MechWarrior Online - Welcome to the Inner Sphere; The Future is WAR!

[Sinitron]

MWO Official Open Beta Trailer HD

Official website - check media section

MechWarrior Online is the continuation of the MechWarrior franchise. Originally showcased as MechWarrior 5 a few years ago, it has been revamped into a free-to-play online game. Unlike past installments in the series, it is set in the times shortly before and during the clan invasion - iconic 'mechs like the Mad Cat will not be present on launch. Instead, the developers are focusing on a more tactical game than the previous incarnations with Mechs serving a variety of roles and a more overall balanced game. While standard BattleMechs are still the norm, there are numerous variations which excel in fire support, scouting or command roles, and well-balanced teams are more likely to prevail on the various battlefields which include, but are not limited to, open battlefields and urban areas alike. It will initially have 12 'mechs available, with more being released later on (possibly as paid expansions to the core game). NEW 'MECHS RELEASED AS THEY COME!

Things to note:
- It is still very much a BETA. It is incomplete, missing features, and there will be BUGS. This game will be very different a few months from now as things are added, balanced and fixed.
- You should double-check your settings before launching the game. Things like full-screen/windowed, controls, etc... also, right control + arrow keys to adjust weapon groups.

Starting out:
- TRIALMECHS are free-to-play, and their line-up cycles every now and then. They do not earn your pilot experience, and a slightly reduced amount of credits. These can not be modified, but also do not need repairs nor rearming with ammunition or armor.
- Once you have accumulated sufficient credits, you can purchase your first BATTLEMECH in the mechlab - a good starting point would be a Hunchback, which is a solid all-rounder, and very newbie friendly. It's reasonably priced, and relies on direct fire weapons so you don't have to muck about as much as you would with missile boats.
- After each game, a number of factors decide your paycheck - kills, assists, damage done, targets spotted, total enemies destroyed and more. Your ammunition will need to be replenished, your armor and modules repaired. REPAIR BILLS NO MORE, GO CRAZY

Weapons:
- Machine guns, flamers and AC2s are generally not very effective.
- Lasers, larger caliber ACs, gauss rifles and SRMs are pretty good.
- LRMs require a target lock to be used effectively. By default, you can target an enemy with the R key, and your teammates can spot enemies for you and allow you to target them. The reliance on teamwork and coordination make LRMs a poor choice for starting out - make sure you double check the loadout of your trialmech.

Some terms to know:

AC - AutoCannon, comes in a variety of sizes, with the larger ones trading range and rate of fire for immensively damaging hits at point blank.
ER - Extended Range. Applies to energy weapons. As the name implies, they have greater reach, but also generate more heat.
PPC - Particle Projector Cannon. Similar to a projectile weapon, but energy-based and thus ammo-independent. Generates large amounts of heat.
XL - Extra Light. Refers to engines. XL Engines weigh less, but take up space in your mech's side torsos - if these are then blown out, you are killed even if your central torso is unharmed.
LRM - Long Range Missile. Heavy indirect fire, causing great amounts of splash damage on a target, but require a consistent target lock to be effective. Ammo-hungry and heat intensive. They also have a noticable minimal range, as the warheads need time to arm - fire them at point blank and they will bounce harmlessly off your target.
SRM - Short Range Missile. Unlike LRMs, they are brawler weapons meant to inflict heavy damage at point blank range. Lethal if focused on single sections of an enemy, much less so if spread out.
SSRM - Streak Short Range Missile. Anti-light specialist weapon, which require a target lock but always hit the center torso. Lethal to lighter 'mechs, but far less effective against larger targets.
AMS - Anti Missile System. Small machine gun, usually shoulder mounted, which shoots down missiles, but never all of them. Although some mechs have multiple hardpoints for these, only one will fire at a time. SCRATCH THAT YOU SHOULD BE ABLE HAVE MULTIPLE ACTIVE AMS UNITS NOW ON WHICHEVER MECHS HAVE THE HARDPOINTS TO SUPPORT THEM

Another thing to note, some weapons have numbers in their name, like an AC5 or LRM10. These mean VERY DIFFERENT THINGS for each - the AC5 is a caliber 5 autocannon, meaning it fires bigger rounds than the AC2 and smaller rounds than the AC10. The LRM10 on the other hand, is referring to the total amount of missiles fired in a volley. This is also limited by the actual amount of missile tubes on your mech's model - the Centurion has 10 tubes, so with an LRM20 it has to fire them in 2 volleys with a slight delay between them. The same applies to the SRM variants. Most weapons also have their own weapon-specific ammunition, for example LRM and SRM ammunition is not interchangable, and an AC10 cannot fire AC5 rounds.

Beginner Tutorial

[rtil]

may be the first mmo i ever play

[Sinitron]

"A game trailer was shown in 2009 for a Reboot for the series for the 5th game in the vein of the first 4 games set in 3015 but as time went by the IP rights holder and game developers couldn't find a publisher for such a game and have since retooled the game into a Free to play MMO like game set in the 3049(one year before the Clan invasion era) that will allegedly update storyline-wise each day after the the currently set August 1 2012 release date (which will be August 1st, 3049 in game universe.)"

[Sinitron]

These three are current candidates for the third medium 'mech in a facebook poll posted by the developers. So far, the Dervish is winning by a landslide, which isn't a big surprise as it has long been considered a fan favorite for the spot, is more range-oriented to make it stand out from the Hunchback and Centurion, and it can also serve in a command role which none of the other current 'mechs are really designed for - it could possibly also open up a spot in the assault-class for the Cyclops as a high-end command 'mech. Another 'fan favorite' has been the Trebuchet, because it is the long-range partner of the confirmed Centurion, but it looks unlikely to be in the first wave if this poll reflects the thoughts of the developers.

[Gladius]

Armored Core > Zone of the Enders > Shit > Mechwarrior > Dog shit >>> Steel Battalion

Prepare to die.

[Sinitron]

All of those except MechWarrior are console games. While I can understand that you, a moronic cretin with no taste, would prefer underdeveloped titles of a poor standard with severe consolitis issues, some of us enjoy mapping our own damn keys and having responsive controls with consistent online play that doesn't rely on a paid service and/or whether the console producer likes you or not.

You could at least have mentioned Hawken, though that's still more run-and-gun action compared to MWO.

[Gladius]

While I can understand that you, a moronic cretin with no taste, would prefer underdeveloped titles of a poor standard

says the guy who likes mechwarrior

but yeah descent beats all games on my list and ran on my polaris 486 back in '97 (mw3 didn't) HOW COULD I FORGET THAT...

[Sinitron]

MW3 wasn't released in '97.

[Gladius]

'99 fuck off

[rtil]

there's a zone of the enders arcade box

but yea mw belongs on the pc, not enough buttons on a console controller to play it. and frankly it's not as fun on consoles

[ZennyPLUS]

So as long as I get to control a giant robot and have fun, I really could care less if the title were a PC or console exclusive game.

[rtil]

well the problem with mechwarrior on a console is that you need to be able to have control of several things to be efficient in combat, this involves things like telling your squadron what to do (attack your target, change formation, defend a target, etc), fire modes for weapons, hud display options, mech control, throttle and jet propulsion, and target cycling and inspection, amongst other things. it's just better to have the functionality of a keyboard , otherwise you're either going to have a convoluted console control setup or you'll just have to remove features from console mech games

[Gladius]

well the problem with mechwarrior on a console is that you need to be able to have control of several things to be efficient in combat, this involves things like telling your squadron what to do (attack your target, change formation, defend a target, etc), fire modes for weapons, hud display options, mech control, throttle and jet propulsion, and target cycling and inspection, amongst other things. it's just better to have the functionality of a keyboard , otherwise you're either going to have a convoluted console control setup or you'll just have to remove features from console mech games

if you like a game that requires more than 8 buttons to play in the first place you're doing it wrong, nerdly

[rtil]

not all of us have devolved to playing social games that a baby could play i understand though, some games are too complicated for people to figure out. wouldn't want to strain yourself or anything.

[Gladius]

video games are strenuous? don't project yourself onto me ya fucken NERRRRD

[rtil]

i was referring to your small brain

[Gladius]

fun fact: large brains are actually a symptom of retardation

now back ya go to fiddling with an absurd 120-key and 2 stick control scheme mastered only by autistics and deluding yourself into thinking it makes you pythagoras while i blow shit up and have actual fun in armored core 4 descent 3 zoe2 and others

[Sinitron]

but all those games are still worse than hawken

[ZennyPLUS]

well the problem with mechwarrior on a console is that you need to be able to have control of several things to be efficient in combat, this involves things like telling your squadron what to do (attack your target, change formation, defend a target, etc), fire modes for weapons, hud display options, mech control, throttle and jet propulsion, and target cycling and inspection, amongst other things. it's just better to have the functionality of a keyboard , otherwise you're either going to have a convoluted console control setup or you'll just have to remove features from console mech games

if you like a game that requires more than 8 buttons to play in the first place you're doing it wrong, nerdly

not all of us have devolved to playing social games that a baby could play i understand though, some games are too complicated for people to figure out. wouldn't want to strain yourself or anything.

Ironically, there is truth to both of these statements. I'm sure there's a way to make a game like MW work on a console without removing functionality, you just have to find some really talented developers.

[Sinitron]

Ironically, there is truth to both of these statements. I'm sure there's a way to make a game like MW work on a console without removing functionality, you just have to find some really talented developers.

No, there isn't. If you've played MechWarrior, you would definitely know this. Also, MWO is coming with 2 targeting reticules - one for the weapons mounted in your arms, and one for the weapons mounted in the torso (which can not be aimed without twisting the entire torso), in addition to the things rtil mentioned. Console MW would be an incredibly gimped or watered down version, or it would have some incredibly convoluted commands for doing simple tasks.