Mech Assault

MechAssault will look like your PC MechWarrior games, but for hardcore BattleTech soldiers, most comparisons (and expectations) should probably stop there.

The Xbox is gearing up for a rumble in the BattleTech jungle. Although MechAssault has been spawned from the PC-based world of mercenary soldiers in giant, servo-laden battlesuits, this version is going for all-out action ? la Halo rather than sim and strategy.

The original setup will be based on BattleTech lore, but don?t bother trying to link up with any existing BT story line. The Wolf Dragoon mercs have tracked their sworn enemies, the Word of Blake, to a remote planet, so you?ll lead a team to take out some orbital robot guns. Microsoft promises that plots and deep intrigue will follow, but that?s not what you?ll get for your money here.

This game will be about non-stop, futuristic, mechanized combat. You?ll start with 10 core mechs, but you?ll be able to build up a variant for each, too. You?ll hunt the Word of Blake forces over 16 missions.

PC gamers who are into MechWarrior will recoil in horror at the speed (not unlike the initial reaction of console football purists the first time they wrapped their fingers on the Xbox?s NFL Fever). Console combat vets won?t bat an eyelash at the quick mech moves and high-speed, high-tech gunplay.

The preview build already featured on-target, tight controls?with layout and quality somewhat shamelessly lifted from Halo. Mech movement from a third-person view was intuitive and you could easily switch weapons. A cool jump jet feature enabled your mech to go airborne, too, for quick forward attacks or evasive maneuvers. You could also fire up a wicked-cool invisibility feature.

Destruction will be massive, and it appears that most structures, buildings, and terrain will be destroyable. In fact, you?ll be able to use the ability to blast away scenery to expose hidden forces, topple enemy mechs, or rain down debris on adversaries. In the early build, you were even able to ?punt? smaller vehicles, such as trucks, at enemy mechs to damage them.

At press time, Microsoft touted MechAssault as an Xbox Live launch title. Plans called for up to eight players online at a time. Although there weren?t that many players present during the online preview demo, there was more than enough smack to be heard via the Xbox Communicator online, and the action was good. Downloadable mechs were also promised as part of the online package.

MechAssault could shape up to be topflight metal mayhem. All the early indications are there for action/combat fans?this game should ?mech? their day.

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