBS' BattleTech and MWO, but it fails at what makes each game good. The missions are boring and repetitive, the story is boring, gameplay in general is boring.

    The one thing that might save it would be mech customization, right? Let me scrap together parts and build my personalized mech and carve my name into the galaxy. They managed to screw that up. The folks that make MWO, where you can take an Urbanmech and trick it out to be good in a PvP match, screwed up customization. It's one thing to have weapon type hardpoints, that's understandable and a pretty good restriction-mechanic. MW5 takes it further by weapon type AND size restrictions. Instead of choosing what ballistic-type weapon to equip, you now have to choose what medium-sized ballistic weapon to equip. Want to use a small weapon? Tough. Medium or nothing.

    If you can swap out engines, I haven't figured out how yet. I doubt you can though, they really made an effort to take all the fun out of the mech building aspect. When you go into the screen, it defaults the view to just the weapons. You have to click a button to get a 'detailed' view - i.e. body parts, their armor, their equipment, literally everything to building a mech other than weapons.    … Expand
  57. CaptDrake
    Dec 13, 2019
    0
    Broken, boring, no promised VR, and an exclusive to boot. Piranha games is a joke.
  58. Gunmars
    Dec 14, 2019
    0
    Russ Bullock. Traitor of our time.

    What more can you say. Russ is a complete puppet for money trying to support his ever failing studio and it's milking of the MechWarrior franchise. Man can't seem to understand that the MW/BattleTech community is niche at best and has supported him and PGI through out their constant butchering of MWO and tossed TONS of money at MW5 with the promise of    Russ Bullock. Traitor of our time.

    What more can you say. Russ is a complete puppet for money trying to support his ever failing studio and it's milking of the MechWarrior franchise. Man can't seem to understand that the MW/BattleTech community is niche at best and has supported him and PGI through out their constant butchering of MWO and tossed TONS of money at MW5 with the promise of Steam. But good ol Traitor Russ himself followed the quick buck and betrayed a entire dedicated fanbase that supported him and PGI for years.

    Maybe on day MW/BT will be ripped away from these con men and we can finally get fulfilling games. Not micro transaction pile of **** Russ and PGI trot out.

    There's no other way to say it. Russ Bullock and PGI. We the BattleTech fans, HATE YOU.    … Expand
  59. Subtext
    Dec 10, 2019
    6
    What a missed opportunity. the game play and graphics are nearly as good as mechwarrior online, a game by the same company?!? If they had at least used that as a base to build this one on it would have been ok. The story and voice acting is garbage
  60. faijeya
    Dec 14, 2019
    5
    It's a misguided game.

    First of all, it fails to form a narrative. The absolute majority of missions seems procedurally generated and is replicable in instant action. Even the voiceover is the same. Only you don't need to grind for mechs and weapons in instant action or care about repair costs. The story is as generic and basic as a committee-approved fantasy. Even something as    It's a misguided game.

    First of all, it fails to form a narrative.

    The absolute majority of missions seems procedurally generated and is replicable in instant action. Even the voiceover is the same. Only you don't need to grind for mechs and weapons in instant action or care about repair costs.
    The story is as generic and basic as a committee-approved fantasy. Even something as simple and self-contradictory as: "My home city was destroyed by mechwarriors. So I grew to be a mechwarrior myself to kill as many of these bastards as possible." would've given a better narrative hook.
    There is little to no sense of direction on the starmap. The Elite: Dangerous problem, vast as an ocean, deep as a puddle. I guess I should progress through conflict zones, maybe? And they have convenient production hubs nearby to support my business, okay. The quality of equipment offered seems to correspond to the level of the player's outfit, so no shortcuts.

    Isn't that applicable also to widely acclaimed (liked it, but not loved it) Battletech? Or Starsector if you're a connoisseur? Yep. But let's now go to the core.

    The core works almost well, except for two issues.

    First of all, the visibility range for ground units is way too low, more suited for a fast-paced online shooter.
    Second, the map generator likes to spawn tanks very, very much.
    Fast-paced online shooters are great, combined arms are also great, but they don't mix well.
    Yep, even in-battle spawns (isn't it just great when a mech with its tanks posse spawns 250 meters behind you in an already cleared area?) pale in comparison.

    They pale because these conditions force you to play in a perfectly average, jack-of-all-trades way on samey procedurally generated maps.
    You can't realize your speed, because you'll run into a horde of tanks and turrets who'll make your life pretty mizerable. It's pretty hard to realize long-range weaponry because you tend to see ground stuff just about in the range of a medium lazer. The abundance of relatively soft and relatively hard-hitting targets makes you favor high-DPM weapons as opposed to high-alpha.
    You've got to move at an average pace and you'd better have a healthy mix of close and mid and a bit of long range weaponry and a healthy amount of armor to tank the inevitable damage. If you're into micromanaging your AI teammates with specialized builds... maybe modded out Battletech is more suitable for this purpose?

    Hmmm, what does this aversion of things like laser boats or missile boats or flying snipers or speedy glass cannons or anything overpowered (i.e. fun) remind me of?..
    Yeah, that's your F2P MMO balance in the game you paid for, only with the nice premium bits chopped off.

    So it goes.    … Expand
  61. wind79
    Dec 11, 2019
    6
    Game is way too similar to MWO and I don't see much upgrade over MWO.
    Overall, I am disappointed as this game can deliver so much more.
  62. granoid
    Dec 27, 2019
    4
    There is the core of a decent game here but in it's current state I'd advise staying away from it. Firstly it's currently an Epic Games Store exclusive, despite earlier promises from the devs that this wouldn't be the case. Secondly, in typical Piranha Games style it's been rushed out way before it should have been. The actual mech-vs-mech combat is pretty good but that's not what you getThere is the core of a decent game here but in it's current state I'd advise staying away from it. Firstly it's currently an Epic Games Store exclusive, despite earlier promises from the devs that this wouldn't be the case. Secondly, in typical Piranha Games style it's been rushed out way before it should have been. The actual mech-vs-mech combat is pretty good but that's not what you get most of. Mostly you end up fighting wave after wave of overpowered and instantly-spawning vehicles which chew heavier mechs up. The AI in general is simply broken. Enemies do nothing except make a straight line for you then run in circles around you. Your team AI is also terrible. They simply try to get into range of their shortest-range weapons and stay there, so make sure you only give them long range weapons. The UI is atrocious. Repairing and outfitting mechs is clunky and limited. The story is utterly mediocre and the characters are 1-dimensional and forgettable. The graphics seem very dated and performance is so-so. I'd say give it a year, wait for it to be on Steam and for a combination of patches and mods to make it a, hopefully, much better game.… Expand
  63. PavelJS
    Dec 15, 2019
    0
    1) Horrible UI inside mech lab. Columns are reducing sizes if you remove weapons from slots, colors are terrible, everything looks bad. Just take a look on Battletech mech lab to compare.
    2) Missions are the same, no difference and after 15 hours I just tired of bugs, stupid AI (both enemies and your guys)
    3) Coop? Cmon, this was done for marketing purposes only. Your friend WILL NOT    1) Horrible UI inside mech lab. Columns are reducing sizes if you remove weapons from slots, colors are terrible, everything looks bad. Just take a look on Battletech mech lab to compare.
    2) Missions are the same, no difference and after 15 hours I just tired of bugs, stupid AI (both enemies and your guys)
    3) Coop? Cmon, this was done for marketing purposes only. Your friend WILL NOT receive any bonuses, he WILL NOT use his own mechs. No interest for my friend to play with me. Story? Cmooon, it's SOOO bad.
    4) Economics, money & time management... They done everything to lower your incomes and spend as much time as possible with stupid limitations.
    5) Physics in mech fight is TERRIBLE! Fire with AC or Gauss rifle will NOT cause any effects on enemies. Even on 20t mechs. And what is the sound of Gauss rifle? OMG, its just BAAAAAAD for such epic weapon.
    Conclusion: worst game for this year (even Anthem was not that bad). I wish I could do my money back.    … Expand
  64. why853
    Dec 21, 2019
    4
    Feels like the absolute minimum needed to call this a mechwarrior game. After about 5-6 hours you've pretty much done everything the game has to offer. -2 points for lack of promised VR support and being an epic exclusive.
  65. subarusauruswrx
    Jan 17, 2020
    4
    Another squad based game with AI teammates with the IQ equivalent of an amoeba. Overall the gameplay is fine, but if i'm doing a defense mission which requires me to defend a base I would kinda expect my team to not start stomping through said base like they are trying to reenact a godzilla movie. If you had 3 friends to play this with it wouldn't be terrible.
  66. Almighty_Craft
    Jan 1, 2020
    8
    Very good Mechwarrior game.

    plus: The campaign is a classic cliché, but interesting enough from the second half. Mechs selection more than sufficient (although I look forward to DLC) Movement and combat is perfect. In co-op the game is much better. cons: AI lance pilots are stupid. AI does not use jumpjet (at least one saves tonnage). AI rarely gets stuck somewhere (but using    Very good Mechwarrior game.

    plus:
    The campaign is a classic cliché, but interesting enough from the second half.
    Mechs selection more than sufficient (although I look forward to DLC)
    Movement and combat is perfect.
    In co-op the game is much better.

    cons:
    AI lance pilots are stupid. AI does not use jumpjet (at least one saves tonnage). AI rarely gets stuck somewhere (but using commands will solve everything, just send them to a specific location or a specific target).

    conclusion:
    I look forward to the next DLC, especially I hope the clan invasion.    … Expand
  67. AccountLocked
    Jan 5, 2020
    2
    I created an account just to review this game and I'm not surprised that many others share my frustration. I was a huge fan of MechWarrior back in the day. I waited patiently for this game for 3 years; no news on it until the weeks leading up to its release. I should have checked the developer before I bought it.

    17 hours in the campaign logged... Here we go. Pros: 1. Lots of Mechs to    I created an account just to review this game and I'm not surprised that many others share my frustration. I was a huge fan of MechWarrior back in the day. I waited patiently for this game for 3 years; no news on it until the weeks leading up to its release. I should have checked the developer before I bought it.

    17 hours in the campaign logged... Here we go.
    Pros:
    1. Lots of Mechs to choose from.
    2. Instant Action mode is delightful.
    3. Co-op with friends (though I told them to stay away from this game)
    4. The feel of piloting a Mech feels great, with a controller or keyboard/mouse setup (I use a combo of both).
    I'm struggling to find more. I want to love this game.

    Cons:
    1. The combat.
    Enemies spawn right on top of you in every other mission and completely destroy you in a matter of seconds before or even after you complete your primary objective. Not even full Mechs, little VTOL's and tanks tear you and your (pathetic) AI Lances down... Speaking of friendly AI's; they can't keep formation or resist the temptation of stomping on the buildings we're trying to defend. I thought I was just rusty with my simulator skills, but this game's combat system is legitimately broken. I grew frustrated getting destroyed in the "easy" missions to the point where I put the game down (I reached difficulty level 15 in the campaign with a full Lance squad and got pummeled every mission).
    2. The campaign
    It's bland, hollow, and unfortunately the core of this game. Terrible voice acting, and rinse and repeat missions make me feel like the devs don't want you to play the campaign; which begs the question: what do you want me to play? Historically, games with lame campaigns typically had good multiplayer, but this game only has Co-op. I've constantly needed to repair my mechs and stay ahead of a dwindling supply of credits. Maybe I'm doing something wrong?
    3. Controller sensitivity is absent. I can't make my mech aim any slower or faster.
    4. The maps are just plain and boring. Some are WAY too huge even for mechs; it almost feels like a walking sim before you get to fight.
    5. There's no incentive to progress or grind. you just go on a mission, claim your pitiful rewards, pay for damages, repairs, PILOT SALARIES, rent(?), travel, then maybe hit a market with some decent stuff to buy. The economy of the campaign feels like real life on minimum wage; you spend more than you make.

    Don't buy this game, for any reason until there is a full overhaul. I regret buying this on day one.    … Expand
  68. alilgoat
    Mar 20, 2020
    0
    This is literally the worst game I've ever paid money for. How this ungodly pile of trash got a higher critic score than days gone is a perfect example of why critic reviews are worthless. The AI is "kind of dumb some times", are you serious? The AI is DETRIMENTAL as team members, and flat out BORING to play against as enemies! If you have to defend a facility, your AI teammates will doThis is literally the worst game I've ever paid money for. How this ungodly pile of trash got a higher critic score than days gone is a perfect example of why critic reviews are worthless. The AI is "kind of dumb some times", are you serious? The AI is DETRIMENTAL as team members, and flat out BORING to play against as enemies! If you have to defend a facility, your AI teammates will do more damage to the facility than the enemy will. They will run straight through the main building you're supposed to defend in order to get a sight line on an enemy tank. If you do not micromanage your AI teammates with the very inefficient command buttons on these missions, they will quickly fail the mission for you. Side note, the only way to command your 3 possible AI teammates is to remove your hand from the movement keys (deadly at any time in the game) and press individual keys for which AI and then another key for an individual command. It's 2019 and you don't put a command wheel for AI in your game... Forreal? The AI as enemies are pathetic, they have three attack modes. Run at you in a straight line so their CT is easily shot, circle you closely so your short range weapons can eat them alive, and finally stand completely still while they fire long range at you. As far as a mech game, it's sub-par to the older game made from the SAME COMPANY, mechwarrior online. This game has FAR LESS mech customization than MWO. As far as a mech/merc management game, it's BORING. The only mechanic is money and the barely relevant time counter. It's literally just a grind for money until you can buy bigger more expensive mechs which then have bigger more expensive weapons and repair costs. There's no difficulty increase, no resource management (fuel, food, energy, armor plating, mech limbs, NOTHING), the game even automatically replenishes all ammo no matter what for you lmfao (for free) not even a choice, no advanced trading, no ordering items from manufacturers, no bartering, no politics, no ship building/customization, no tech research, no automated dropship missions (If you grow large enough you'd be able to send out more than one drop ship at a time on automated percentage chanced missions to help with the grind), you can't even change the emblem you're given for your merc company (which is not even relevant or even displayed at any point), the spawns are straight out of a 10 year old game... The enemies will literally spawn under you and explode if you're in the right spot. They'll poof right in front of your eyes, dozens at a time. This game looks like its 5 years old which could have been fine, if it didn't also play like its 10 years old. I have no idea why there are no critical "critic" reviews of this game, I LOVE mechwarrior and played MWO competitively. I think that's why I'm so so irritated seeings people call this game anything other than trash, this is an alpha of what could have been a decent game. Very disappointing, now I know why they switched to the EPIC games platform right before release, they knew they were releasing an alpha as a finished game and the steam rating would have been DECIMATING.… Expand
  69. ay1556
    Jun 4, 2022
    0
    This game is very disappointing. Basically, this game is worse than Mechwarrior 4 in every way besides the graphics. Even the graphics are not stunning only better than the previous game.
  70. Juberberry
    Jun 30, 2020
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. First I am a long time Mechwarrior player. I played the original Battletech Wargame with minis as well as the Mechwarrior bolt-on RPG.

    I have played literally every Mechwarrior game as soon as I could. I've given this game time. 6+ months I have had some fun, but I am sadly disappointed with the overall game. The mod community has been valiantly fixing and rebalancing things. Because of the mod community, the game is far better than it has any right to be.

    Sadly, when you buy this game, money goes to Pihrana Games and they can **** off.

    The story is tired and cliche. You are the son of a MW Merc. Your father is killed when your family compound is attacked during a training session with dad. No setup. No effort to make you care about the characters.

    The base combat without mods is meh. Mech editing without mods is very disappointing. The Mech HUD is very basic without mods. Pretty much anything about this game without mods is sad.

    Bugs in combat are annoying but not game-breaking. The most annoying one I have encountered is that on a frequent basis, during a mission, the lance command system (which is alright) bugs out and you have to just muddle along without giving your lance any orders at all. I've had to restart multiple missions due to this bug and the fact that without ordering my lance we win with a lot of damage.

    With all that said, I was having a fair amount of fun. Maybe even a 7/10 amount of fun, but the killer is the maps. I played 4 defense missions, and all 4 missions had the same map and a very similar enemy makeup. The only real change was weather/biome. This is true for most missions. They re-use the same maps over and over and once you learn a map, the missions get pretty boring.

    The only reason I gave this a rating out of the red is mod support. Without the mod support, it would be a 3/10    … Expand
  71. TheFrog
    Sep 24, 2020
    8
    Playing the game in Sep 2020, so in a very stable state.

    EDIT: Re-evaluated the game after a few days. Much better to play once I realized that raids are meant to be conducted using only a light and fast mech with jump jets. They are hit and miss, it's easy to die, but at least they provide some reputation and minimal pay for a very short mission duration. Demolitions are best avoided    Playing the game in Sep 2020, so in a very stable state.

    EDIT: Re-evaluated the game after a few days.
    Much better to play once I realized that raids are meant to be conducted using only a light and fast mech with jump jets. They are hit and miss, it's easy to die, but at least they provide some reputation and minimal pay for a very short mission duration.
    Demolitions are best avoided as infinite enemy respawn is stupid, and the excuse "You can't expect to level a city with no reaction" is lame: there are no reinforcements when YOU defend a city!
    Assassinations are possibly the missions I like best. Warzones are ok, just camp far from the beacon and you'll have some time to snipe enemies as they converge on you.
    Maximize armor and tinker with weapons. For example, an Archer is MUCH better if you ditch LRM20s in favor of lighter LRM15s, using the extra load for heat sinks (just don't expect the AI to be able to use them effectively).
    Try different mech configurations. For example, the Hero Thunderbolt is super powerful and can take down heavier mechs thanks to its barrage of medium lasers.
    Some 'mechs play well in your hands but fail miserably when the AI pilots them, and vice versa. Experiment.
    Getting more and more assault mechs, level 9 missions are currently paying well. Yes, the game has serious flaws, but it's also fun as hell.

    Original review:
    I played most Mechwarrior games, with MW2 being my favourite in terms of gameplay. MW5 goes back to the roots with randomized missions, very little room for 'mech customization and a merciless, dog eat dog economy. Graphics are good, destructible buildings are a pleasure to blow up and there are moments where it's pure joy. Aiming your lasers at the main weapon of an enemy 'mech and firing them all at once, declawing it, then turning to face another enemy, leaving the finishing blow for later, while your squad mates provide cover.
    Unfortunately, everything people complain about is true. Maps are small, the AI is abysmal, radar is a joke, enemies spawn right next to you and, after a certain notoriety level, the game becomes stupidly unplayable. Let me fast forward to notoriety level 8, where playing the game became really a chore for me. I signed up for a raid mission, for a pay of about 500K. Being a hero to the faction, I got some extra haggling points, which I invested mainly in salvage shares and secondly in damage insurance. Along this mission I and my three squadmates destroyed 13 medium and heavy enemy 'mechs, along with 82 miscellaneous enemy units. Yes, NINETY-FIVE enemies total, not to mention the ones I couldn't destroy because I was barely able to make it to the extraction point alive. Only much later I realized that I had lost one of my best pilots, who couldn't eject in time, ad at that point it was too late to reload without losing a lot of progress. Maximizing a pilot's abilities takes ages, and the ones you recruit start pretty low.
    So, I have damage for more than two million bucks, without counting the pilot, but insurance and pay, combined, go barely over one million. If I repair my mechs in a combat zone, I'll also pay 50% extra, otherwise I have to spend several hundred thousand buck to go to the nearest industrial hub and come back. My saving grace is the 'mech I can salvage using my shares. A nice Thunderbolt, worth a hefty price - except, if I sell it, I get just 50% of its value. So I did end up gaining something (except it doesn't even begin to compensate the loss of the pilot), but this was after several attempts and with continuous super ultra careful managing of my squadmates' positions, to prevent them from getting butchered due to their stupidity. Now, consider this: the faction that contracted me walks away with several salvaged mechs, worth millions each, for a total that is several times as much what they are paying me. They don't pay you, *you* are paying *them* for the privilege of fighting their war! If you were a privateer, with no payout but keeping all salvage for yourself, you'd earn several times as much.
    Having to face several times the strength of your team is stupid, when your squadmates have the same AI that animates the enemy. With four human players you could probably maximize specific role for 'mechs, using long range weapons to soften up targets from a distance, before moving in for the kill (or at least it would be if your radar worked a little more often), but with three AI morons that zero in on enemies when they have weapons perfectly suited for long range engagement, it becomes ultra frustrating.
    It appears that the designers have not listened to player feedback in the least, hence the Metacritic rating. It's such a pity because there would be so much to like in this game, if only they fixed at least the broken economy and reduced the enemy spawn a bit. They would get a bonus for avoiding to have enemies spawn right next to you and fixing the horrible radar.    … Expand
  72. cyr1ak
    May 9, 2020
    5
    I'm a great fan of everything Mechwarrior and knowing this developers other try on franchise i was cautious approaching this game.
    Don't get me wrong with all its shortcomings combat is the best part of this game (and as its purely PVE balance does not mean much) - but i was expecting this much.
    What i was afraid of was everything else and unfortunately i was right. Campaign is dull and    I'm a great fan of everything Mechwarrior and knowing this developers other try on franchise i was cautious approaching this game.
    Don't get me wrong with all its shortcomings combat is the best part of this game (and as its purely PVE balance does not mean much) - but i was expecting this much.
    What i was afraid of was everything else and unfortunately i was right.
    Campaign is dull and unfinished, insides of a ship are annoying - i don't see a point of running around every time i finish a mission... running 50 times up the same narrow and glitchy stairs is really frustrating... and you know what's really disappointing ? there is nothing that feels finished, even campaign missions often feel auto-generated.
    Basically it feels like smaller uglier MWO with crappy AI as opposed to actual thinking human pilots.

    this game would be ok for 10 dollars but for 50-60? (and a ton of dlc's) WTF?

    What i must say this game is still more entertaining than annoying and when completed (knowing the studio that will be never) could be good...

    its a mobile game for the price of AAA game    … Expand
  73. andir
    Jun 20, 2020
    10
    Great game, i play it with friend and mods one of the best game this year, and small + its on epic.
  74. Chaingun
    May 9, 2020
    6
    The basic combat is fun and once you get a bit into the game, with cash and experienced pilots things become cool as you seek out new mechs. However, two things are horrible about this game. Blowing legs off enemy mechs slows them for 1 second, then they run around at full speed again. And the worst part of the game? Your "friendly" AI. This AI sucks. Your teammates will do almostThe basic combat is fun and once you get a bit into the game, with cash and experienced pilots things become cool as you seek out new mechs. However, two things are horrible about this game. Blowing legs off enemy mechs slows them for 1 second, then they run around at full speed again. And the worst part of the game? Your "friendly" AI. This AI sucks. Your teammates will do almost as much damage to you as the enemy as they shoot your from the rear. They don't listen to commands all the time and they often destroy as much of bases you are tasked to protect as the enemy. Often i find myself just bailing on a mission and killing them out of pure frustration.… Expand
  75. DangerousDD
    Mar 16, 2021
    1
    Save your money. The story and narrative is weak. The game is repetative and tedious within a day.
    Sadly I feel like this was one of my most wasted purchases
  76. SmartBadger
    Dec 13, 2019
    2
    This isn't a Mechwarrior game. I don't know what it is, really - it feels like a poor offline copy of Mech Online (which wasn't a real Mechwarrior game either). It misses every mark which make Mechwarrior games great.

    The acting is awful, the writing is terrible, the graphics are dated, and the gameplay is stilted and uninspired: weapons look, sound, and feel lifeless; movement is    This isn't a Mechwarrior game. I don't know what it is, really - it feels like a poor offline copy of Mech Online (which wasn't a real Mechwarrior game either). It misses every mark which make Mechwarrior games great.

    The acting is awful, the writing is terrible, the graphics are dated, and the gameplay is stilted and uninspired: weapons look, sound, and feel lifeless; movement is cramped and heavy (and not in a satisfying "this mech feels heavy" kind of way); mechs look like cross-over fanart between FASA and anime, rather than military machines, and the whole game looks and feels like something that would have been middle-of-the-road 10 years ago. Even the main menu looks cheap and cheesy.

    I went in expecting little, and was still disappointed as I uninstalled it a short time later. I guess we never will see a mechwarrior game that lives up to the old ones.    … Expand
  77. MaChIIInA
    Dec 10, 2019
    5
    If you like Battletech in general you will likely find some fun to be had in this title but overall this game is a poor effort in the MechWarrior franchise.

    Cons - - AI are barely functional at times with VTOLs often killing themselves in my playtime due to collisions with terrain. - Graphics are inconsistent, ranging from PlayStation 2 Era to somewhat decent. - Voice acting is    If you like Battletech in general you will likely find some fun to be had in this title but overall this game is a poor effort in the MechWarrior franchise.

    Cons -

    - AI are barely functional at times with VTOLs often killing themselves in my playtime due to collisions with terrain.

    - Graphics are inconsistent, ranging from PlayStation 2 Era to somewhat decent.

    - Voice acting is also inconsistent, ranging from truly bad to serviceable at times.

    - Cut scenes are fairly embarrassing due to poor direction, voice acting and somehow at times even worse visuals despite still being in-engine.

    Pros -

    - Game play feels familiar to those who have spent time in MechWarrior Online but with a bit more weightiness.

    - A fair bit of destructibility provides a some excitement to the visuals.

    - Salvage, repair and different levels of weapon quality add some depth to your play through in a way very reminiscent of if not directly copied from the recent Battletech title.

    - As with salvage and weapons, this game has mission structure and rewards very reminiscent of the Battletech title as you hop from planet to planet completing contracts in the form of quick skirmishes which inevitably results in perhaps the highest replay ability in the franchise assuming you enjoy the game enough to keep playing.    … Expand
  78. order
    Dec 28, 2019
    0
    I have played all the mechwarrior games, Mechwarrior 2 from release, and going back to even try mechwarrior 1.

    I enjoyed nearly all of them in some regard, although mechwarrior 5 is beyond a joke of a title, considering it has been developed by a team which has basically had 7 years to get it right, and borrowing assets and ideas from MWO, many of them bad online aspects. The good is    I have played all the mechwarrior games, Mechwarrior 2 from release, and going back to even try mechwarrior 1.

    I enjoyed nearly all of them in some regard, although mechwarrior 5 is beyond a joke of a title, considering it has been developed by a team which has basically had 7 years to get it right, and borrowing assets and ideas from MWO, many of them bad online aspects.

    The good is the combat, besides being repetitive, and that's about it, how anyone can give this a positive review would only explain "paid reviews", don't fall for it.

    List of the bad aspects as follows, borrowing from someone else who i 100% share their view.

    - Nothing against the story, but it was poorly told. The initial cutscene when you lost your father was short and seems a bit improvised.
    - Voice acting remenber me a telemarketing call with no emotion and empty dialogs.
    - The mechbay is static and lifeless.
    - Ryana Campbell should be fired? She is a command officer who never know from where your enemies are comming, how many they are or their ETA of arrival. Useless.
    - Enemy Mechs with a destroyed leg can run at full speed. Amazing!!!
    - No passive sensors to allow you to stealth your movements from your enemies when at distance.
    - Mech's shy customization. Almost near to none.
    - Mech Cold Storage has a limit of 50 mechs so sooner or later you will be forced to sell some and keep others.
    - Biomes pratically dont affect your mech's ability to sink heat.
    - No option to use a ferro, reactive or reflective Armor like in previous games.
    - The missions are uninteresting, repetetive, and boring.
    - No recon or escort missions. What renders lighter mechs to be useless at end game.
    - The music.
    - Enemies spawn from anywhere, even at your side or behind your mech. They are not dropped there, they just spawn.
    - Your hired AI Mechwarriors run over builds they are suposed to protect.
    - The UI is horrible compared to what we saw in the development trailers.
    - Missions loading time is high to say the least. And yes, I have a SSD    … Expand
  79. Lucinator
    Dec 12, 2019
    5
    First off if your just reading the first part of the review ill spell it out, The game is playable but has some major flaws. Good news is that they are fixable with patches or mods so there is hope yet.

    Now for the long version. And im not gonna mince words, for a game delayed for a year and a half it is disappointing. I have it a good shot and put some 20+ hours into the game before    First off if your just reading the first part of the review ill spell it out, The game is playable but has some major flaws. Good news is that they are fixable with patches or mods so there is hope yet.

    Now for the long version. And im not gonna mince words, for a game delayed for a year and a half it is disappointing. I have it a good shot and put some 20+ hours into the game before making a judgement. I was really hoping this game would offer more than it did but sadly no. so lets break it down.

    Gameplay: The gameplay is surprisingly solid.from a combat standpoint, if you liked MWO style combat you will feel right at home. Combat feels good though there is some balancing that would be nice. However I dont like the lack of environmental effects on your mech this has been a core of the Mechwarrior franchise and it seems to be lacking. If it does exist its not marked anywhere and I have played on lava and ice planets and not noticed enough to want to make me change my load-out. Lastly there is the issue of the A.I. IT SUCKS, I ream really sucks, enemy units running into each other, and walls and off cliffs, you get the idea. Your allies are not any better, in missions like base defense they usually cause more damage than the enemy. The fact that the lance commands are essentially the same as MW3 from 1997 should be a big clue. I would have loved more detailed commands such as hold position but keep firing or form a battleline. Thankfully the environmental factors is a easy fix, and the A.I. while more tricky should be possible (and it really is needed).

    Campaign:Most of the basics of the campaign are really good they took most of what Battletech PC did and thats a good thing, Open world, reputation and the ability to negotiate contracts are all great. However it is telling that the areas where they differ from Battletech is where the game falls short. The repair system is one big issue given how its implemented. Any battle damage you have to pay for, including armor, this drags the game way down and would have been much better if ti had been just structure/weapons like in Battletech. Also the game has a steep learning curve, you are really dropped to the wolves right from the start. The game hurts you for mistakes(badly) All of this is exacerbated the major flaw; the game has no difficulty settings, at all. For a modern single player game this is a mortal sin. Another problem is the lack of depth in the missions. There are hints of good ideas in some of the story missions that would really have been nice to see in "random" missions (turret generators and mobile field bases im looking at you). the **** AI doesnt help. Lastly the characters themselves are completely one dimensional if that you see no real emotion and develop no bonding with any of the characters (including your own).

    Graphics: While a relatively minor issue the fact that the graphics are the same as MWO which came out in the late 2000's put the graphics 10 years out of date.    … Expand
  80. Mopar63
    Dec 11, 2019
    5
    I am sad that I was proven right. Even with the delays and infusion of cash the game feel uncompleted. The graphics are good but not a massive update over MWO. The mech scaling to world feels off, no melee and the combat while okay feels uninspired.

    The premise of the game is solid but it feels like they took the excellent game, Battletech, and turned it into a shooter. The voice    I am sad that I was proven right. Even with the delays and infusion of cash the game feel uncompleted. The graphics are good but not a massive update over MWO. The mech scaling to world feels off, no melee and the combat while okay feels uninspired.

    The premise of the game is solid but it feels like they took the excellent game, Battletech, and turned it into a shooter. The voice acting is a wild mix of poor acting and poor scripts.

    This is what we have come to expect with Piranha making a Mechwarrior game. For $25 I would consider it a fair buy, for $50 way overpriced and if you kept your pre-order, you got robbed.    … Expand
  81. Stourme
    Dec 15, 2019
    0
    This is the worst Mechwarrior game in the entire genre. The AI is beyond stupid and the mission mechanics are worse, if that were even possible. In one type of mission you're supposed to defend the base, your lance mates have a different agenda as they will unceremoniously trample over every building in the base. Enemy light mechs charge straight into full lances of heavies, run around inThis is the worst Mechwarrior game in the entire genre. The AI is beyond stupid and the mission mechanics are worse, if that were even possible. In one type of mission you're supposed to defend the base, your lance mates have a different agenda as they will unceremoniously trample over every building in the base. Enemy light mechs charge straight into full lances of heavies, run around in circles until you finally wear them down. You can't set up a battle line because for some strange reason, enemies spawn out of thin air all around you, even areas already cleared.
    Also, very little customizing mech loads.
    Air units look and act almost identical to MW4. They have very little intelligence behind them... They just hang in the air waiting to be shot down.

    I am very disappointed with the graphics. I was expecting War Thunder level graphics. If you're unfamiliar with WT, search on War Thunder chieftain and look at the images from in game. And this has been around for years.

    MW5 is brand new and the graphics look 10+ years old.

    I'm a die hard MW fan. I started with MW1 .. but this game *sigh* .. I'll never pre-order another game as long as I live. I feel like I was duped and was ripped off. I guess that's why they went with Epic instead of Steam .. .Steam shows user ratings and Epic doesn't.

    I'm guessing all the 10 votes on this site are Piranha employees... No offense intended... but it's a bad game and I'm sorry I wasted my money on it.    … Expand
  82. wiski
    Dec 12, 2019
    6
    I am having fun with the game (more fun when playing with my friends in my lance), but it just feels unfinished in general, and there are a lot of seemingly simple and obvious things that could have been done to make the game better. And as someone else I saw mentioned, they got many of the assets for this game from Mechwarrior Online, so they weren't starting from scratch, which makes howI am having fun with the game (more fun when playing with my friends in my lance), but it just feels unfinished in general, and there are a lot of seemingly simple and obvious things that could have been done to make the game better. And as someone else I saw mentioned, they got many of the assets for this game from Mechwarrior Online, so they weren't starting from scratch, which makes how unfinished the game feels even worse. I can see my score going up easily with some basic improvements that probably should have been in the game from the start (better menus, better mission design, enemies that don't spawn behind you constantly and make missions feel like and endless gunfight, any customization to your character, be it name or portrait, company logo customization, having NPC's actually look at you when they're talking to you, players in your game at least being able to look into menus and loadouts of mechs as opposed to only being able to wander the ship and do nothing else, etc...)

    There is just a lot of basic stuff that needs improvement, but from what I gather from people who have been playing MWO and know PGI (developers), who knows if those improvements will be made. My bottom line is that the game was feeling a bit frustrating to me playing alone, is MUCH more fun with friends, but in the end it does not feel finished despite all the ready made assets PGI had from MWO to lessen their workload.    … Expand
  83. mranere
    Dec 27, 2019
    0
    I lived in MW4 and when I heard this was in development I was very happy. Suffice to say, I got about 72 minutes into the game before I requested a refund. After 4+ years of development, this should have been much better.

    The graphics are dated, they just don't look right to me at all. The mechs don't look good, they have no flow to their movements. Watching the mech's movement reminds    I lived in MW4 and when I heard this was in development I was very happy. Suffice to say, I got about 72 minutes into the game before I requested a refund. After 4+ years of development, this should have been much better.

    The graphics are dated, they just don't look right to me at all. The mechs don't look good, they have no flow to their movements. Watching the mech's movement reminds me of a cheap kid's TV CGI show. The destructible buildings look terrible, the gameplay is repetitive, even in the first two hours. The voice acting is bad and way too frequent.

    Overall, such a huge disappointment. Go watch how the Mechs in MW4 moved and you'll see what I mean, this is just terrible. If you really want the game, wait until it's really, really cheap.    … Expand
  84. HonestOpinion4
    Dec 17, 2019
    9
    I am not a MWO gamer. I am an old school gamer, who played MW2.. 3.. 4 and so on.
    I have now played MW4 for few weeks and also MWO, just to refresh my memory.
    MW4 is a classic and still a FUN to play. Lots of mechs and great gameplay. Graphics were dated allready back in 2000, so today, game isn't about graphics, but a great Mech action. MWO is fun for few hours... but after 20    I am not a MWO gamer. I am an old school gamer, who played MW2.. 3.. 4 and so on.
    I have now played MW4 for few weeks and also MWO, just to refresh my memory.

    MW4 is a classic and still a FUN to play. Lots of mechs and great gameplay. Graphics were dated allready back in 2000, so today, game isn't about graphics, but a great Mech action.

    MWO is fun for few hours... but after 20 matches... it's just deathmatch after another. If you don't pay to win... you are just a punching bag between big boys. Interest died quickly.

    MW5... i really didn't have high expectations. I saw preview videos, developer promised big mecs, high level destructibility and lots of mech action. Also price is low, so it tells this is not a AAA game.

    Still... It is far More fun than any AAA game past 4 years. There is everything in place, Great gameplay, great economics system, good graphics for a 49$ game... Huge battle arenas, lots of mechs... Campaign... or instant action if you have only that half an hour break from family life. :)

    Bugs yes... but everyone game has them. I've had less bugs with MW5 than Call of duty MW or Battlefield 5, which are much bigger titles with multimillion dollar budget.

    So MW5 deserves 9 points. For a 49$ game, it is packed with Heavy Metal action.... Makes me play again and again... sign of a good game.

    Epic Game exclusive... Delays... Not a Steam title... I don't care, it's the game that matters. All I want game to be fun. And I also support the fact that developers earn more money. Money keeps wheel spinning.    … Expand
  85. Horny_Heaper
    Dec 22, 2019
    0
    I buyed it thinking it would be as good as Mechwarrior 2, 3 and 4. After 50 hours of gameplay I can't describe how disappointed I am. Here goes my thoughts about it.

    What I liked: - Mechs are well crafted showing a good graphical upgrade compared with MW4. - Many elements of the terrain are destructable. - See your mechs on the hangar is cool. - Procedural generated maps, although    I buyed it thinking it would be as good as Mechwarrior 2, 3 and 4. After 50 hours of gameplay I can't describe how disappointed I am. Here goes my thoughts about it.

    What I liked:
    - Mechs are well crafted showing a good graphical upgrade compared with MW4.
    - Many elements of the terrain are destructable.
    - See your mechs on the hangar is cool.
    - Procedural generated maps, although sometimes you can see its tiles in its zoomed map.

    Now what I dont liked:
    - Nothing against the story, but it was poorly told. The initial cutscene when you lost your father was short and seems a bit improvised.
    - Voice acting remenber me a telemarketing call with no emotion and empty dialogs.
    - The mechbay is static and lifeless.
    - Ryana Campbell should be fired? She is a command officer who never know from where your enemies are comming, how many they are or their ETA of arrival. Useless.
    - Enemy Mechs with a destroyed leg can run at full speed. Amazing!!!
    - No passive sensors to allow you to stealth your movements from your enemies when at distance.
    - Mech's shy customization. Almost near to none.
    - Mech Cold Storage has a limit of 50 mechs so sooner or later you will be forced to sell some and keep others.
    - Biomes pratically dont affect your mech's ability to sink heat.
    - No option to use a ferro, reactive or reflective Armor like in previous games.
    - The missions are uninteresting, repetetive, and boring.
    - No recon or escort missions. What renders lighter mechs to be useless at end game.
    - The music.
    - Enemies spawn from anywhere, even at your side or behind your mech. They are not dropped there, they just spawn.
    - Your hired AI Mechwarriors run over builds they are suposed to protect.
    - The UI is horrible compared to what we saw in the development trailers.
    - Missions loading time is high to say the least. And yes, I have a SSD.    … Expand
  86. Beetroot
    Dec 26, 2019
    1
    MW5 was a completely phoned-in waste of time, and worse, it was a waste of an IP with epic potential. There isn't a single thing that they did which takes advantage of the awesomeness of piloting a giant robot, or extensive pre-existing lore. Go play Harebrained Scheme's Battletech game and see what game design is.
  87. Slaytronic
    Dec 19, 2019
    0
    substandard dribble from the same company that already price gouged the player base hard pass on this save your money plenty of other games out that are well worth your money
  88. Ming120
    Dec 16, 2019
    5
    The game is a bit of a mixed bag.

    What it does well is implement the formula that made Mechwarrior: Online addictive. The weapon mechanics, the feel of the mechs you pilot, and the destruction are all fairly top notch. Most of the missions in Mechwarrior 5 and procedural generated, which for better or for worst, does create a slightly less predictable gaming experience. The    The game is a bit of a mixed bag.

    What it does well is implement the formula that made Mechwarrior: Online addictive. The weapon mechanics, the feel of the mechs you pilot, and the destruction are all fairly top notch. Most of the missions in Mechwarrior 5 and procedural generated, which for better or for worst, does create a slightly less predictable gaming experience. The progression requires a bit of a grind, but is satisfying once you unlock/purchase better mechs and equipment to take into battle.

    What Mechwarrior 5 does not do so well is pretty much everything else. There is way too much to talk about, so I will just list them: lack of story telling or character development; lack of customization to both mechs and your mercenary company; lack of lore; repetitive grind; always facing massive amounts of enemy AI (almost arcade-like); static NPCs between missions in a 3d-rendered mechbay; enemies just spawn in-front of you; and really just an overall lack of quality.

    On it's own merits, Mechwarrior 5 would probably pass as an addictive arcade game. But compared to all other Mechwarrior/Battletech games, this is pretty mediocre.    … Expand
  89. Akrippr
    Jan 19, 2020
    3
    Having played all the MechWarrior games over the years and countless hours playing MWO, this is a bland cop out. The mech lab is bland. The dialogue is bland. The story line is bland. The repetitive missions are bland. The repair stations and loot boxes that show up at the beginning never show back up which would have been a nice touch. The lack of customization and build options for theHaving played all the MechWarrior games over the years and countless hours playing MWO, this is a bland cop out. The mech lab is bland. The dialogue is bland. The story line is bland. The repetitive missions are bland. The repair stations and loot boxes that show up at the beginning never show back up which would have been a nice touch. The lack of customization and build options for the mechs is a major let down especially after MWO. The AI is missing the I portion as I watched a team mate core another with repeated shots. I'm not sorry Piranha, you not only dropped the ball but also tripped on it, face planted in a pile of dog excrement, wiped the excrement off your face and served it up as a game.… Expand
  90. herrkot
    Jan 18, 2020
    3
    Paper mech against titanium apc. Spawn enemies from you back, most mechs cant be tuned, tons of bugs.
  91. Mr_Impulsive
    Jan 1, 2020
    7
    Being a fan of the original Mechwarrior series I have to say Mechwarrior 5 is a lot like the originals in many ways. It's pretty much the same game loop with a few added perks, not saying at all this game is bad but it is basically a modern version of the originals. That being said I adore this fact but the game does fall short in some areas.

    The game has a huge galactic map with    Being a fan of the original Mechwarrior series I have to say Mechwarrior 5 is a lot like the originals in many ways. It's pretty much the same game loop with a few added perks, not saying at all this game is bad but it is basically a modern version of the originals. That being said I adore this fact but the game does fall short in some areas.

    The game has a huge galactic map with areas controlled by other factions giving you loads of replay. However the grind is real and starts to get very repetitive after 30 hours or so. The customization of the mechs is on point, quite the assortment of weapons and equip including unique and rare items.

    The game sounds great, I love hearing a ballistic weapon pounding on mech armor and the distant explosions from your fellow lance members destroying mechs and buildings. The ai in the game decent, they recently updated how ai spawns in and acts in combat and I noticed quite a difference in how the ai plays along side of you now. I would say it's improved compared to the initial launch.

    Overall it's a solid mechwarrior with fun combat and great sound, it carries all the mechwarrior universe lore you can handle. To me it feels like it could have more and not feel so empty and grindy and repetitive.    … Expand
  92. Chogokin
    Jan 17, 2020
    6
    A friend of mine is a streamer, and showed off Mechwarrior 5 to me recently. I decided to buy it, because I like the idea of some live-action, coop big stompy robot fun. I've been playing for several days, and I do somewhat regret my decision. I've been scouring the 'net today, looking for other reviews, and I'm kind of surprised by how many largely positive reviews have been showing up onA friend of mine is a streamer, and showed off Mechwarrior 5 to me recently. I decided to buy it, because I like the idea of some live-action, coop big stompy robot fun. I've been playing for several days, and I do somewhat regret my decision. I've been scouring the 'net today, looking for other reviews, and I'm kind of surprised by how many largely positive reviews have been showing up on the some of the major game review sites. That said, even the positive reviews have hit some of the obvious flaws in MW5, so I wanted to bring up some that are less obvious.

    1. Is the entire universe white people? I know this may be a touchy subject, but in Harebrained Scheme's recent Battletech game, they give us a universe where a substantial number of the characters are diverse. In MW5, the main character is a white man, on a ship crewed by white people of various European backgrounds, and every time I've gone on a recruiting drive, I'm pretty sure all the random pilots have been quite... pale. It just strikes me as odd.

    2. What about customization? Most games these days at least offer the option of controlling your gender, as well as offering further options such as skin color, hair style, etc. It really doesn't matter a whole lot, as you never see really see the little blob of meat in your mech other than as a small picture when having important conversations with NPC's, but it does strike me as a pretty retro design decision. This extends to your mercenary team as well. For example, if you want a company color scheme, you have to repeatedly enter the paint scheme and color picker numbers in by hand for every mech. The ability to create a company scheme, or at least save paint jobs, would be great, and I'm surprised the game was released without this option. Likewise, although you are, at least, allowed to pick a name for your mercenary company, you're stuck with one insignia, a horse with a sword superimposed on its head.

    3. A 3D environment of limited usefulness. So, after you're through with the tutorial/introduction and are finally flying free in your Leopard dropship, you constantly find yourself deposited on the floor of your dropship, standing near your engineer, after every mission. This initially annoyed me, because the nearest console in your field of view, from which theoretically you could start repairing your mechs, planning the next mission, etc., is dead. That is to say, it's not an interactive object. I'd keep running to one end of the bay, up the stairs, back to the command room, to get into the command interface. It turns out this was a waste of time; if you go to your engineer, the console near him is active, and you can do everything you need to do from there. The thing is, it's not the closest console to your starting position, nor is it in your immediate field of view, and it looks identical to every other console on the floor of the dropship. Why bother putting in a 3D environment at all if it is largely non-interactive? There are so many cool things you could do in a 3D space: get in a lift and inspect your mechs, check out the inner corridors of the dropship, hang with the other pilots, etc. None of those things are actually possible in MW5.

    4. Artificial Unintelligence. I'm old enough that I started playing Battletech-based video games with Mechwarrior 2. I remember that as being challenging, but I don't recall details. I skipped Mechwarrior 3, but I did play Mechwarrior 4. I seem to recall that the AI had a weird propensity for sniping your left leg, so I developed the response of never putting anything explosive or useful in that leg, always making sure it was fully armored, and trying to keep it facing away from the enemy. I don't remember much else. Playing the recent Battletech game, the enemies are largely dangerous through numbers, and those godsforsaken SRM carriers, but they do take full advantage of the abilities of their mechs, such as using jump jets. In MW5, the only thing in the game that will ever use jump jets is you. You might as well strip 'em out of any mech your NPC pilots use and replace them with armor. Likewise, watch out in defense missions: your own team is more of a threat to the buildings than the enemy. This does go both ways: I remember a demolition mission where the enemy tanks and mechs ripped through more of their own city than I did.

    Summary
    The good: The game is fun, and battles look good, with special effects and lots of detailed carnage on the mechs and destructable buildings.

    The bad: Players who like a diverse universe, or who like greater control over the identity and appearance of the characters and organizations in their games, are going to be disappointed and frustrated. Perhaps more importantly, the AI is really pretty bad.

    The ugly: Save often and hit the Restart button if you feel that things went unfairly during a mission. I recommend installing 1 jump jet, because it is possible to get stuck on pieces of the terrain.    … Expand
  93. ihatesh1tgames
    Jan 19, 2020
    2
    The game is just terrible.

    1. Because enemies just pop/drop in almost beside you, long-range weapons and radar are basically useless. 2. AI is terrible. They keep getting into your line of sight and friendly fire among your AI lance mates is frequent. To compensate for the bad enemy AI, the devs decided to place a modifier that increases the damage they can soak up. Terrible design. 3.    The game is just terrible.

    1. Because enemies just pop/drop in almost beside you, long-range weapons and radar are basically useless.

    2. AI is terrible. They keep getting into your line of sight and friendly fire among your AI lance mates is frequent. To compensate for the bad enemy AI, the devs decided to place a modifier that increases the damage they can soak up. Terrible design.

    3. Raid missions are particularly infuriating. Objective targets can be taken out with long-range weapons but you have to go near them (within 400m) so they can be confirmed destroyed and then enemy reinforcements just pop in from nowhere. If you opt to get done up close and quick, the amount of enemies is just so overwhelming that taking on these missions will just result in more losses than earnings. You'll have to spend a ridiculous amount of time roaming the Inner Sphere to get the right loadout for these missions.

    4. Gameplay is repetitive. Missions basically just follow 4 patterns. As previously mentioned, the Raid mission type is the most infuriating.

    5. A huge amount of in-game time will pass before the campaign will be finished. This can be seen when you save but I don't know what it's for. The information about the maximum tonnage for a mission isn't available before travelling to the system. So a large number of days will pass before you can setup your mechs for a particular mission. (And setting up mechs can take up a lot of in-game time too.) By the time you're ready for the final mission, a large amount of in-game time will have passed. (In my campaign, 9,946 days have passed and I'm not even halfway through.) Also, better mech pilots have higher maximum skill points for different abilities but you have to do a large amount of missions first before they reach the level which would prepare them (still inadequately so) for high difficulty missions.    … Expand
  94. Vasot
    Jan 1, 2022
    4
    After 2 years with 2 DLC releaed and the game is still a mess the game company that made this title are amateurs i hope another gaming company make a sequel let's start 1) The AI companions are dumb they can't shoot straight and they stuck on environment objects so COOP IS RECOMMENDED for playing because the AI is stupid in this game and you can lose the mission because of theirAfter 2 years with 2 DLC releaed and the game is still a mess the game company that made this title are amateurs i hope another gaming company make a sequel let's start 1) The AI companions are dumb they can't shoot straight and they stuck on environment objects so COOP IS RECOMMENDED for playing because the AI is stupid in this game and you can lose the mission because of their incompetence 2) Game balance is bad most missions don't have any details there is a weight limitation in every mission and as for the missions they are repetitive in nature 3) Main story in poorly written with no imagination feels like a cheap and boring movie lacking immersion 4) Found 2 major breaking bugs in the campaign the game was released in 2019 and they haven't fixed these serious bugs what are they doing all these years!!!… Expand
  95. Gacu666
    Dec 20, 2019
    9
    I really don't understand why so much hate is being poured onto that game. Yes it may not be ideal, yes the missions may be repetetive, but come on, you're driving a bipedal tank, what did you expect, Call of Duty?
    At it's core it's a simulator and in comparison to Mechwarrior 2 and 3 which I loved back in the day (unfortunately I skipped 4 as it was clunky and too arcade for me) it is    I really don't understand why so much hate is being poured onto that game. Yes it may not be ideal, yes the missions may be repetetive, but come on, you're driving a bipedal tank, what did you expect, Call of Duty?
    At it's core it's a simulator and in comparison to Mechwarrior 2 and 3 which I loved back in the day (unfortunately I skipped 4 as it was clunky and too arcade for me) it is spot on and very well made.
    Yes there are bugs, but the devs are fixing them already, and people whining about it act like primadonas. It has just been a week and the changes devs made are already visible.
    As for the performance. I have a dated gtx980 and Ryzen 7 2700 and the game plays near perfectly, so I'm not entirely sure if people with negative reviews play it on potatoes or something simillar, but you guys need an upgrade.

    I love playing the game, I've spent at least a 100h already in it and I intend to play more.
    Oh and there will be OFFICIAL modding tools, so imagine the possibilities, you never had these before.

    Take off the nostalgia glasses and don't hate this game. It's the only singleplayer Mechwarrior game since 2003 and in my eyes it's near damn perfect.    … Expand
  96. HCLara
    Dec 18, 2019
    2
    As i write this, i am truly heartbroken, it's been 16 years since Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries, this game was around 5 years in the making, it looks EXACTLY like Mechwarrior online (6 year old game) but performs pretty badly with so many graphical bugs that would make bethesda jealous, it plays like some soulless husk of a dated action fps game with the mechwarrior controls stacked on top,As i write this, i am truly heartbroken, it's been 16 years since Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries, this game was around 5 years in the making, it looks EXACTLY like Mechwarrior online (6 year old game) but performs pretty badly with so many graphical bugs that would make bethesda jealous, it plays like some soulless husk of a dated action fps game with the mechwarrior controls stacked on top, it crashed 7 times and made me lose progress 3 times in just 4 hours of play, as a Mechwarrior fan it was the most heartbreaking gaming experience i ever had.

    No radar, no optics, no solaris, no lance commands, editing loadouts is a pain because the mechlab UI is the worst ever, ballistics are total nonsense, damage feels wrong, it's ridiculous how easy it is to land headshots. it feels like the devs wanted you to just pick a mech and do whatever, rush through the game and dump it like some bad call of duty campaign.

    This is just an empty shell, and an ugly one at that, the epic games exclusive was a sign that this was a cash grab, a slap in the face to all mechwarrior and battletech fans, it broke my heart and i'm sure anyone that knows a little about mechwarrior knows this does not belong in the franchise.
    How do you take a franchise so great and make it feel like a generic coop fps game? What did they achieve with this? The general public won't buy this no matter how casualized it is. It was supposed to be a niche game of a niche franchise from the start, what was the goal in making it so casual?

    What has gaming come to? Every release i think more and more about just selling my pc and being done with all this bs.    … Expand
  97. Critic2018
    Dec 14, 2019
    9
    Mechwarrior 5 plays and feels like a good game. The gameplay is excellent along with the graphics; however, the AI could be a little more engaged and unpredictable. I applaud the company for attempting to create something more along the original lines of the Mechwarrior franchise (and the POS that was MWO). Overall, I enjoy playing the game and the difficulty when trying to score hitsMechwarrior 5 plays and feels like a good game. The gameplay is excellent along with the graphics; however, the AI could be a little more engaged and unpredictable. I applaud the company for attempting to create something more along the original lines of the Mechwarrior franchise (and the POS that was MWO). Overall, I enjoy playing the game and the difficulty when trying to score hits against the lights makes it quite enjoyable.… Expand
  98. hepari00
    Dec 10, 2019
    10
    Don't even pay attention to the obvious trolls. MW4 and the older titles were NOT better than this. All I wanted is a lengthy dynamic campaign where you gradually upgrade your mechs and wreak havoc on enemies, and so far this game seems to deliver just that.
    The game still needs some polishes, but that's about it. There is no deal breaker here. I've finally got what I wanted after so many    Don't even pay attention to the obvious trolls. MW4 and the older titles were NOT better than this. All I wanted is a lengthy dynamic campaign where you gradually upgrade your mechs and wreak havoc on enemies, and so far this game seems to deliver just that.
    The game still needs some polishes, but that's about it. There is no deal breaker here. I've finally got what I wanted after so many years, and won't let some entitled trolls destroy this franchise with their endless whining.    … Expand
  99. Spazman
    Dec 10, 2019
    9
    Delicious. Finally, some good **** 'mech action.

    After 20 years, it had better be! While the AI was definitely spotty during beta, the same cannot be said for Campaign / Career thus far. AI seems to be tied to player evasiveness, and their skills in general. It's challenging, but not overly frustrating. Contract negotiation, getting the big bucks, and amassing an army of    Delicious. Finally, some good **** 'mech action.

    After 20 years, it had better be!

    While the AI was definitely spotty during beta, the same cannot be said for Campaign / Career thus far. AI seems to be tied to player evasiveness, and their skills in general. It's challenging, but not overly frustrating.

    Contract negotiation, getting the big bucks, and amassing an army of BattleMechs are the forefront of the game, and fleshed out by wonderful-feeling combat.

    The music isn't anything to write home about, and the voice-acting could use some work. Models while in walking areas don't seem to follow or interact with the player-character very much, but this could perhaps be patched-in later, or outright modded-in thanks to the implementation of mod tools for the player.

    Whatever shortcomings this game has could certainly be edited by the community this game has later.

    I'm not a fan of the EGS myself, but I made myself a solid exception for this one. And so far, it is a decision not filled with regret.

    Happy Blasting!    … Expand
  100. vassmuss
    Dec 28, 2019
    2
    I don't mind the bad graphics. I don't mind the bad voice acting.

    BUT I do mind the hollow game mechanics, bad game design, and buggy control scheme (Only some HOTAS are officially supported, and even then the binds doesnt always work or keeps resetting) (Tip: When the tutorial starts all Sensitivity sliders are at ZERO. You need to pull 'em up again.) There is no logic behind    I don't mind the bad graphics. I don't mind the bad voice acting.

    BUT

    I do mind the hollow game mechanics, bad game design, and buggy control scheme (Only some HOTAS are officially supported, and even then the binds doesnt always work or keeps resetting)
    (Tip: When the tutorial starts all Sensitivity sliders are at ZERO. You need to pull 'em up again.)

    There is no logic behind the enemy spawn points. they just keep coming from random places, where you've just cleared out.

    And why do I have to run up and down the stairs like a maniac between missions?

    Let's see if Epic Fail Store approves my refund.....    … Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

30
#30 Most Discussed PC Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
73

Mixed or average reviews - based on 34 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 34
  2. Mixed: 20 out of 34
  3. Negative: 0 out of 34
  1. ZTGD
    Oct 7, 2021
    65
    While I am glad to see MechWarrior make a return; its just not the one I’ve been waiting for. While the latest expansion Legend of the Kestrel Lancers adds new mechs, biomes and a linear story missions its still more of the same, so if one doesn’t like the base game…. Then the expansion isn’t going to do much to change that.
    Read full review
  2. Hey Poor Player
    Jun 1, 2021
    70
    Mechwarrior 5 is for the detail-oriented mech fans who are willing to sacrifice immediate excitement and gratification for a more grounded simulation of what it would be like to pilot a massive mechanical monster. The career mode provided with this new expansion might please those who are craving more action from the base game, but there’s no new story to be had or any major gameplay additions to hook in anyone else. For the weighty price tag – Heroes of the Inner Sphere is only worth a purchase for those truly addicted to this more thoughtfully paced mecha-mercenary-em-up.
    Read full review
  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Feb 28, 2020
    80
    An excellent mech simulation, sophisticated management and a return to the old days in a modern form. Only the graphics could be better. [Issue#301]
See all critic reviews »