MW5 - Rant

[IAMCLANWOLF]

Returning to the game after a very early playthrough at launch. This game is now phenomenal with all the updates & DLC. The closet Davion fanboy in me is especially loving the Kestrel Lancers missions RN!

Why is no one talking about MW5, anymore? Just, old hat? Seems like such a gem. I'm impressed by how much has been completely reworked / updated. I find it hard ot put down... "Just one more drop, I swear!!" 

[MarauderD]

I think for me (played 1/2 the game back when it was released) it was simply the idea of increased difficulty through swarms of enemies. 
1. Not very interesting missions
2. Too many Cicadas and Locusts.  Why is everything a Cicada or Locust?
3. Too many vehicle swarms. 
4. Clueless AI

All the usual culprits.  I think I'm at a spot in life where I'm so busy, a game needs to really grab me to have me want to focus my hobby time on a video game.  MW5 didn't do it:  which was interesting, because I thought HBS BattleTech was amazing, and did several careers and campaign playthroughs.  To each their own, I guess?

[Dragon Cat]

Returning to the game after a very early playthrough at launch. This game is now phenomenal with all the updates & DLC. The closet Davion fanboy in me is especially loving the Kestrel Lancers missions RN!

Why is no one talking about MW5, anymore? Just, old hat? Seems like such a gem. I'm impressed by how much has been completely reworked / updated. I find it hard ot put down... "Just one more drop, I swear!!"

I still enjoy it on xbox been a while but it's good

[VanVelding]

The moment to moment 'mech combat is great. Top notch. Every moment that I'm in a 'mech shooting the arm off of an Urbanmech, it's joy. The multiplayer is inspired, even if my guest is roleplaying the part of a mechwarrior chained to a tool locker in the 'mech bay until we deploy.

Even putting aside the canonical implications that were necessary to make the game part of the game work (the industrial hubs, the combat zones, the Inner Sphere itself having difficulty levels, the occasional Marik vs. Lyran missions in Capellan space, etc.), the moments outside of 'mech combat are woeful.

The reputation system is unnavigable. In my first playthrough everyone hated me because taking a DC vs FS mission followed by a FS vs DC mission meant that both hated me slightly more instead of understanding that my job as a mercenary is to shoot people for money.

My mechwarriors have names and one even has a story, but they all have skill caps which mean they get spaced let go the minute better RNG Mechwarriors show up. The salvage system actively punishes you for leaving enemy mechs in larger parts because a headless Rifleman costs way more in salvage than one that's just a cockpit.

And while I'm glad Paul Masters is no longer preventing 'unfair' combat drops when I'm 5 tons overweight, I still object a little bit to the update that limits him to giving me a red card and a fine instead.

The varied terrain doesn't forestall the feeling that I'm spending enough time in box canyons to shoot a Red versus Blue remake. Granted, time feels like nothing because there's six mission types that I'm grinding the shit out of and I'm glad the DLC added cantina jobs so I have something to show for the Warrior VTOL genocide that defines my career beyond any quest for revenge--

--revenge for my stupid dad who had a Victor and decided to solo a King Crab instead of jumping over the rubble with his ****** jump jets because of the deliberate story decision to give him one of, like, two assault 'mechs with jump jets. Must be that top-tier Clan training he apparently has.

And speaking of friends, maybe it's because I'm American and ill-bred, but every time Ryanna and Fahid open their mouths I want to shut them again with a Heavy Rifle and an air strike. Darius in HBS Battletech got on my last ****** nerve by warning me about the incoming LRM volley that already hit me--thanks friendo--but Ryanna's constant tutorial for bonus salvage is the strongest motivator to start a career in modding just so I can shut her up.

I got one DLC pack and that includes beachhead missions which are amazing and a few more special missions definitely liven things up, even if the 'mech customization system makes it a little hard to get excited over one bonus weapon, even if it's a legitimately good one.

But I just stuck a trio of rank 3 ER Large Lasers onto an Awesome with enough heat sinks to freeze the gods' lemonade and it's been absolutely bliss to perform laser cockpit surgery on every ****** who get within a kilometer of me while still being free to punch a hole clean through the impertinent Jenners who get too close because they have a 'mech full of SRM ammo and a death wish.

I hit at least three missions a week in my second playthrough. Considering buying the new DLC.

[NeonKnight]

but Ryanna's constant tutorial for bonus salvage is the strongest motivator to start a career in modding just so I can shut her up.

Honestly, I don;t mind her Telling me about Salvage, because maybe I'm not looking that way, so it's a queue to pause a moment and look for it.

But, Yeah it's a blast I enjoy and every once and a while I go back to it.

[martian]

Why is no one talking about MW5, anymore?

I am busy with MechWarrior Online.  ;)



Ensuring that we will not lose on caps:



Playing against other people can be fun too, remember?  :)

[Dragon Cat]

I am busy with MechWarrior Online.  ;)



Ensuring that we will not lose on caps:



Playing against other people can be fun too, remember?  :)

Wish it worked on Xbox

[Cyc]

Its just old hat. I'm PokeMeching a vanilla playthrough and barely scratched surface of mods, but generally at a lower ebb even compared to MWO which keeps coming out with reasons to grind (finishing Platnium 7 at present for example) and as Martian mentioned people breathe life into things.

MW5 release was definitely a rocky start, but even if it had launched Call to Arms level back in 2019 I wonder how much longevity it would have had.

[Dragon Cat]

Its just old hat. I'm PokeMeching a vanilla playthrough and barely scratched surface of mods, but generally at a lower ebb even compared to MWO which keeps coming out with reasons to grind (finishing Platnium 7 at present for example) and as Martian mentioned people breathe life into things.

MW5 release was definitely a rocky start, but even if it had launched Call to Arms level back in 2019 I wonder how much longevity it would have had.

I have all the DLC they know what they are doing I just wish they had more time to develop it more

[BATTLEMASTER]

I'm trying to get the Clan Invasion mod to work on my MW5 installation right now because I'm too impatient to wait for a Clan MechWarrior title.  I've really enjoyed the MercTech mod as it brought MW5 the closest to MW2 in 'mech simulation than MW3 or MW4 ever did.

[elf25s]

i gave up on it after endless spawns and despite training mission showing a repair bay i never found one again

[VanVelding]

Honestly, I don;t mind her Telling me about Salvage, because maybe I'm not looking that way, so it's a queue to pause a moment and look for it.

That's what I don't get. Was the voice acting budget so tight they couldn't get her (or a mechwarrior) to add an "I found some salvage" or "Looks like some good stuff over here" line to cycle through? Every time it's the first day of Salvage Recovery 101; here's your syllabus and pacifier.

But they did make sure to cram in 12 identically-unhelpful "new enemies" barks which don't tell me where in the ****** those enemies are coming from--even though you gave me this nice compass marker on my HUD, MW5--which makes her saying anything redundant because sans being helpful, it's just Rayanna reminding me that the mission isn't over yet. Thanks game, but I'm not a narcoleptic and you're not that boring.

I'd rather have her tutorialize than say nothing while I walk past $5 of equipment and war materiel that I'm legally(?) appropriating for my private corporation, but it's a near thing.

It's like elf25s' mention of the repair bay; another interesting mechanic in a game that needs interesting mechanics but seems to ****** stubbornly refuse to use the interesting mechanics it has.

I like that they eventually rolled the salvage mechanic into the cantina missions. That was clever.

FWIW, I play on Steam and I'd be down to play a few missions some afternoon.

[Dragon Cat]

i gave up on it after endless spawns and despite training mission showing a repair bay i never found one again

I think there's one more in the game its really annoying

[IAMCLANWOLF]

I'm trying to get the Clan Invasion mod to work on my MW5 installation right now...

I've not tried the Clan invasion mod, but all the mods I have tried add lots of flavor. I do wish moders would keep things updated on the steam workshop. It's so much simpler. However, I think everything in the workshop is out of date, and very buggy. Thankfully Nexus mods has everything I need (so far).

[Sartris]

i have literally hundreds of unplayed games in my steam and gog libraries. games that don't resonate strongly don't get a second look these days

[Aotrs Commander]

Well, funny you should start the thread - I am literally installing MW5 for the first time at this very moment, having just finished my latest Rimworld game.

I haven't used my joystick (Thrustmaster 16000M) for YEARS, but it seems to still be okay according the the diagnostics. I think I last used it when I did a TIE Fighter playthrough on giant in the playground... And that was 2014.

(I think I replaced the previous joystick with it in anticpation for Star Citizen/Squadron 42, that was silly of me wasn't it!)

It's been even longer since I played MW3 (which I quite liked, but never finished; I only played MW4 a bit wehn borrowed from a mate).


I got all the DLC (I've had this for a few months now, no rush, I don't tend to play things until tyhey at least reach a state of "completed" or a good year or so into ongoing support.)


So then, are there any mods You Should Really Not Play Without or anything else useful I really need to know before I start?

(It's not like I will be actually playing tonight, I suspect what little time is left after the install will be configuring my joystick... Since (typically) there's not a profile for MW5, at least not one that doesn't expect my to have TWO sticks.)

I should note I'm in this for the single player... And ultimate, like all previous BattleTech games, I'm likely to be wanting to spend the bulk of the time in the mech bay fiddling with bits as I get new toys to play with. I will likely play the campaigns, though, because I do work best when given an endpoint.

[VanVelding]

a TIE Fighter playthrough

That's a name I haven't heard in a long, long time.

I don't use any mods and while I'm not exactly cheerleading the game, the mechbay fiddling is pretty good and the mech bay painting is top-notch. You've got a good variety of weapons that gets wider as time goes on and if you've got the DLC, you'll have even more. My first play through was with no DLC and it was a bit of a grind. Playing again with DLC it looks like I could hit up DLC missions and a few generic missions to get through the story without really grinding.

Rifles are incredibly interesting to play with. Don't write off any weapon; just play and experiment and kill, kill, kill (this week's) enemy.

[Aotrs Commander]

TIE Fighter, one of the joint top three games of all time.


Well, cracking start, the TARGET software for my joystick config doesn't appear to work at all

Error: (internal) cannot associate a filter with the selected USB HID device "VID_044F&PID_B10A"

Runtime Error: STOP request received while running main on line 21 in "C:\Users\aotrs\AppData\Roaming\Thrustmaster\TARGET\Scripts\AotrsMW5 Thrustmaster 01.tmc"
Error: Script run timed out!)

So I have no freaking clue what THAT means.

(according to all the clicky joystick tests, my joystick buttons and throttle do register, so...)

And for saying the Thrustmaster is supposed to be natively supported, the throttle doesn't, like MOVE anything. Good job with the programming lads!

It's way too late to do anything now, but even a cursory glance at the supposed community guide isn't helpful, since it says "yep, supported" and there's like one line to presumably paste into whatever file I'm supposed to.

*sigh*

Nothing can ever just bloody WORK anymore can it?

[VanVelding]

Have you tried turning if off and on again?  :-\

[NeonKnight]

Or play without the Joystick and use Keyboard and Mouse?

I find I get where better aiming with the Keyboard/mouse.  Yes, it's not as 'immersive', but I save that for my Flight Sims game and use a HOTAS.

And if ya Love TIE Fighter, try X-Wing Squadrons. Awesome. Awesomer with a Flight Stick. Even More Awesome with VR Headset!

[Lanceman]

TIE Fighter, one of the joint top three games of all time.


Well, cracking start, the TARGET software for my joystick config doesn't appear to work at all

Error: (internal) cannot associate a filter with the selected USB HID device "VID_044F&PID_B10A"

Runtime Error: STOP request received while running main on line 21 in "C:\Users\aotrs\AppData\Roaming\Thrustmaster\TARGET\Scripts\AotrsMW5 Thrustmaster 01.tmc"
Error: Script run timed out!)

So I have no freaking clue what THAT means.

(according to all the clicky joystick tests, my joystick buttons and throttle do register, so...)

And for saying the Thrustmaster is supposed to be natively supported, the throttle doesn't, like MOVE anything. Good job with the programming lads!

It's way too late to do anything now, but even a cursory glance at the supposed community guide isn't helpful, since it says "yep, supported" and there's like one line to presumably paste into whatever file I'm supposed to.

*sigh*

Nothing can ever just bloody WORK anymore can it?

TARGET is absolutely the last thing you should be using for this (or like anything, it's just not good software). MW5 works much better with JoyStick Gremlin or other similar programs, though it can still be a bear. Mostly you just gotta get the axes working appropriately and then can just translate everything else as keyboard presses. It took some fiddling but I got my Thrustmaster throttle and VKB Gladiator-K working just fine with it eventually.

This also helped immensely: https://github.com/evilC/MW5HOTAS

[Luciora]

I have an old sidewinder I used for MW3, and while it could ise more buttons, configuring it in the game menu let me set up all the basics including the throttle.  I thought I read somewhere that MW5 wasn't very compatible with outside joystick configuration programs a while back.

[Aotrs Commander]

TARGET is absolutely the last thing you should be using for this (or like anything, it's just not good software). MW5 works much better with JoyStick Gremlin or other similar programs, though it can still be a bear. Mostly you just gotta get the axes working appropriately and then can just translate everything else as keyboard presses. It took some fiddling but I got my Thrustmaster throttle and VKB Gladiator-K working just fine with it eventually.

This also helped immensely: https://github.com/evilC/MW5HOTAS

The folks on reddit have pointed out what I need to do get the throttle to work (in about an hour when I stop procrastinating and actually get back to finish the last hour's work) and you are the second person to observe TARGET is rubbish. (I mean, it used to work fine, but...) I will have to do it manually, clearly.

Or play without the Joystick and use Keyboard and Mouse?

I have fond memories of trying to play TIE Fighter with the mouse and keyboard.

No, wait, I don't; that was an absolute nightmare I never want to repeat.

Seriously, if a simulation game cannot be played on my joystick, than I can't (and won't) play it. Put it this way, I can barely cope with controllers (I used to make my mate, (who does platinum-twitch-streams and is thus Quite Good At Video Games) cry when he watched me using my PS2 controller to ineptly bounce off walls playing Final Fantasy and I mean like 6/7/9/10 - I played 8 on PC - not the MMORPG ones). I do NOT cope well with keyboard controls, and if more games let me use a joystick (the few that I play that would make it appropriate) I would use them. I'd probably have done much better with both Mass Effect and Greedfall (particularly) if I could have used my joystick. I muddled through, but it was never very easy for me.


I find I get where better aiming with the Keyboard/mouse.  Yes, it's not as 'immersive', but I save that for my Flight Sims game and use a HOTAS.

And if ya Love TIE Fighter, try X-Wing Squadrons. Awesome. Awesomer with a Flight Stick. Even More Awesome with VR Headset!

Was that the recent one from 2020? (That was the only thing I could find on a google search.) Yeah, kinda pass, Star Wars went away after they dropped the old EU - while bits of it I was gald to see the back of, it also meant uncanoning what I considered the BEST bits of Star Wars (even above the films themselves) - TIE Fighter included. Also if it's that one, it's EA and I am not prepared to give them money anymore.

[Lanceman]

Was that the recent one from 2020? (That was the only thing I could find on a google search.) Yeah, kinda pass, Star Wars went away after they dropped the old EU - while bits of it I was gald to see the back of, it also meant uncanoning what I considered the BEST bits of Star Wars (even above the films themselves) - TIE Fighter included. Also if it's that one, it's EA and I am not prepared to give them money anymore.

There is this also: https://www.moddb.com/mods/tie-fighter-total-conversion-tftc

[Aotrs Commander]

Okay,got joystick working.

Tried an instant match.

After a short while m I swapped the horizontal look and leg turn axis; when I move the stick left, I want to turn left, not look left dammit! (My brain is eternally still plugged into TIE Fighter/XWA flight...)

Spent a while trying to set the weapon groups of the default Atlas up.

Proceded the get completely caned by the opposition despite this being on difficult, like 6 or something, right near the bottom.

Not surprisingly, really.

I think the Aim Assist needs to go on, it's been... Yeah, well over a decade since I last played MW3 and, like I said, about eight years sine I lat tyouched my joystick at all. I am going to suuuuuuuck for a good while.

Whelp, guess I'll look at starting a campaign...

There is this also: https://www.moddb.com/mods/tie-fighter-total-conversion-tftc

I think I remember that from a while back. The slight problem being no SLAM for th MissileBoat, kind of making it impossible to do those missions, which is why I never tried it.



Edit: Tutorial! Stop saying I'm competant!

Whelp, at least I made it through the tutorial without dying.

The old fighter muscle memory doesn't help, I am going to have to get used to being more deliberate with fire, since I can't just, y'know hold the trigger down the same way as TIE/X-WA/Freespace 2...

Woo! Actual cutscenes what are animated and not just drawn-on-parchment or animated paintings! I think the only time I recall seeing those was the intro to Spellforce 3!

It's also going to take getting used to actually walking around. Not saying the mouse and keyboard was bad, but I got stuck for two minutes trying to WALK TO THE HANGAR to start the tutorial...

[Aotrs Commander]

And the usual poblem with most games - that insane inverted difficulty curve. I managed through the first act of the campaign, so I got the jenner and the pilot. (I did, granted, at this point install a load of mods - YAML and company, pilot overhaul but EMPHATICALLY nothing to change the difficulty). I bought the least worst pilot... And have spent about the last two hours trying missions, getting horrendously murdered (like "reload" bad) and going somewhere to try again.

Someone of the discord suggested I try raid missions (all the lowest difficulty ones have been assassination ones). I've dropped half the centurion's ammo for extra armour.

Anything else I can try?

[Wrangler]

I play off and on, I've not had time doing career as of late.  I do play with friends in co-op gaming doing their careers.  I do find that Nexus mods is what really keeps the game a float with some people.  Having mod that drops battalion of UrbanMechs to toast your enemies you don't have chance to win against is hilarious.

[PyreLight]

Probably the biggest Mechwarrior game to date with mods, I've sunk hundreds of hours into it already thanks to the diversity in content. No previous Mechwarrior has had this amount of mechs, variants, graphical complexity, detailed cockpits, 4 player coop, procedural mission generator with tons of missions and biomes, modding support and capabilities, and so on.

I'd love a campaign with unique missions (vanilla campaign and Kestrels are all right but not amazing) to make the game be more memorable in mission designs. But otherwise it's a really great game. Playing it in VR with HOTAS is like a dream come true. Absolutely amazing work all around by PGI, I'm really grateful for MW5 existing after the horrible twilight years when the singleplayer series was dead.

[martian]

Wish it worked on Xbox

MWO2 maybe, but MWO is in the maintenance mode right now.

[Wrangler]

Question, is there mods to add additional more interesting missions?

I'm not saying that I want to break the game or anything, but it does help make the game more interesting. I know there's one more expansion to go before this is no more but it'd be nice see if there's fan made missions to add to it.