BattleTech is a turn-based strategy combat game in which you take command of a unit of giant combat mechs in a futuristic universe. Although there have been many games set in the universe of the classic board game, this one is closest in spirit, if not in actual mechanics, to the tabletop game that started it all.

Lead your lance into battle

The heart of BattleTech is your squad, or 'lance,' of four battlemechs. Your lance serves one (or more) of the warring noble houses of the Inner Sphere, and you must face enemy troops and mechs to serve their interests. Mechs are highly customisable: you can choose not only their chassis, weapons and armour but also more detailed tech systems that affect their movement and targeting. You can even upgrade your mechs with parts stripped from your defeated opponents. Pilots are also upgradeable, with skill trees that let you make even identical mechs different on the battlefield. Your forces don't end with the lance, though: you can also manage and upgrade your dropship and your teams of support personnel. In addition the campaign mode, you can fight quicker skirmish battles either against the AI or against other human opponents in multiplayer mode.

The feel of a classic

If you like to ponder your tactical decisions and then express them in the form of giant stompy robots, BattleTech could be the game for you.