MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries Reviews

The action in this game is not strategic, or very tactical. The AI's either run in circles or straight at you. Prior MW titles had more individualized missions, whereas most of the content in this game is procedurally generated. Still, its fun for what it is, smashing stuff and brute force attacks. I was shocked when the credits rolled at the end of the game. It did not seem at all like that was supposed to be the end of the game. The game doesn't end so much as it just stops. If you love the genre, yeah you'll enjoy yourself with this game. But there have been better MW games.

While I can't call this the best mech game I've ever played, it's still a solid sandbox-like game set in the Battletech universe.

If you like the world and stories of MechWarrior, this game is worth playing. Instead of being tied to any one house, you run your own Mech Merc. Co. Work for or against whoever you want. Good Hunting!

Not very interesting and it is difficult to know what exactly you have to do next.

If you get it on sale along with some of the DLC and coop it with a coop mod list from the workshop, its great fun.

[h2]TLDR -[/h2] Mechwarrior 5 is a really great game if you enjoyed any of the prior Mechwarrior games, it is a lot more easily controlled than the older games without taking away the feeling of piloting a giant mech. The story is fairly decent, the spread of mechs available base game is acceptable, and there are plenty of weapons to play with. Another huge bonus is that this game has really great mod support and can be played with up to four people co-op. [h2] Pros -[/h2] Great controls, basically plays like a more refined MWO. Dosen’t detract from the feeling of piloting a mech at all. The game with all the DLC is a very complete MechWarrior experience, lots of varied mechs, lots of varied weapons, lots of missions, and a timeline you can follow in the non-story campaign mode. This game still runs really well and has very little to no bugs. You can easily play this game on a modern potato device. The modding community has churned out some REALLY good mods for this game that vastly improve the experience. [h2]Mids -[/h2] Some of the UI interactions can feel dated or slow. Really only worth it's asking price if you intend on playing it a bunch. I don't recall the campaign having 30 hours of content if you did nothing but the main missions. Inventory organization is at an acceptable -> good level, but could be better, AC’s for instance, don’t show from AC2-AC20 order, sometimes they get jumbled up. [h2]Cons -[/h2] Vastly overpriced DLC for what each of them adds. Get them on a discount. Base game missions get dull after a while. Basegame Mechlab is not equivalent to MWO or some other prior games. You cannot add Endo, Ferro, or swap engines in base game, fortunately, there is a mod for that. YAML. Not being able to do a non-story campaign without one particular DLC.

Nothing like MechWarriors games of the past. Badly explained and poorly balanced. If you can manage to push your way through the start of the game then you'll still have trouble down the road. AI is poor. This is based solely on single player, I did not try online or coop. 3 out of 5 stars at best...

I have been playing this on and off for years, I think the base game as it stands is pretty great. I also own the expansions because I wanted some more missions and of course more mechs and parts. I have primarily played this title modded though I occasionally do unmodded playthroughs especially when a new expansion/update comes out. This game is also fun to play with friends though the multiplayer can occasionally disconnect the session at random which can be annoying. The mission design is pretty simple for the most part and might be repetitive for some, there are mods that add additional mission types and scenarios as well as new difficulty options. This game is not perfect but if my playtime attests to anything it is quite fun. I really like the loop of completing contracts, salvaging, and refitting new mechs to take on more difficult contracts for even heavier mechs. The progression from using light mechs to the heaviest assault mechs takes time but feels satisfying every campaign I have done. The combat is meant simulating convincing battles with heavy walking war machines and I believe the game succeeds at this. There is also management of your mercenary force to consider, making sure you are taking in enough money to pay for your upkeep and travel expenses adds another layer of strategy to progression (which can be adjusted through mods for more difficulty or to avoid engaging with the financial gameplay). The mod support for this game really allows you to create a customized experience for yourself, and I highly recommend "Yet Another Mechlab" and many of its supporting mods. The workshop is good, but I recommend Nexus mods with their Vortex mod manager.

Lacks polish in some places, but if you want to feel like a god of war piloting a 10 metre tall death machine there are few games that deliver that experience better. The missions can get repetitive, but the core gameplay is fun, and there are a lot of 'Mechs of varying weigh, speed, and weaponry to choose from, all with customizable loadouts, The campaign is quite open, letting you choose which missions to do, and being able to postpone campaign missions until you're ready for them, with only optional (mostly DLC) campaigns having time limits for lore reasons. If you're a fan of BattleTech or Mechs in general this game is for you.

Coming from someone who played MW 2 and MW 2 mercenaries in the 90s, this is the best version of MW I've ever played. I still need to try MW 5 Clans, but this game is wonderful. I think you should shop around on the DLCs and make sure which ones you really want, since they do change the power balance of the game significantly in some cases. Melee weaponry from solaris is pretty extreme in its power level for example. I would recommend playing without DLC first and see what you would like to add as additional features from DLCs after that. Inviting your friends to serve as crew members, being able to level up their pilots, is really great. We all wish we could bring our one favorite mech with is to another bay, but we really enjoy maintaining mechs for individual friends to use when they visit. Really feels cool to have something set aside for them with their own paint job etc. When the DLC are viewed as optional houserules you can choose to install or not, I think they make the game accessible for all sorts of playstyles.