Top 10 Out of Place Mechs in Gaming

I think everyone who has ever come near a game store knows about mech dominated franchises like Armored Core and Titanfall. What is often overlooked however is that mechs are a common sight in sci-fi games even when they do not take center stage as the key technology or weapons platform of the universe. From Gears of War to Halo rocking stomping killer mechs are a common sights on the battlefields of distant futures, dystopian alternate histories and galaxies far far away. The mechs on this list are featured in game universes that do not revolve around the technology but where they are just one of a number of equal weapons technologies with no special emphasis or importance placed on them as a technology. Despite not being the poster weapon or mechanic of these series the mechs on this list nevertheless stand out as awesome and memorable components of these games. 

10: Mech - Osiris New Dawn

Looks cool right? Several times I have come close to buying this game just for this mech. Unlike the others on this list I can't find any unique name or designation, no background or bio, it's just a mech. Standard two leg, two arm walker fitted with heavy laser cannons so your astronaut can run around the surface of an alien planet obliterating insect xenos at will. I love the entire concept of this thing, I love how it looks, I love how it works, it's just not quite enough for me to risk my money on yet another sci-fi survival crafting game. I think everyone is keeping a tighter grip on their wallets after No Man's Sky and like a jilted lover I don't want to be hurt again. Still next time it goes on sale I might have to try this game out just for the mech, only for the mech, god I love mechs.


9: Riddler Mech - Batman: Arkham Knight

From the glory days of Riddler as a dapper pimp with his top hat and question mark cane with a pair of groupies hanging off his arms the Riddler of Batman: Arhkam Knight is a far grittier, dirtier, shabbier and maybe even crazier incarnation of the popular Batman villain. In the last installment of the Arkham franchise the considerably more frazzles and dirty Riddler decides to take on the Dark Knight from the cockpit of his custom Riddler Mech. Like all of the technology Riddler has produced in the Arkham games the Riddler Mech is a slap-dash mess of jury-rigged components, mismatched pieces and crude assembly. For all that it gives the physically feeble Riddler a decided advantage in combat against not just the Dark Knight by Catwoman as well. Of course he fails, as always, but I thought the use of a mech was an inspired choice for the riddle loving villain. Maybe when he gets out of prison next he will have a future in construction building the DC Universe's first version of the power loader from Aliens, hey a guy can dream can't he?

8: Voth Exosuits - Star Trek Online

When I first got into playing Star Trek Online I was just looking for a bit of starship combat, something I'd like to see much more of in gaming. Unlike some other entries like EVE that have a huge learning curve and high risk STO was a fun, laid-back experience where I could watch my
devastating Dreadnought unleash punishing volleys against dozens of targets and emerge victorious. What I did not expect in STO was to run into a cool and deadly enemy mech ready to face off against the heroes of Starfleet. Yet when the Voth were added in Season 8 of the game that is exactly what we got. The Ceratopsid and Dacentrus-Class Exosuits of the Voth enter battle via aerial insertion, burning retro jets just before impact to slam into the battlefield with potent power shields engaged and heavy energy cannons spitting rounds. In general the ground combat gameplay in STO does not live up to the higher standard of the ship combat but the Voth Exosuits definitely stand out as a notable gem in this oft underappreciated side of the popular MMO. And if you get tired of the mechs then the Voth always have giant cybernetic Tyranosaurus Rex to keep you busy as well!

7: AT-AT - Star Wars Battlefront

In a universe overrun with awesome starships, speeder craft, jetpacks, robots and lightsabers the inclusion of mechs is certainly unusual. Only a handful of different mech designs exist in the Star Wars universe including the small AT-TP and AT-RT of the Clone Wars era, the larger AT-TE and of course the well known AT-ST and AT-AT of the Empire era. With so many hover tanks and attack craft in the universe the inclusion of mech walkers always seemed somewhat out of place to me and Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back only shows why. The massive AT-AT dominates the battlefield, providing a clear line of fire across a huge area thanks to it's twenty two and a half meter height, four head mounted blaster cannons, heavy armor plate and shielding the AT-AT's primary role as an armored transport for a full platoon of Storm Troopers seems like the least of it's capabilities. Yet all it took was a grapple line and some decent piloting to bring them down during the Imperial assault on Hoth. Huge, expensive, impractical, those seem to be the standard traits of Imperial warmachines and the AT-AT is no exception. Even so this beast stands out as a memorable icon of the franchise and it recently came back to dominate the battlefield in EA's remake of Star Wars Battlefront. Hopefully the sequel coming our way soon will continue to feature this awesome machine while still giving the rebels some hope of besting it!

6: Giant Mech - Gears of War 4

Unlike the earlier Silverback Mech featured in the Gears of War franchise the giant mech that dominated the early trailers for Gears of War 4 has very little detail and no unique class name that I can find on the Gears of War Wiki or anywhere else yet interestingly enough we know the names of the two individual mechs in the game, Jack Junior and Second Betty. Created by Baird, one of the older characters of the series, these giant mechs feature a human-like appearance and proportions and unlike most of the mechs on this list actually carry their weapons in robotic hands. Big, heavily armed, heavily armored and carrying a giant gun, everything you could want in a mech is present in these guys, I just wish we knew a little more about them than what we get in the game. At least the earlier Silverback had something of a unique name and style. Still this larger, bolder, badder mech is a real attention grabber from the latest game in the Gears of War franchise and a lot of fun to play around with. If there was one thing this series was missing with it's muscle-packed soldiers and chainsaw bayonets it was a rocking big mech and now we have it, here's to hoping we see more of these things in the future.


5: LS209 Exoskeleton - Killzone 3

One of my favorite vehicles from the Killzone franchise and one of the few you get to actually pilot and use in the campaign the LS209 Exoskeleton is a funky looking but heavily armed little walker that punches well above it's weight class. Unlike many mech designs the LS209 doesn't feature a main body cockpit with human analogy analogue arms and legs coming off of the torso but instead features a standing cockpit that the pilot steps into and makes up the main body of the machine. The legs attach at the top of the pilot compartment and stride forward either side of the compartment with the weapons hung low and forward of the main body. A highly unusual but interesting design that makes the exoskeleton very short and stocky, which for mechs is saying something! Nevertheless the few levels where you get to hop into one of these bad boys remain my favorite moments from the franchise and I dearly hope we see this guy return should the series get another title.

4: L5 Riesig - Battlefield 2142

My favorite of the two walkers in this futuristic version of the popular battlefield franchise. The walkers of this game were often overshadowed by the awesome titan assaults, aerial battles surrounding the floating command ships central to many large maps that could be boarded, disabled and evacuated in epic and dynamic battles. However for me the L5 Riesig and the T-39 Bogatyr will always be the centerpieces of my memories of Battlefield 2142. Striding across a bitterly fought battleground unleashing heavy firepower, dodging rockets, trading fire with tanks and gunships and stomping on anyone foolish enough to get in your way, those were good times indeed.

3: A2 Viking - Starcraft II

Oh my freaking lord this thing is a mech AND a gunship! Can you beat that? That was a rhetorical question, of course you can't beat it. Lets face it this thing is just awesome, twin rotary cannons, sleek profile, and it transforms from an armored walker to a flying gunship at the click of a button. I don't know what mad genius came up with this thing but it is easily one of my favorite units in the Starcraft franchise and one of my favorite mechs of any game series ever. I could not build enough of these and while a more diverse army would have certainly been better there was nothing quite as awesome as flying these guys into a target area then ordering them to land and transform into their mech form to blast and stomp the enemy to pieces, just epic. I mean don't get me wrong, the Goliath is also pretty cool, but it doesn't transform. Not to mention this thing's name is Viking, a savage raider capable of striking anywhere, at any time and vanishing with the morning mist just like it's name-sake, I love it.

2: Mantis - Halo 4

Sleek, aggressive, fast and heavily armed the Mantis has to go down as one of my favorite mech designs of all time. Few things in my gaming experience have ever been as fun as striding the battlezone of a multiplayer map within the cockpit of a Mantis walker. Ducking missiles, side-stepping sniper shots, stomping on infantry and unleashing machine gun and missile fire at anything in sight. Used conservatively and utilizing cover a Mantis could easily dominate the battlefield, slaughtering anyone attempting to enter your chosen fire zone all while simultaneously proving almost impossible for the enemy to destroy given the sheer speed, maneuverability and dynamic ability to stand and crouch at will. No other vehicle in the halo franchise allowed a pilot to take full advantage of cover to avoid virtually anything the enemy could throw at you while dishing out punishing return firepower of your own. Which all still forgets that the pilot is still a power armored super soldier packing his own deadly firepower and advanced systems. Yet like the other entries in this list the Mantis is not the poster-child of the franchise, it's not a legendary artifact or unique technology. It is just one of a variety of weapons technologies available to the UNSC. Still it's an awesome stand out and my favorite part of Halo 4 that easily takes number two on this list.


1: Titans and friends - Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon

This Steam Title is just one of a number of titles set in the dystopian sci-fi future of the Warhammer 40,000 universe but one of the very few that features the mighty Titans. The Warhound Scout Titan, smallest of these giant machines, can be seen in the picture to the right. Yet while the Titans are notable the Warhammer 40,000 universe features a great many mechs of all shapes and sizes. From the small chicken-leg Sentinel walkers of the Imperial Guard to the Dreadnoughts of the Adeptus Astartes, the Onagers and Ironstriders of the Adeptus Mechanicus, War Walkers, Wraithguard and Revenant Titans of the Eldar, even the entirely robotic Necrons have a mech walker of their own! Literally dozens of different classes of piloted mech populate the warhammer universe, so many titles like Armored Core and Mechwarrior likely have a hard time matching the sheer variety of shapes, sizes and designs. Yet unlike those franchises the mechs in Warhammer are just one type of the weapons and warmachines present and have no overly particular emphasis on them over things like tanks and gunships 

For this reason Titans and their lesser buddies of all shapes and sizes have to take the number one spot on this list, you'd be hard pressed to find a science fiction universe with such a huge number of piloted walker warmachines that places no great emphasis on them over anything else. Certainly the Titan is not the poster-child of the universe, that honor falls to the Space Marines. Yet for a mech lover like me this is no bad thing, a universe that gives me access to whole armies of powerful walking engines of destruction but is diverse enough to present many other enemies than simply fighting mech on mech.