Moving a Mech to attack the rear of a busily engaged enemy was quite satisfying. It was also easy to vary orders by telling units to attack from the current position, or to change ranges. There's also an engaging, though limited, role-playing element in managing the pilots. The pilots do improve over time, but they can also be injured. And losing a pilot is a real tragedy.
Most missions allow more than one solution.
For instance, I won the farm defense mission without a minelayer, an uncommon tactic. In fact, most of the game is fun and quite immersive, but that also made the occasional insanely difficult mission and other flaws stand out all the more. MechCommander is a very good game that could have been a great one, but it's a welcome addition to the BattleTech universe nonetheless. 47 GameSpot is a CNET Networks Media Property. Inc. All rights reserved.