BATTLETECH

This is a tricky one because I'm not sure if I should like the game *more* or *less* than I actually do. I like the setting and the core gameplay because everything is better with Mechs and the tactical turn-based combat combined with the management layer hasn't become any worse in the years since the XCOM remake. Unfortunately, where the game falls down for me is in implementation. It just feels sloppy in several areas. - The combat UI is a bit of a mess and could definitely use improvements, although it's adequate once you get used to it. - The loading times have no right to be as long as they are. I'm running this from a SanDisk Ultra II SSD and it can take between 30-60 seconds to load one map with only half a dozen units on it. - Performance overall doesn't match the visual fidelity of the game, it clearly has optimization issues. The game looks fine because the aesthetic design is good, but the level of graphical fidelity was taken from around 5-8 years ago. - The campaign is...eh. You're a mercenary hired to help a young noblewoman conquer the throne back from her evil uncle. Somehow I can't get invested in a story about an entitled aristocratic brat who is pontificating about her "birthright" whenever she gets to open her mouth. Not to mention that it's somewhere between "woman scorned" and "damsel in distress". Lazy and tired tropes all around. - If you're a) going to make your story missions linear to-do lists the player has to follow, and if b) said missions can go on for over an hour, and if you're c) going to have autosave-checkpoints, then why on earth would you d) put the ONLY checkpoint at 30 seconds into the mission?! And then e) have the mission fail because a character died in combat even though he was supposed to die anyway - in a cutscene - literally 1 minute later? But overall, if you can bruteforce the performance issues and the sketchy mission design and writing isn't a dealbreaker, the core gameplay is still solid and fun.

I absolutly love this game and would highly recommend it... After a few patches that is. In it's current state it needs some optimization badly, the load times between missions are hardcore and occasionaly the game with twitch out for a second. So while that is something that can fix later, right now it's an annoyance, one that I will gleefully accept. Balance feels pretty good, though you should be aware that intel isn't always correct and you can find yourself facing crushing odds if you are not careful. Weapon systems and equipment feel right and don't listen to the Mechdads crying because HBS altered AC's or Medium lasers, the table top was a hot mess and balance was garbage. I will say the number of head shots you recieve is a bit... much... All in all it is a worthwile game, between the ground combat, managing finances and factions I'm sold, story is honestly alot better then I thought it would be and tries very hard to stick into feel of the lore... technical issues are the biggest hang ups so far, maybe they will fix them and maybe I'll give it five stars.

In my opinion it is a very good game but it has a mayor bug: Even on the title screen the games creates nearly 100% load on the graphic card.

broken. freezes on startup, unable to play

I love BattleTech. Between the old MechWarrior games and my beloved Virtual World pods, I've adored this franchise for over 20 years. I was thrilled to hear HBS was making this game, as I've really appreciated their work on the Shadowrun games. I played a bit in the backer beta, but intentionally moved away from it so that I could fully appreciate the game at launch. I was not disappointed. I love this game! It represents not only the combat of the franchise extremely well, but it also represents the setting and the feeling of running a mercenary company better than any videogame version that has ever come before. It's everything I hoped it would be, and I sincerely hope Hairbrained Schemes makes more of it. Expansions, sequels, whatever... If they make it, I'll buy it. I have over 700 hours played in BattleTech on Steam. Multiple campaigns completed, and a couple of the new Careers from Flashpoint. I don't get any of the complaints I've read. This has been a fantastic experience for me. I almost bought it again on GOG. Steam profile: https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198007640479/