Battletech

[Labadal]

I didn't pledge at a high enough tier, but it will be interesting to read impressions.

[ShadySands]

nevermind

Edited June 1, 2017 by ShadySands

[Gromnir]

spent a few hours playing.  beta key didn't become available to us 'til after 1pm and other more pressing concerns demanded our attention this afternoon.  3 hours of gameplay.

 

initial observations:

 

-no obvious bugs so far.

-enemy ai doesn't appear to make use o' jump jets.

-didn't need the manual save for a couple mech positioning issues-- interface is highly intuitive.

-got our arse handed to us in our first medium mech skirmish, but such were mostly due to initial misunderstanding o' how to alter how a mech faces at the end o' a move action which sent us scurrying for the manual.

-missile and ac has been more effective than we woulda' expected, energy less effective.

-bodies of water dissipate heat better than any heat sink, so find a river if you got a high-heat mech.

-keyboard controls is superior for us as the mouse has been a bit wonky. 

 

am having fun given the limited options available to us.

 

HA! Good Fun!

[Lexx]

Played a quick match before going to bed yesterday. It's only singleplayer right now - as they said it would be - and so far I liked what I've seen. The match took about half an hour, I think, and I ended up with 2 destroyed mechs. I think they still have to do work on the interface, because many things weren't clear / obvious to me. Directly in game, as well as before starting a mech when choosing my setup. If I hadn't known all the mechs before, this part would have given me lots of trouble I imagine.

 

Graphics are nice, by the way. It was a good decision to buy the mech models from MWO.

[Gromnir]

am developing bad habits. 'tween jump jets, lrm and ac2/5, after a dozen hours, Gromnir has kinda fallen into a rather predictable battle pattern.  am almost exclusive using a defensive run and gun approach, which am suspecting won't be viable for many o' the actual campaign missions. have not yet tried death-from-above, but on most maps jump jets provide a major tactical advantage which the computer ai doesn't appear to exploit. 

 

metaknowledge is also (too) advantageous.  hunchbacks, for example, has a big ac (which is op at the moment) and is heavily armoured.  'course hunchbacks has paltry rear armour.  most new players is gonna be unaware o' such details, which could cause frustration. seeming invulnerable hunchbacks with evasive mowing through your squad could induce predictable rage quit. 

 

a few o' the pilot skills might need balancing and inspire can be exploited.  evasive skill feels a bit wonky.  being able to consistant dodge in a heavy or assault mech is peculiar and powerful.  inspire is kinda cartoony.  when activating inspire, the mechwarrior should yell, "by the power of greyskull!" suddenly you got a 95% accuracy and do increased damage.  okie dokie.

 

oh, and it took us more than a few skirmishes to figure out how to turn a mech w/o moving from the current hex.  might put such in the manual.

 

am gonna play a bit less in the coming days as we don't wanna burn our self out on battletech, but if anybody has questions, am unlikely to have answers... but will try and respond anyways.

 

HA! Good Fun! 

[ShadySands]

I played one skirmish and decided to put it aside until the campaign comes out

[Malcador]

I like Buckshot's personality. Got beaten easily on 3 skirmishes so far, damn melee is OP (because I lose to it).

[Gfted1]

I cant puzzle out "ac". Auto-Cannon?

[Malcador]

I cant puzzle out "ac". Auto-Cannon?

Yup http://www.sarna.net/wiki/Autocannon

[Chilloutman]

SL - small laser

ML - medium laser

LL - Large laser

 

Lasers are precise (hit only particular part of mech) but generate a lot of heat

 

er - extanded range

 

SRM - short range missile

MRM - medium range missile

LRM - Long range missile

 

missiles have decent damage which is spread on all parts of the mech (depending on angle) and generate medium amount of heat

 

number behind missile name explain how much missiles will be shot in one volley (EG. srm2 will shoot 2 rockets in one shoot and srm6 will shot 6)

 

AC - autocannon

 

AC - precise, good damage, low heat but limited ammo

 

number behind AC is caliber - larger do more damage but have shorter range and higher heat generation

 

PPC - particle pulse? cannon - good range, good damage but its spread around more mech parts and high heat generation)

 

HS - heat sink (more heat sinks mean better handling heat generated from weapons)

[Lexx]

By the way, is it just me or cant you aim at specific body parts? Whenever I attack, the weapons seem to hit a random part and never anything specific. This is especially noticable with lasers... they go all ober the place.

[Malcador]

Don't think you can do called shots unless they are knocked down. Makes some sense. Perhaps its a pilot ability as well?

 

The AI seems to get nothing but CT hits on me though

[Chilloutman]

yes I think there is indeed pilot skill, also maybe you can do that if you select only one weapon to do so which does not have spread damage inherit?

[SonicMage117]

The E3 presentation was so beautiful. The floor booth was even better. I thought you guys would enjoy this:

[Malcador]

https://dockets.justia.com/docket/washington/wawdce/2:2017cv00327/242820

 

Harmony Gold suing HBS and others.

Edited July 25, 2017 by Malcador

[Lexx]

Also Piranha Games who are working on MWO.

 

So annoying.

[Majek]

I tried no to read the big thread on bt forums but i couldn't help it. Looks like another annoying example of "vampires" trying to get money the easy way just because the can exploit the law that way.

Edited July 26, 2017 by Majek

[MrBrown]

Is this the age old licensing issue about some of the mechs? That never goes away. They've fought about it since the 80s.

[Lexx]

Yep, exactly that age old thing.

[MrBrown]

So I just started reading about the game, and apparently they put some Unseen Mechs in.

 

Why did they do that? Seems like asking for a lawsuit.

[ShadySands]

They are redesigns and don't really look anything at all like the original models, at least to me.

[Lexx]

But the name is written very similar!!!111

[213374U]

So I just started reading about the game, and apparently they put some Unseen Mechs in.

 

Why did they do that? Seems like asking for a lawsuit.

 

From what I recall, they licensed the models from Piranha Games, who had been using those mechs in MechWarrior Online for, uh, a year? It wasn't a problem until now because, as Shady pointed out, they are redesigns.

 

I hear there's rumors on the internets that Harmony Gold's renewed IP trolling efforts may have something to do with the Robotech live-action film having apparently just left development hell.

[SonicMage117]

Robotech? You mean... Macross X is getting a live-action film? Something tells me that would be even worse than Transformers, Pacific Rim, and Dragon Ball Z movies.

[Malcador]

Hi everyone,

 

As you may remember, the original release estimate listed in our Kickstarter campaign was for delivery of the BATTLETECH Base Skirmish Game. With each additional Funding Stage unlocked - Single-Player Story Campaign, Expanded Mercenary Campaign, and PVP Multiplayer - more time and team members were added for the additional work.

 

We’d previously been projecting a late 2017 release but now that we’ve revised our AI & combat mechanics in reaction to your feedback, completed a thorough review of the work remaining on the game, and are poised to release the Multiplayer Backer Beta update, all indications are that Paradox & HBS will release BATTLETECH in early 2018.

 

Throughout development, the message we’ve received has been clear, “Don’t rush it, just make it great.” and we have taken that to heart. All of us - HBS, Paradox, and our Backers - share a deeply personal attachment to this project and we are committed to delivering a game that not only meets your high expectations but introduces BattleTech to a new generation of players.

 

With that said, I’m happy to report that solid progress continues across the project! We are now able to play the open-ended mercenary campaign “loop” and I have to say that when you’re counting your C-bills and caring about your MechWarriors’ health and survival, you approach combat missions differently which imbues every turn with a ton of dramatic tension. And the upcoming upgrade to our AI is going to make you think hard about how you engage the enemy!

 

As Mitch mentioned in our last update, we’ve made a ton of progress on all the component pieces of the game and this phase of development is all about bringing them together - the core combat game, the mercenary simulation aboard the Argo, the single-player story and cinematics, the open-ended mercenary mission system, the ‘Mech customization system… it’s a lot of stuff and it’s exciting to see it all getting stitched together and “upleveled” with art, audio, UI, and writing.

 

It really is an exciting time on the project and I can’t wait to share it with you when it’s finally done. Thanks again for all your support!

 

Jordan

In case people didn't back it.