It’s not all that often that gamers hear of a beta phase for an MMOG to get delayed, especially considering the connotation of being in beta. Ya know, not being ready for launch. That being said, many publishers/developers view the Open Beta phase of a F2P title as its launch. This makes Piranha Games’ decision to delay the open beta kickoff of MechWarrior Online a little less off the wall. Citing player concerns, Piranha has delayed the Open Beta phase of the mech shooter to an unspecified time in the future.
In a post on the official forum, Lead Designer Paul Inouye credited current beta testers and feedback across the community, from Twitter to Facebook to the forums, for the decision. The company is going back to the whiteboard on numerous features, large and small, to bring the game up to the company’s and community’s expectations.
General gameplay, such as lag and poor performance, match making, Founder’s premiums, balance, new user introduction and Community Warfare are all being revamped. Some changes, such as match making, are going to be so large that they’ll be delivered in multiple phases.
Are you happy or angry to see such a decision made so close to launch?
We’ll update you with the new Open Beta date once it’s made public. Till then, keep those trigger fingers at bay.