kuru

The games are classics. This pack is not. In their haydays, 31st and Mercs would be top scores. Ghost Bear is simply poor, but that doesn't mar the games that are good. They're innovative. They bring things never seen again. They have a diverse array of versions, some of them good optimizations to enhance the game for their respective target systems. This is not the good kind. Titanium was a sort of all-in-one soft remake (reskin) that boosted graphics and made all sorts of tweaks in the name of performance and just, well, change. On a purely visual basis, okay. Mechanically? You thought you saw bugs with Mercs alone, now you have Titanium doing everything from knocking balance off the table with engine issues causing disappearing weapon hits, overall crappy stability, and really just a questionable graphic improvement for the problems it caused, especially in the modern age, and I don't think you are looking at something this old to be wowed by low-grade graphics work. Save yourself (more) trouble and pick up dos versions in isos, or an original cd for each thing (dos), or the complete bundle that just put the games together without making changes. The latter, or a dos version. Forget about the rest. Titanium is highly problematic and just about every other version is for specialized equipment you probably don't have (ie, particular cards, one for IBM PCs specifically, and so on). If you have it, feel free to research more. Otherwise, I'd say you should pass the Titanium collection. Highly negative thoughts of it aside, if you're concerned that this game won't run at all with titanium, sure, it will. If you're going off to obscure mechwarrior 2 online discords for mutliplayer, it may even be advisable to play. But it's not the peak of what Mechwarrior 2 can give, in convenience or overall experience. That is why I fully discourage it.

Mercenaries is the classic Mechwarrior 2 experience, a look into the heart of what the series was prior to the 2000s at its peak. Given quite a bit of tinkering, and I do mean quite a bit with looking into DOSBOX just at the minimum (you should probably forget about windows editions), you end up with a mostly stable and quite functional game. However, this is not 31st century - it was imperfect at the beginning in its stability, and time has not treated those bugs well. Won't necessarily kill the game, though. The content is much expanded, however. There's more depth, an economy, a tad more freedom and mission randomization the likes of Mechwarrior 5, which kinda goes to show how much the series has evolved. Not. Much of the experience boils down to getting it to run, but between MechVM, dosbox, and a myriad of guides (look for them on reddit), a tech savvy player should be getting things up without too much trouble. If you're scared of software guts so to speak, this isn't a game for you. In fact, between graphics and dated gameplay concepts, you shouldn't come in expecting a hidden visual and mechanical gem. A recent mechwarrior player will find some novelties that would be nice in later editions, but a lot more that is simply missing. A must-see for the adventurous old school mechwarrior fan, but its appeal in the modern day would require a competent remake. No, get out of here W3Reforged. I'll give it a 7. It's a classic, it's nostalgic, it's the last game that truly went up before development troubles produced two somewhat flawed releases and the only edition of its style and advancement before MW3 and MW4 made things different, though arguably for the better in many fields, and for many just in general. It would have been worth learning from in the latest visions of the series. Advancing missons despite losing and having that fact change the outcome of the story... that was never seen again, and it's pretty damn rare in the industry as a whole with how well it was executed here. All that said, while it once deserved an easy 9 or 10, it's problematic, it's old, and a lot of it takes rose tinted love to enjoy. I'm an old school gamer. I like that. But I try to review with a more open mind. That open mind indicates this game is certainly not for everyone. Just because the people who know its age of glory score it highly doesn't mean what it is today is what you'll most enjoy... perhaps by far.

31st Century Combat is as classic as it gets short of going back to the original purebred DOS game. Given quite a bit of tinkering, and I do mean quite a bit with looking into DOSBOX just at the minimum (you should probably forget about windows editions), you eventually lead to what should be a relatively stable and quite functional game. In fact, a little more stable than Mercenaries. Alas, less content. When people speak of the glory days of Mechwarrior, they tend to refer to Mercs, as that game has more diverse enemies and gameplay in general. If you want old school multiplayer, it's still worth looking at. Much of the experience boils down to getting it to run, but between MechVM, dosbox, and a myriad of guides (look for them on reddit), a tech savvy player should be getting things up without too much trouble. If you're scared of software guts so to speak, this isn't a game for you. In fact, between graphics and dated gameplay concepts, this is more nostalgia food than anything. A recent mechwarrior player will find some novelties that would be nice in later editions, but a lot more that is simply missing. Even comparing to Mercenaries. I'll give it a 6, not because the heart of it is barely average, but because time has not treated this particular entry well. I can review on what once was (and what a gem it was back then), or I can review on what it is now. I'm mainly going for the latter given the troubles of getting it together and the difficulty of its appeal towards an audience that isn't within the series. If you're a veteran looking for a classic, though - this is one of the big ones.