MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries

1001 hours hella funk keeps getting better

I lost way too much progress to recommend this game due to developers choice to add more paid dlc and not fix existing issues. Chaos Reign was meant to be the last dlc which made modding this game awesome. Well that's not the case anymore. Not only are they NOW deciding to update the game after tons of mods have been made for it but they're releasing a new DLC and update which breaks the games already created mods. But they made the new DLC paid with not much being added. This game is not the same game that was advertised before or when I bought it.

It's a very good mech game that frequently goes on sale, so wait for the seasonal sales, or mech/scifi/cyberpunk sales to grab it and the dlcs for low prices. the modding scene is also pretty nice, Yet Another MechLab reworks the equipment so that it is more in-depth like mechwarrior online

yea

Best mech game ever.

I've never played any other Mechwarrior games, only Battletech by HBS. Yet, I absolutely love this game. The feeling of driving a big stompy robot covered in lasers is incredible. I often get tired of games after a few weeks, but I'm always coming back to this to do a few more missions or re-arm a new mech I've salvaged.

Initially avoided the game because PGI took the bag from Epic and gave a big middle finger to all of their backers who were waiting for the Steam release. After the exclusivity period ended, the game wasn't a priority purchase for me any more, so several years passed until just before the Steam '26 Summer Sale, when it finally combined a free weekend with an all-time low discount that even I couldn't ignore. Playing the game on Geforce NOW (Performance tier) with all of the settings maxed out and it looks pretty damned good. Also using a controller, and it works just fine there as well (but note that there's not normally a button for the 6th weapon group). The game play itself is pretty solid, running a merc unit over decades from a nothing outfit with a couple of ragged-a**ed 'Mechs to a powerhouse team with a roster of the very best from Inner Sphere and Clan tech. In the process, you investigate the mystery of a rogue merc unit that drove your unit the brink of extinction and killed your MC's father in the process. But those mercs are only the first part of a mystery that eventually leads you into a direct confrontation with one of the most enigmatic and dangerous powers in human-occupied space, and from there to a mystery whose origin stretches back centuries to a conflict that was the end of humanity's fabled Golden Age. If you have the DLC, you'll find the campaign padded out by opportunities for earn powerful rewards by completing special side missions, and even participate in some of the pivotal historical moments in the game's universe. Additionally, the DLC adds scores of new units to fight against or acquire for yourself, along with new weapons and other hardware, new types of contracts to hustle for cash, and even new mechanics that let you tweak your garage of 'Mechs for performance boosts beyond what mere hardware swaps can grant. There are a couple of downsides, however. First off, depending on how you tackle the main campaign, you might find that the campaign's timeline doesn't actually match up with the in-game calendar. This is especially notable if you do a lot of side stuff in an effort to build up bank, units, pilots, and a stock of quality gear. It's not a major problem, but it does cause a bit of "wtflol" when the characters are talking about events that (to them) only happened a few years ago, but something like 30 years have passed in game because of you building up or messing around. The second downside, and this one has some actual game effect, is the arrival of the Clans. On stock difficulty, they will skullf*ck you; their weapons hit harder, fire faster, have longer ranges, shorter cooldown/reload times, and generate less heat. On top of that, they're also lighter and smaller than comparable weapons that you've been using for most of the game, so they can pack in more of them onto a chassis of a given weight. Taking on any mission against the Clans with less than your maximum possible dropweight is asking to lose units and valuable hardware. And even when you do go in as heavy as possible, they'll still chew you up and spit out pieces. Fortunately, the game doesn't care if you diddle the difficulty to make your missions less taxing, so feel free to make the Clans a bit less capable when you face them.