Singleplayer MechWarrior 5 Returning in 2018

I’ve been a fan of MechWarrior games for a very long time, it’s part of many of my earliest PC gaming memories. However, with the series not having a true single player version for around 15 years now, I had lost a lot of interest in it. All that looks set to change in the future, however, as the developers revealed that the game would be returning to the singleplayer FPS scene in 2018!

MechWarrior Online developers, Piranha Games, revealed the news at MechCon 2016, where they showed off some pre-alpha gameplay footages on stage. Russ Bullock, Piranha Games President, revealed that the game would be PvE and Career-based, and feature a branching campaign for single player. The new game will be set in the Third Succession War, giving you the chance to defend Earth and Inner Sphere with your new mech skills. Not that this game needs much back story, just give me a mech and a thing to shoot at and I’m pretty happy.

The new game uses Unreal Engine 4, a big departure from MWO’s use of CryEngine, but with a dedciated team working on it, that shouldn’t be a problem and as you can see in the video, it’s still looking visually impressive either way.

“Pre-alpha demo footage of MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, announced during the keynote presentation at Mech_Con 2016.

In MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries you will adopt the role of a rookie MechWarrior pilot thrust into combat as the Third Succession War continues to fracture the Inner Sphere. Take contracts from the factions of your choosing and engage in tactical, first-person, PvE ‘Mech combat through an immersive, career-based Mercenary campaign driven by player choice. Victory, prestige, and profit will not only require skill on the battlefield, but in the acquisition, maintenance, and enhancement of your BattleMechs.

Set for release in 2018, MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries is under development by a dedicated team at Piranha Games. MechWarrior Online, Piranha’s existing F2P multiplayer-focused tactical ‘Mech combat game, will continue its ongoing live development by the MWO team at Piranha.”