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[Lime]

Good. Exotic equipment SHOULD be limited. This bodes well for Clan tech down the line.

I mean, it's a sacrifice, an XL Guass cat IS a powerful build (honestly, an XL is pretty much a straight upgrade for a guass cat), if you want to risk the cost, that's your call. It's 8v8, one player in a really tricked out mech CAN make the difference, they just have to be ready to pay the bill.

I used to use an XL Jenner and Dragon and Hunchie, and felt that those mechs were only useful with said XLs. But now that every jenner isn't moving 140, and every Hunchie isn't a laserboat swayback I'm actually liking the chassis more in their closer to default configurations.

I agree with the aspect of limiting choices by using risk, as well as challenging players to make do with what they have. I know that I appreciate my inventory much more now and I feel more successful when winning in a flawed, but functional build than a premium luxury build. However, if I can't pilot my hard-earned Clan mech down the line, I don't know what to do with this game.

One thing I need in this game is a purpose though. I simply feel like I'm grinding away, like I'm playing simple FPS matches. I don't know if I should apply for a guild to make the matches more engaging(but I don't have the time to do such an activity) or if I should hope for the best in terms of the meta-game they are planning on implementing at some point.

What do we know about the meta-game specifically? In terms of official news, of course.

 

[Sethos]

Eh, they're in. Have been since last week's update.

Nice, my bad then. Haven't played in a while, still waiting for a more 'finalized' release before I get stuck in. Still wondering what that FXAA-like smear is on everything, it's annoying me.

 

[Lime]

Nice, my bad then. Haven't played in a while, still waiting for a more 'finalized' release before I get stuck in. Still wondering what that FXAA-like smear is on everything, it's annoying me.

I concur. It's fucking terrible to look at. There are different settings for the post-processing effects, but I guess that would be breaking the NDA if I posted a screen of the options screen, right?

 

[Nickiepoo]

I hear you, I'm going to be pissed if I can't use my Vulture and Shadowcat on a semi-regular basis, but I guess that means having a surplus of cash which you're not using to buy a new chassis. I actually like how they're balancing this in terms of it being an F2P game.

As far as the meta-game goes, we'll have to wait and see, they've been tight-lipped with details, and given how much they've already changed from their original plans I don't expect that anything they have said should be taken as set in stone.

Game does get much better with a team, though the incomplete matchmaking can lead to unbalance. Playing with a mix of 2 to 7 other players on teamspeak has lead to a 3/1 win loss ratio in the last week, for example.
Definitely a game that I enjoy more when actually coordinated though.

I concur. It's fucking terrible to look at. There are different settings for the post-processing effects, but I guess that would be breaking the NDA if I posted a screen of the options screen, right?

Yeah, screens are a big no-no.

 

[Lime]

Final mech revealed:

Flea

TRO

 

[BattleMonkey]

Looks great, but such an odd choice too lol

 

[Woorloog]

It looks really good but...
wat

We had 4 lights, mediums and heavies and only 3 assaults.
Now we have 5 lights and still only 3 assaults.

I wonder who the hell will bother with the Flea, the Commando doesn't seem to be too popular. Generally speaking people prefer heavier lights since they don't have any real disadvantages.

 

[Nickiepoo]

Flea packs a lot of firepower for its size and isn't ammo dependant, I'm sure it'll find its place.

We might be getting an assault reveal in the upcoming PCgamer becuase like you say, 5 lights 3 assaults is weird.

Looks nice though.

 

[K.Jack]

Well the Highlander is being shown off in the next issue of PC Gamer, so there is that.

A picture of it is not hard to find....

EDIT: and just so it's said, there are threads on the MWOMercs forums which contain pictures of the leak and discussion, so mentioning it here can't be an issue

 

[Sax Russel]

So I just got in to this.... dat matchmaking. Game isn't very friendly to someone coming in completely new huh =P

 

[Nickiepoo]

Not even slightly. People who aren't familiar with Battletech must be having a hell of a time.

Luckily you've got Gaf, so feel free to fling out some questions.

 

[michaelius]

It looks really good but...
wat

We had 4 lights, mediums and heavies and only 3 assaults.
Now we have 5 lights and still only 3 assaults.

I wonder who the hell will bother with the Flea, the Commando doesn't seem to be too popular. Generally speaking people prefer heavier lights since they don't have any real disadvantages.

Economy will make them popular.

In BT i think flea costs 1,2 milions Cbills so it should be cheapest mech in game.

Still there are tons more famous/well known machines that could have been implented before Flea - Javelin, Firestarter, Locust, Wasp/Stinger.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

Yeah there are way too many lights in my opinion but I guess they are trying to balance the economy to be more in line with the cannon? I still wish we could at least get one jump ready assault mech.

GODDAMNIT!

The only light mech I can think of which I would actually want to play is the Panther.

 

[michaelius]

I fail to see a problem with that - game when finished needs at least 5-6 mechs in each weight category and starting with lights is good idea - because people will want to jump out of trial machines asap and they generate a lot of need for hangar space extension

 

[Lime]

Lights can be incredibly powerful if piloted correctly. And it's much more fun to engage several light mechs than seeing an Atlas-only team, as the skills of a pilot determines much more the outcome of the game.

Yeah there are way too many lights in my opinion but I guess they are trying to balance the economy to be more in line with the cannon? I still wish we could at least get one jump ready assault mech.

GODDAMNIT!

The only light mech I can think of which I would actually want to play is the Panther.

You should try the Raven with a more powerful engine. It's load of fun and it can withstand more fire from the other lights.

 

[Nickiepoo]

Yeah there are way too many lights in my opinion but I guess they are trying to balance the economy to be more in line with the cannon? I still wish we could at least get one jump ready assault mech.

We do 'need' a 20 ton mech, and the flea is a good choice. Highlander is all but confirmed so you'll get your poptart assault.

 

[Lime]

I found a leaked picture of the Highlander btw:

 

[Woorloog]

I would prefer Victor over Highlander for Assault.
Victor is good looking and flexible.

 

[Nickiepoo]

....actual leaked Highlander!

Wiki Page

 

[Frank]

So I got a stupid question.

Just got into the Beta. I see there's 4 Trial mechs which are available for me right away; and I can build my own mechs if I got the money. Right so far?

My problem comes from the Weapon Group definition for the Trial mechs -- pressing 1 does an Alpha strike, pressing 2, 3, 4, 5 does exactly nothing.

The stupid part comes right about now. How can I define my own Weapon Groups for the Trial Mechs? :-/ MechLab didn't seem to have anything related to this, nothing in-game as well. It's damn frustrating playing like this, and it seems I cannot find the way to fix it.

Guess I'm missing some pretty obvious stuff, but a bit of help would be appreciated.

 

[Lime]

So I got a stupid question.

Just got into the Beta. I see there's 4 Trial mechs which are available for me right away; and I can build my own mechs if I got the money. Right so far?

My problem comes from the Weapon Group definition for the Trial mechs -- pressing 1 does an Alpha strike, pressing 2, 3, 4, 5 does exactly nothing.

The stupid part comes right about now. How can I define my own Weapon Groups for the Trial Mechs? :-/ MechLab didn't seem to have anything related to this, nothing in-game as well. It's damn frustrating playing like this, and it seems I cannot find the way to fix it.

Guess I'm missing some pretty obvious stuff, but a bit of help would be appreciated.

The numbers keys refer to firing a weapon group (1 fires group 1, 2 fires group 2, etc.). The reason for why pressing 2, 3, 4, 5 isn't doing anything, is because you haven't assigned weapons to those groups.

You should categorize weapons according to groups, so that some weapons are in group 1, others in group 2, etc., so you balance your firepower with heat dissipation. You sort your weapons by using arrows keys and right ctrl. This is incredibly crucial.

Also, check out the various beginner's guides on the mwomercs.com forums.

 

[Frank]

The numbers keys refer to firing a weapon group. You should categorize weapons according to groups, so that some weapons are in group 1, others in group 2, etc., so you balance your firepower with heat dissipation.

You sort your weapons by using arrows keys and right ctrl. This is incredibly crucial.

Thanks! I think the right ctrl part was missing from the picture, rest of the details are present in my mind.

ps. Just a note, but the whole thing seems overly complicated. It's more of a note on the outgame part of the game, as the ingame (once you figure out the not-so-obvious keys) it's quite straight-forward Mechwarrior. Or, let's not say overly complicated, but too serpentine & byzantine for no reason. Too much "similar weight" to a lot of buttons and prompts, navigating and understanding the outgame comes with time not naturally through the way the interface is built. Anyway, just a minor gripe - but I'd rather try to figure out ways to better myself at the game, not at navigating/understanding the menus.

 

[Nickiepoo]

And backspace switches on chain fire, so that each press of the group button fires one of the weapons in sequence. Useful for sustaining laser fire on the high heat map or LRM boats in general.

 

[Lime]

@nickiepoo: Check your PM.

Thanks! I think the right ctrl part was missing from the picture, rest of the details are present in my mind.

ps. Just a note, but the whole thing seems overly complicated. It's more of a note on the outgame part of the game, as the ingame (once you figure out the not-so-obvious keys) it's quite straight-forward Mechwarrior. Or, let's not say overly complicated, but too serpentine & byzantine for no reason. Too much "similar weight" to a lot of buttons and prompts, navigating and understanding the outgame comes with time not naturally through the way the interface is built. Anyway, just a minor gripe - but I'd rather try to figure out ways to better myself at the game, not at navigating/understanding the menus.

I agree. The UI, especially in the mech-lab, needs some serious changes if Piranha wants new people to learn the game quickly.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

We do 'need' a 20 ton mech, and the flea is a good choice. Highlander is all but confirmed so you'll get your poptart assault.

Yeah you are right there. The flea isn't a bad choice in that respect. I guess I was just expecting another assault mech. I do plan to try out the Raven once I have some time to sit down and play again.

However it does make sense as the economics of the game should force a lot of players to light-medium mechs in my opinion. So having more choices there is good. I know that won't be a popular decision among the users but I do hope they stick by it.

Is the Highlander leaked pic actually real? If so then that is good news as that is a very nice iconic design in my opinion.

BUT GODDAMNIT GIMME MAH HATAMOTO-CHI!!!!!!!!!

 

[Nickiepoo]

Is the Highlander leaked pic actually real? If so then that is good news as that is a very nice iconic design in my opinion.

Not the one above, but yeah a quick google will show up a scan of it from the new PC gamer. New design looks pretty good, as we've come to expect.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

Not the one above, but yeah a quick google will show up a scan of it from the new PC gamer. New design looks pretty good, as we've come to expect.

Yeah that is the one I meant. I know what the one above is from ;P

Very nice! I know what my main Asasault mech besides the Founders Atlas will be!

 

[Nickiepoo]

Ha, likewise, though I wonder if it'll end up relatively easy to headshot making its use as a brawler limited.

 

[BudokaiMR2]

Ha, likewise, though I wonder if it'll end up relatively easy to headshot making its use as a brawler limited.

Very possible. But aren't the cockpits fairly small even if the head itself is large?
I thought the atlas cockpit was a small spot behind the left eye or something.

 

[Nickiepoo]

Very possible. But aren't the cockpits fairly small even if the head itself is large?
I thought the atlas cockpit was a small spot behind the left eye or something.

Yeah, Atlas never gets headshot. Awesome and Catapult do though but in both cases the 'head' is near the center of mass so maybe that's what makes the real difference.

Earlier in beta Atlas 'heads' were the size of the whole head making any atlas fight last all of about three seconds. Really glad they changed that.

 

[Frank]

One thing I need in this game is a purpose though. I simply feel like I'm grinding away, like I'm playing simple FPS matches. I don't know if I should apply for a guild to make the matches more engaging(but I don't have the time to do such an activity) or if I should hope for the best in terms of the meta-game they are planning on implementing at some point.

Thanks for the previous tip, made the whole thing whole and I got to enjoy it.

So, I only have a holding hands handful of matches so far - but what you're saying became apparent rather fast. I mean, on one side there's me enjoying running a mech again but on the other, looking at the many options already available to catch my time, I would appreciate the presence of something more than just this joy.

And judging by what I get with each match (even accounting for my newbness) the MechLab seems to need quite a bit of pasta to become an interesting game, otherwise you're kind of working for bits and pieces, and your building options - few.

 

[Divvy]

It looks really good but...
wat

We had 4 lights, mediums and heavies and only 3 assaults.
Now we have 5 lights and still only 3 assaults.

I wonder who the hell will bother with the Flea, the Commando doesn't seem to be too popular. Generally speaking people prefer heavier lights since they don't have any real disadvantages.

From playing, I like the commando a lot more than the Jenner. The much smaller profile makes it harder to hit. The Flea is sort of a joke mech though, who knows.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Thanks for the previous tip, made the whole thing whole and I got to enjoy it.

So, I only have a holding hands handful of matches so far - but what you're saying became apparent rather fast. I mean, on one side there's me enjoying running a mech again but on the other, looking at the many options already available to catch my time, I would appreciate the presence of something more than just this joy.

And judging by what I get with each match (even accounting for my newbness) the MechLab seems to need quite a bit of pasta to become an interesting game, otherwise you're kind of working for bits and pieces, and your building options - few.

They will add more stuff over time and have to hold things back for real money sales, but outside of what we have I don't think they should or will implement some kind of meta game goal for players.

This is mechwarrior and it's not a MMORPG, people have played these games online for many years for the joy of just playing. They are adding in some grinds to add some longevity plus the whole f2p aspect, but they can't do much to pvp game that won't make it imbalanced. Any time of "goals" they add would have to be for useless cosmetic things since anything else will ruin the community. Right now experienced pilots will have better availability of gear and unlocked pilot skills, though the advantages of those are minor and really shouldn't go beyond what they are now. No one is going to want to jump in down the line in this game if players who have played longer have huge advantages in unique items and stronger skills.

 

[Woorloog]

From playing, I like the commando a lot more than the Jenner. The much smaller profile makes it harder to hit. The Flea is sort of a joke mech though, who knows.

Oh i like the Commando too. I don't even bother with the Jenner, it ain't my style.
I may or i may not like the Flea, impossible to say yet. Need to test the Raven though without its electronics it isn't special. At least it won't feel special.

Ah, i need the patch the client and play a bit. Also Planetside 2.
While sick, i didn't bother playing. Then i... well, i don't remember. Then i installed Morrowind. And now i'm playing WoW again. Wonder when i get to play MWO or PS2 properly... Halo 4 comes right after my WoW gametime expires.

 

[Frank]

They will add more stuff over time and have to hold things back for real money sales, but outside of what we have I don't think they should or will implement some kind of meta game goal for players.

This is mechwarrior and it's not a MMORPG, people have played these games online for many years for the joy of just playing. They are adding in some grinds to add some longevity plus the whole f2p aspect, but they can't do much to pvp game that won't make it imbalanced. Any time of "goals" they add would have to be for useless cosmetic things since anything else will ruin the community. Right now experienced pilots will have better availability of gear and unlocked pilot skills, though the advantages of those are minor and really shouldn't go beyond what they are now. No one is going to want to jump in down the line in this game if players who have played longer have huge advantages in unique items and stronger skills.

Of couse cosmetic, or otherwise without impact on the balance of the gameplay.

At least in my mind it's more along the lines of using the Battletech universe to deliver a framework for your actions, and giving a bit more meaning to your time spent playing. There's always a war going on somewhere in that universe, a front that needs holding, a back-and-forth over a planet.

To take the thought to its simplest form, I think I want some kind of competitive justification and motivation aside from "i'm gonna be a better pilot than these guys". Also, you are extremely alone in this game, there's nothing connecting people on the same team. They change a lot as well as you play game after game, so there's never a WE developing to combat the THEM. It's just me, and some other dudes, pew pewing.

Which is cool and all, but not enough I'm afraid. Especially since behind it all there's a military universe with a narrative not focused on the lone hero as he blazes everything to rubble - but focused on the "unit", the "clan" etc.

I don't know, maybe there's too much in my own mind behind the image of a mech & mechwarrirors, but I do feel there's something missing from the picture right now.

 

[Lime]

Of couse cosmetic, or otherwise without impact on the balance of the gameplay.

At least in my mind it's more along the lines of using the Battletech universe to deliver a framework for your actions, and giving a bit more meaning to your time spent playing. There's always a war going on somewhere in that universe, a front that needs holding, a back-and-forth over a planet.

To take the thought to its simplest form, I think I want some kind of competitive justification and motivation aside from "i'm gonna be a better pilot than these guys". Also, you are extremely alone in this game, there's nothing connecting people on the same team. They change a lot as well as you play game after game, so there's never a WE developing to combat the THEM. It's just me, and some other dudes, pew pewing.

Which is cool and all, but not enough I'm afraid. Especially since behind it all there's a military universe with a narrative not focused on the lone hero as he blazes everything to rubble - but focused on the "unit", the "clan" etc.

I don't know, maybe there's too much in my own mind behind the image of a mech & mechwarrirors, but I do feel there's something missing from the picture right now.

I feel the same way as you do, but I should also remind you that the Community Warfare will hopefully deliver on this promise.

Meanwhile, try to get on Teamspeak or in a clan. You can even befriend some of your fellow Gaffers and make occasional group sessions. That will tide you over in terms of establishing a connection to the gameplay.

 

[Frank]

Got a few buddies waiting to get in as well, so at some point it should get better.

And thank you sir, for pointing me again the right path. Didn't truly check deeper than just venting what I felt, so I had no idea about the future plans Piranha Games might've already had. Community Warfare does indeed sound like something along the lines of what I just said.

 

[Archie]

~1100 beta keys available as of this post.

 

[androvsky]

~1100 beta keys available as of this post.

Thanks for the heads up, got mine. I can now commence attempting to melt down my video card.

edit: 120 C seems like a lot of C's. Might be time to start looking at new video cards.

Spoiler

It's a 9800 GX2 a relative gave me. The other core is only 115 C!

 

[Lime]

I know we can't talk about the game too much because of the NDA, but the upcoming features are making me drool.

Their latest Facebook update is a nice indication of what to come:

 

[Dice]

I really should actually play this. Though, I just counted all the games I own and haven't played and the number is 180, 30 of which were personal gifts. Though, 20 were bundle pack-ins I don't even want... that's still 150 I do want to play.

I also got access to Firefall and Hawken.

 

[kagete]

No update to the scoreboard? They really should indicate what mech your teammates are using...

I am also terrible at this game. My little brother (9yrs younger) who has never played a single MW game before this got into the beta and went 3-0 in his first game. He excels in any mech type he's tried while I struggle to get even a single kill in most matches. Sadness

 

[iirate]

No update to the scoreboard? They really should indicate what mech your teammates are using...

I am also terrible at this game. My little brother (9yrs younger) who has never played a single MW game before this got into the beta and went 3-0 in his first game. He excels in any mech type he's tried while I struggle to get even a single kill in most matches. Sadness

single kill? pshhhh. I struggle to do more than 40 damage in a single match. Sucks too, because I love the hell out of MW, but considering the lackluster response my friends have had to it, I might just have to sit out on this one.

 

[Lime]

NDA has been lifted!

 

[Sethos]

Fuck yeah, screenshot time.

 

[BattleMonkey]

NDA has been lifted!

Now we can talk about the game!.... oh wait that's pretty much what everyones been doing hehe

 

[Lime]

Saw this on the MWO forums:

Fuck yeah, screenshot time.

that was my initial reaction as well. If only I could force SSAA on the screens.

 

[Mupod]

Haha, gaussapults.

Hey, this means I can make that video I made of a team of Commandos public now.

 

[faulty_fork]

Saw this on the MWO forums:

There are some pretty sweet explosions in this game

 

[Divvy]

Saw this on the MWO forums:

that was my initial reaction as well. If only I could force SSAA on the screens.

Nothing is more satisfying than assploding a jenner with twin gauses at 1000 m.