AirMech

AirMech is a free-to-play online battle arena title from Carbon Games, which both developed and published it for Windows. The game first entered Steam’s early access program in November 2012, and its full release came on March 30, 2018, under the name AirMech. Versions for Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 were released as AirMech Arena. Drawing inspiration from Technosoft’s Herzog Zwei, AirMech combines real-time strategy and action gameplay, putting the player in control of a large, transforming humanoid combat vehicle that can fly or land to support units. The player directly pilots their AirMech while also building units to help achieve the mode’s objective, typically destroying the enemy fortress while protecting their own. The player’s fortress spawns infantry units called creeps, which can capture outposts that heal AirMechs and units when picked up. Players earn in-game currency called kudos after each match, which can be used to unlock units, pilots, and AirMechs. Persistent XP is also gained, unlocking more units as the player levels up. Unit types include infantry, tanks, light cars, stationary defense or economy units, healing units, and traps. Diamonds can be purchased to unlock units and cosmetics, but any gameplay-affecting item can be bought with kudos. The sole resource to manage is credits, generated by the fortress and any owned outposts. Different units require specific credit amounts to build, and special money-maker units can boost credit generation. The player has an upkeep cap of around 30 slots, with some units taking more than one; this cap can be increased by capturing outposts or building generators. Players choose from nine AirMechs, each with distinct abilities and stats, along with various pilots, items, and parts. Pilots, items, and parts offer large stat boosts with significant downsides; some pilots affect credit generation and unit cap. Items provide minor stat boosts with little gameplay impact, while parts give small boosts with a downside, and more parts become equippable as the player uses the AirMech more. The game has four core modes: solo (including challenges), co-op, player versus player (PvP), and survival. Custom modes like capture the flag (CTF) and ZobaMech—which disables unit production and inflicts damage while flying—are also available.