MechWarrior 5: Clans is bringing an RTS-style tactical camera, love for gamepad players, and a new focus on storytelling to the long-running mech sim series

GamesThird Person ShooterMechWarrior 5: ClansMechWarrior 5: Clans is bringing an RTS-style tactical camera, love for gamepad players, and a new focus on storytelling to the long-running mech sim seriesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Mech standing in front of drop pod

I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect going into a closed door, hands-off demo forMechWarrior 5: Clansat GDC, but then Piranha Games CEO Russ Bullock pulled out from a standard, third-person view of his mech to an RTS-style overview of the map, queueing up commands for his squad or “star” of five Smoke Jaguar pilots.

The mission itself saw the star investigating a desert world, slowly ramping up from quiet exploration and scanning duty to a series of combat encounters. The centerpiece of the demo was an in-game setpiece like something out of Half-Life or Call of Duty: another star in the area gets ambushed and annihilated in a massive explosion, and the demo ended with the player star rushing to respond. It was a cool moment, and I think that kind of real-time setpiece has a lot of potential with the sheer scale of a mech game.

Still, I can already speak to the continued quality of MechWarrior’s action from some hands-on time with Clans last year, and the game’s new emphasis on squad tactics has me intrigued. The transition to its RTS-like “Battle Grid” view is seamless and in-engine, while you can queue up squad commands and set priority targets from any camera mode. Studio boss Bullock and narrative director Chris Lowrey characterize this change as one to expand your options rather than as a replacement for the series' signature mech pilot gameplay. “It gives you more options, especially if you’re setting up support mechs with long range weapons. If you want them to hold a ridge, keep that vantage point,” Lowrey explained.

Image1of9(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Image1of9

(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)(Image credit: Piranha Games)

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Mech approaches giant drop pod

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

BattleGrid view MechWarrior 5 Clans

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

BattleGrid view MechWarrior 5 Clans

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Third person view base combat MechWarrior 5

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

third person view attacking base in MechWarrior 5

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

cockpit view of combat in MechWarrior 5

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Mech dwarfed by towering cliff walls

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

Overview of preview level with base nestled in desert cliffs

(Image credit: Piranha Games)

first person view lasers hitting enemy

“We had a sort of dream of being able to do certain things from the Battle Grid,” Bullock said, citing airstrike call-downs and other forms of combined arms attacks as this expanded Battle Grid’s original impetus. “It just ballooned from there. In fact, it got to the point where I had to tell the team, ‘OK, we’re not making just a bad RTS, let’s limit this thing down.'”

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

You can only control your squad within a certain range of your player character, and while the tactical options are robust, Bullock and Lowrey agreed that your individual skill as a pilot will still be the deciding factor in mission success, even at higher difficulties.

For another gameplay change, Clans is getting a particular focus on gamepad support. According to Bullock: “Maybe for the first time ever, you can truly play this game just as well with a controller as you can with mouse and keyboard.” He cited a system of radial menus for squad commands, as well as an optional, simplified, more FPS-like control scheme (as opposed to the series’ traditional driving-style controls) as the big sources of this new controller-friendliness.

Overall, Clans has already made a ton of progress since my first look at it back in August, and it’s looking like a strong continuation of the mecha mini-renaissance we seem to be enjoying in games at the moment. MechWarrior 5: Clans is set to release later this year, and you can wishlist it onSteam.

More about third person shooterThe best part of Marvel Rivals Season 1 is Mister Fantastic’s obnoxiously fun chest-bump attack and his ridiculously OP kitMarvel Rivals ranks: everything you need to know on your journey to the topLatestSorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our faultSee more latest►

More about third person shooter

The best part of Marvel Rivals Season 1 is Mister Fantastic’s obnoxiously fun chest-bump attack and his ridiculously OP kitMarvel Rivals ranks: everything you need to know on your journey to the top

Mister Fantastic mid ultimate

The best part of Marvel Rivals Season 1 is Mister Fantastic’s obnoxiously fun chest-bump attack and his ridiculously OP kit

Marvel Rivals tier list - A big group of heroes fighting

Marvel Rivals ranks: everything you need to know on your journey to the top

LatestSorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our faultSee more latest►

Latest

Sorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our fault

Herobrine standing in front of a foggy forest

Sorry everyone, Minecraft 2 is cancelled, and it might be our fault

See more latest►

Most Popular

‘It’s simply impossible to make a difficulty level that’s just right for all players’: How Final Fantasy 14’s lead battle designer has been playing a precarious balancing game for Dawntrail’s dungeons and raids

Please join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)

Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual fun

Call of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doing

These are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

Five new Steam games you probably missed (January 6, 2025)

I’ve seen enough: No more forcing singleplayer studios to make mediocre live service games

6 games that could be bigger hits than you’re expecting in 2025

What are your 2025 gaming resolutions?

The FBI put a $5 million bounty on the ‘Cryptoqueen’ last year but still hasn’t found her, so take your pick: Russia, South Africa, or murdered on a yacht in 2018

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals