Mech game

[Overkill]

Yup, those were the days! I feel like I'm from the Stone Age.

It'd be nice to see another Mechwarrior game. I'd like for it to be more like Mechwarrior 3. Microprose did a good job on that one and I really liked how it followed the Battletech boardgame's rules for building and arming a mech. You could even print out your mech's stats and use them for the board game! I had a Dire Wolf I called the Deathbringer that was a very vicious LRM Boat. One good salvo would completely destroy an Atlas before it could fire a shot.

[Malakie]

Originally Posted by Tachyon

Oops, I slipped up there. The original was simply called Mechwarrior , but there was a strategy game based on the Battletech universe called "Battletech : The Crescent Hawks Revenge", quite good for it's time.

I've yet to try it's prequel "Battletech : The Crescent Hawks Inception" (RPG for the most part)

And before that was actually the first 'true' battletech game called, well Battletech! FASA had a fit so it was changed to Mechforce and it was released on the Amiga. In fact it was and still is the ONLY simulation based on the actual Battletech board game stats and numbers... and only on the Amiga. To this day I still play it!

I know because my good friend and company partner, a gentleman named Ralph Reed, was the author. We had some big plans for the game.. in fact I have probably the ONLY version outside of Ralph that contains some of the newer ideas we had wanted to implement back then... I lost touch with Ralph after closing the company after some employees pretty much took everything and ran before I realized what was happening.. sadly one of those had been a guy I grew up with and did everything with. I also went through a hard divorce at the same time all this was taking place. In all this, I just lost contact with Ralph. He was part of the military DARPA and top secret weapons testing project and I was headed back to federal law enforcement and we ended up just loosing touch with each other do to life. We had a great run though and had been involved in some pretty major things during our time! No regrets!

Not only did that first game happen and become to have a huge following, because of the game, we (Ralph, I am my company) ended up working directly with FASA studios on some other Battletech stuff. We were part of the group that help create the BattleTech simulation cockpits built in gaming centers around the world.

--

"The BattleTech creators' goal of creating an immersive BattleMech simulation came to fruition in 1990 with the opening of the first BattleTech Center at the North Pier Mall in Chicago. The BattleTech Center featured 16 networked, full-sized cockpits or "pods" that resembled a fully functional BattleMech cockpit with over 80 separate controls. Each player selected a 'Mech to pilot into combat against up to seven other human players in the other cockpits." from answer.com

Let's me tell you not only was it fun to work on getting these operational, it was a BLAST to play in what was basically the worlds FIRST 3D First person shooter but involving Battlemechs! I can tell you from personally experience, Jordan Weisman wsa a pretty good combat pilot... BUT ... L. Ross Babcock... He was UNSTOPPABLE! He was so good at this sim that he would have made a perfect dual control pilot in any cockpit today. Each cockpit had two controllers, one for each hand, and you used BOTH joystick controllers in your functioning mech.. from moving forward and backward to ALSO having to control torso twist and elevation your brain was always hurting! Over 80 controls, pedals, buttons and two joysticks... well you can imagine how much of a blast this was to experience.

Ralph and me contributed two major parts to the Battletech centers and the coclpits.. first we found a major issue in code that in essence kept the sim from attaining playable frame rates. We were able to offer a suggested fix to the code and within seconds of that fix, boom the system was finally up and running!! Second we designed and provided the Sapphire 020 cards that were used in every cockpit plugged into every single Amiga that was the heart of each cockpit. In fact our card was the ONLY one that would work.

--

We had hoped to eventually release Mechforce to the public commercially but FASA had their own ideas and we could never quite get them to let us do so... So it was released into the PD back then. Of course other games came and went, Battletech Crescent Hawks etc etc... but NONE have ever produced the real Battletech board game as Ralph did.

You would not have believed some of the stuff I used to have from those days. WALL sized crystal clear images of hand painted/drawn Battletechs of various sizes, makes and models.. we are talking gorgeous original images produced by the well known artists from FASA. Imagine how I felt when a few years ago all of that was lost in a house fire... I still have some of the original prints as well as the original game code and such which survived but much of that is no longer.

The day I heard about Microsoft buying out FASA, I knew it was the beginning of the end of the Battletech series. To have such a series and storyline destroyed I think is a travesty.. I loved the book series that came from the Battletech universe. Used to love to follow and read the ongoing events with Mechwarriors battling other Mechwarriors, with mercenaries looking for contracts, with the houses going against each other and eventually with the clans coming back to tear everyone a new rear end..

Here are some terms that might get you remembering... While writing this post, they sure did for me... Man those were some days to enjoy....

The Grey Death Legion, House Davion, Melissa Steiner, Inner Sphere, The Star League, Natasha Kerensky (MAN was she HOT!), ComStar, Word of Blake, Capellan Confederation, Solaris, Wolf's Dragoons, Eridani Light Horse, Kell Hounds, Northwind Highlanders, and McCarron's Armored Cavalry.

[Captain Vlad]

Originally Posted by Malakie

In fact it was and still is the ONLY simulation based on the actual Battletech board game stats and numbers... and only on the Amiga.

The only official simulation based on the actual Battletech board game stats and numbers.

[DeepIron]

I still "dust off" my MechCommander Gold disk and play...

[Malakie]

Originally Posted by Captain Vlad

The only official simulation based on the actual Battletech board game stats and numbers.

Kind of one of those official not official things I guess... FASA wanted to really get into the computer side of things but they kept having these visions of something like the 3D cockpit versions and kept blowing off the board game version thinking it was not what people wanted.. Funny thing, had we been able to complete it the way we wanted and sell it, I have no doubt it would have become one of the top selling Battletech games of all time.... and we just could not make FASA realize that this game based 1 for 1 on the board game books, manuals, charts, dice and everything WAS what players wanted..

Ralph had started implementing things like Armor, infantry, AeroTech, emplacements and fortifications and more into the game at this point as well as Clan tech. Sadly, we will never see the end result although what we do have now is fully playable up and through Clan tech. I have a unit I have run for years now in the game that I play still... That unit was started in 1992 or so. I just spent a few days a couple months ago playing again.. It is one of those games I still today go back to when the mood hits.

But Since it did not have flashy graphics and animations, they (FASA) felt it was not good enough... I personally have no doubt that opinion was wrong... but they owned the ultimate rights to the name Battletech and since the game was designed as a 1 for 1 board version on computer we could not sell it without their ok.

[Captain Vlad]

Originally Posted by Malakie

Kind of one of those official not official things I guess... FASA wanted to really get into the computer side of things but they kept having these visions of something like the 3D cockpit versions and kept blowing off the board game version thinking it was not what people wanted.

I meant that there's more than one unofficial board game emulator floating around. I've got one I've played a few times, though I find the interface a bit clunky.

Honestly? As far as mass-market goes, FASA was probably right about the 'in cockpit' sim being a better idea. I have no doubt that people who were already BT fans would've loved a highly polished computerized version of their board game...one of the reasons Starfleet Command is still played is that it's fairly close to stock SFB rules, after all. I certainly would've loved it.

[Taeghan]

I actually had a copy of Battledroids, FASA's original printing of what became the tabletop Battletech. Lucas sued over the use of the word "droids", resulting in the product rename.

I used to be friendly with the guy -- Pat Larkin -- who wrote most of the original history of the game.

Would love a new MechWarrior. I never had 4, but 3 was an amazing game for its time and it was quite the immersive storyline.

[Malakie]

Originally Posted by Taeghan

I actually had a copy of Battledroids, FASA's original printing of what became the tabletop Battletech. Lucas sued over the use of the word "droids", resulting in the product rename.

I used to be friendly with the guy -- Pat Larkin -- who wrote most of the original history of the game.

Would love a new MechWarrior. I never had 4, but 3 was an amazing game for its time and it was quite the immersive storyline.

I remember Pat! Nice guy and helped alot with our information needs for development! Gave us all the information and material you could imagine and then some! I wonder what he is doing today?

I did try to reach Jordan Wiesman, he started a new firm out west that he operates now, but did not get any response. It would be kind of cool to know where everyone ended up.

I even wonder once in a while if Ralph still uses his Amiga today like I do.. I should probably contact him being it has been a number of years now.

Alas, the world will probably never see another true board game style Battletech like the one Ralph did that religiously follows the rules and board game.

[Wolfehunter]

Originally Posted by Taeghan

I actually had a copy of Battledroids, FASA's original printing of what became the tabletop Battletech. Lucas sued over the use of the word "droids", resulting in the product rename.

I didn't know this... Interesting..:hmm:

I have quite a collection from fasa. Ever since the pc's games started to rule table tops are all but extinct... But I kept all my books. Never know when I will need them again.

[Malakie]

Originally Posted by Wolfehunter

I didn't know this... Interesting..:hmm:

I have quite a collection from fasa. Ever since the pc's games started to rule table tops are all but extinct... But I kept all my books. Never know when I will need them again.

You would have loved the collection I 'used' to have.. Regretfully I lost all of it except for a few items in a house fire.

I think what I miss the most are the original paintings and drawings done of numerous Battlemechs. They were unbelievably beautiful images, some in poster size and of just about every Battlemech model design. Of course they were set in different settings from planetary to space to battles scenes etc. There were even some of jump ships, Aerotech units and other space craft. I envy those that still have their copies because they were one of my favorite things I had. Those artists were just awesome.