MechWarrior Online

MechWarrior Online
Studio	Piranha Games
Publisher	Infinite Game Publishing
Erstveröffent- lichung	Open Beta: October 29, 2012, final version: September 17, 2013
platform	Microsoft Windows
Game engine	CryEngine 3
genre	Simulation game , action game , online game
Subject	BattleTech , mechs , military science fiction
Game mode	Multiplayer , single player (tutorial only and for testing a mech)
control	Mouse , keyboard , joystick
system advantages preconditions	OS: 64-Bit Windows 7, CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 / AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+, RAM: 4 GB, GPU: AMD Radeon HD5670 / Nvidia GeForce 8800GT, HDD: 25 GB (50 GB during installation)
medium	Download
language	English
information	Requires internet connection

MechWarrior Online is a Mech - simulation game from Canadian development studio Piranha Games . It was a free-to-play - Online game designed and released in 2013 for Windows . It takes place in the BattleTech universe.

action

→ Main article : BattleTech

The player takes on the role of a MechWarriors, a pilot of the BattleMechs , Mech for short. Large, heavily armed fighting machines from the 31st century. The theater of war is the Inner Sphere , in which various noble houses and mercenaries fight each other for territory.

Gameplay

In battles with up to 12 against 12 players, C-bills , a game currency, and experience points can be earned, which can be used to buy, upgrade and customize mechs . A single player - campaign there is not, the game is limited only to online matches that are either publicly denies with random players or closed with friends. The game modes are Assault (basic defense or attack), Conquest (conquest) and Skirmish ( team deathmatch ). Fighting takes place from the first person ( cockpit ) or optionally from the third person perspective. During the matches, the tactical approach in the team is decisive for victory. During fights, the player must above all keep an eye on the heat management, i.e. the waste heat from the fired weapons, as otherwise his BattleMech or its fusion reactor drive will overheat and shut down for a short time to cool down and in extreme cases even explode.

Another game mode, the so-called Community Warfare, has existed since the end of 2014 . This is a game variant (added with the clans) in which, further divided into teams of twelve players, the members of the individual factions according to their affiliation (houses of the so-called inner sphere as well as the clans) from individual planets to Fight entire areas of the Inner Sphere. The mercenaries iconic for the Battletech universe have so far only been found in temporary contracts with one of the above. Factions Taking into account what is shown in the game as regular membership of the respective faction.

Unlike in the regular game (now referred to as Quick Play), in which each player only controls one Mech and after its destruction (usually very quickly for beginners) can only participate as an observer in the remainder of the match, in the significantly longer Community Warfare you have at your disposal -Match via a landing ship, which (subject to a tonnage limit) can be freely equipped with four battlemechs. However, these must belong to the currently elected main faction, i. H. whoever competes for one of the houses of the Inner Sphere must also lead the corresponding battlemechs in the field, even if they own clan mechs.

If the first chosen mech is destroyed, the player is transferred back to the dropship, which after a short waiting time drops him off at one of the specified starting points in one of his still available mech. If all of his' Mechs are lost, the player suffers the so-called permadeath (from English permanent death) and can only watch the rest of the match as an observer.

Victory and defeat bring the player, as usual, CBills and experience points, depending on his performance; in case of victory, he also receives points for loyalty to the current faction. After collecting certain points, these lead to a rise within the ranks of the respective faction, which in turn is accompanied by various rewards, such as a Mechbay (garage parking space), which can only be purchased with real money.

Development history

In December 2007, the company announced Smith & Tinker of BattleTech creator Jordan Weisman , software licenses to BattleTech , Shadowrun and Crimson Skies of Microsoft purchased. On June 8, 2009, Smith & Tinker announced that it was working with the Piranha Games studio on the fifth part of the MechWarrior series. The game was due to launch at this point with a single player campaign, four player co-op, and online play options. However, since Microsoft blocked porting to PlayStation 3 through the license agreement , no publisher could be found to finance the development work. After work on Duke Nukem Forever in the meantime , Piranha Games announced at the end of October 2011 that they had entered into a more comprehensive license agreement with Smith & Tinker. The game should now appear as an online game based on the free-to-play model under the name MechWarrior Online in the second half of 2012. When the Smith & Tinker studio was closed, however, the previously acquired license rights to MechWarrior were transferred back to Microsoft and only partially remained with Piranha Games. In 2012 Piranha Games started a crowdfunding campaign together with Infinite Game Publishing to complete the game. The campaign raised $ 5 million.

On 29 October 2012, published by Piranha Games Open Beta of MechWarrior Online . The game was officially released on September 17, 2013, but was continuously expanded to include additional game content such as new mechs, weapons, equipment modules and maps using patches .

On 13 December 2013, appeared Clan Collection , the scope eight OmniMechs the clan includes what the Inner Sphere in 3050 invade . Since then, these have found their way into the game.

On September 8, 2014, Piranha Games announced that, through negotiations with the publisher Infinite Game Publishing, since September 1, 2014 it had the sole license rights to MechWarrior Online after three years of cooperation.

Business model

MechWarrior Online is free-to-play (can be played for free) and is financed with so-called microtransactions . This includes game content, such as expanded hangar space for additional Mechs, camouflage colors, special paintwork, etc., which you can purchase with MechWarrior Credits, MC for short, which you can buy for real money.

Press review

Reviews in German PC game magazines :

• GameStar 2013: Enjoyment of the game 85% “very good”.
• PC Games 2013: 85% "First-class multiplayer mech spectacle with a fair F2P price model."
• buffed 2012: 76%

Web links

• Official website
• MechWarrior Online at MobyGames (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Simon Carless: Weisman Licenses MechWarrior, Shadowrun, Crimson Skies Rights From Microsoft. Retrieved January 5, 2019 . 
2. ↑ http://pc.ign.com/articles/100/1002275p1.html
3. ↑ Dev Blog 0. In: Official website. October 23, 2011, accessed January 5, 2019 . 
4. ↑ Rob Zacny: Meet MechWarrior Online, Piranha's free-to-play tactical Mech sim. In: PC Gamer. October 31, 2011. Retrieved January 5, 2019 (American English). 
5. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original from February 26, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
6. ↑ Colin Campbell: How MechWarrior Online got funded without Kickstarter. In: Gamasutra . Retrieved January 5, 2019 . 
7. ↑ Emanuel Maiberg: MechWarrior Online announces Clan Collection with $ 500 gold mechs, UI 2.0 still coming. In: PC Gamer. December 16, 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2019 (American English). 
8. ↑ mwomercs.com - On Piranha Games
9. ↑ Rating of the GameStar
10. ↑ Rating of PC Games
11. ↑ Rating from buffed.de