MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf
Encyclopedia
MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf is a 2004
video game developed by Day 1 Studios
and published by Microsoft Game Studios
exclusively for the Xbox
console. It is the sequel to 2002
's MechAssault
and is set in the BattleTech
universe. Lone Wolf is backward compatible for the Xbox 360
.
(player) are returning to their workshop, mysterious craft enter the Dante airspace and a Stiletto battlemech lands on the ground and starts searching for them. They successfully evade the Stiletto and make it back to the workshop, where Nat instructs the player to suit up in the BattleArmor and stop the invaders. After this, you see an image of hundreds of dropships entering the atmosphere. Mysteriously, one of these is shot down by the others. After fighting your way to the crash site, you meet up with a strange new MechWarrior by the name of Alera, a space pirate with a jumpship named the "Jessabelle". Later, the Mechwarrior
must escape an enemy port, and steals an enemy tank from 3 soldiers. An APC then comes out and follows the Mechwarrior on his way. The tank must go through two scans to advance the level, but however, the "Passenger Scan" warns the enemies that it is a trick, and the player must escape the port with a tank. Later the player is able to get an Owens battlemech. During the final mission of the game the player kills the giant battlemech that uses all five of the data cores and Alera dies to save the player and the team.
s, powered armor,turrets, and VTOL
s. The game also allows the player to leave their vehicle and plant explosives or roam around as a human/pilot. An interesting aspect of the game is the ability to "hitch" rides on friendly mechs and VTOLs, while wearing a powered armor. It is also possible to do the same to enemy mechs and attempt a 'neurohack', with the result of ejecting the pilot and taking over his mech if successful.
rated the game 7.9/10, citing good visual effects, and overall good gameplay, specifically praising the multiplayer portion of the game, but also citing several drawbacks including repetitiveness in the singleplayer campaign, along with poor voice acting and "uninspired terrain graphics". IGN
awarded the game 8.9/10, also citing good gameplay, especially the multiplayer portion of the game. Concerns included the lacking appeal of the singleplayer campaign, and bad environmental graphics.
2004 in video gaming
-Events:*January 20 — Wireds Vaporware Awards gives its first "Lifetime Achievement Award" to recurring winner Duke Nukem Forever.*March 4 — Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts 7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts Peter Molyneux into the AIAS Hall of Fame*March 22-26 — Game...
video game developed by Day 1 Studios
Day 1 Studios
Day 1 Studios is an American game developer that operates in Chicago, Illinois and Hunt Valley, Maryland.They worked in tandem with developer FASA Interactive to create their first two games MechAssault, which Microsoft used to promote their Xbox Live service, and MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf...
and published by Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Studios is the video game production wing for Microsoft, responsible for the development and publishing of games for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Games for Windows and Windows Phone platforms. They were established in 2002 as Microsoft Game Studios to coincide with the release of the Xbox, before...
exclusively for the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
console. It is the sequel to 2002
2002 in video gaming
The year 2002 in video gaming saw the release of many games to sixth-generation video game consoles, predominately, the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox.-Events:...
's MechAssault
MechAssault
MechAssault was the first BattleMech video game published for the Xbox. Developed by Day 1 Studios and published by Microsoft, MechAssault was initiated when Denny Thorley of Day 1 Studios approached Jon Kimmich of Microsoft about developing an original BattleTech game built from the ground up to...
and is set in the BattleTech
BattleTech
BattleTech is a wargaming and science fiction franchise launched by FASA Corporation in 1984, acquired by WizKids in 2000, and owned since 2003 by Topps. The series began with FASA's debut of the board game BattleTech by Jordan Weisman and L...
universe. Lone Wolf is backward compatible for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
.
Plot
There is a new armor suit called the BattleArmor. After many searches, Major Natalia "Nat" Kerensky decides to base their testing operations in Dante City on the Planet Dante, using the blackmarketeers as a cover. One evening, as Foster and the MechwarriorMechWarrior
MechWarrior is the title of a series of computer and video games set in the fictional universe of BattleTech-Games:In these games, players take control of a single BattleMech and combat other BattleMechs, tanks, infantry, and more, from within the cockpit of their machine. A third-person alternate...
(player) are returning to their workshop, mysterious craft enter the Dante airspace and a Stiletto battlemech lands on the ground and starts searching for them. They successfully evade the Stiletto and make it back to the workshop, where Nat instructs the player to suit up in the BattleArmor and stop the invaders. After this, you see an image of hundreds of dropships entering the atmosphere. Mysteriously, one of these is shot down by the others. After fighting your way to the crash site, you meet up with a strange new MechWarrior by the name of Alera, a space pirate with a jumpship named the "Jessabelle". Later, the Mechwarrior
MechWarrior
MechWarrior is the title of a series of computer and video games set in the fictional universe of BattleTech-Games:In these games, players take control of a single BattleMech and combat other BattleMechs, tanks, infantry, and more, from within the cockpit of their machine. A third-person alternate...
must escape an enemy port, and steals an enemy tank from 3 soldiers. An APC then comes out and follows the Mechwarrior on his way. The tank must go through two scans to advance the level, but however, the "Passenger Scan" warns the enemies that it is a trick, and the player must escape the port with a tank. Later the player is able to get an Owens battlemech. During the final mission of the game the player kills the giant battlemech that uses all five of the data cores and Alera dies to save the player and the team.
Gameplay
The game is notable as allowing the player to control a variety of vehicles other than mechs. These vehicles include tankTank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
s, powered armor,turrets, and VTOL
VTOL
A vertical take-off and landing aircraft is one that can hover, take off and land vertically. This classification includes fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters and other aircraft with powered rotors, such as cyclogyros/cyclocopters and tiltrotors...
s. The game also allows the player to leave their vehicle and plant explosives or roam around as a human/pilot. An interesting aspect of the game is the ability to "hitch" rides on friendly mechs and VTOLs, while wearing a powered armor. It is also possible to do the same to enemy mechs and attempt a 'neurohack', with the result of ejecting the pilot and taking over his mech if successful.
Multiplayer
MechAssault 2: Lone Wolfs multiplayer consists mainly of an OptiMatch feature where games of a certain type are shown. It also has a Conquest mode that was very popular at the beginning of the game's life but due to flaws in the design the Conquest mode quickly died down in popularity. Due to the high level of teamwork required, many clans enjoy competing on third party ladders such as Gamebattles.Limited edition
Limited Edition came with everything the standard version had except that the limited edition had a bonus disc that included new maps for multiplayer and a behind the scenes video of the making of MechAssault 2.Reception
GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
rated the game 7.9/10, citing good visual effects, and overall good gameplay, specifically praising the multiplayer portion of the game, but also citing several drawbacks including repetitiveness in the singleplayer campaign, along with poor voice acting and "uninspired terrain graphics". IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
awarded the game 8.9/10, also citing good gameplay, especially the multiplayer portion of the game. Concerns included the lacking appeal of the singleplayer campaign, and bad environmental graphics.