Currently, the Steam Next Fest is taking place, where different games showcase their demos and draw attention to themselves. One of these games is Mecha Break, and its demo is so popular that it can surpass GTA 5 and Marvel Rivals. However, looking at the reviews, it doesn’t seem so good.
What kind of game is this? In Mecha Break, you take on the role of a pilot controlling a mech – their appearances can be customized at will. In various PvP modes, you then compete against other pilots to fight for victory.
No PvE like in Armored Core is to be expected, but there will be an Extraction mode where you can also face off against online players and NPCs. Additionally, several mech classes provide different play styles to create tension.
Despite its niche genre, Mecha Break has managed to reach over 300,000 simultaneous players – more than GTA 5 and Marvel Rivals during their peak times. One might think the game is popular, and while the player numbers support this, the reviews tell a different story.
Testers tear the game apart despite good gameplay
What issues are causing discontent? When there are good reviews, they often talk about the great gameplay. However, when it comes to the bad reviews, Mecha Break is torn apart. Primarily, the monetization and the anti-cheat are criticized. The following can be heard in the comments on Steam:
- “Fantastic gameplay overshadowed by extremely questionable and potentially predatory monetization.” – DesLizard
- “Great gameplay, but… what’s up with the monetization?” – Lordran
- “It’s a bit disturbing what the monetization model for mechs looks like, as collecting the currency to unlock them seems way too expensive, especially for the most expensive mechs.” – Sekriyn Hunter
- “Kernel-level anti-cheat, (glorified virus) extreme monetization, slow progression, mandatory nearly hour-long tutorial kills the desire to continue playing to get to MP […]” – Vodal
As Vodal wrote, the game also has a kernel-level anti-cheat – a system that digs deep into the lowest level of your operating system. This gives the software complete control over your hardware. For many, this is a red flag. Currently, the game has 7,798 reviews, of which only 34% are positive – hence it only receives the rating “Mostly Negative.”
Is there another reason for the bad reviews? On Reddit, some fans discuss the bad reviews. According to them, there was review-bombing in China. The release was highly anticipated by many, but the servers had significant instabilities, the release was also misadvertised, and very few players could participate. Our MeinMMO editor Dariusz Müller has additional details: New multiplayer game already has the fourth most players on Steam in the demo
