War World: Tactical Combat
Preview
Mechs for the mech-lovers
by Howie Howard
previewed on PC
Slow coming
War World: Tactical Combat, a first person robot shooter from publisher Lighthouse Interactive, has been available in Europe since late February. The game has received positive reviews in many of the territories where it has been released so we can only assume that Lighthouse is working very hard to getting the game distributed worldwide. For those unable to get their hands on the game at this time, a preview.
The War World
I mentioned above that this game is a FPS and not necessarily classified as a Mech simulator such as Microsoft's Mech Warrior series were. The game is lite on story line but heavy on the action, meaning that you better have quick reflexes if you plan on surviving in this world. If you're dying for a background story, here goes.
The game is set on a war-torn planet called War World. Although there are some areas that have been kept neutral, the vast majority of the planet's surface is considered to be a warzone. The neutral areas are ruled by seven city states that are peaceful and act as the planets economical and industrial backbone. Outside of these areas, anything goes and this is where all the fun is. Out there, 19 main and several smaller factions, battle it out. Battle what out? No one is all that sure. On War World, one lives to fight. No apparent cause is necessary.
Robot Warriors
At any rate the story line is simple in that War World is where various warring clans go to resolve their differences. They do this by piloting giant robots while trying to pummel each other with various high power weapons. I liken this to the arena that was present in the Mech Warrior games of old. You simply fight against other Mechs with no advance in plot or story line.
When you start your career in this brutal world of giant mechanized robots you start as a level 1 newbie. Your goal is to advance from level 1 up to level 100. Along the way you will be able to develop and build your Mech by improving weapon systems and by adding different systems such as thrusters, mortars or mines to your robot. As you complete and win matches you will earn points to advance in level.
As you gain experience you can chose from 3 different Mech machines. The first class is a lightweight bot that is extremely nimble and fast. This lightweight bot is only able to carry a limited amount of weapons and ammo so the pilot must rely on his or her ability to dodge and run circles around a larger more powerful opponent. The next class of machine is the mid range or medium Mech and this bot is sort of a blend of the lightweight and heavy Mech. It combines a descent amount of firepower with OK agility. Finally you will be able to pilot the heavy bot. This is a leviathan and it will be able to literally tear an opponent apart because it can be packed with many different kinds of the most powerful weapons available in the game. While using this machine you will be able to absorb as well as dish out enormous amounts of punishment, unfortunately you will be like a lumbering target. A skilled opponent in a light Mech will be able to run circles around you, and they will.
