Topic: Mechwarrior 4 to be released for free download

[idolminds]

MW4 plus all the expansions!

[MysterD]

Fuck C-Dilla!
Wooo!

[Quemaqua]

Shoot the legs, SHOOT THE LEGS!

[Xessive]

Haha I still remember MW2! My brother and I used to play it together. I was the engineer managing all movement, engines, and auxiliary functions (keyboard) and he was the gunner (mouse). It was a lot of fun!

I recall playing MW4 but that I didn't like it. I felt it deviated too much from the classic gameplay. MW3 maintained a lot of the classic gameplay mechanics.

I remember Mech Commander 2 was up for free a while back too.

The parallel series I enjoyed as well was Heavy Gear, specifically Heavy Gear 2.

[scottws]

I have never played this, or its offspring Mechassault.  The closest I've ever gotten to these games was a game called Battledrome, which was basically a game where two robots fought in an arena.

These games were a bit too simmy and I was horrible at them.

[Quemaqua]

Heh, I actually have Heavy Gear II around here somewhere.

I had MW4 at one point and I think I ended up returning it for some reason (back when you could still do that with a PC game).  I'm not really sure what it was, but I had less money back then, so it probably just wasn't exactly what I wanted it to be and there was something else I couldn't afford if I kept it.  I don't know.

I'd be curious to download it and try it out again, though, especially if it supports multiplayer still.

Mechcommander was awesome.  I never did try the sequel because I didn't like that it was 3D.  I loved the 2D look of the first one and thought 3D was really a step down.

[Xessive]

MechAssault was not bad. It was a pretty decent console take on the series.

Yeah, the games are very technical. You had to know all the keys (virtually the whole keyboard) to operate efficiently.

MW4 was the least 'simmy' of the bunch though, so you might enjoy it. If I recall they streamlined a lot of the controls and made it more like a FPS with torso-twist capability.

Mechcommander really was great. I didn't mind the 3D in the sequel, I just set my camera on one angle and played it essentially like the original. There were some times when I had to readjust the angle but it wasn't a huge bother. But you're right, Que, I would have preferred if they kept an isometric camera and the 3D elements were just the models and structures.

[Quemaqua]

Oh, it had nothing to do with the camera.  I just thought the sprites in the original were detailed and awesome, and the 3D models from the 2nd were blocky and shit-looking.

And you know, MW4 was still fairly simmy, I think.  I remember setting up the controls and having an item for nearly every key on the keyboard.  It wasn't as bad as the others, but it definitely wasn't anything even approaching an FPS.

[scottws]

You know, that's exactly how I felt about Warcraft III vs. Starcraft.  The sprites in Starcraft would have been a bit dated when WCIII was released, and the fact that the buildings' and maps' angles were just a bit off from each other was annoying, but I thought that WCIII should have used 2D sprites.  WCIII's 3D portraits were especially bad, when they were awesome in Starcraft.

[Quemaqua]

Yeah, that's not a bad example.  I think WC3 managed to pull it off due to the super-heavy stylized look, but the same concept is at work there, and Mechcommander 2 didn't have any art design stuff to help it look less stupid.

[Xessive]

Yeah, that is true. It felt like they used 3D objects before they got good at it. Ideally 3D ought to be used when it doesn't compromise visual appeal, it's suppsoed to be an enhancement afterall.

2D art still has its place. I'm especially impressed when a developer innovates a hybrid. Sacred is a pretty good example of a 2D-3D hybrid with decent results. I remember we had a discussion about this in another thread, Pug was comparing Neverwinter Nights with Baldur's Gate.

For most 3D games the 2D only manifests in the HUD elements and certain special effects; one of the most impressive examples being Team Fortress 2. The artists and coders did a beautiful job.

The one drawback I often see with 2D games is the resolution restriction. I love crisp 2D images but I when I have to stretch an image to fit the screen it loses that appeal. Sometimes it's possible to avoid that by switching to Windowed mode.

[idolminds]

There is now a countdown running. At the time of this post it has 11 and a half hours to go. Is it for the MW4 release?

[MysterD]

Idol, I so hope so!

[idolminds]

Turns out...its not. It's the countdown for their full conversion mod on Mechwarrior 2 called AT:1.

[MysterD]

Looks like Microsoft is the reason MW4: Free Edition has yet to be released.

Vamman writes with a followup to news from 2009 that MekTek.net was going to release MechWarrior 4 for free after obtaining permission from Smith & Tinker, who licensed the MechWarrior rights from Microsoft. Now, almost a year later, the free release has yet to see the light of day, in large part due to Microsoft.

Quoting:
"... the Free Release is held up at Microsoft and it is unknown to us and our studio when the Free Release will be given the final go ahead. Due to the demands placed upon us by industry lawyers to release the Mechwarrior4  Free release we were forced to insure our studio at a premium rate to meet the Microsoft standard. Our insurance policy is a one year lease and we are unable to tap out of this policy until next fall. In addition to our insurance costs we are also struggling with our server costs. Currently, our server fund has run dry and staff and beta members are paying out of their pockets to help keep MekTek online. At this point we don't know from month to month if we will be able to stay online."

Vamman adds, "MekTek has released a major update for their existing community, expansion MekPak 3.1. They are also promising their new expansion, MekPak 4, in a few weeks as open beta!"

[MysterD]

Microsoft has cleared the FREE release of Mechwarrior 4.
So, expect the FREE release soon.

[idolminds]

Finally.

[Cobra951]

Hey, a game I can play on my PC.  It will be new for me too.  I think the only Mechwarrior I ever had was 2.

[MysterD]

Hey, a game I can play on my PC.  It will be new for me too.

Woohoo!

I wouldn't buy any of the newer Mechwarrior games b/c they came w/ CDilla.
 

I think the only Mechwarrior I ever had was 2.

I got MW2 and MW2: Mercs.

[MysterD]

MW4: Mercs Released as Freeware.
1.7 GB download or so.

Right now, MTX is very slow - probably getting hammered w/ users.
Might want to look elsewhere for the files.

[idolminds]

Awesome, I'll have to get my hands on a copy.

[Xessive]

MTX has a bittorrent option in the downloader, that ought to help. The downloader is only 15.5MB.