Read Mixed User Reviews for MechWarrior Online on PC

Lord_Banshee

Sep 20, 2013

5

Slow-Paced gaming, piecemeal-destructible battlemechs are back. Worth a try, if only to understand why all these old guys love them so much.

Mechs are cool, don't usually die in one shot like squishy soldiers, and can be sorely messed up but still functional. Wonderfully rendered by artist Flying Debris, they make awesome sounds with their weapons and when hit by effects. To some, theSlow-Paced gaming, piecemeal-destructible battlemechs are back. Worth a try, if only to understand why all these old guys love them so much.

Mechs are cool, don't usually die in one shot like squishy soldiers, and can be sorely messed up but still functional. Wonderfully rendered by artist Flying Debris, they make awesome sounds with their weapons and when hit by effects. To some, the pace of the gaming, like baseball, is a plus. If you find it too slow, hop in a Light Mech and double-time it.

I got more value out of my $60 Founder's pack than I did with Skyrim or Starcraft2. However, getting that value is Fraught With Peril and best attempted with a masochistic streak or Asperger's or both.

Allegedly there are over 1 million MWO accounts. Read before you download and have a chance to be one of the 2-4% of accounts that actually still play.

1) Buddies!

You'll enjoy the game more, and be able to use all of its drop modes, only after you meet others who play and drop into games with them. Solo players operate under multiple disadvantages:

A) you'll never drop as a group, and can never play premade 12v12
B) other groups will drop against you in a coordinated fashion, making it more likely that you face 2-1 or worse tactical engagements
C) less likely to learn tips of gameplay, mech loadouts, or gain cbills/experience
D) "win" a match is either kill all enemies or occupy the most bases. There are two similar flavors of base occupation. This is the way it has been since first day of closed beta, and there is no concrete assurance of expansion. You will face this realization alone, with no one to inspire you or challenge you.

Dropping with others helps alleviate these conditions. Once the repetitive aspects of the game take hold, you show up more for your drop buddies than the "same-old, same-old" gameplay.

Therefore, your first download should be TEAMSPEAK. Grab it, set it up, use it. Meet peops at the NGNG or ComStar TS servers. Find a group that mirrors your personality and gaming experience. Look for experienced helpful pilots while you conduct...

2) the Learning Curve

No one you met completely turned you off to this game? Good, now it's the game's turn to try that. Install MWO and ignore all attempts that this FtP game tries to remove your money from you.

Pick a trial mech and then activate a Training session on a map of your choice.

Get familiar with the options menu and assign keys as you see fit. Get used to third person view, then turn it off and enjoy the minimap.
Get used to movement, targeting, firing, managing heat, then doing them all simultaneously.
Learn the maps: what you can see, where you can/can't go, timings. Boring, I know, but less boring than spectator mode or the seat-sulk after a ragequit.

3) the Constant is Change

Being alpha/beta and unfinished, it'll change, early and often. Sometimes ridiculously so, as PGI can't balance weaponry to save our lives, and they don't ask the oldschool elite players for help.

So, in the case of LRM missiles, we were treated to multiple waves of LRMageddon, where misses rained from the sky in wildly OP batches, only to be nerfed into oblivion. Rinse, repeat. Mech variants were not immune either.

4) Promises, Promises

Entice the old-schoolers who start the word-of-mouth for you and then change your mind for business reasons.

This was to be first-person view, no coolant used, never pay-to-win, with a slick UI, new mechs/maps regularly, timeline-accurate, and all leading up to backing your favorite faction/merc corps/clan and live out Mike Stackpole novels during Community Warfare.

Hated third-person view crept in under cover of darkness.
Hated coolant was initially added with pay-to-win overtones until the hue and cry reached epic levels.
Influx of new mechs gradually slowed, maps appear sporadically and some are environmental rehashes of existing maps.
No lobby at all.
Timeline was junked once it was obvious that the Dev team fell behind for good.
Clan mechs and weapons? Dream on.
UIv2.0 for Launch? Nope. You may look upon the clumsy current UI and frown, but I assure you it was worse in Closed Beta.
Community Warfare? No guarantee this company will be alive to implement it, and I'm leery of what it will look like if they do. The Launch amounted to nothing more than a typical bimonthly update. No new concept was instantiated that hadn't been tried before. PGI in their Launch gave thousands of online gamer guys a glimpse of what it's like to be the hot girl who finally gets the stud of her dreams in bed, only to find he consistently cums in 3 seconds. Is MWO fun? Yes. Hard to learn? Can be. Boredom sooner than later? Yes. Is it the only MechWarrior genre game that will have future updates? Yes. Could be great and actually implement its vision? Maybe, 20% chance.… Expand

Crais

Sep 17, 2013

5

MWO is fun for a while then it becomes a tedious grindfest. There are only 2 types of matches available at launch and a handful of maps. Numerous features are missing (DX 11 support, UI2.0, net code optimization) and community warfare, a large scale battle galaxy wide type that was sold as a core feature of the game, has no set deadline for being added.

The developers of the game alsoMWO is fun for a while then it becomes a tedious grindfest. There are only 2 types of matches available at launch and a handful of maps. Numerous features are missing (DX 11 support, UI2.0, net code optimization) and community warfare, a large scale battle galaxy wide type that was sold as a core feature of the game, has no set deadline for being added.

The developers of the game also have a very poor track record of communication with the community and are often arrogant and rude to players who question balance issues or proposed features, such as the inclusion of the 3rd person camera mode (that was originally promised to not be included in the game).… Expand

StoneMason

Sep 19, 2013

5

tl:dr Great game, terrible experience. Right now this is a f2p team deathmatch game with no greater meta or community features on the immediate horizon. The inconsistency of communication implies a serious divergence of goals between the developers and producers. You'll probably have a great time playing it but I wouldn't spend a single cent because you can't trust it'll feel the same intl:dr Great game, terrible experience. Right now this is a f2p team deathmatch game with no greater meta or community features on the immediate horizon. The inconsistency of communication implies a serious divergence of goals between the developers and producers. You'll probably have a great time playing it but I wouldn't spend a single cent because you can't trust it'll feel the same in six months, or be around at all.

I'm a long time Mechwarrior/Battletech fan who has been captivated by the universe since Mechwarrior 2: Mercenaries. I've really enjoyed playing in the closed and open beta for MWO but the overall experience has been very conflicted.

The Good: Imo this is the best interpretation of both Mechwarrior and the Battletech tabletop game we have ever seen. You might disagree with a choice here and there, but the art, animations, weapon and damage effects all work together to capture the punchy feel of Mech combat like never before. Despite some radical changes from patch to patch, the balance is good and each match feels relatively consistent. You can be confident that the developers making the game love the franchise and have a very coherent view of how the basic mechanics should work. I've played thousands of games and on balance, enjoyed them immensely.

The Bad: Despite what the Founders program may have suggested, this title is not crowd funded. The developers are responsible to their producers and investors rather than the player base. Features are missing from the game that should have been in over a year ago and if we extrapolate the process, we probably won't see true mid or late game content for another year at least. The current maps and game modes are badly underdeveloped and basic community enablement systems like game lobbies and communication tools are non-existent. This in itself is not the issue, especially given the inexperience and the small size of the development team but it does point to some larger problems.

The Ugly: Communications between the developers and the community have broken down badly in the last six months, with major backpedals on design decisions being very poorly managed. The flow of information between the developers and community is uneven and external sources, like the NGNG podcast and Twitter receive far more attention that the games frontpage or the forums. Recently highly restrictive moderation powers were updated and are being enforced, often developers will openly troll community members posting well thought out and reasoned responses. This is probably symptomatic of two things:

1) The developers are brutally overworked, and have been for some time. They simply cannot be responsible for managing the communities expectations because they are so flat out and behind schedule. The recent 'Launch' trailer hosted by the official Mechwarrior youtube channel, is actually fan made and includes footage from over a year ago, also gameplay that is not planned to exist for at least two years.

2) The investors are pushing to grow the game in a particular way and the producers are enforcing that vision, at the expense of both the developers and the community. Often we see certain Mech's released (at high cost) along with meta changes that make them very attractive, only to be superseded by others a few months down the line. This feels like a cashgrab because it is, especially given that any mech you buy might not work in a weeks time.… Expand

Shael

Sep 18, 2013

5

I wont give this game a 0 score or a 10 score.

Overall the game play as it currently is decent. The graphics are beautiful, the mech designs and artwork are amazing. There are unfortunately many major issues of this game: 1. Hit Registration is atrocious and PGI have been trying to fix this for over 6 months and still hasn’t been fixed. At times you can poor multiple shots onto aI wont give this game a 0 score or a 10 score.

Overall the game play as it currently is decent. The graphics are beautiful, the mech designs and artwork are amazing.

There are unfortunately many major issues of this game:
1. Hit Registration is atrocious and PGI have been trying to fix this for over 6 months and still hasn’t been fixed. At times you can poor multiple shots onto a mech and do minimal damage i.e. Ravens, Spiders or you can shoot at a mech aiming for an arm/ leg side torso and core out the mech stupidly fast i.e. Awesome’s, Dragons and then finally there are mechs that just wont die i.e. Zombie Centurion (its nicknamed the Zombie for a reason)
2. The bi monthly patches release new mechs, fix bugs and "fine tune" the game play and mechanics.
a. Unfortunately after each patch, more bugs show up, weapon balancing is at times hit and miss and can break a previous good weapon I.E. Gauss Rifle shot delay.
3. "Ghost Heat" that has been implemented to stop the "high alpha" builds which has been poorly implemented,
a. "cannon" mechs like the Hunchback HBK-4p which are designed to Boat Lasers or the Awesome AWS-88 which was designed to Boat PPC's cannot do so due to the Ghost Heat Penalty.
4. Every patch there is another tweak to the weapons heat that can break a previously good mech configuration.
a. Shooting delay on the Gauss Rifle is the latest “fix” that has in my opinion broken the weapon.

GAMEPLAY:
When it comes to game play, well it’s pretty damn boring now.
1. It’s the same two game modes that have been available for almost a year i.e.
a. “Team Death Match” or “Conquest which usually results in “Team Death match” anyway,.
2. There is no Community Warfare or Role Warfare and while it has been stated information is forthcoming, many older players in the community have heard this too many times before.
3. New maps get released but you cannot choose which map to play on and at times you can get the same map 10- 20 times in an evening with maybe a couple of different maps thrown in.

For a new player running a trial mech coming into these sort of battles is going to leave a very sour taste in your mouth as you won’t survive for very long.
• The only way to get anywhere in the Game is grind out the CBills to buy a semi decent mech and just keep grinding (if you can manage to do this as a PUG congratulations because it is very tough),
• The alternative is to your fork out real money “MC” to buy a better mech or a hero Mech. This isn’t “Pay to win?”
• Or join a organised unit so they can help you improve and help your survivability and win/loss ration

Most games now degenerate into sniping battles and this meta has been prevalent for over 6 months in MWO (Why “ghost Heat” was introduced to attempt to combat this)
• You will find the majority of the experienced players running almost exactly the same builds across different mech chassis as the weapon load out is the only way to win i.e.
• 2 x PPC/ERPPC and Gauss rifle or
• Triple UAC 5 mechs, or
• DUAL AC20 Mechs.... you get the picture.

The learning curve for new players is atrocious, the new movement tutorial barely even touches what a new player needs to learn to pilot a Mech effectively.
There are no tutorials on Weapons, mech configuration customization as yet.

Overall I do love this game and I want it to succeed but at this moment in time the game is not even “polished” in my opinion and does nothing to help the new players in learning the game and also does not provide any substance for the competitive players who need more that a “Big Stompy robot Shooter” .

In closing the game is not a MechWarrior Simulation, there is no substance to the game currently and there are major technical issues with the game itself and in my opinion the development of the game.
So I will be watching and waiting over the next three months to see if a lot of the current issues are fixed with DX11, UI2.0 and Community Warfare as it has been stated they should be released over the next three months but i don’t have any hope of this time frame being stuck too.

Play and enjoy the game but don’t expect too much from it.… Expand

MrBlonde

Sep 19, 2013

5

I am a hardcore BT fan, and have waited long for a game like this. I find the graphics to be excellent and gameplay to be pretty decent, there are issues but nothing not fixable. The downsides...numerous missed deadlines for content, namely Community Warfare, which should be the heart of the game. Also, the 3rd person view issue was badly mishandled, and the community was in my opinionI am a hardcore BT fan, and have waited long for a game like this. I find the graphics to be excellent and gameplay to be pretty decent, there are issues but nothing not fixable. The downsides...numerous missed deadlines for content, namely Community Warfare, which should be the heart of the game. Also, the 3rd person view issue was badly mishandled, and the community was in my opinion disrespected by the developers (that probably went both ways). Hopefully the addition of Community Warfare will cause former players to give it a second look. That should be priorities #1,2, and 3 for the developers until complete. It should have pushed all other new features (ahem...3rd person...) to the back burner until completed. Everything else is irrelevant without it, although still fun to play.… Expand

bobthebomb

Sep 25, 2013

5

This is mechwarrior so this is a good game !!

But on the other hand we have no game room, no matchmaking, no way to balance different mech (no battle value, no tonnage), no visibility of your level (ELO, rating..) In itself the game is not bad, but the way we play it is terrible "Click the play button and hope you be in a good game". 30% of time you get pug stomped, 30% of time youThis is mechwarrior so this is a good game !!

But on the other hand we have no game room, no matchmaking, no way to balance different mech (no battle value, no tonnage), no visibility of your level (ELO, rating..)

In itself the game is not bad, but the way we play it is terrible "Click the play button and hope you be in a good game". 30% of time you get pug stomped, 30% of time you pug stomp, 30% of time you get a 900 tons vs 700 tons battles, 10% of time you get a good game.

12vs12 game are terrible, and are forced, it's impossible to challenge an enemy lance to do a 4vs4 vs friend....heck we don't even have chatroom "Do you really want chat rooms?" ;)

It's a good game but very far from completion, it's only alive because of the battletech fan base.… Expand

gavilatius

Sep 17, 2013

5

yes, for this I shall use my real username, "Gavilatius"

lets start with a 5, that's middle ground for any game, now let's do the math +1 for Mechwarrior being brought to the masses (6) +1 for Alex Iglesias being such a great artist (7) +1 for a great community full of great artists and players (8) -1 for the lackluster mechanics (7) -1 for the lackluster launch (6) -1 for ayes, for this I shall use my real username, "Gavilatius"

lets start with a 5, that's middle ground for any game, now let's do the math

+1 for Mechwarrior being brought to the masses (6)
+1 for Alex Iglesias being such a great artist (7)
+1 for a great community full of great artists and players (8)
-1 for the lackluster mechanics (7)
-1 for the lackluster launch (6)
-1 for a DevTeam that doesn't listen to the community (5)
-1 for their lack of community created content (4)
-1 for the lack of vision in PGI (3)
-1 for the lack of drive from PGI (2)
-1 for the lack of responsibility from PGI (1)
+1 for their great IT department (2)
+1 for their wonderful customer support (2)
-1 for a clunky game User Interface (2)
-1 for a horrible netcode (1)
-1 for missing mechanics (0)
-1 for cashgrab "hero mechs" (-1)
-1 for the extreme censorship in both their forums and in game(-2)
-1 for the blatant disregard for the Battletech Franshise (-3)
-1 for Community Warfare turning into a color coded progress bar (-4)
-1 for lack of gameplay diversity (-5)
-1 because it's unfriendly to new players (-6)
+5 because of the Atlas... Atlas (-1)
+6 because I'm trying to dig up some nostalgia towards Mechwarrior (5)

yeah... the last 11 points added to MWO's score is because of it's legacy... you heard me, the only reason I'm giving any points is because of the games that came before it.… Expand

JoachVil

Sep 20, 2013

5

Faction warfare nowhere in sight at launch (despite it being a "design pillar" from day 1). Small selection of maps, and very unimaginative game modes.

Incredibly poor communication between devs and the community. Hostility from the company president towards fans who were critical of his design decisions...

Give it a pass. it just isn't worth committing cash into at this stage.

BlastrMastr

Sep 18, 2013

5

MechWarrior Online brings BattleTech back to the forefront of digital gaming once again.
Anyone familiar with the series will recognize much of the content here.
Pros: 1)Battlefield simulation is excellent. 2)Player versus Player is satisfying. 3)Graphics are very good. 4)No expenditure required to play! 5)Multiplayer appears to be fairly well balanced at the moment, although manyMechWarrior Online brings BattleTech back to the forefront of digital gaming once again.
Anyone familiar with the series will recognize much of the content here.

Pros:
1)Battlefield simulation is excellent.
2)Player versus Player is satisfying.
3)Graphics are very good.
4)No expenditure required to play!
5)Multiplayer appears to be fairly well balanced at the moment, although many players will dispute this.
6)Lots of vanity items, paint jobs, and camouflage available for players who are willing to spend real $$.
7)"Hero" 'Mechs available for real $$.

Cons:
1)Aside from the beginners' "cadet" bonus, which grants new players a boon for their first 25 matches, the game is largely a grind, at least for the first ~30 hours of gameplay. This is due to the nature of the billing. It's "Free to Play", so there's got to be a strong incentive for players to purchase MechWarrior Credits(MC) in order to shortcut much of the game's more boring content.
2)The learning curve for players new to the MechWarrior universe is very steep. There is a tutorial, but it does not explain anything beyond basic battlefield movement at this time.
3)The 'Mech Lab, which is where players customize their 'Mechs, is unforgiving, at best. Most changes result in high CBill(in-game currency) penalties, and tinkering with new load outs in-game simply isn't feasible for newer players, who are the ones most likely to be experimenting to find their preferred 'Mech and load out. Testing a load out requires the player to purchase all the modifications they want to test, and then take the new load out into the "Testing Grounds". Most players will find they are better off tinkering in a 3rd party 'Mech Lab known as Smurfy's; a player created 'Mech Lab simulator which accurately displays custom load outs along with cost-to-own in CBills. Unfortunately, there is currently no way for players to experiment with any custom load out in-game without grinding out the CBills necessary to buy it, or injecting some MC into their account, straight from their wallet. The only other option for players to run in 'Mechs they don't own is a set of four Trial 'Mechs, which change regularly, and typically are not worth piloting, because most of them do not make optimal use of the options available to them.
4)The real money aspect at this point does, unfortunately, still have "Pay-to-Win" aspects to it. Battlefield consumables like CoolShot, and Artillery Strikes are available for purchase for CBills(not real money equivalent), and each one has a bigger, badder cousin which is purchasable for MC(real money equivalent). This equates to consistent bonus damage for the player who can throw the most money at the game, which pretty much defines "Pay-to-Win".
5)Another grind aspect entirely, the Pilot Lab allows pilots to spend accumulated per-chassis Exp, and General Exp on perks. Some perks only affect specific 'Mech variants, and some affect all. Players can convert excess per-chassis Exp into GXP for a small MC(real money equivalent) fee. Otherwise, new players have only another long grind to look forward to before they become truly competitive with other players. The only saving grace is that the CBill grind and the Exp grind can be completed simultaneously.

All in all, while the game has solid multiplayer offerings, the in-game menu and the system put together for modifying and testing new 'Mechs is clumsy and unforgiving. If User Interface 2.0 proves to be what the developers are saying it will be, I would wait to spend any money on this game at least until we see what that brings.

Also, as of this writing, one of the core features of the game, known as Community Warfare has still not been implemented. Presumably, this will bring the game to a whole new level, but again, I'd wait to spend money on this game until the planned features prove to be worth it.… Expand

Boyinleaves

Sep 18, 2013

5

I have never bothered writing a review on Metacritic before, because I've never beofe cared enough about a game to bother. However, I care enough about Mechwarrior Online(MWO) to make a statement, so take it as you will.

MWO has amazing potential. It derives from source material with a wealth of history, a long and iterative development process, and a bunch of tie ins, and it enjoys aI have never bothered writing a review on Metacritic before, because I've never beofe cared enough about a game to bother. However, I care enough about Mechwarrior Online(MWO) to make a statement, so take it as you will.

MWO has amazing potential. It derives from source material with a wealth of history, a long and iterative development process, and a bunch of tie ins, and it enjoys a decently sized (though not huge) but very dedicated fanbase. Anyone attempting to reboot the franchise was almost guaranteed success, if they could just recapture some of the magic of previous titles, and give even only the long-time fans what was wanted.

MWO could have been amazing (at launch, today, September 17th). Sadly, after nearly 2 years of 'BETA', the game looks to be a long way from the promised magic that led its founders to pledge $5,000,000 or more to its development, and myself to spend more on it than any other game in my life (almost $500 in the last 5 months). It could still be amazing, but it lacks most of the features that are standard in most multiplayer games, such as player lobbies and competitive brackets.

It has a steep learning curve, and though it can be played sufficiently well without even spending a cent on it, new players will feel that MWO is somewhat unapproachable if they do not already have a vested interest in playing it, due to a love of the IP or friends that already play.

Given that I absolutely love the franchise, I would simply encourage people to go and play it, and spend money on it, in the hope that more money would fuel more development, and thus make the game better, but unfortunately, the developers/publishers do not seem to have any insight as to what they should do to improve the game, so I don't think more money would actually help.

MWO is not terrible, and given that it costs nothing, I can't score it too badly. There is just not enough there to make it worth investing any time or money into it at the moment, and the developer's track record wouldn't give anyone any faith that it will get better. Take it for what it's worth.

Sorry guys.… Expand

Thatdamngamer

Sep 17, 2013

5

Ok lets see where to begin.
Promises of no 3PV..Lies
Promises of no Coolant Flushes...Lies
Community Warfare (unless you count actual warfare on your community)
Horrible Hit Detection
Ghost Heat
UI 2.0
Russ's half assed apology
Unkillable Spiders
2 game modes

StandingCow

Sep 17, 2013

5

Look, the game is fun, and since it is a F2P title (without P2W in it, thank god) you should at least give it a try. But let me make one thing very clear, it is NOT ready to come out of beta, not by a long shot.

Typhoon2142

Sep 18, 2013

7

PGI made alot of promises that they didn't keep. The game is still beta, despite their efforts to make it look like a full release. Finally the chat is working. Can you imagine? For many months, it was not possible to chat properly in this game, because some words were cut off. Now they fixed it. And that's the best thing about the launch. A proper chat. I wonder how long they will try toPGI made alot of promises that they didn't keep. The game is still beta, despite their efforts to make it look like a full release. Finally the chat is working. Can you imagine? For many months, it was not possible to chat properly in this game, because some words were cut off. Now they fixed it. And that's the best thing about the launch. A proper chat. I wonder how long they will try to fool their customers. The game is pretty nice for a beta, that's why I still give it 4 points, but it gets boring real quick. Not enough weapons and tools to give the game real depth and only two game modes make MWO pretty dull after a while.… Expand

AGNJoe

Sep 17, 2013

5

I wanted to write this review of MechWarrior: Online so that the viewing public could see this game for what it really is.

I gave this game a 5/10, but I want to state that while this is a low score for the game and it's creators at Piranha Games Inc., I want to state factual evidence, both good and bad, to be fair and unbiased. On the plus side, this is the first MechWarrior titleI wanted to write this review of MechWarrior: Online so that the viewing public could see this game for what it really is.

I gave this game a 5/10, but I want to state that while this is a low score for the game and it's creators at Piranha Games Inc., I want to state factual evidence, both good and bad, to be fair and unbiased.

On the plus side, this is the first MechWarrior title online in over 10 years, and it's good to see this back in play. Graphicially, the game is a decent improvement to the last MechWarrior title, but that's not saying too much here because this is supposed to use the CryEngine 3.4, and technically the graphics could go up to DX11 standards. However the developers have failed to add in the DX11 graphics update yet, the first of many failed promises that they were supposed to have upon game launch date and failed to deliver today.

PC Gamer had featured a review of this back in Fall of 2012, in which the developers had stated many additions to the game, like different game modes that were to be featured, Community Warfare, a new user interface called UI 2.0, information warfare, DirectX 11 graphics, and the game's commitment to making this a 1PV game only system.
Since that time, they introduced Coolant shots, which many people didn't want. They introduced a 3PV system, which they at first had said would never be introduced, then they said they were considering adding 3PV but only for the Training Tutorial, then they changed it again and said that they would introduce 3PV into the game itself but that 1PV player games and 3PV player games would as separate playing queues and that people wanting to play 1PV would never have to play with people wanting to play 3PV players, and then they MIXED them together anyways, and then said that 1PV player only queues were to be scrapped. It was only because the game playing community on their forums had blown up in an overwhelming negative forum response did they concede and as of today you can now play a 1PV only environment, but ONLY if you are on a team of you and 11 other friends in a 12 man formed team.

Also, because the game has launched today, there is NO:

Community Warfare
Information Warfare
DX11 graphics
UI 2.0
collision mechanic system
MASC (a sort of nitrous like system to increase movement speed for some mechs)
The Clans (which should have been out already)
salvage based system to salvage parts
Repairing and Rearming your mechs

Now to be fair, PGI has said that they will in the future, add these and many other features over the course of the coming months and commit to new material being added, such as new maps, and new game features (Solaris style arena based combat), and new mechs. As to when that will all happen? Who knows?

The major overlying problem however is not the game. It's the people making the game, which is Piranha Games Inc. (PGI) and their game publisher, Infinite Games Publishing (IGP). PGI's staff is very small and takes an extremely long time to put out anything and their balancing procedures is to balance the game from a "bottom first on down" system which is opposite from what all other game MMO creators have done, which they normally balance a game from the "Top first on down" in which they balance the game from what the top players are using to properly balance the game, so as to make the game more fair and balanced so that certain weapons are balanced for what they are being used by the top players. Not PGI, however, and it's caused some terrible balancing issues. On top of that, PGI never asked for the Crytek people who created the CryEngine system for help, which has further caused problems, ones that could have solved coding issues for PGI months ago, but never did, which boggles this reviewer. Why? To save money? Isn't the quality of this game more important?
On top of this is IGP. Rumors have been flying in from some of the developers (who have asked not to be named and kept anonymous) that the Sept. 17th date was rushed because IGP had kept pushing for a launch date so they could say PGI's product is considered as "stable and playable" yet PGI has still had bug issues with the game being stable, and many of the promised features that they said would be included at game launch were put off after launch date. Why? This reviewer suspects that IGP wanted this pushed early so that they could make MONEY, and say it was a viable released product.

In the end, I have been a Closed Beta tester of this game since June of 2012. Has PGI done some good things with the game? The answer is mixed. I am happy of the rebirth of MechWarrior as a MMO game, and the game is playable, but the constant broken promises PGI has given the community over and over has left a terrible taste in the game community's mouth, and IGP has done nothing to help the situation.

One can only hope that MW: O can last long enough to recover and turn things around for the better, if they are around long enough to do so.… Expand

Khobai

Sep 17, 2013

5

The good: MWO is free to play and fun when played in moderation. The mechs look great, the weapons look and sound great, and the mech combat is truly convincing.

The bad: MWO lacks the immersion factor of previous mechwarrior titles. The gamemodes are boring and make no sense. The game lacks the compulsory ambient/techno/industrial soundtrack of other mechwarrior games. Game is alsoThe good: MWO is free to play and fun when played in moderation. The mechs look great, the weapons look and sound great, and the mech combat is truly convincing.

The bad: MWO lacks the immersion factor of previous mechwarrior titles. The gamemodes are boring and make no sense. The game lacks the compulsory ambient/techno/industrial soundtrack of other mechwarrior games. Game is also plagued with balance issues and devs making false promises. Anyone looking for something "more" than just a barebones game isnt going to find it.… Expand

chiXu

Sep 18, 2013

5

If I was to judge a game purely, in this case, the 5-15 minutes you're sitting down and playing an actual match I'd likely be scoring higher than I am in this review. Anyone that knows anything about this incarnation of a Mechwarrior game will know, however, that there is a lot more to this game than those scant minutes and those are the areas where I feel it starts to fall short.

OnIf I was to judge a game purely, in this case, the 5-15 minutes you're sitting down and playing an actual match I'd likely be scoring higher than I am in this review. Anyone that knows anything about this incarnation of a Mechwarrior game will know, however, that there is a lot more to this game than those scant minutes and those are the areas where I feel it starts to fall short.

On the face of things, my personal experience has been fairly bug free with minimal crashes and or technical issues. The graphics are pleasant without being too colourful to take away from the grim reality of mech combat and future war on such a destructive scale. For a game that is still optimizing the technical aspects of its graphics setup, notably the current lack of DX11, that's one of the better points.

The 'mech combat and the matches themselves, when judged match to match, are an enjoyable experience for the most part. A personal grievance of mine, coming from a history of competitive twitch shooters, are the various hit registration lag related issues that have a tendency to rear their ugly head. Playing on state-side servers from the depths of Sweden obviously isn't a great help but, when European servers are finally introduced I'm hopeful that those issues will largely be alleviated. There's nothing more frustrating than watching missiles or shells explode against the armor of a 'mech that's right up in your face only to note that they don't take damage. It's an unfortunate drawback to what is otherwise an experience one might be willing to invest, not only time, but real life money into developing.

There's various niche's and "meta's" that pop up in terms of the gameplay; jump sniping, high-alpha builds, missile spam etc. but to anyone with enough experience and ability they're not problems that could be classified as game-breakers, nor do I believe any of the methods employed to deal with could be classified as the same.

The game isn't new-player friendly. For a person coming to it without prior experience of Battletech Mechwarrior or friends that are currently playing and can advise, there are a lot of elements to know which simply aren't documented. The simplest form of a tutorial has basic information regarding movement and weapons fire but there's so much more going on that it's simple a pre-face to what needs to be covered, and what isn't covered. As such, unless a person is willing to delve into the forums and pull as much as possible from numerous different topics and posts, a new-player experience could be a trying and lengthy process. Something of a stipend is in place, however, the first 20 or so games on a new account garnering increased credits to help get a person into a 'mech of their own (The process until that point being a new player uses one of 4 rotated 'mechs called trial mechs which cannot be customized).

If I was only coming to this game now and had no prior experience of it, my scoring would be higher, of that I have no doubt. My issues, however, come from having played the game since the early days of closed Beta. This doesn't warrant me to any extra attention, I don't claim to know better than anyone else or say my experience is greater than the next guys, I'm speaking purely from what I have personally experienced and what I view to be the shortcomings of the game and why I score it 5/10.

Once the appeal and glitter of a new, 'mech based shooter is gone, the game very quickly becomes very "samey". What I mean by this is that, due in large to a stale metagame, limited game-modes and a slow development cycle on maps, one game quickly begins to feel like the next which feels like the next and there's very little sense of progressing in any meaningful direction.

Meta-game end-game is a big deal in games nowadays, to give them life and continuity and in Mechwarrior Online the primary method for offering this is Community Warfare.

Community Warfare was first slated for release late 2012, then January 2013 then spring and then the official Sept. 17th release and has consistently been pushed back further and further. I believe at the latest mention it was said to have the first stage (Choosing a faction or something similar, it won't effect gameplay or much else other than that until, I believe, stage 2) hopefully landing in November. For anyone that's been playing since April May 2012 this wait has long since passed the point of reasonable acceptance. One of the key reasons I was able to continue playing as much as I did, personally, was that I always had the feeling that community warfare was "just around the corner".

Similar things have happened with the promise of a new UI and maps and gamemodes gametypes, all of which is pushed back as the developers try and deal with numerous bugs and issues. One can't help but feel PGI has bitten off more than they can chew.

My rating; 5/10 with the potential to becoming 8/10 or higher when those key features arrive.… Expand

MustrumRiduclly

Sep 18, 2013

5

Mechwarrior Online is the newest title in the series of Mechwarrior games. It is a Free To Play Game. Unlike its predecssors, it is a pure online PvP game. There is no campaign or story node and no Player vs Enemey combats.
As a mechwarrior game, it is based on the Battletech Table Top game and as a mechwarrior title, it puts you in the position of the pilot of a mighty, heavily armed andMechwarrior Online is the newest title in the series of Mechwarrior games. It is a Free To Play Game. Unlike its predecssors, it is a pure online PvP game. There is no campaign or story node and no Player vs Enemey combats.
As a mechwarrior game, it is based on the Battletech Table Top game and as a mechwarrior title, it puts you in the position of the pilot of a mighty, heavily armed and armoured war machine fighting together with 11 team mates against 12 others. In the Mechwarrior business, we like to call this "Big Stompy Robot Fights".

= Gameplay =
The gameplay is a mix of an FPS (now also with 3PV camera drone mode) and (walking) tank simulator. The controls are on the more complex side of things. You can twist your torso (similar to a tank's turret) seperately from your legs, and you can also move your arms seperately. Mechs consist of multiple hit locations (like Center Torso, Left Rear Torso, Right Arm etc) with seperate hit points for each location, and each location containing items that will be lost if the hit location is destroyed. The mechs are customizable to some extent in their weapon loadout, armor distrubtion, engine and other equipment, and each mech comes in multiple variants with slight diffferentiation in model or possible loadouts.
You queue up for a match alone or with friends, and the match-maker tries to pit two equally strong 12 man teams against each other on a randomly selected map and with a randomly selected game mode.
There is currently no lobby feature, though there is one announced for the future.

= Character Advancement =
For each match you pla you earn C-Bills and XP depending on your performance (kills, assists, spotting, win/loss). You spend C-Bills to buy mechs, weapons or other equipment, and you can use XP to unlock mech efficiencies (passive buffs to mech stats, like torso twist range or maximum heat threshold before shutdown) and modules (slottable buffs or even active abilities). You start the game only with access to trial mechs, which cannot be customized. You earn bonus C-Bills for the first 25 matches so you can afford your own mech soon.
Overall, the advancement is relatively slow and shallow. The mech efficiencies are the same for every mech, there is only a small number of modules, and if you want to gain all mech efficiencies for a mech, you also have to buy variants of the same mech.

= Long Term Motivation and Metagame =
When the title was announced, community warfare was intended to act as metagame and provide long-term motivation. Community Warfare means you fight for a faction (be it as part of it, as a merc corp, or as a lone wolf) and gain or lose territory for that faction, and earn loyality.
This feature is not implemented yet, so currently, there is very little long term motivations or metagame.
Without any lobbies, there is no easy way to organize player-run tournaments or leagues, though that hasn't stopped players from trying.

= Game Balance =
Being a PvP only title, balance becomes a naturally important topic to players. Without game balance, the many mech build choices are quickly narrowed down to the few good options, and the overall enjoyment drops due to lack of variety and surprises. Be warned that this is one of my "favorite" topics and I might be the least subjective here.
The game balance is still not in a good state.
Some of the problems arose from underlying systems.
The heat system (a core component of any Battletech derived game) effectively makes balancing weapon stats much more difficult. The stats for weapons come basically from a game that worked very differently, and so it just won't fit together well. Mech armor values are derived from the table top game, too, ignoring that there is a big difference between randomly rolled hit locaitons and mouse-aimed hit locations (with all FPS typically conceits added in).
There are also technical issues that affect game balance, like the hit detection still not being reliable (sometimes dependent on mech models) and imbalanced hit box sizes.
Personally I am having the impression (impression fact) that the development team is not prepared to analyize their own game design well enough, and are also a bit unwilling to accept critique or change certain systems due to their own emotional investment in them. (As I said, this part will be very subjective. Make up your own mind, if you're interested enough in the game.)

= Advice =
If you like stompy robot fights, or a battletech fan, check the game out. But the current game is not really worthy a released title, lacking too many features and still having too many shortcomings. There have been many delays and changes of stated goals (some might speak of broken promises and lies).
I'd carefully consider spending any money on the game in its current state.
Rating is 5/10. It might improve with future features, depending on their quality. (+1.5 for Community Warfare, +1.5 for Balance, +1 for game modes and +1 for advancement)… Expand

Erasus

Sep 18, 2013

5

Hi there,

I am playing the game since closed beta (yes i am a founder) and have roughly 5000 games under my belt. This is my honest opinion about MechWarrior: Online so far: Tech aspects: The Graphics seem to become worse and worse, graphics are sub par, given that this game is using the astonishing good looking Cryengine 3. The game is heavily CPU bound, because it still usesHi there,

I am playing the game since closed beta (yes i am a founder) and have roughly 5000 games under my belt.

This is my honest opinion about MechWarrior: Online so far:

Tech aspects:

The Graphics seem to become worse and worse, graphics are sub par, given that this game is using the astonishing good looking Cryengine 3.
The game is heavily CPU bound, because it still uses the dated DirectX9 API.
So if you have an "old" AMD 4 core Processor with 3,8ghz (like i have) and a top of the line graphics card (which should do the brunt of the computing), you will be able to play MWO only at medium graphics settings at HD resolution, with FPS breakdowns under the 25 FPS mark on heavy fights.
This might change when PGI reintroduces DX11, but as of now they did not deliver and graphics and performance are mediocre at best.

Netcode issues are plaguing the game since its closed beta days, which were fixed at one time, but then the game made a few steps back and that pretty much sums up the games current state.

The mech models however are beautiful! From the art standpoint this game elevates the BattleTech franchise to a whole new level.
For the most part the maps are very well done, too.

Gameplay:
Like any other Mechwarrior game, you are sitting in a giant robot and control the mech either via jostick, joypad or Keyboard/mouse.
The movement pattern is that of tanks in recent tank games like world of tanks (thats a lot of tanks in one sentece!) and requires the unfamiliar getting used to.
The newly introduced third person view helps with that.

The gameplay itself is pretty straight forward and a lot of fun in the beginning: you pick your mech, drop in matches, and get experience and money for every game you finish. Of course, wins gain more money and xp as losses.
With the money you then customize your mech to your likings and with the XP you incrase the efficiency of the mechs` systems.
But it only carries the game that far. Your drop in, end the game upgrade your mech and repeat until your mech is tricked out, then you take another mech and do it all again, which is the whole meta game MWO currently has to offer.

By now, the game was promised to have a meaningful metagame aka community warfare. But PGI did not deliver.
The balance is not quite where it needs to be, but this is a rather moot point, given that even games out there that are almost a decade old struggle to accomplish a good balance.

The price model of the current game is somewhere between solid and... "outlandish", to say it politely.
For people that just want to accelerate XP earnings, PGi offers a reasonable price model, however, If you are a collector, this game will eat you alive, because the game itself is free to play, but in order to have everything, you will have to pay literally thousands of dollars. And the game is just out of Beta!

The frequency in which the game is patched is solid, the patches, for the most part are not, fixing bugs and introducing other, more severe bugs is more or less the rule than the exception.

The bottom line: This game is a solid game for casual drop ins, while offering no long term motivation

The technological base is awesome, the implemetation of said base is lackluster at best.
Prepare yourself that your gaming rig that runs Crysis 3 on VERY HIGH settings, to struggle with MWO on MEDIUM settings!

Tis game is promising, but PGI has yet to deliver the key features of the game and up the performnce substantially to even be calles a really solid game that has reached GOLD status.
At this point, this game is a good BETA game, but not a GOLD game .

A lot could be said aboout the communication and service habits of PGI towards their customers, but i am here to review MWO, not PGI, right? So I leave it at this.… Expand

MwHighlander

Sep 17, 2013

5

Its been over a decade since the last official MechWarrior title has been released, so lets go over the pro's and con's of this one. Btw, its NOT pay to win.

Pros: The artwork and renditions of many of the in-game 'Battlemechs' are fantastic and well done. The sound effects and visuals are quite good. Sadly, not as good as it could be. The game nothing like average FPS by a long shot,Its been over a decade since the last official MechWarrior title has been released, so lets go over the pro's and con's of this one. Btw, its NOT pay to win.

Pros: The artwork and renditions of many of the in-game 'Battlemechs' are fantastic and well done. The sound effects and visuals are quite good. Sadly, not as good as it could be. The game nothing like average FPS by a long shot, rewarding patients and tactics over raw firepower. Those who often perform the best in this "Action-Sim" are those who keep calm and their head down, taking full potential of opportunities as they present themselves. Those who are used to the "run and gun" style of game-play of the current over saturated marked be ware. This is the fastest way for you to find yourself at the wrong end of the enemy teams gun barrels. Tact and Teamwork is the key here you won't 'one man army' your way to victory.

The Mechlab is what gives this game far, FAR more depth than any other current FPS out there today, including other mecha competition. It stands a step above games like HAWKEN, gameplay wise giving a much more indepth feel over piloting mecha and plenty of feel for scale. Many players find themselves in the mechlab trying to build that elusive "perfect mech" more than being in game itself.

Cons: The game's development cycle is slow, has its fair share of bugs and is clearly going through several growing pains. So lets start off shall we?

First is the learning curve. Those who are new to the FPS genre in general will find this game abysmally difficult. Many small things are needed to be learned to even become a 'sub-par' mech pilot. All things from learning the individual weapons, torso twisting, aiming, setting weapon groups, heat management, learning how to build "good" mechs in the mechlab, etc. Of course this comes from simply playing the game, but the game itself does not help at all.

The "Trial Mech System" is the process in which players obtain their first mech, and ooh boy. Are these mechs fubar beyond belief. Although yes these mechs are based on "TRO's" (Tactical Read Outs) from the Table Top game MechWarrior was based on 25 years ago, these mechs do not translate well into a FPS environment. This has to do with many problems, such as low armor values, misplaced mech roles (some mechs are meant for Anti-Air or Anti-Infantry, neither of which are a part of the game), broken heat scale system (The Awesome Mech for instance, is useless because of artificial systems in placed to prevent it from doing its standard loadout of using large energy based weaponry) and so forth. The sooner the new player gets his "Cadet Bonus" and purchases his/her own mech the sooner. You also cannot customize the "Trial Mechs" which is half the game. Furthermore, in order to ask for help on the forums, you cannot post until you have completed your initial 25 games with this horrid system. You MUST drudge through the garbage before you effectively can start playing.

The second problem is weapon/equipment balance in game. Simply put, there is none.
LRMs (Long Range Missles) are fubar, don't use them
SRMs (Short Range Missiles) have hit detection issues
Pulse Lasers are Heavier, shorter range hotter crap versions of regular lasers. Don't use them
The LB-10X autocannon does not work at all like it is supposed to in canon or like previous MechWarrior Titles. It is also the most expensive weapon in the game. Don't waste your precious C-Bills on it and don't use it. Just take my word for it, its bad.
Machine Guns are completely ineffective against armored mechs. Armored mechs are the only enemies you have in the game. See where I'm going with this?
Flamers, see above.
Autocanon 2's are too puny, heavy and run hot. They are only effective in LARGE groups, and even then are penalized by a system called "Ghost Heat". They are bad and the game punishes you from trying to use them effectively. So don't use them at all.
ECM, this broken peice of equipment makes you immune to lock-on missiles! Yes, its as broken as it sounds, it also does not follow what its supposed to do canon wise.
BAP, hard counters ECM and has no other purpose. Also does not follow canon rules what so ever
Command Console, does nothing!
NARC Beacon, is broken and weighs ALOT. So, effectively also does nothing!
Streak SRM2's, have the same lock on mechanic as LRMs, so there is a bug where the "Artemis Upgrade" also benefits them with literally no tonnage/crit cost!
3rd Person View, Turn it on to see enemies around hills then turn it back off to fight! Its like its own build in wall hack!
C-Bill grind! This is the games in-money system, and you will earn almost nothing after the cadet bonus finishes, because the Devs think we earn too many!

Lastly, No collisions, no lobbies, horrid chat system, game crashes, no DFA, no alt. ammo types, Horrible frame rates, no eye candy, no destrucable enviorments, no Dx11, bad game modes, TINY MAPS, etc.

Enjoy… Expand

Propofol

Sep 18, 2013

5

Long time fan of tabletop Battletech, Battletech MU**'s and Mechwarrior series of PC games. Would gladly pour money into this game if there was some sense of purpose to it. The game itself is beautiful (and I don't have a high end PC) and you get the sense that you really are piloting one of those mechs. But it can get old quickly and I find myself having more fun playing Minecraft. ILong time fan of tabletop Battletech, Battletech MU**'s and Mechwarrior series of PC games. Would gladly pour money into this game if there was some sense of purpose to it. The game itself is beautiful (and I don't have a high end PC) and you get the sense that you really are piloting one of those mechs. But it can get old quickly and I find myself having more fun playing Minecraft. I really want to like this game....I really do....Heck I'd even pay a monthly sub if I felt it were worth it.....… Expand

Lakota_Wolf

Sep 18, 2013

5

Overall the game itself isn't horrible. I look at the launch and consider it to be the worst launch of any game in recent history though. The one thing in this game that is really bad, the player base. I have never seen so many hateful minds in one location in my entire gaming history. The game itself has a good balance of mechs to choose from, the maps look really good, and as with allOverall the game itself isn't horrible. I look at the launch and consider it to be the worst launch of any game in recent history though. The one thing in this game that is really bad, the player base. I have never seen so many hateful minds in one location in my entire gaming history. The game itself has a good balance of mechs to choose from, the maps look really good, and as with all online games balancing weapons seems to be in constant flux. I have seen a lot of people complain but I'm having fun with this game, to me that's the bottom line.… Expand

TheCheese

Sep 18, 2013

5

Positives:
- Looks beautiful.
- Captures the 'hulking war machine' feeling well. - 'Mechbay' customisation system gives players a lot of options for influencing how they want to play. - Free to play. Option to try it before you buy anything. - Not pay-to-win. Anything that's available for real money (or something that is functionally equivalent) is available for in-game currency.Positives:
- Looks beautiful.
- Captures the 'hulking war machine' feeling well.
- 'Mechbay' customisation system gives players a lot of options for influencing how they want to play.
- Free to play. Option to try it before you buy anything.
- Not pay-to-win. Anything that's available for real money (or something that is functionally equivalent) is available for in-game currency. Nothing that is real-money-only gives any distinct advantage.

Negatives:
- Lacks communication options appropriate for the game type. I.e, there is only text chat and a minimalist commander interface.
- There are currently only two game types and matches tend to play out the same way. I.e, destroy the opposition.
- Very limited social system.
- No long-term goal. There is the in-combat game, but no greater objectives (think; PlanetSide 2's territory capture system)
- Intermittent hit detection issues (shooting at your target and occasionally not registering a hit) can make for a frustrating experience.
- New-player experience is rough. There is little in the way of instruction or explanation of how things work in-game. The first few matches will likely be spent in spectator view.

Overview:
In it's current state, MW:O has a strong base in it's in-combat gameplay and personal customisation options, however the game's replayability factor suffers from the lack of any long-term goal and the few game types available. Also, although the game is advertised as an MMO, the poor communication and social systems can make the game a lonely experience unless you turn to the community-run voice chat services.

An important thing to note is that the game is free to play, so there's little to be lost by trying it out for yourself.… Expand

Lukoi

Sep 17, 2013

5

Ok, so unlike alot of reviews here I'm not going to discuss the progression of this game since Closed Beta, through Open Beta to today. Today is what matters, as the game has officially LAUNCHED.

Video fx/Graphics (8): The artwork for the Mechs is fantastic. Even if you don't necessarily agree with the direction of the Art team or modeling of the Mechs, they still look well done andOk, so unlike alot of reviews here I'm not going to discuss the progression of this game since Closed Beta, through Open Beta to today. Today is what matters, as the game has officially LAUNCHED.

Video fx/Graphics (8): The artwork for the Mechs is fantastic. Even if you don't necessarily agree with the direction of the Art team or modeling of the Mechs, they still look well done and attractive. Intimidating and lethal, they look much as any fan of the intellectual property of BattleTech might imagine. I deducted points here due to a lack of DX11 support (it's 2013 folks), some pixelated terrain that looks like a game from 2003 in places and some odd modeling mistakes. Overall, a great effort and all indications are this will get better.

Audio (9): Again, barring some minor aesthitic disagreements, the sound effects are well done and the game sounds good during gameplay. Autocannons have a great bang/crunch mechanic, lasers sound vicious and explosions/getting hit add to the immersion.

Immersion (5): This is where the video excellence and audio excellence fall short, in tandem with other things that are decidedly lacking. There's no musical backdrop to get you pumped up right before the matches start, no backround music of even immersive backround noises while you are in the Mechlab/game join screens. If I'm in some giant bay somewhere modifying a 60-ton warmachine, shouldn't there at least be some air-wrenches screaming or the sounds of metal clanging or SOMETHING besides pure silence when I'm in there? Missed opportunity there. Additionally, there's no tie to a back story within the game. If you're not already familiar with the IP, most of the game will mean nothing to you nor does the game give you any significant information in that respect.

Backstory (0): PGI makes no effort to tie the grand-lore that sets this IP apart from any other "walking-tanks" battlesim and misses out hugely there. Hiring some writers or poaching directly from the novels/game books that are associated with the IP would make sense here, but there's no history at all. Just some forum links to community based websites (such as sarna.net) that are great efforts, but in no way as reach, or as accurate as actually being source material.

Gameplay (7): Purely from a gameplay mechanics and fun aspect, I enjoy playing it BUT I've been playing it for months. The initial stings of playing through the learning curve are long past for me. I can enjoy the new Mechs as they are introduced immediately for their various strengths and weaknesses. I'm not sure its the same for new players.

Balance (6): The game's archaic, ill-articulated math to balance weapons, armor, modules and other effects in the game lacks synergy. "Ghost-heat" mechanics that are not explained in the game anywhere effectively, combined with confusing additional rules for mobility make it hard for the player (who's not a constant forum archeologist) to dig up how to build his machines most effectively or even to guess how to do so. The weapons have some balance issues that are bound to be improved upon but are not intuitive to the player. The Mechs themselves as the platforms have some glaring optimal performers and some glaringly bad Mechs, with the majority in the comfortable middle. If all Mechs had useful roles, even if those roles were not purely combat related, that would improve their value immensely.

Modes/Replayability (2): The game has two modes....assault, where teams can kill the enemy team or capture a slow-ticking objective on their opponents' side of the map or conquest, where teams can the enemy team or earn points by owning up to 5 slow-ticking objectives scattered between the two teams. There is nothing else to the game right now, no other modes. I hope this changes soon, but right now...horrible for a released game that advertises itself as a thinking-person's shooter and Mech combat sim.

EndGame/Why play factor (2): Once the fun wears off in playing the same two modes, you're left with grinding new Mech chassis for the sake of collecting them. Something called "community warfare" has been discussed for quite sometime but its launch and there's still nothing. Without a driving reason to fight AND no lobby system that allows players to set up private matches that could be used in community driven leaque or planetary conquest leagues, you're literally just playing because you enjoy the shootem up portion or to make your collection larger.

F2P factors: There's no penalty to P4F, as the "hero Mechs" don't represent a real leg up in any true sense, but it does cut into the grind ALOT to pay for premium time.

Clarity (2): Outside of limited tool tips and the occasional pre-match tip on your screen, there's only ONE rather dinky tutorial. A PDF attached to the game that would show information on the ghost heat, mobility rules, some lore backround etc would help immensely.

Hopeful the game will improve but not great so far.… Expand

Garamis

Sep 17, 2013

5

Just do some research on what this company says it is going to do and look at what has been accomplished after 2 years and several millions of its fan base's money.

Aventurine (Darkfall) ring a bell here..... These two companies are so close in how they operate it is amazing.

Gremlich

Sep 19, 2013

6

With all of the problems the crytek3 engine has given PGI which has resulted in all but invincible Light mechs, poor hit box detection, a poor excuse for a UAV, totally forgotten pillar of Role Warfare (scouts anyone?), the lack of knowledge of what Information Warfare actually is or "how to do it" (ECM), no CW yet, no Lobbies, no combined arms aspect, mis-sized mechs, out of canonWith all of the problems the crytek3 engine has given PGI which has resulted in all but invincible Light mechs, poor hit box detection, a poor excuse for a UAV, totally forgotten pillar of Role Warfare (scouts anyone?), the lack of knowledge of what Information Warfare actually is or "how to do it" (ECM), no CW yet, no Lobbies, no combined arms aspect, mis-sized mechs, out of canon timeline mechs (the ECM SDR-7Kr for instance as a SDR-5 model), two game modes that are kinda like each other, win requirements that state both are required but only satisfying one will net you the win, DX9 STILL (I know not everyone has a computer that can handle DX11), and the sloppy way they have implemented some features and the constant bi-weekly money grab related patches (seriously, no mechbay with a hero/champion mech purchase!!), I would be hard pressed to grant anything above 6. To give an 8 is mucho generous. Even a 7 would have to be seriously debated.

Poor community interaction has also not helped PGI at all and their obvious contempt even for the ones who made every reasonable attempt to provide constructive and useful feedback and solutions during the Beta phase is shameful.

I would rather PGI have stayed in 3025 and worked on the IS milieu and balance for a while and taking the time know the game engine better and to develop and balance the Clans with the more accomplished gamers in the community as betas before bringing the Clans into the game. I think the Clan implementation/balance issues have PGI by the short hairs in their attempt to make mucho dinero way too quickly. A zero to 2 or a 10 would be very misdirected scores obviously intended to cancel each other out. Despicable tactic be honest guys, not full of rage one way or the other.

It's all about the Benjamins, Baby! Be smart about how you try to take it.… Expand

ConnorSinclair

Sep 17, 2013

5

Review from Kong's Connor Sinclair,

Mechwarrior online can only be described as snatching the failure out of the jaws of success. A mediocre game with lack luster content, random bugs and a balancing act that would terrify a gymnast. The game is patched together with DX9 fixes while awaiting a DX11 release, meaning MWO is a powder keg just waiting for a spark. The UI is a shoddy messReview from Kong's Connor Sinclair,

Mechwarrior online can only be described as snatching the failure out of the jaws of success. A mediocre game with lack luster content, random bugs and a balancing act that would terrify a gymnast. The game is patched together with DX9 fixes while awaiting a DX11 release, meaning MWO is a powder keg just waiting for a spark.

The UI is a shoddy mess from its Alpha, with little modification since then outside a single sound notification. Many of the maps have assets simply floating in the air or clipping through one another and some still suffer texture errors.

The game defaults a control system more complex than previous game releases and often punishes new players. The games ranking system is invisible, preventing a player to see their standing, even worse it appears to not effect the games at all. New players are pitted against the best players, with the best equipment and their teams.

The weapons range from either being useless or being glass cannons, completely destroying any competition. The developers themselves show a lack of empathy for their players and will often lay blame on them for their mistakes. The hit registration is the closest thing to fantasy magic that you will ever see in the real world, it either works or it doesn't. Often times firing a weapons at an enemy will result in no damage, throwing your ammo completely away.

Enjoy a night of confusion frustration with mechwarrior online.… Expand

eta508

Sep 17, 2013

5

If you're an old timer, who doesn't remember the beloved PC Mechwarrior Games? While this game has been in development for almost a year and a half, and taking people's money during that whole time in beta, it's borderline criminal the state the game is in and how the developers have consistently missed deadlines, overstated intentions, and straight gone back on their word they promised toIf you're an old timer, who doesn't remember the beloved PC Mechwarrior Games? While this game has been in development for almost a year and a half, and taking people's money during that whole time in beta, it's borderline criminal the state the game is in and how the developers have consistently missed deadlines, overstated intentions, and straight gone back on their word they promised to the community.

However, the real problem lies in that they are completely out of their league and element in designing a well-rounded game. A big portion of online games is weapon balance. They have failed miserably time and time again by instituting bandaid solutions to the problem instead of fixing the issues directly. They are completely guessing at balance by the HUGE swings in nerf/buff in weapons that go on constantly. If they are not incompetent in their balancing decisions then the only other answer lies in them wanting to spend your hardearned CBills (or real money MechWarrior Credits) on constantly revising the loadouts your mechs use (armor+engine+weapons+heatsink mix).

There is simply no future in this game and will be die within a year.

HOWEVER, the good news is the game is actually FUN and SATISFYING on a superficial level. While the graphics aren't great, they're passable. While the team play function is hit or miss, there are GEMS of games that are amazing.

You'll think this is a great and fun game for a few months, but after a while, it's literally the same game then as it was one year ago. Make no mistake, it's worth playing, and you'll enjoy yourself for a time, but don't drop so much money it thinking you'll be playing forever. Support them for the month or two you play and consider yourself lucky.… Expand

BigBlue481

Sep 18, 2013

5

No rational being can give this game an absolute top or absolute bottom score. That is the true problem, for all their effort PGI has turned out a mediocre game.
As a “hardcore” MechWarrior player I will continue to play, mainly because it is the only game in town, and it is free to play. I was an early beta contributor, but I have become so disillusioned by the rationalized non- canonNo rational being can give this game an absolute top or absolute bottom score. That is the true problem, for all their effort PGI has turned out a mediocre game.
As a “hardcore” MechWarrior player I will continue to play, mainly because it is the only game in town, and it is free to play. I was an early beta contributor, but I have become so disillusioned by the rationalized non- canon attitude that each tweak flip flops the game play.
My intention is to continue in the ftp mode, but purchases will only be enough to keep this alive and certainly never anything large ever again.
If something bright and shiny catches my interest; I will migrate to a new game.
MechWarrior 2 Mercenaries and MechWarrior 3 remain the BattleTech computer game high water marks.… Expand

bearless75

Sep 17, 2013

5

This is a game with potential, however only the basic combat sim exists at this time. It should have been given another 6 months to complete basic community warfare features, though it should be acknowledged the developers have been unable to implement this so far despite it being on the timetabled for release at the start of the year.
Graphics are good, combat is fun rather than fast,This is a game with potential, however only the basic combat sim exists at this time. It should have been given another 6 months to complete basic community warfare features, though it should be acknowledged the developers have been unable to implement this so far despite it being on the timetabled for release at the start of the year.
Graphics are good, combat is fun rather than fast, evoking the feel of big stompy robots! Weapon balancing is badly off though this is a recurring theme when trying to apply a tabletop model to a first person game, with some truly bizarre methods chosen to try to balance direct fire weapons.
Expect a steep learning curve. Starting equipment is decidedly sub-par due to the balancing issues mentioned, but this makes the rewards for sticking with the game significant once you can afford to buy and customise your first mech you will quickly notice the difference it makes.
Hopefully we soon have more than just a combat simulation to give us all something to fight for!… Expand

KravenKor

Sep 18, 2013

5

What you see going on here is a war between those who support PGI giving 10 ratings to counteract those who hate PGI who are giving low, low, low ratings.

There are accusations here of forum censorship: I am Kraven Kor on the forums, they have yet to ban me or put me on moderation preview, and I have little positive to say. The truth is: MWO is a good, but not great, robot shooter.What you see going on here is a war between those who support PGI giving 10 ratings to counteract those who hate PGI who are giving low, low, low ratings.

There are accusations here of forum censorship: I am Kraven Kor on the forums, they have yet to ban me or put me on moderation preview, and I have little positive to say.

The truth is: MWO is a good, but not great, robot shooter. The major uproar here and everywhere is all about PGI making big promises early on, which they failed to deliver on, and then the fiasco that was the introduction of the Third Person View feature where they directly went back on their previous promises of 1PV-only players never being forced to play with or against 3PV.

Any way you slice it, PGI has mishandled this in various ways, and the game is far from where they originally stated it would be. The community's response was "the summer of rage" and it has done jack and squat to improve anything.

Buyer beware: MWO is a lot of fun, the mechs look great, but the game is overall very repetitive with very few maps, only the two game-modes, no real overarching metagame or storyline type stuff, no ability to set up custom matches for the various Mechwarrior clans to arrange matches or challenges or tournaments, and is filled with a lot of angry geeks.… Expand

13	#13 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
96	#96 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

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