MechWarrior 5: Clans is the latest installment developed by Piranha Games in the iconic MechWarrior franchise. Clans takes everything unbelievable about Mercenaries and adds a real narrative with a fantastic cast. Clans follow Jayden of Clan Smoke Jaguar and his units as they rise from rookie pilots to heroes in the coming invasion. If you are a MechWarrior fan, then you know this is an important time for the universe as Clans are fighting to reclaim Terra, humanity’s birthplace. While the overall war is the major plot, I was pleased its sole focus was on Jayden’s platoon and his commanding officers.
One thing I had noticed during the preview and which is only emphasized as the game goes on is a certain… moral ambiguity, one might say. For example, early on it’s established that Smoke Jaguar is a very warrior-dominated culture. They are continually fighting, warriors having the most rights, eager to throw away the lives of trainees if it means stronger warriors. And then one of the officers is delivering a speech about how they’ll overthrow the fascist governments of the inner sphere and end their forever wars, a classic case of doublespeak as they accuse their enemies of the very same things they’re doing.
I will admit that even though it is a character-focused story, a lot of the supporting characters themselves are rather mundane. Their personality differences could be that you counted on one hand maybe half of another, and when they add to the narrative it is only about one of those. Few of the characters experience any real growth either; there are only two or maybe three characters I can think of who I felt changed throughout the game. I felt let down because there were plenty of things to like about each character and I wanted to get more out of them.
MechWarrior 5: Clans has you piloting a gigantic mech and shooting down enemies during missions. There’s an emphasis on slower, more methodical gameplay and crunchier systems than there was in previous games. Your mech has an acceleration that makes quick and snappy movement impossible and conveys a feeling of inertia and weight. Between missions, you can customize many things about your mech, from your weapon and equipment loadout, to which firing buttons trigger which weapons, to what paint job you’re going with.
How can I put this, when it comes to the actual gameplay, I LOVED IT. Once you get used to the inertia of your mech it just feels fantastic to go for strafing runs or find a good spot to turret from. Getting used to the projectile speed of each weapon was also a learning experience that felt satisfying to pull off, especially when you have a mix of lasers that must be aimed directly at them and ballistics that must be led.
I was worried for a little bit that it’d be nothing but up close fights where I could let my short-range machine guns do most of the work, but soon enough we had wide open fields where I could fire on opponents a mile away and aerial units that required both range and weapons that could swivel far enough upwards. Then the change up in the battlefield was awe-inspiring, from claustrophobic downtown city streets to blinding storms and then they threw in plenty of ocean or rivers to speed up heat dissipation. It was refreshing that they somehow managed to give each place their own specific identity.
I was able to play a lot of hours of the co-op and can say that with a team that knows what they are doing, it’s a wonderful experience. When the star knows how to call stuff out and work together, taking down the enemy feels you up with success and vigor. However, people who think just because they are a gigantic war machine of death that they are invincible need to take a moment to reflect on their life decisions.
The audio for Clans was spot on for me, maybe even better. I love the soundtrack, and most of the voice acting is believable. In fact, in some cases, a monotone attitude fits the characterization perfectly where you get a feel for the difference, but there were plenty of other instances of delivery not quite matching the emotion a line was supposed to evoke.
I’ll admit this game will not be for everyone. Clans seem to try to blend the old-school simulation jank and modern quality of life features. But I am sure people on both sides are going to wish they did this or didn’t do that. I believe they struck a pretty damn good spot in their combination and I enjoyed it immensely. I believe that this game is a must-have for MechWarrior fans or anyone who wants to jump into this genre of games.
This review was written based on a PC review code for MechWarrior 5: Clans provided by Piranha Games.
