As the old adage goes: I dig giant robots, you dig giant robots, we dig giant robots, chicks dig giant robots. Nice.
To this end Mecha Blitz seems to be gunning after my own heart- its a top-down versus game, letting you build and customize your own mechs in either 1v1 or 2v2 battles.
A Mad Scramble
At a first glance the game plays almost like a top-down smash- depending on the stage you get winning by ring out feels almost possible- especially with how many of the game’s weapons do a good job of yeeting you back.
For the most part his creates some intense dogfights- you and your enemy can dash around each other, peppering each other with ranged attacks before someone commits to a melee attack.
It’s especially true when you factor in stuff like the environment and stage hazards- one of them makes moving forward particularly hard with multiple screens, while another is literally just blank open space- perfect for long-ranged strategies.
Even in the 2v2 mode, this makes for some great moments- the game soft-locks your targeting to the nearest enemy, so using weapons is more about your ability to react than to aim.
Seeking Out Filth
One thing that does bug me, especially coming from mecha games with pvp like Armored Core, is that Mecha Blitz could be, well, blitzier. Its biggest obstacle in doing this lies in the very fair decision that despite having four shoulder slots and two arm ones, you’re not really allowed to activate multiple weapons at once.
I should note this is entirely personal criticism- I just like the idea of firing off all my shoulder-mounted shotguns at once as a combo ender. This would probably make games way faster, and that’s not really a problem the game has that needs fixing right now.
My other gripe is definitely just from the game being in progress, which is that the Mecha Blitz Open Beta build has some wacky interactions with controllers. Said shoulder-mounted shotguns are non responsive on controller, leading me to having to use the keyboard buttons to get to them. On the plus side, nothing screams mecha core more like having weapons assigned to a different panel.
Still, underneath it all the Mecha Blitz Open Beta feels like it’s got the trappings of a fun little versus game. A lot of the game’s combat is carried by how good the dodge feels- if you’re not using a shield it’s basically your main defensive option in close ranges.
Add that with the game’s great little mecha flourishes and you’ve got a fun little game that has the strong potential for a passionate community- or at the very least an incredibly fun party game. There’s no release date in sight just yet, though, so I’m also interested to see how much this game changes between now and launch.
