MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf

When youve spent the last 10 years building 40-foot-tall walking tanks capable of leveling entire cities, theres nowhere else to go but down. Ive always wanted to get the players as human pilots out of the mechs, so people can get a sense of the size and power of the things, says TJ Wagner, producer at developer Day 1 Studios and decade-long veteran of making games starring the giant machines.

One of the things that has always bothered me about mech games is that you start out from the point of view of the mech and you play the whole game as a mech. After a while, youre just assuming the skin of the mech, so it all scales down to be like any other shooter. So now in MechAssault 2, Microsofts third-person action-shooter due out holiday season 2004 for the Xbox, youll be able to step out of your tin man of destruction and see just how gigantic those things really are. But wheres the fun in that? Arent people playing a MechAssault gam in order to do some assaultin'...uh...in a mech? Youre a character with a story line now, says Wagner. And youll be able to run around, plant trip mines for enemies, or break into buildings to steal a mech. Even better, you can now hop into support vehicles for a different look at the battlefield.

For those of us who love to control 90 ton walking battleships (and who doesn't), waiting for MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf has required some patience. The question is however was it worth the wait. That's going to be a matter of opinion but if you liked the first MechAssault, you'll have no complaints this time either.

MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf offers graphic improvements, new mech design, and new functionality to make the experience as new as possible. The graphics really are spectacular at times with explosions making the most noticeable improvements along with a general increased level of detail. In addition, the size of the mechs is better realized along with their enormous power. The new mech designs with new weapons also give a strong presence but it's the addition of the battle armor and VTOL that makes the biggest impact.

The battle armor is basically what it sounds like as it surrounds the soldier with a Halo Master Chief like suit capable of hacking into mechs and taking them over. It also has a claw that allows you to grab the sides of buildings, recharge jump jets, and take off again. The concept works well and adds a new dimension to the gameplay. When combined with the VTOL (advanced looking helicopter), which the battle armor can attach to, new strategies besides just running and shooting open up.

This is probably most noticeable when playing multiplayer games as these functions open up entirely new strategies to develop. In addition to the new gameplay potential, the other multiplayer features push MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf over the top. You can join clans, play numerous different games, and even engage in a conquest mode where you try to overtake entire worlds.

The only real drawback to MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf is the singleplayer campaign. Although the campaign is fun, it's also easy and quickly conquered. Most will easily have gotten through the entire campaign in 7 or 8 hours.

Besides that, MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf will meet or surpass most expectations, especially for those looking for at the multiplayer aspects. Although the singleplayer campaign is short, the other aspects of the game more then make up for it.