Mechwarrior Online Drops

Andy Chalk

One Flag, One Fleet, One Cat
Nov 12, 2002
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Mechwarrior Online Drops


The lid has finally been lifted on Mechwarrior Online, the new, free-to-play addition to the famous fighting robot franchise.

It was more than two years ago that a new Mechwarrior game was confirmed [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/93031-New-Mechwarrior-Confirmed-UPDATED] by way of a super-hot launch trailer that illustrated some of the many things that can go wrong when you go toe-to-toe with an Atlas. Today that game has finally been revealed as Mechwarrior Online, a free-to-play multiplayer mech combat sim that promises upgradeable, customizable mechs, team-based gameplay, "real" urban combat, information warfare and a whole lot more.

"I think it's really the PC Gamer [http://www.amazon.com/AcTiVision-CDM-3092-Mechwarrior-2/dp/B00002S7ZX/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320093786&sr=8-1]. "It's fully first-person. It's not a new interpretation. We're modernizing things a little bit, I think we'll get to those questions, but certainly it's Mechwarrior."

But while previous Mechwarrior games tended to devolve into circle-strafing contests in open fields, this game will sport some new features designed to make mech combat more "realistic." Multiple teams of multiple lances will be able to take the field against one another and while straight-up deathmatch is supported, it's the "conquest" mode that will be the primary focus.

Also important, according to Mechwarrior Online Creative Director Bryan Elkman, is keeping all mech classes viable and attractive, rather than just turning things into a spring for the assault class. "We want to make gameplay be less about an arms race, where you start in a light Mech but you really want to get into an assault Mech because that's the best thing there is," he said.

The focus on team cooperative team-based combat will go a long way toward making that happen; so will urban combat, which has never been very well-implemented in previous Mechwarrior games. "One of the things we can do these days that previous games weren't able to do well is urban combat," he added. "And it's a cornerstone of MWO, this ability to actually fight in detailed urban settings."

The game will be free-to-play, but Elkman promised that doesn't mean it will be pay-to-win. "Anything that would affect or give your a tactical advantage, you can't purchase with real cash. You have to earn that by playing the game," he said. And while both Mechs and pilots will be able to follow multiple upgrade paths, it should be fairly straightforward stuff for anyone who's spent time in the breach. "If someone has played a combination of Mechwarrior, Diablo [http://www.amazon.com/Call-Duty-Modern-Warfare-Xbox-360/dp/B00503E8S2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1320093903&sr=8-1] in their gaming life, they're going to have seen everything that we're offering for the most part," Bullock added.

The PC-exclusive Mechwarrior Online isn't due to launch until sometime in the second half of 2012 but gamers who want to get a head start on things can find out more about the game and even reserve pilot names right now at mwomercs.com [http://www.mwomercs.com].


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Sonicron

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Mar 11, 2009
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Oh, good! Apparently they've managed to get their project out of legal limbo.
It's been many years since I played it, but I still have nothing but good memories of Mechwarrior 4. Time to charge the PPCs and load up the Gauss ammo... :)
 

Nightmonger

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Jul 1, 2010
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Time to dust of the long toms!! Heh heh can not wait for this been waiting for a new mechwarrior game since mechwarrior 4 yeah and If it's possible most people will just go for the assault mechs I mean who Dosent love an Atlas ?
 

Aeshi

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Dec 22, 2009
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Dear god I want this and I've never even played Mechwarrior. It looks like a Mecha version of Borderlands, which I'm pretty sure makes it a qualifier for the most fun game ever.
 

The Madman

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Dec 7, 2007
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Colour me intrigued. The Mechwarrior series has long been one of my absolute favourites and while I've never really dabbled in the multiplayer components (Mechwarrior: Living Legends aside) if this game can capture even a fraction of she sheer intensity of the original games then it'll definitely be worth looking into.
 

Leemaster777

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Feb 25, 2010
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Oh hells yeah. I love me some Mechwarrior, and I've been eagerly anticipating a new installment.

I didn't play it all THAT much, but I remember the online in Mechwarrior 4 being fun as hell, so this sounds like fun on a bun.

I'm also glad to hear that they're at least ATTEMPTING to balance the weight classes. The online of Mechwarrior 4 really was just a bunch of Awesomes and Daishis.
 

shintakie10

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Sep 3, 2008
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At first I was like yay! Then I realized that I'd have to use house mechs and was like booo! I want my sleek clan mechs...and my energy weapons that don't absolutely murder my combat viability. Then again, I'd never play another mech other than an Uziel anyway, so I dont know what I'm whinin about.

On the plus side its Mechwarrior...its free...and the devs are swearin up and down that it will not be pay 2 win. All in all, I call that a win.
 

Atmos Duality

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Mar 3, 2010
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shintakie10 said:
On the plus side its Mechwarrior...its free...and the devs are swearin up and down that it will not be pay 2 win. All in all, I call that a win.
We'll see about the "no pay 2 win". At least they're well aware of that as a dealbreaker, but it makes me wonder how they're going to nip you in other ways.

Nothing good in life is truly free.
 

shintakie10

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Atmos Duality said:
shintakie10 said:
On the plus side its Mechwarrior...its free...and the devs are swearin up and down that it will not be pay 2 win. All in all, I call that a win.
We'll see about the "no pay 2 win". At least they're well aware of that as a dealbreaker, but it makes me wonder how they're going to nip you in other ways.

Nothing good in life is truly free.
They can easily go the route of League of Legends. You can buy different skins and whatnot (probably decal slots or somethin in Mechwarrior) and champions (mechs in mechwarriors case), but if they're serious about makin sure that there is some semblance of balance between a tiny little Raven and a massive Daishi (give me a Daishi over a Awesome any day), bein able to buy heavier mechs shouldn't be that large of an advantage over earnin them naturally or becomin extremely good with a lighter mech.
 

Saulkar

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Aug 25, 2010
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Andy Chalk said:
Mechwarrior Online Drops

The lid has finally been lifted on Mechwarrior Online, the new, free-to-play addition to the famous fighting robot franchise.

that illustrated some of the many things that can go wrong when you go toe-to-toe with an Awesome.
That was an Atlas.

This is an Awesome.
 

Ancientgamer

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Jan 16, 2009
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Sad that the project won't be single player based, but at the same time ecstatic to see a legitimate MW project getting off the ground.
 

Parnage

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Apr 13, 2010
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Best. Day. Ever.

A proper mechwarrior game in good hands, online and a promise of no pay to win mockeries? Well, I'am looking forward to this more then anything else now. Now excuse me as I squee.
 

Caffeine Rage

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Mar 11, 2011
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I'm really excited by this news. I was talking to a friend last night about game genres that have died out and this, mech combat, is one of them that was brought up.

I played the heck out of the last couple games of the series and I look forward to seeing what they have in store. I never really got to play a Mechwarrior game on-line, I was a bit late to the game, but it should be interesting.
 

Baresark

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Dec 19, 2010
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I look forward to seeing more about this. I'm not crazy about F2P, but that doesn't mean I never found a fun one to play.
 

AzureRaven

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Jul 21, 2011
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MechWarrior, you say?
Free to Play, you say?
Well...count me in.
As long as they don't screw it up with the combat changes I'm so in, it sounds like a blast. I love the MechWarrior series. Ah...the good times I had with Vengeance. I hope they throw the Shadow Cat in there.
 

toothofymir

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May 6, 2009
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As delighted I am to see MechWarrior finally returning, I would rather see MechWarrior 5.

Then again, as long as I can pilot a Timberwolf, they've got me sold.