I really don't understand why people complain about "meta". There will be min/max builds in EVERY game. I'm actually very surprised there is such a wide range of effective mechs in MWO, and I feel like it will only get better (more effective mechs).
Min/Maxing is the nature of people, they want the BEST build with the LEAST drawbacks. Certain combinations will always be better than others, there is no avoiding it 100% in any game. There will always be a weapon that is better than another in a wider range of circumstances. People naturally gravitate toward these weapons because they require less thinking and less specific applications. They are general builds that work most of the time in most circumstances. We saw the same thing in BF3: the M4A1. It was a weapon that performed well at a moderate range. It was EVERYWHERE. But that didn't stop me from killing them with my crossbow
Another aspect is the "It's not your build, it's YOU!" phrase that I brought over from Infinity The Game (
It's not your list, it's YOU!) This phrase has a lot of meaning, but mainly that the pilot factor is as important if not MORE important than your build. I've made a lot of crazy builds, and I'm not the best pilot in the game, but I've made them work more often then not. Hell, I've made stock builds work in public games.
What you are basically complaining about is people challenging themselves to become better pilots, which I agree with to a very small extent. Yes, I wish that more players took interesting builds and tried to make them work. It helps you grow situation awareness and experience with different weapon systems. However, in a tournament, I would never complain about going up against the most min/maxed builds. They will always exist. ALWAYS.
Another funny thing is how many builds people call "META". You mine as well be calling them "broken" or "OP" the way you talk about them. Stop using the term meta ffs. There is the "LERMAGEDON" meta, the "POPTERT" meta, the "ECM Light" meta, the "AC Boat" meta, the "PPC" meta. What are you saying? that everyone should just take lasers, streaks, and SRMs to be properly playing the game? I'm sorry, but this has really gotten out-of-hand. Ever one of these "broken OP meta mechs" has flaws and can be countered with coordination and teamwork.