MechWarrior Online

 PC
User Score
5.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 874 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 323 out of 874
  2. Mixed: 177 out of 874
  3. Negative: 374 out of 874

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  1. Deadguy
    Sep 17, 2013
    1
    A game with huge potential that has been let down by arrogant money grubbing developers. The game has promised so many development but has delivered none and game play continues to deteriorate with poor fixes that do not address game play. Developers do not involve themselves with forums other than to deliver the odd post that has already been done elsewhere. Suggested fixes are ignoredA game with huge potential that has been let down by arrogant money grubbing developers. The game has promised so many development but has delivered none and game play continues to deteriorate with poor fixes that do not address game play. Developers do not involve themselves with forums other than to deliver the odd post that has already been done elsewhere. Suggested fixes are ignored and criticism is openly disparaged. Now rules have been posted that any negative comment will lead to "moderation". The founders of this programme (the alpha and beta investor) are leaving in droves after multiple promises have been broken.
    Clan war has been just around the corner for over a year. The launch was a patch that was to fix game bugs. The gameplay has been stuck in the same two modes for a year.

    Appalling attitude from developers and clearly waining interest in making the game successful. This is now just a grab for cash before it collapses.    … Expand
  2. BeefHands
    Sep 18, 2013
    2
    This game is not complete, weapons balance still swings like a pendulum, the graphics remain underwhelming, the netcode is still infuriating, and there is literally nothing to do besides grind endlessly. Promises of new features should be looked at closely as the developers have abandoned promised features, been unable to deliver promised features, and have delivered unwanted features. TheThis game is not complete, weapons balance still swings like a pendulum, the graphics remain underwhelming, the netcode is still infuriating, and there is literally nothing to do besides grind endlessly. Promises of new features should be looked at closely as the developers have abandoned promised features, been unable to deliver promised features, and have delivered unwanted features. The current grind is hellish unless you want to pay for expensive premium time in addition to paying for a pay only "hero" mech (avg 10 dollars) that retains a permanent bonus.… Expand
  3. theDashRendar
    Sep 19, 2013
    0
    This game gave me cancer.

    It's a pay2win mess, a total debacle with no game modes and no lobbies and no thought put into the design. This is not Mechwarrior 3 or Mechwarrior 4, it somehow is worse in every way, with even worse graphics than MechAssault an original XBOX game. Strategy is nothing but stick together in a ball and the grind is evil and terrible. Spend hundreds of    This game gave me cancer.

    It's a pay2win mess, a total debacle with no game modes and no lobbies and no thought put into the design. This is not Mechwarrior 3 or Mechwarrior 4, it somehow is worse in every way, with even worse graphics than MechAssault an original XBOX game.

    Strategy is nothing but stick together in a ball and the grind is evil and terrible. Spend hundreds of hours to master one single mech.

    Hero mechs are only available for real money and allow access to exclusive game play styles. That's the textbook definition of pay2win, and this game reeks of it. Avoid with your life.    … Expand
  4. garhent
    Sep 17, 2013
    3
    MWO has a lot of issues. I could not at this time recommend the game to anyone to actually spend money on. It would be ok to play for free, but its not worth money at this time.

    A lot of promises were made involving the ability to play as part of the inner sphere, clan invasion, and the ability to allow hits to register on mech (yes the game has been in beta for over a year and there    MWO has a lot of issues. I could not at this time recommend the game to anyone to actually spend money on. It would be ok to play for free, but its not worth money at this time.

    A lot of promises were made involving the ability to play as part of the inner sphere, clan invasion, and the ability to allow hits to register on mech (yes the game has been in beta for over a year and there are problems with hits actually registering) are not something the DEV's have been able to deliver on yet.

    The DEV's have been working on monetization primarily with easy to code camouflage, items, hero mechs and additional packages of mechs.

    At this point, the current state of the game is what the Devs are actually able to code and deliver. I would not expect much else from Piranha at this time.

    The best mech in the game now is a 30 ton mech that has ridiculous issues with hits registering. The devs have known about this for months and aren't doing much about it. The game is a disappointment compared to the first video they released to the founders package with the promises they made and what they actually delivered. The game is the first time since I was 16 and got swindled by carnies on a bait and switch scheme. Yup, MWO Bait and Switch, its that bad in delivering what they promised.    … Expand
  5. 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
  6. Maspa
    Sep 19, 2013
    3
    Would have been a solid game but as beta progressed they kept making really bad decisions and cramming in new game systems which were confusing even if you took the time to work them out and also not explained anywhere in the actual game. So if you don't go hunting through their massive forums you can totally accidentally create broken builds which won't work as they should by the statsWould have been a solid game but as beta progressed they kept making really bad decisions and cramming in new game systems which were confusing even if you took the time to work them out and also not explained anywhere in the actual game. So if you don't go hunting through their massive forums you can totally accidentally create broken builds which won't work as they should by the stats presented in-game.

    They ban anyone who speaks up against the bizarre new direction the game is taking and are generally being horrible about it.

    They also keep delaying the promised Community Warfare and it's becoming clear that the CW which is finally going to make it into the game is going to be nothing more than a glorified global scoreboard.

    It's a real shame that it turned out this way, at one point I thought this was an amazing game and couldn't have imagined they would screw it up so badly.    … Expand
  7. Lynxy
    Sep 17, 2013
    1
    If you waited for good and deep gameplay, just how it was advertised before closed beta start, you'll find none of that. It's simple random TDM 12x12 battles right now. No new features for greater replayability in one and half year. Good game for few hours in a week, but boring as after 2-3 weeks of continuous everyday play.

    Also this game have very steep learning curve. First 3-5    If you waited for good and deep gameplay, just how it was advertised before closed beta start, you'll find none of that. It's simple random TDM 12x12 battles right now. No new features for greater replayability in one and half year. Good game for few hours in a week, but boring as after 2-3 weeks of continuous everyday play.

    Also this game have very steep learning curve. First 3-5 hours of play will consist from your continuous deaths without chance to kill anyone by your own. And you'll need about 80-100 hours to get your first mastered chassis with good fitting, so you can play on even level with everyone else.    … Expand
  8. Haroldwolf
    Sep 17, 2013
    1
    At the best this game is a glorified mech simulator. The RPG elements are a joke. PGI project and program management skills are amateurist at best. Communication with their player base is spotty and the launch was like a drive by.

    It's a shame that FASA's Mechwarrior has come to this.
  9. warp103
    Sep 17, 2013
    2
    this launch is basically the same game from the day it when open beta with 2 more maps and a few more mechs.
    Things that are lacking.
    1 No real support for a analog joystick. 2 no dx 11 support. 3 no community warfare 4. ploy counts is low for being on the cry engine 3. 5. no optimization for fps. Again it on the cry engine 3 and FPS is worst the crysis2 6. has ladder system 7 no    this launch is basically the same game from the day it when open beta with 2 more maps and a few more mechs.
    Things that are lacking.
    1 No real support for a analog joystick.
    2 no dx 11 support.
    3 no community warfare
    4. ploy counts is low for being on the cry engine 3.
    5. no optimization for fps. Again it on the cry engine 3 and FPS is worst the crysis2
    6. has ladder system
    7 no clan tech
    8 weapons system very unbalance
    9 bad hit detection
    10 bad UI it not even full screen
    11 some mech are not hittable namely need 4 mech to take out one spider
    12 no crossfire or sli
    13 missing 1pv only game
    14 no private fighting
    15 no lobby system
    16 no comm system like teamspeak
    17 so many more to list that PGI stand was going to be in here for launch i would need 20 more spaces    … Expand
  10. JokerVictor
    Nov 4, 2013
    3
    Where to start with the biggest letdown in my gaming career? It's hard to describe succinctly how far this game missed the mark, but I'll attempt to tell the story of MWO's development as honestly as I can.

    During the early summer last year, the developers of MWO (Piranha Games PGI) offered a Founder's Program to help fund the game and bring in tons of fans to test and provide feedback    Where to start with the biggest letdown in my gaming career? It's hard to describe succinctly how far this game missed the mark, but I'll attempt to tell the story of MWO's development as honestly as I can.

    During the early summer last year, the developers of MWO (Piranha Games PGI) offered a Founder's Program to help fund the game and bring in tons of fans to test and provide feedback on the game. There was a grand vision of where the game was going, it was all documented in the dev blogs, and this is the vision that was used to market the game at this stage.

    In closed beta at this time (I bought in to the beta through the founder's program) the game was essentially a giant trainwreck. The UI was completely awful, and often crashed your game. Actually, nearly everything crashed your game at this point. The netcode was awful, the game only had one mode, and there was a very thin selection of mechs and maps. However, this was the point where the game most closely resembled a proper mechwarrior game, and it's only gone downhill from this point.

    I should also point out, that at this point there were many strong positives about the game. It was gorgeous, for starters, and the combat pacing was excellent. It was still early in development, so the massive problems could be overlooked, as there was a shining gem underneath all of that.

    Over the nearly year and a half since I joined the beta, I've watched poor decision after poor decision completely erode that shining gem underneath into a dull, bland, rock. All the while repeatedly missing development milestones, and completely forgetting about or willfully ignoring the original vision that the game was sold on.

    A small list of features this game was supposed have had months ago:
    -DX11
    -New game modes (dropship mode, and asymmetrical assault)
    -UI 2.0
    -Lobbies (yes, an online game that doesn't have lobbies of any kind)
    -In-game VOIP (yes, an online game that doesn't have in-game voice of any kind)
    -Community Warfare (the large overarching meta-game system)
    -Mech tonnage limits
    -Functional bases with turrets and capture mechanics
    -Clan mechs
    -Role Warfare (systems and skills that made each mech class and role unique and useful this in particular has completely failed and this doesn't exist in the game at all. You either go fast and cap bases, or carry lots of guns)

    And now, here we are at launch day. The game has seen exactly 0 of the promised features actually make it into the game. Instead, PGI utterly ignored its community and wasted immense amounts of time developing features that no one wanted, like P2W consumables and third-person view.

    So, in closing MWO is an incomplete mess of a game that has changed very very little from its closed beta state.

    Graphics: 5/10 This was a 8/10 before, but continued 'optimizations' have steadily ruined this department. Mech scaling to the environment has always felt completely off as well.
    Sound: 9/10 Quite good, actually... a highlight.
    Music: 0/10 Lol, they forgot this feature.
    Presentation: 2/10 The UI is extremely bad, dense, and non-intuitive
    Gameplay: 1/10 Perpetually bad decision making has taken what was once an extremely fun stompy robot game and made it a bland twitch shooter. There are only two game modes, which are both extremely simple and essentially 'stand in square or kill everyone.' The game is horribly imbalanced, and is extremely unfriendly to newbies. You can expect to have your face used as a bullet sponge when you first attempt to play, as the matchmaker will happily drop you against grizzled veterans that have mechs far far more powerful than what you start with.

    This game gets a 3/10 overall for nostalgia reasons only, I had tons of fun playing this once upon a time. The current game is a shallow grindfest, and looks like that is going to continue for a very long time. I can't say don't try it, as it is free, but do not be tempted to spend money, you will later regret it.

    PS I will likely be banned from the game for this review. Yes... PGI actually are complete dicks like that.

    Update: I've been banned (and received zero notification of it). Thanks for proving my point!    … Expand
  11. Rattazustra
    Sep 19, 2013
    9
    The game started out slightly below average and improved slightly over the first half of the beta phase. Then it fell into rapid decline as it became more and more evident that neither did the developers know what they were doing, nor did they care. The game turned into a soulless money-whoring machine over the course of the past months, while at the same time all promised improvementsThe game started out slightly below average and improved slightly over the first half of the beta phase. Then it fell into rapid decline as it became more and more evident that neither did the developers know what they were doing, nor did they care. The game turned into a soulless money-whoring machine over the course of the past months, while at the same time all promised improvements never came.
    The launch know is beyond disappointing and the resulting game is as close to a scam as such a product can be. PGI already made enough undeserved money from this as it is. Do yourself a favor and do not give them any more. Companies who neither respect their product nor their customers deserve nothing from the player base.    … Expand
  12. Valdimar
    Sep 17, 2013
    4
    Allow me to preface this by saying this game is a far cry from what it could have been.

    Currently it is lacking in several core features promised to be the game 'within 90 days' of open beta. These features include DX11 support, new game modes, inclusion of community warfare, a revamped user interface, and announcements for clan tech. With the continual pushing back of much anticipated    Allow me to preface this by saying this game is a far cry from what it could have been.

    Currently it is lacking in several core features promised to be the game 'within 90 days' of open beta. These features include DX11 support, new game modes, inclusion of community warfare, a revamped user interface, and announcements for clan tech. With the continual pushing back of much anticipated features the game itself just drags on with little to look forward to.

    Game play wise there are only two game modes: assault and conquest. Assault features two opposing teams fighting each other with a base capture mechanic as a side goal while Conquest features a resource point mechanic in which you fight for five different resource points. However with only eleven maps (three of which are alt versions of other maps) these modes to get bland after a while.

    The other driving point is the customization of your battlemechs. With 21 mech chassis and a total of 92 variants to choose from (including the paid only variants) there is quite a bit available here to chose from and what I consider to be this games strongest suit currently. The downside to this however is that some mechs play very similar to each other or with minute differences. Even worse is that after a recent patch in which earnings were nerfed (personally I saw a 1/3 reduction on average) it can take a long time to save up for a new mech after your first 25 matches; during which you receive a significant boost to income. After this patch the grind has become unbearable and effectively killing what I looked forward to.

    In the end it is my opinion that MWO is the promise of a great game that was ruined by it's own developers. I will continue playing it in the hopes that it will one day become the game it should be but for now I can only give this game a 4/10.    … Expand
  13. WhiteKnight
    Sep 18, 2013
    0
    This game is not terrible, but it is far, far less than was promised, and very little progress has been made since open beta a year ago. The lobbies, community warfare, and even the UI update are not done, though they have been promised features for over a year.
  14. RoniYiu
    Sep 29, 2013
    0
    Extremely disappointed. This company trashed the IP with it's shoddy incomplete product and premiupricing. Steer clear of this one if you are a MW fan, it's a hollow world of tanks ripoff more than a true MW game.
  15. Kilron
    Sep 25, 2013
    1
    Very disappointing game at its launch there's just the core component of the game (robot deathmatches) they've worked on.
    UI did not change from closed beta and really need to improve, no endgame, no lobby etc.
  16. 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
  17. Redmacher
    Sep 24, 2013
    1
    The art is the only redeeming thing about this game. Gameplay has only 2 modes which may as well be the same. Both are 12v12 (which makes death happen very fast, and you only get one life per match), and the only difference is one mode has 5 bases to capture and the other has 2. The UI is terrible, with extra clicks needed all over the place where only 1 could have been used. The biggestThe art is the only redeeming thing about this game. Gameplay has only 2 modes which may as well be the same. Both are 12v12 (which makes death happen very fast, and you only get one life per match), and the only difference is one mode has 5 bases to capture and the other has 2. The UI is terrible, with extra clicks needed all over the place where only 1 could have been used. The biggest problem is probably the developers. They promise one thing (no 3rd person view ever!) then do the opposite. They promise features (community warfare, clans, and a new UI have all been coming "soon" for about a year and a half now) and then never deliver. They implemented ghost heat: a confusing, convoluted system to solve a problem that not only doesn't solve the problem it was intended for, but also ruins lots of things that weren't problems. perhaps worst of all is that ghost heat is hidden in the game and you would never know about it unless you read the forums. They regularly troll legitimate questions on twitter. They edit users' posts on the forums to make it look like they're saying something positive when they weren't.… Expand
  18. DastardlyPete
    Sep 24, 2013
    1
    I would almost never give a game a single star, but this game promised so much, and at first it appeared to deliver on said promises. Now we're a year and a half later and we have very little to show for it. If I could refund my initial investment in this game I would in a heartbeat.
  19. Kotrin
    Sep 22, 2013
    3
    Fun at times, Mechwarrior Online is by no means a "thinking first person's shooter": first, it's not FPS anymore, second, matchmaking is poor, and finally, everyone plays the same Flavor of the Month build (an array of Particle Projection Cannons at time of writing). There are plenty of giant robots to choose from but only a handful maps to play with and only 2-3 new maps seems to beFun at times, Mechwarrior Online is by no means a "thinking first person's shooter": first, it's not FPS anymore, second, matchmaking is poor, and finally, everyone plays the same Flavor of the Month build (an array of Particle Projection Cannons at time of writing). There are plenty of giant robots to choose from but only a handful maps to play with and only 2-3 new maps seems to be released every year.

    Mechwarrior Online crew fails to impress and fails to deliver. Given its recent track record and inability to make any significant advances in feature implementation, game balance, and blatantly lying to its community no one can recommend this game as worthy of your money and this is a diehard fan of the Battletech franchise writing this. Yet, it's a free game so you may jump in and judge for yourself without any cost. Be sure however to invest a good amount of time in the game and before investing any real money.    … Expand
  20. Wonko
    Sep 17, 2013
    4
    A disappointing experience all-around. This is not like any Mechwarrior game that came before...don't expect MW5. It may be worth playing for a couple of hours just for the graphics...they are pretty good because of the detail of the mechs. But everything is concealed behind some sort of hazy grainy-vision. The time one plays will consist of mostly 4-8 minute games, repeated over andA disappointing experience all-around. This is not like any Mechwarrior game that came before...don't expect MW5. It may be worth playing for a couple of hours just for the graphics...they are pretty good because of the detail of the mechs. But everything is concealed behind some sort of hazy grainy-vision. The time one plays will consist of mostly 4-8 minute games, repeated over and over on poorly proportioned maps. The game is terribly frustrating with the strange weapon quirks that make no sense and the heat penalties that reduce one's effectiveness and ability to survive (no in-game description of the arcane heat system either). Be prepared to grind (a LOT) to get your mech improved enough to be competitive...because you have to level THREE variants of each mech. One must deal with incomplete and unbalanced weaponry; some weapons systems seem overpowered, while others are a total waste of space/weight. There's only one real roll: get the biggest mech there is with the biggest weapons it can hold, tag as many enemy as you can, then get/steal as many kills as you can. Scouting and support roles are rewarded at a much lower level. This design forces one to discard real teamwork in favor of selfish play...and one will see a LOT of it. Adding to the teamwork problem is a lack of in-game communication hot-buttons....or anything other than typing, unless you are in a group on TeamSpeak. The community is terribly full of mean-spirited and hateful people, both in-game and in the forums. The devs/admin are arrogant and condescending. STAY AWAY FROM THE FORUMS! It doesn't matter what one posts; it will be flamed by either a 'this game sucks' troll or a brown-nosing admin-lover, and either (both) will try to explain why they are so smart while demeaning any opposing view. I wasted time on this game (since closed beta) but no longer play it. Loved it once, hate the entire experience now.… Expand
  21. 8RoundsRapid
    Sep 17, 2013
    4
    This game is awful. If you are a lover of the Battletech IP, stear well clear of this stinker. If you're not necessarily a lover of the Battletech IP, stear well clear of this stinker.

    The gameplay is insultingly simplistic, the maps are extremely tiny, and the mech sizes are way off. The game modes are ridiculous, and there is no community warfare (which was promised over a year    This game is awful. If you are a lover of the Battletech IP, stear well clear of this stinker. If you're not necessarily a lover of the Battletech IP, stear well clear of this stinker.

    The gameplay is insultingly simplistic, the maps are extremely tiny, and the mech sizes are way off.

    The game modes are ridiculous, and there is no community warfare (which was promised over a year ago), there is no new User Interface 2.0. Which is the reason the development of the game was put on hold, to develop UI2.0, without which none of the stuff that makes this anything more than a 10min arena deathmatch can be implemented.

    We were told last fall, that CW and UI2.0 would be in within 30 days after open beta, then it was within 60 days, then it was quarter1 of 2013, and then it became summer/fall of 2013, and now its within 60 days of launch.

    This game is being developed by an incompetent, unprofessional, and unethical group of individuals who continually add 'features' that are unwanted, anasked for, and unannounced.

    There have been several attempts to add in P2W features, and the actual development of the game is virtually nonexistent.

    In short, this game is an insult to the Battletech franchise, and an insult to the intelligence and loyalty of Battletech fans the world over.

    But don't take my word for it. Try it yourself, and see for yourself.

    The only reason this is getting even a 4/10 is because of FlyingDebris art. Simply outsanding!    … Expand
  22. 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
  23. PunkRoadkill
    Sep 26, 2013
    0
    Been playing since very early on and its been nothing but one crushing disappointment after another, and from that early on its been clear the only objective here is to milk money as fast as possible and to hell with what people are actually interested in playing
  24. Sandshrew
    Sep 17, 2013
    3
    Gameplay: there's a fun Mechwarrior pseudo-simulator in there somewhere when you can get a good match of rompy-stompy robots in you can have a lot of fun. The problem is, it's buried far beneath the mess of poor balance (1-2 weapons are almost always head and shoulders above the rest while others like flamers have never been useful), poor design decisions (only two game modes and theyGameplay: there's a fun Mechwarrior pseudo-simulator in there somewhere when you can get a good match of rompy-stompy robots in you can have a lot of fun. The problem is, it's buried far beneath the mess of poor balance (1-2 weapons are almost always head and shoulders above the rest while others like flamers have never been useful), poor design decisions (only two game modes and they both suck, poor matchmaking system/no lobbies, 'mech size scaling, "ghost heat"), awful maps (in both design and implementation), and bugs unending (getting stuck in terrain, hit registration). I highly recommend finding experienced players to get started with instead of doing so alone, as many incredibly important aspects to the game are never explained to a new player in-game how heat sinks work, especially double heatsinks for instance; or why you want to disable arm-lock in the options. There's no tutorial and the player base is so small that you'll be matched up against people who know what they're doing, so having people to help you out is a must.

    The game consists of only two game modes, Assault and Conquest, which are both functionally deathmatch but with a side of "stand-in-the-square-to-win". 0-damage matches are less common with the introduction of 12v12 matches but the game modes are nonetheless a horribly-designed source of annoyance. In practice it has the feel of a very slow arena shooter with no respawns other F2P titles such as World of Tanks and the like are a good point of reference, despite the developer's insistence otherwise.

    Features: a major draw of the MW games has always been customization. Mech sticks in many ways to the classic Battletech rules the way weight and critical slots work, for instance, only mechs have limited 'weapon hardpoints' to give them variety and (in theory) balance them. Again, it is an arcane system however plagued by balance problems and lack of information. The best source of mech customization info is actually a 3rd party website (look up Smurfy's mwo reference). For instance new player wouldn't know that Double Heat Sinks are essentially mandatory on most mechs, despite being absent on most trial mechs the developers put out, or which modules are actually worthwhile.

    Related to this, a big problem at the moment is the game's economy. Now with real-money-fueled "Premium Time" a player will make roughly the same c-bills as a player without Premium Time used to. Players not using Premium Time now make a pittance after the Cadet Bonus new players earn, if they buy a bad mech or otherwise spend their cbills poorly they will be stuck with their choice for a long time (dozens if not hundreds of matches, depending on what they want to buy next). As such many players, especially newer ones, will have a hard time than they used to.

    Of course, a new player could just buy MC to bypass the grind. But there's no other way to put this: mechs are downright absurdly expensive to buy with real money. Assault mechs, last I bothered looking, cost in the range of $30 USD a piece. I will say that again: thirty dollars to unlock a single mech. There is absolutely no defending the pricing scheme PGI has put in place, and it's highly unlikely that they will ever have a sale on MC again.

    As long as I'm on features, there's an extremely lengthy list of promised features that have not made it into the game: DX11 support, lobby system, Community Warfare, etc. It's not clear when most of these features will be in the game in any meaningful way.

    Visuals and Audio: the game frankly just doesn't look very good. Maps are the worst offenders, whether through bland colors, awful visual filters (Forest Colony), or bad textures/geometry (Tourmaline Desert). A game running on the Cryengine 3 in 2013 has no business looking as bad as it does.

    The one thing the game does right more than anything else is the mech designs the art team, led in this aspect by Flyingdebris/Alex Iglesias, has given us some of the best Battletech art the franchise has ever seen. On many of the mechs after the original four, however, this has not translated well to the actual game. Size is the primary issue, with many mechs being far larger than they should be, for flavor and for balance reasons.

    The game has some good sound effects (my favorite personal touch being the clanking sound an Atlas makes as it torso-twists) but there are issues and bugs with them at times. There's no music to speak of, despite there being a music volume slider in the options.

    Final: MWO is a game that could and should be so much better than it is. Through incompetence and flat-out lying, PGI has 'delivered' a buggy, broken experience that deserves a far better team working on it. It's salvageable, but considering PGI's hostile attitude to their own player base I don't have a lot of hope.    … Expand
  25. Tyzh
    Sep 17, 2013
    4
    The game has been chronically poorly balanced and buggy. Progress during closed beta was mostly spent going backwards. The real issue is that the game is now "launching" out of closed beta when it is neither stable nor feature complete. Core aspects of the game concept and design remain not simply incomplete, but excluded from the game entirely.

    It's not all doom and gloom. The core    The game has been chronically poorly balanced and buggy. Progress during closed beta was mostly spent going backwards. The real issue is that the game is now "launching" out of closed beta when it is neither stable nor feature complete. Core aspects of the game concept and design remain not simply incomplete, but excluded from the game entirely.

    It's not all doom and gloom. The core function of the game, shooting at other 'mechs, is really fun. The basics of combat have been right from the start. There is hope for the game to eventually be one of the best games for PC, but evaluating this launch as a complete game I cannot review it favorably.    … Expand
  26. 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
  27. maxblaster44
    Sep 21, 2013
    0
    I have played this game for at least 6 months and have heavy and assault mechs up to elites. And for all that time, up to launch day, the progress of the development team has been molasses slow. The game runs ok on a good gaming rig, and the net code is competent, but the game itself falls apart much after that.

    There is NO CONTENT. It is just to flavors, conquest and resources, and    I have played this game for at least 6 months and have heavy and assault mechs up to elites. And for all that time, up to launch day, the progress of the development team has been molasses slow. The game runs ok on a good gaming rig, and the net code is competent, but the game itself falls apart much after that.

    There is NO CONTENT. It is just to flavors, conquest and resources, and that is only against other players that may be much better or worse than you are. The majority of games one side is steamrolled by the other..

    On top of that COMMUNICATIONS is ABYSMAL NO VOICE IP CHAT.. and the chat window is horrendously awfull that text just goes away and you can not even respond intelegently.

    It is sad really, this game had a lot of promise in early beta, and then it all went to the managements head and pocket books, because they sure as hell did not spend it on the game.

    As it is right now, its god awful for new players, and the old players have had it.. most have parked thier mechs and walked away from this disaster.    … Expand
  28. OrbMonky
    Sep 17, 2013
    3
    Ultimately, MWO aspires to be much more than it is. However, after 2 years of development, it is tragically short of an enjoyable experience. How long PGI and IGP can keep this game breathing remains to be seen, however they have already reversed course on multiple design pillars and other promises that they used in order to sell the game to their customer base. It seems to be a classicUltimately, MWO aspires to be much more than it is. However, after 2 years of development, it is tragically short of an enjoyable experience. How long PGI and IGP can keep this game breathing remains to be seen, however they have already reversed course on multiple design pillars and other promises that they used in order to sell the game to their customer base. It seems to be a classic case of changing horses mid stream current rumors point to a potential XBONE port which may have greased the palms required to accomplish such a consumer unfriendly change in course.

    The game itself is marginally satisfying, if you're all about deathmatch in robots with counterstrike like rounds (no respawns), but for many, this will likely wear thin very quickly for all but the die-hard.

    Hope remains that this franchise will eventually be rebooted with a realistic and honestly presented set of goals and implementations.    … Expand
  29. 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 and    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 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
  30. elhimp
    Sep 17, 2013
    0
    Like a game programmer I just can't look at this game without tears in my eyes. Net code, movement system, hit boxes every technical detail is completely screwed. Add to this balance issues, non obvious mechanics and you get first not-fun mechwarrior.
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Awards & Rankings

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

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
68

Mixed or average reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. IGN Italia
    Sep 14, 2014
    85
    Nice gameplay and deep strategy for the latest incarnation of Mechwarrior. Too bad it lacks any kind of Single Player content.
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  2. PC Gamer
    Nov 4, 2013
    83
    Slightly overpriced, but a more than worthy successor to one of PC gaming’s greatest franchises that nails the important part: combat.
    Read full review
  3. Multiplayer.it
    Oct 22, 2013
    65
    MechWarrior Online does a pretty good job in balancing out the gameplay and gives you lots of BattleMechs, weapons and items to buy, but it's got only two game modes and it's definitely not that fun.
    Read full review
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