Piranha Games’ MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries, which was meant to usher the beloved mech combat title into a new age, has been delayed. Originally slated to arrive in December, the game has been delayed to 2019.
Piranha Games president Russ Bullock issued a statement and clarified that the delay was done in order to deliver the “best product possible.” Considering this is the first MechWarrior title to release for a whole new generation (not to mention the first new title in nearly two decades), we can’t exactly fault the studio.
“As everyone knows, this is the first single-player experience Mechwarrior title released since 2002 and we are well aware of the responsibility and great opportunity we have in re-introducing Mechwarrior to the world.
“At this time we’re only prepared to announce a slip into 2019 and would like to give ourselves until MechCon this December 1 in Vancouver to determine and announce the specific launch date in 2019 so that we can be as accurate with our estimations as possible and avoid further delays. Although undoubtedly many Mechwarrior fans will initially be disappointed by the longer wait, we also feel confident and assured that we will get 100 percent support from Mechwarrior fans to release the best product possible.”
Taking place during the Third Succession War, MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries is only in development for PC. The series has been through a number of different developers over its long, illustrious history. If you really can’t wait for the next game, it’s worth checking out Harebrained Schemes’ turn-based tactical strategy title BattleTech. Mech customization, targeting specific parts to induce different penalties and so on form a core part of the gameplay.