Mech games are too often viewed as clunky or aimed at niche sci-fi communities of players, but there’s plenty of variety in the genre. Beyond the big names you’ve heard of, such as Titanfall or Armored Core, an entire genre awaits new pilots, and we’ve collected the very best Mech games with this ranked list.
The term “mecha” was first used in Japanese after shortening the English loanwords “mechanism” (mekanizumu) and “mechanical” (mekanikaru). The earliest history of mechs sends us back to 1868 and 1880, when Edward S. Ellis and Jules Verne introduced steam-powered and piloted mechanical animals in their novels. After a few similar concepts popped up in Japanese works from the 1930s, the first giant robot with humanoid features piloted by a man appeared in the manga Atomic Power Android (1948).
The popularity of mechs would only surge after Tetsujin 28 and Mazinger Z found international success. After that point, mechs became a genre of their own and also started populating many others, becoming a very recurring element in modern science fiction. Soon after, mechs were playing huge roles in sci-fi video games set in the future and/or outer space.
If you’re looking for more specific gaming picks, you might want to check out our lists of the best space exploration and settlement games, or maybe make the most of your subscription with the best space games on Xbox Game Pass in 2024.
Table of Contents
10. BattleTech
- Platforms: PC, Linux, macOS
- Developer: Harebrained Schemes
Our first pick is a turn-based strategy title developed by Harebrained Schemes, a mid-sized studio famous for the most recent Shadowrun games. It shares a setting with the board game that launched the BattleTech franchise. But, while this game has the spirit of that board game, its mechanics and systems weren’t defined by it.
Players lead groups of mechs which can be customized and improved alongside their pilots. In the year 3022, the world of BattleTech is dominated by noble houses forever locked in a devastating war, resulting in a plot that feels like Game of Thrones but with giant robots. On top of the vast offering of single-player content, online player-versus-player multiplayer is also available.
9. Daemon X Machina
- Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch
- Developer: Marvelous First Studio
Daemon X Machina was originally released exclusively for the Nintendo Switch in 2019, but the Microsoft Windows version that dropped shortly afterward made it much more popular. While the original reception wasn’t super positive, post-launch content and updates elevated it among mech fanatics.
The story follows a group of pilots who command mechs called Arsenals in a seemingly endless war against corrupted AIs that went rogue after the collision of a celestial body which somehow turned them against humanity… you still with us? Both the pilot and the Arsenal can be customized in between missions designed for both single-player action and cooperative multiplayer. PvP matches were also introduced post-launch.
8. Front Mission 1st: Remake
- Platforms: PC, PS4/5, Xbox One/Series X/S, Nintendo Switch
- Developer: Forever Entertainment
The Front Mission franchise has been around for quite a while, and many versions of the original SNES game have been released over the years. More recently, a complete remake arrived on the Nintendo Switch (and later on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC). The best news is that we think it’s still totally worth playing almost 30 years later.
The Front Mission remake is a 100% single-player experience, so keep scrolling if you’re looking for exciting multiplayer action instead. Moreover, it’s pretty much a classic, old-school tactical role-playing game without many bells and whistles. It’s on our list because it nailed its targets amazingly well and holds up shockingly well despite its age. We’re also willing to bet you’ll find its futuristic, politics-heavy storyline quite compelling.
7. MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries
- Platforms: PC, PS4/5, Xbox One/Series X/S
- Developer: Piranha Games
The MechWarrior series is also part of the aforementioned BattleTech universe, but these games are much more hands-on and intense, as they transport players into the BattleMechs’ cockpits (a third-person view is also available). The fifth installment (2019) was the first single-player MechWarrior game in the series since 2002, and it was a banger.
The story starts in 3015, during the final decade of a long war. As a rookie mercenary, players can accept contracts from numerous factions and chart their own path through a decade-spanning campaign that goes all the way up to 3049. Outside the massive campaign, instant action and co-op MP offer even more opportunities to experience all the mech simulation and shooter action.
6. Into the Breach
- Platforms: PC, Linux, macOS, iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch
- Developer: Subset Games
You might be familiar with FTL: Faster Than Light, aka one of the best real-time strategy space games of all time. If you enjoyed that indie darling’s aesthetics and tight game design, you should totally give Into the Breach a go. For this game, Subset Games’ Justin Ma and Matthew Davis also recruited renowned writer Chris Avellone (Fallout: New Vegas), who cooked up a story and narrative elements that paint a rather grim picture of the far future.
Evil giant monsters called the Vek have attacked and only giant mechs can protect the population and their structures. The unique hook is that failure to do so opens up the possibility of going back in time and starting a new run.
The mechs can be equipped with a variety of weapons, armor, and equipment before heading into turn-based combat missions that often play like a more complicated version of chess puzzles. The game’s structure is similar to FTL’s in that there are fixed “sectors” filled with procedurally-generated scenarios, making Into the Breach yet another roguelike-ish release from the stellar micro-studio.
5. Brigador
- Platforms: PC, Linux, macOS
- Developer: Stellar Jockeys
Brigador is set in a dark, cyberpunk future where your main objective is to tear down an oppressive government in gloriously destructive fashion. While the missions can be simple, the isometric, real-time action keeps you on your toes at all times. Perhaps the coolest feature in the game is how entire levels can be razed to the ground (including the poor civilians who live there.)
Most of the story and lore is dropped through descriptions, mission briefings, and purchasable intel. As you earn money by completing campaign missions, more weapons, pilots, and vehicles become available. Freelance mode, on the other hand, plays more like an arcade version of the game where unlockables come into play and you can just go wild. Furthermore, the free map editor opens up even more possibilities for the most dedicated players.
4. Supreme Commander 2
- Platforms: PC, macOS, Xbox 360
- Developer: Gas Powered Games
The first Supreme Commander made some waves, but its 2010 sequel found long-term success and still is actively played to this day by real-time strategy (RTS) fanatics. Even if you’re not into mech games that much, it’s an excellent strategy title with plenty of unique ideas, such as the construction-capable Armored Command Units (ACUs).
The campaign mode – despite its ambitious storytelling – feels kinda limited and works more like a series of challenge missions that ease you into the game, with difficulty levels getting more punishing as it progresses. Once you feel comfortable with the many systems and overall flow, it’s all about skirmish and multiplayer modes. If you like huge machines in your sci-fi and are an RTS aficionado, Supreme Commander 2 is a must-play.
3. Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner
- Platforms: PC, PS2/3/4, Xbox 360
- Developer: Konami Computer Entertainment Japan
Often discussed as Hideo Kojima’s (Metal Gear) B series, the Zone of the Enders games still hold up as some of the strongest mech-centric games ever. They also deal with some heavy topics — as you’d expect from Kojima — including the colonization of space, politics, and the oppression of civilians despite all the progress made in new worlds, so they’re far from hollow when it comes to their narrative.
There are only two games in the franchise (plus a story-heavy Game Boy Advance spinoff), but the good news is that were re-released on PS3 and Xbox 360 through a solid HD collection, so it’s not too hard to get your hands on the entire thing nowadays. We believe the second entry is superior thanks to a more focused approach to the action and sleeker visuals. It also received a second, standalone remaster for some odd reason (which even packs VR support).
2. Titanfall 2
- Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One
- Developer: Respawn Entertainment
Titanfall 2 might be a tricky pick for the second spot on our list, as it’s half boots-on-the-ground first-person shooter (FPS) and half amazing mech carnage, but it does both things so well and packs so many memorable sequences full of sci-fi goodness that it feels like a 100% perfect recommendation for our readers.
The story campaign is still among the best the FPS genre has ever seen, expertly mixing surprising emotional beats, carefully crafted level design, and unforgettable set pieces. It all translates into an equally unique multiplayer component that juggles both Call of Duty-ish FPS fun (Respawn was founded by CoD veterans) and weighty mech combat which feels both organic and accessible. The fact a third Titanfall game hasn’t been announced yet is one of the biggest gaming tragedies of our time.
1. Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
- Platforms: PC, PS4/5, Xbox One/Series X/S
- Developer: FromSoftware
Critics and players banded together in 2023 to praise FromSoftware’s latest game. It wasn’t a big dark fantasy epic this time though; Instead, the studio returned to its long-running Armored Core series. It’s as fast and furious as the studio’s fantasy efforts, but with a more restrained scope and level-based structure — old school but in the best way possible.
In this installment, which is standalone despite its numbered title, the story takes players outside the Sol system for the first time in the series, on the remote planet of Rubicon 3, where a substance caused a system-burning catastrophe. Jump forward almost half a century and corporations and resistance groups are still fighting over the dangerous resource. The big, memorable story campaign begs to be replayed, and if you haven’t had enough after all those magnificent boss fights and nerve-wracking missions through war-damaged, post-apocalyptic environments, the online PvP mode is a treat too.
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