MechWarrior 4: Vengeance Mech Showcase: Part One

Mech Showcase: Part One

Welcome to the first in GameSpot's weekly MechWarrior 4: Vengeance Mech showcases. Every Friday for the next four weeks, we'll be bringing you detailed information, specifications, and plenty of screenshots on five of the mechs in Microsoft and FASA's upcoming action game. MechWarrior 4 will feature around 20 mechs, including seven that have never been seen before in any Battletech game or literature. Whether you choose to follow the single-player campaign or fight against your friends online, you'll have the chance to pilot every single one of these giant mechs when MechWarrior 4 releases this November. In the meantime, we present you with this week's profiles.

Awesome

The Awesome's ability to blend battlefield durability with a potent arsenal and mobility has made it a longtime favorite among the Inner Sphere warriors. As such, its venerable AWS-8Q variant had previously not undergone any major revisions, and even though the mech is still widely used, it's starting to show its age. MechWarrior 4 will feature the AWS-9M version of the Awesome, which now boasts a number of improvements throughout its design. Key among these upgrades is an enhanced engine, the new Hermes 320 XL, which provides the giant 80-ton Awesome with a 28 percent increase in running speed over the older variant.

Tech level: Inner Sphere
Armor: Ferro-fibrous
Max tonnage: 80
Jump jet capable: No
Top speed: 68kph
Internal structure type: Standard

Atlas

Even though the relatively new AS7-K variant of the Atlas is an efficient war machine with a light engine and an impressive loadout of weapons, the Federated Commonwealth is desperately trying to finish the construction of the Defiance Industries factory on Hesperus in order to produce an even newer model of the Atlas, the AS7-S. Considered to be much closer in its design to the original Atlas than the AS7-K, the AS7-S effectively makes use of double heat sinks to dissipate heat quickly during combat.

Tech level: Inner Sphere
Armor: Ferro-fibrous
Max tonnage: 100
Jump jet capable: No
Top speed: 51kph
Internal structure type: Standard

Hellspawn

The Hellspawn is one of the seven new mechs that will be introduced into the Battletech universe once MechWarrior 4: Vengeance releases later this year. This 45-ton machine was designed for the role of the command mech of a scout lance. It's a general purpose mech that has slightly faster than average speed, and its wide field of vision gives its pilot an excellent view of the battlefield. But in addition to being a great recon unit, the Hellspawn - with its jump jets and impressive suite of weapons - is a formidable opponent in combat as well.

Tech level: Inner Sphere
Armor: Ferro-fibrous
Max tonnage: 45
Jump jet capable: Yes
Top speed: 102kph
Internal structure: Standard

Chimera

The Chimera, which is another one of the seven new mechs in the game, uses Reflec armor instead of the more popular ferro-fibrous skin that's found on nearly all the other mechs of the Inner Sphere. Even though it's classified as a medium mech, the Chimera's light weight and jump jets make it one of the fastest field units in the game. In its standard configuration, it comes equipped with an MRM 20, a medium laser, and a pair of large lasers. A machine gun for dispatching non-mech vehicles and troops also comes standard.

Tech level: Inner Sphere
Armor: Reflec
Max tonnage: 40
Jump jet capable: Yes
Top speed: 102kph
Internal structure: Endo steel

Mad Cat Mk. II

One of the most popular mechs in the Battletech universe is getting a major face-lift in MechWarrior 4. The resemblance between the new Mad Cat Mark II and the original Mad Cat is easy to spot, especially considering that both have the telltale shoulder-mounted LRM packs (though the Mark II's are now angled 45 degrees upward). Other improvements include more durable limbs and more hardpoints, which can now accommodate gauss guns, lasers, homing missiles, and other weapon types.

Tech level: Clan
Armor: Ferro-fibrous
Max tonnage: 90
Jump jet capable: Yes
Top speed: 73kph
Internal structure: Endo steel

Make sure to come back to the MechWarrior 4: Vengeance gamespace next week, when we'll showcase another five of the game's mechs. In the meantime, take a look at the screenshot gallery, which we've recently updated with a number of images of the mechs featured in this showcase. And if you haven't done so already, read our 2628760preview of MechWarrior 4: Vengeance to learn more about this promising game.