After hitting a minor setback that pushed its release date back by a good three months, MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries is finally releasing on December 10. The first mainline MechWarrior game released in almost 20 years MechWarrior 5 promises to return to the gritty vehicular giant mech combat that started the genre.
The developers, Piranha Games, just dropped the launch trailer right here:
The trailer features some BattleMechs which die-hard fans are sure to recognize (one of which, the King Crab, has gone from an out-of-place robot to a menacing machine of destruction). The trailer also features the words GET BEATEN, GET BACK UP, GET BETTER, GET STRONGER, GET EVEN, which is a fair description of how MechWarrior has worked. The game is set in the year 3015, during the Third Succession War. This time period in the MechWarrior universe is quite early, as most titles start after 3049, which is the year the single-player mode of MechWarrior 5 ends (and is also the year of the Clan Invasions, for those interested in the lore).
A Return to Form
The game's usual formula consists of you starting with one of the weakest mechs available. From there, you build and upgrade and change your mech by undergoing missions to grant you credits. Along the way, you'll also be able to add AI-assisted allies with you (at least in the single-player campaign), who are called Lances. Players are wary, though, as their opponents are usually better funded and better equipped.
A key aspect of MechWarrior is deploying the right kind of mech for the job, and understanding when to cut your losses. The game also features salvaging, which allows you to gather the spoils of war after each mission. It's up to you to decide what you want to do with the salvage: Do you equip that shiny "new" laser canon to your lightweight mech? Or maybe sell it for credits so you can hire Lances with better stats, or buy a new MechWarrior chassis so you can diversify your arsenal.
Technical Specifications
While the game is undoubtedly very pretty to look at thanks to its usage of Unreal Engine 4, the game's minimum requirements aren't that high. Here are the minimum specs your PC needs to run the game:
- CPU: Intel Core i3-7100, or equivalent
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770, or equivalent
- RAM: 4GB
- OS: Windows 7, Windows 8.1 or Windows 10 (64-bit versions)
- HDD: 80GB free space
- DirectX: Version 11
Though if you want to enjoy the game the way the devs intended to, here are the specs they've recommended:
- CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K/AMD Ryzen 7 1700
- GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070/AMD RX Vega 56
- RAM: 16GB
- OS: Windows 7, Windows 8.1 or Windows 10 (64-bit versions)
- HDD: 55GB free space (SSD)
- DirectX: Version 11
The game is also stated to have Mod Support like all of its predecessors. However, since it is an Epic Game Store Exclusive for a year (a move which was met with considerable backlash from its Kickstarter backers. Piranha Games did offer refunds for those wanted), it is unsure when the game will start supporting it as the Epic Game Store Client still has no support for it. As of the moment, Epic has stated that they plan to release this feature in 2020.
You can buy MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries here.
