Mechwarrior 2

Activision

Combat Simulator

Bad Mojo

WOW! Graphics, action, playability, soundtrack, soundtrack, soundtrack and soundtrack. This game has it all, did I mention soundtrack? Although it takes a monster of a machine to really get the lead out of this game, it makes MechWarrior I look like a walk in the park. The action centers around two clans who are currently warring with each other in the BattleTech universe. Clan Jade Falcon and Clan Wolf basically go head to head with you as a single MechWarrior on either side who can easily turn the tide of a battle. Wonderful graphics and the smooth engine make combat so realistic and exciting, it's almost like being there. The soundtrack sets the mood wonderfully and is even playable in a standard CD Player. The game follows a rather normal trend of either campaign missions or network playability. At the time of this review, the network add on was recently released and not yet tested. Head to head mech combat is something I look forward to trying soon.

Quintin Stone

I've been a fan of Battletech since first playing it several years back, and I, like most people, had heard a lot about how great MechWarrior 2 was going to be, so I was anxious to play it. And it was good. The cut scenes had spectacular graphics. Very well done. I never really got a chance to play the actual game on a high detail level, since it was so CPU intensive.

Good points:

Graphics. Not only were the cut scenes and demo done well, but the actual battle sequences were impressive to watch, even on lower detail levels.

True to the game. While I haven't played much of the Battletech Clans, the weaponry was taken, for the most part, right from the board game.

Bad points:

Subtle inaccuracies. There were a few. The biggest one, I think, is that leg weapons are not supposed to pivot with the torso. In this game, they did. Granted, it'd be impossible to hit anything with them when you do twist, but they are mounted on the legs, so they shouldn't turn with you.

Rockets versus guns. Cannons are just so damn hard to hit with at times, I would often design my own mechs that carried nothing but LRM's. Not only do they have great range, but they lock onto a target, making it difficult to miss. With that ever-present lag between when I move the joystick and when the screen moves, rockets were sometimes the only way to survive. Just run backwards and wait for a lock, then fire. Get three or four launchers and go to town. This just seemed kinda off to me.

Outgunned. I never managed to finish the game as Clan Wolf. The reason that I give for this is the mission in which you have to take out three of the same mech-type you are piloting. This wouldn't be so hard one-by-one, but when the dropship dumps you planet-side, two of the three enemy mechs are already firing at you. I'm sorry, no matter how I modified my mech or altered my strategy, I just could not keep up. Over and over, I'd take out two just to get killed by the third because my guns had gotten shot off, or I'd run out of ammo.

Conclusion:

If you are a Battletech fan, get this game. It will not conform to the same strategies of the original board game, but it is still a hell of a high to pilot in real-time one of these big Mechs. If you generally enjoy flight or mech simulators, get this game.