This one cutscene taught you all you needed to know about this game. How strategy was needed to overcome obsacles. How important long range weapons were. The dangers of strolling headlong and cocky into uncharted territory. That different grades of mechs could do different things. Hell, it even implied that mech warriors were different in their own ways. And all from the point of view of you, the mech commander. Greatest cinematic intro to a game ever. And I'm sure I'll think the same in another 20 years.
Indeed. The best cutscene ever in my opinion. If you think about it: its essentially a Battletech short film. I watched it maybe about a hundred times or more! And every now and then i come back to watch it. When I play Mechwarrior online I listen to the Original soundtrack from the game via youtube in the backround. It has then much more immersion in the Battletech Lore Universe.
All MW/BT cutscenes do a great job of showing you little mechanics and tricks you'd wanna use while actually playing. MW2 shows the madcat eating shit cuz he alpha strikes his PPCs, the summoner using the canyon's pillars for cover while its weapons recharge, etc. You even see shit like internal ammo explosions and through armor criticals, and off the top of my head even torso twisting is shown in one or two; you can see Holly's Zeus torso twisting as it moves in on the Atlas in MW2:Mercs. GBL shows passive radar, DFA, even MELEE (which is bs cuz you can't in those fuckin games) as well as really obvious torso twisting.
Pilots a Hunchy with an AC20 likely. Acts confident. Until a Clanner surprise cores him from nowhere. Just like piloting a Hunchy in MWO today. Scary, but so rewarding when you have a good game in one.
nullptr You're a hunchback, that Hunch is your entire side, half your front, and 1/3rd your rear. No seriously the FRONT side torso for the hunch also covers most of the rear for that ST. Torso twisting isn't going to help when the enemy can take 80% of your firepower from any angle you are at.
That's not what goes through a Clanner's mind when he was hit by that Raven. In his mind, he's going after two mechs that would otherwise alert a whole brigade of 'Mechs coming down. Two of them, that have better weapons than the puny Raven he chased. Moreover, when that Clanner was hit, he was probably thinking something along the lines of, "Insolent little Freebirth! How dare you oppose your better!"
"He's way outgunned." No kidding. He was in a Raven. A Raven against a Mad Cat ... ? It's no wonder his response to the "Move out" order was "ROGER THAT!"
It's 2023 and it's still the most thrilling and explanatory intro to any strategy game ever made. Everyone knows what the game is all about and you're HYPED for getting into that commander-seat. Amazing!
So you are always the first to get slaughtered in your group, quiaff? :-p Mind, I am still learning the ropes of MWO - I am used to the controls of the CRB Crab, but that is not in the game, so I am crap with the other 'Mechs.
ajs1031 Heh, I played some of the best board games (imo) at my first posting- starcraft (the board game), axis and allies, and battlestar galactica. This one yeomen I knew had quite the collection. We played in the barracks kitchen/dining room though.
Hunchback-disposable front liner with a big gun Centurion-frontliner with survivability Commando-scout and close range hit and run Raven-Scout and stand-off fire/support unit
Do not forget to take into account the considerable damage caused to the Timber Wolf beforehand, as well as the weak armour that comes with any 'mech (since 'mech fusion reactors are located roughly at the back of the internal structure, it always has been a massive design flaw).
***** Oh, yes... from the *devastating* LRM 10? Pshh. Even after the SRM 2 that's only 14 damage -- barely enough to core my 45t Blackjack BJ-1 (exactly 14 pts. rear, standard armor) let alone kill a 75t Timber Wolf. Madness I says.
BIG. STOMPY. MECHS! Honestly, I also like the fast passed Japanese mechs too. But they just don't feel as big and powerful. Mechwarrior and others in the Battletech universe got mechs right.
Same. I just love the slowness of 'mech combat and the fact they act more like walking tanks gives it a sense of warfare and how each 'mech has a dedicated purpose.
It really depends on your tastes. I do really enjoy games like Armored Core and Project Nimbus, because they're fast-paced and make you feel like a badass, but they don't feel realistic or strategic at all
I was actually just thinking about Patlabor (well, the first movie) while watching this and thinking about how great it would be to see a live-action video of a fight between two or more Labors.
Ah, yes, the opening levels of mechwarrior. "Gladis, I just encountered a Centurion, cancel my one o'clock". Shootmiss. Shootmiss. Shootmiss. Shoothit trivial damage Shootmiss Shootmiss.
The way that Timberwolf turned and looked at him. Clanner pilot was probably thinking, “Son, I am gonna blow your damn mech right off its stupid legs.”
lore reasons they have a habit of stripping armor on the back since they never see themselves running away from a fight. It's wasn't til they fought the inner sphere in urban warfare that they realized that their "honorable" 1 on 1 fights between clans means nothing to real war. Don't get me wrong, clanners are the best mech pilots around.. Much, much better than the majority of the inner sphere pilots but clanners have a strict about how they fight which ends up biting them in the ass.
Classic Battletech goodness. I remember the old "Here it comes.." when we'd do team battles on Battletech 4th Edition. Heh. Nobody ignored my Ravens, Hunchbacks, and Hatchetmen after that.
I have my reservations about MWo, but I would like to see MechWarrior/BattleTech turned into a movie, or a television series (live-action, of course). I mean, this latest version of Transformers? Please! A movie or telly series of this would be a winner.
***** I only played a little of MWO. I doubt the BT Universe will ever get movie treatment barring a third party film student project. Too obscure, and way too much history, fluff, and politics to boil down into a successful movie. The cost alone, with extensive CGI ... the remake of Battlestar Galactica didn't feature anywhere near the right balance of combat to pseudo-emotional baggage. And that had multi million dollar funding right out of the door. I would like to see another BattleTech strategy game (as MC2 was a dog). Maybe during a Clan War. Give it a little bit of a Soustorm feel... multiple planets, organize drop points, take command of a few teams. Build up your armies, etc. Perhaps add in a bit of Divinity Dragon Commander. Like if you have limited resources, you can pilot a mech with your strike force. Whilst sounding awesome, it means no more planning shit from the safety of a starship. Something like that. Really bring down that wall between top down RTS and 3rd person/First person cockpit shooter.
The golden age of PC gaming... were did it go? I'm sick of all that shallow bullshit modern games offer. I'm glad Mechcommander came when it did, because nowadays, you'd have to get the Claner weapons via micro transactions.
EPIC intro to an EPIC game. If you're watching this and never played it, go find a copy! And don't bother with MechCommander 2, it's crappy compared to the first one
1. Who else thinks ALL escort missions suck in ANY shoot'em or RTS styled game? 2. We need Sci-Fi channel to make a MechCommander the Series, this intro is just the perfect mix of epicness and cornyness to fit right at home on that channel!
Ahhh... the games of old... still epic when compared to shitty trash being developed nowadays. Man, I remember watching this intro as a kid and playing the heck outta the game.... good times.... good times.
This is one of the best game vids even til this day just puts ya in the mood ta play which is what all games should have i wish theyd make more mechcommander games
3:18 In other radio channels, Star Captain was screaming at the world's slowest SMOKE JAG warrior to just get on with it and fire already. Seriously, no Clanner would hesitate to fire, let alone a Jaguar. Sigh.
Ome would almost say that that Timber Wolf was piloted by a Freebirth, but as we all know, OmniMechs like that, even in garrison duties, are often piloted only by Trueborns, while Frees are relegated second-hand 'Mechs (usually Inner Sphere) so that could possibly just be a green or newly minted Clan Trueborn
"Panther" seriously needs to grow a pair if he's going to pilot a Raven. That's exactly the kind of 'Mech that's ideal for out-maneuvering way more dangerous 'Mechs than a Timber Wolf, like an Atlas...
You'd not be so brave either if you were actually in the seat staring out a 75 ton Clan 'Mech that is out to blast the shit out of you and your lance mates take off. All the training in the World goes out the window on the battlefield.
from my experience, The name designation is a standardized layout. Madcats at EPC's, where Timberwolves had Gauss rifles. Vulture had primairly LRM's, and Mad Dog's had LRL.
Man what has went wrong... When can people make games with all this FEELING in them again? IT SURE AS HELL DOESNT LOOK GOOD NOWADAYS.. These old games are just class. And I can honestly say, even in this intro they acted very well... I WANT games like these again.
this opening movie is brilliant, good acting, good dialogue and special effects,,, i dont know whats stopping them from turning this into a feature film,
@superpyromaniac It is designed as a scout mech. It sacrifices armor and weapons to it can provide intel and sensor support to the lance it is working with. It basically finds the enemy and lets it bigger brothers take on the fight. All the mech classes have roles to fulfil and that variety is what made this game and mechwarrior so interesting.
The difference is the clan mechs were made for war, while some of the star league/Inner sphere mechs were made for other purposes such as construction, which is why some of them have hands. It also took thinking outside of the box and a war view point to come up with the non human looking mechs, such as the raven, flea, catapult, etc.
That's really weird. I distinctly remember the Timber Wolf being a 75 ton heavy mech and the Mad Cat being a 55 ton medium when I played MW2 as a kid, and having different setups for the two. Then again, that was a really long time ago.
256 colors has a very limited amount of options as far as which colors you can use, especally compared to 16 and 32 bit in which you have over 100,000s color choices, so to make a game look as good as this with such a limited palette is quite an achievement. Also, might not be able to be played in OSs like Vista which may not have this color option. I think that about covers it.
i remeber restarting a mission for about 10 times..just to get the mad cat ..glad there was that bridge between otherwise it would have wasted all my mechs in no time :D
i love this game!!!! my dad got it when it first came out and i can never get enough of that intro!!!! to bad the intro got all fucked up on my computer :( awsome game though...
My favourite Mech was the Awesome, I usually loaded it up with 4x medium range ppc's and 1x pulse laser or later on 3x clan er ppc's, Glade they showed the Awesome in the ending :D
It'd taken hits from behind, so the rear torso armor, which is weak anyway, was likely already compromised... if he hit the engine it's entirely possible. Head on, no, SRMs aren't going to hurt a Mad Cat. From behind? Different story.
The timberwolf took a few good hits in the rear, and it's rear armor is fairly weak ( a 7 in the side torsos, a 9 in in the center) so most likely the armor was already breached and both side torsos house ammo. so the raven's missles hit the bins and set off the LRM or MG ammo, which would explain the large explosion.
The Clan designations had that covered too There were subvariants. There was Primary Configuration, and then typically 4 others, designated with a letter. So, there was a Timber Wolf in Primary Configuration, or Config A, B, C, or D. Clan names for mechs are clan names for mechs, and IS designations are IS designations.
Haven't played mechcommander series, intro is pretty good, I hate how the raven runs though, but as far as MW intros go MW3 is still my all time favorite.
To take out the hunchback was probably the best option for the madcat. That AC20 is devastating even to heavy/assault classes. and being an urban setting, if the hunchback had jump jets then its even more of a threat.
The Mad Cat III, seen in the Dark Age (actually as early as the post-Jihad era) is a 55-tonner, but the original Mad Cat was always the same thing as the Timber Wolf -- i.e. a 75-ton heavy. You might be thinking of the Mad Dog, a 60-ton heavy, better known as the Vulture.
well that is correct the hunchback was basicly a larger scale idea of the urban mech designed for slow movment through cities and close in slug fights wihch is why it has that massive AC
Add to that the possibility of other damage. Including the Ravens initial salvo against it, any damage from the mechs before the Hunchback was shot down, possible autocannon damage before the MadCat spun about... Its hardly impossible. Especially at THAT range where you can place the firepower exactly.
@michaelhviper MechCommander was released before MechWarriors 3 and 4, but it parallels MechWarrior 3 in that it focused on Operation Bull Dog against the Smoke Jaguars in the Inner Sphere, where MechWarrior 3 focused more on Operation Serpent within Clan (Smoke Jaguar specifically) space. The only difference being MechCommander is set a few months before MechWarrior 3 in BattleTech timeline.
this is prolly one of the best games of all time. i mean it was made in 98 and still is in my top three opening movies for a game to this day. Absolutley Epic Game
No, that's because an Inner Sphere pilot was calling in the designation. Inner Sphere pilots call that design a Mad Cat. The Smoke Jaguar pilot of that 'Mech would've called it a Timber Wolf. In MechWarrior 2, which was from a Clan perspective, the same design was called the Timber Wolf. In the Battletech board game, you'll see it's called 'Mad Cat (Timber Wolf).'
Weird thing was that in the original game you didn't actually have waypoint controls. That was something they added in the expansion (which was sold as the Gold version) along with focused targeting.
true which is also why resistance cells with inferno rockets can have a high chance of capturing a barly damaged battle mech by getting a singel good shot near the cockpit that would force the pilot to abondon the mech or die burning alive
domo :) Though something that I needed to confirm, to get a precise strike from a raven against a Timber (LOL) it would need the Streak armament, which is viable in only 1 version - the SS from 3060. That still is most likely impossible to get all 6 missile land into 1 zone, even if it was facing the back. On the other hand, in a ToP I played a Cougar and I did make my stand against a Summoner for quite some time. Yet Board != video game.
Honestly though, mechs are SWEET, but the kuratas is just a wheeled vehicle with a mech upper body, it doesn't have actual, walking legs. Tracked vehicles are all around better than a walking mech. There are simply more moving and vulnerable parts, with few benefits, especially at these sizes. Smaller human-sized power armor/exoskeletons? I think we'll see that in the near future, but full-blown mechs are largely impractical when we have perfectly functional and practical tanks
@CMDRFandragon Salvage was ridiculous fun, but also thoughtful (hence one of the tactical elements). I remember MechWarrior 3 (takes place after MechCommander), by the time I reached Ops Zone 3, I said "screw it, trash all the IS weapons and just bring Clan stuff."
