BattleTech Reviews
The tactical combat in BattleTech is excellent. Building a roster of gigantic killing machines and managing sundries offers a long-lasting gameplay loop. With a sharper narrative and more polish around the edges, the turn-based 'Mech-killing experience would have been unstoppable.
When I heard that Paradox and Harebrained were doing Battletech, I expected great things. What I got was... a good thing. Perhaps not actually GREAT in the traditional sense, but fun enough despite its load times and tactical simplicity and clunky graphics and animation. When you punch a mech hard enough that its laser-cannon-equipped arm flies off, or hammer a rain of missiles from the sky into a giant robot and cause its core to explode in a fireball, it's satisfying and lovely. A little more slickness and tactical depth might not have hurt. But overall, I found my time in the cockpit of a giant doom robot to be quite a giggle.
BattleTech doesn't just make mechs cool - it turns them into larger than war machines with grand tales of heroism and treachery. It's mechanically sound, dense with story and lore and well realized despite some imperfections.
Battletech is an addictive strategy game that smushes everything we love into one game, and dares us not to love it. It combines Firefly, Game of Thrones, Star Wars, XCOM, and giant Mechs punching each other and shooting laser beams.
It's a tough life out there in the Periphery. It'd be nice if mission difficulty had a more easy gradient but for a game series that has been gone for so long, I'm just happy that it's not only returned, but returned in the best shape it's been in a while.
Fans of the tabletop games will find much to love, as will turn-based strategy players. Previous players of the MechWarrior videos games will find everything gladly familiar in this edition and anyone willing to give this title a try, will find an immersive, rewarding strategy experience that offers a great insight into setting.
Overall I think it's a good game. Especially if you're a BattleTech / Mechwarrior fan. Is it worth the price tag? Yes. Can it improve substantially? Oh yes! A few more features and a better story will make the world of a difference. For being an strategy game, I give it a thumbs up. Great gameplay, great soundtrack. Here's to hoping they do the game justice in the long run!
In the meantime, even in a scrappy state, the MechWarrior meets XCOM promise mostly delivers.
Definitely a deep and enjoyable strategy game, from the way you kit your mechs out to the way you approach each fight, everything is up to you. The battles can feel a little slow paced at times and the game still has a few bugs that can cause crashes as well. An enjoyable game but one that still needs a few more patches to stop the issues.
Battletech is a good effort from the people at Harebrained Schemes, and the passion poured into this project is clearly visible from many little details. Still, the game is in need of some more polish, and the AI particularly desperately needs a patch or two. Buy it in any case if you love the original license, or everything mech - related as a whole.
Review in Italian | Read full review
BattleTech offers an epic experience of commanding a space war while you can also immerse into the fantastic story and music. But compared with top SLGs like XCOM 2, it has too many flaws, such as stupid tutorials, stiff actions, and slow loading speed, which can not be easily ignored.
Review in Chinese | Read full review
You never feel like an army, and that's to the game's benefit. This isn't a game about a war, even though it is set against the backdrop of one. Battletech is a game about battles, in all their sad and joyous desperation, and the machines that they so lovingly destroy.
BattleTech in the form of a video game is a beautiful reference to the original board game. It's a unique tactical turn-based strategy game that sets new trends in this genre. Until competitors won't think of resurrecting other games with mechs, BattleTech is without question a master-class.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Harebrained Schemes' BattleTech expertly captures the attrition, desperation, and destruction that is so present in the materials and literature of the larger BattleTech property. The RPG elements regarding your team are strong, the tactical gameplay is excellent, and the 'Mechs are spectacular.
This is where BattleTech shines, it's not about completing missions on your best day, it's about playing as best you can on your worst.
Despite a few technical shortcomings, BattleTech skillfully mixes a fascinating setting that deserves to be explored with a compelling story, extremely enjoyable sandbox elements, a ton of customization, and amazing tactical gameplay. If you love stomping around with giant robots (and who doesn't) and turn-based games, I can't recommend this game enough. It's arguably the best mecha video game on the market right now.
While Battletech won't convert gamers looking for their latest twitch fix, fans of the source material and the strategy genre will find a lot to like here. Fans of the Shadowrun series in particular should give Battletech a look.
BattleTech has a lot of qualities. It offers a rich and deep universe and some quite interesting game mechanics. Refreshing in the tactical genre, it's also a real pleasure for micromanagements' enthusiasts. Sadly, visuals are not on par. It's not exactly what we'd call a pleasure for the eyes.
Review in French | Read full review
Success in BattleTech is rare but deeply satisfying. But taking into account just how unwelcoming the game's first few hours are, it's hard to recommend to new players, or those that only play modern strategy games.