If this Trailer does not have you freaking out, then you and I can no longer be friends.

After days of rumor and painfully short teaser trailers, MechWarrior has been confirmed to be in development; apparently since last October. IGN nabbed an exclusive interview with the president of Piranha Games, Russ Bullock, and the co-founder of Smith & Tinker, Jordan Weisman, to talk about the new MechWarrior title. Weisman co-founded FASA, was a co-creator of the Battletech universe MechWarrior is set in and has since reacquired the license from Microsoft. No word on who will be publishing the game yet though.

This is not MechWarrior 5, or MechWarrior: Blah Blah, it’s a total reboot; though the name itself may change before release. The MechWarrior series, and the Battletech universe (novels, games and more) it hails from, have been around for almost 25 years now (Battletech’s anniversary is coming up coincidentally), so it makes sense that they would want to revitalize the series.

Now I am trying ever so hard not to just gush all over the page. If you’ve ever seen a uber Trekkie nerd, you have an idea just how into MechWarrior and Battletech I am. I got into the universe through MechWarrior 2 and very quickly became obsessed with the pen and paper game and the novel series (Michael A. Stackpole FTW!). Then came MechWarrior 2: Mercenaries, the MechCommander RTS’, MechWarrior 3, MechWarrior 4, and finally MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries.

For the longest time MechWarrior was only a PC phenomenon, one of the greats from the golden age of simulation games (remember Wing Commander?), until the series branched off and the consoles got MechAssault 1 & 2. I played them both and enjoyed them, but puritans like myself never considered them “true” MechWarrior games. It looks like the new MechWarrior may be coming to both the Xbox 360 and the PC, though the date is, of course, TBA. All indications are that this new game will be more like the classic simulation titles and not like MechAssault, which is great.

The game is a reboot, so some things will change, but not everything is going out the window. Here are some tidbits for you diehards: Set in 3015, the game actually takes place before the first MechWarrior, during the Third Succession War. The game starts just as Hanse Davion comes to power, not that long before the Fourth Succession War kicks off. So yeah, the lore still makes an appearance.

The interview is a 6 page beast, chalk full of details you rarely get about any release, so it is definitely worth a read. Things like four player co-op (you and your pals create your own lance!), the fact the game does not appear to be coming to the PS3, its use of the Unreal 3 engine, the possibility of live action video or CG, 360 vs. PC play and a lot more are talked about.

It is funny that just before the news broke I waxed nostalgic on Episode 58 of the Blu Show that if I could go back and play any game over again like it was the first time, I’d pick MechWarrior 2. Funny how things turn out.

Source: IGN

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