The sheer volume of new content added in this new patch practically warrants a table of contents to skip to your favorite topic. We get a new 'Mech, a giant and strange looking map, the opening salvo of the new consumable system, performance changes for the Catapult, new FPS control schemes, and that's just what they meant to add. I won't mention the missile damage bug as that will have been addressed by the time this article is posted.

Everybody, Grab Your Joysticks

Normally, I would start a patch review by yacking up the new 'Mech, but my definite favorite change in this patch seemed to only warrant a single line in the patch notes, “Analog turn support for joysticks”. This humble line, though, can potentially have a greater effect on the game in the long term than any of the other new content. Sure, a new 'Mech is flashy and the idea of consumables caused quite a stir, but there's just something about having a joystick in my hand that seems so right. Lest I get too freudian though, allow me to explain why. Precision control of a 'Mech's movement simply can't be executed with buttons that force you to make all or nothing turns. You also need not worry about getting caught with your proverbial pants down when you get ambushed with your chat window open and no way to control your 'Mech. It's also nice to have all those buttons within easy reach of my thumb. You might point out that the precise aiming of a mouse just can't be matched by a joystick and I agree. That's why I use a mouse in one hand and the joystick in the other. Best of both worlds! For some reason, I've always preferred one hand on my joystick instead of two anyways. (That was the last one I swear!) But enough about what I loved in this patch, onto what most of you probably cared more about.

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