playing a few drops, (cant do any more than an hour of repetitive grinding) i noticed that the damage difference (effect) are vastly different between the 2 weapon types.
I compared 2 ac10's vs 2 ppc's (standard) against the catapult in the training grounds, hitting the same area right side torso. I counted the amount of shots needed to kill the mech,
(if i got an ammo explosion i had to restart the test)
PPC at 450m took 23 individual shots to kill the mech
AC 10's at 450m took 25 individual shots to kill the mech
erppc has the same result.
Both ammo types apparently do the same amount of damage so why does one weapon type require more hits to kill a mech?
10 damage is 10 damage regardless of weapon or ammo type
ppc at 270m took 23 individual shots to to kill the mech
AC20 at 270m took 13 (12.5) individual shot to kill the mech (equates to 26 shots from an ac10 but the last shot can be halfed due to remaining health left)
im not sure if this is hit detection or just a balancing issue but i ran this test 6 times on all weapon types and the results were the same each time of testing.
( i make this statement because there are no special effects to munition as of yet, i mean one would expect ballistic munition effects to have armor and radial damage and ppc would have more effect on internal components and not the mechs armor, but both types of munitions behave exactly the same)
This game title is almost 2 years into development and the weapons are disappointing to say the least, very inconsistent and un-realistic, missiles fly like i have never seen missiles fly before, (even low budget indie games have a far better realism to their missile flight path and behavior), the only weapon i have noticed that has a linear behavioral pattern is the laser so thumbs up for that but everything else requires some sort of realistic patch.
Ballistics should behave with radial damage from the point of contact and have more influence on armor (excluding machine guns) the same should apply to the ppc weapon but have less influence on armor and more emphasis on internals
(disrupt or even disable certain aspects of functionality, basically it should effect electrical systems) but with such effects in place it would be classed as a specialised weapon and would obviously have to have an overhaul on heat and firing frequency, such a weapon should be used wisely and sparingly.
In the weapons array available to pilots there are really only two weapons that should have pin point accuracy abilities and those are the lasers and Gauss rifle and that is purely down to the weapon behavior, and i just love the gauss kitty

But like many threads i have read on this matter nothing seems to happen other than mechs for sale (and it gets torn apart in an attempt to de-rail it's content), so as a whole this game has so much potential and offers so little, i can only assume that the game content and progression is hindering players to invest into a game title that is a rinse and repeat grind which is contradictory to its description and predecessor titles.
The art work is just excellent, the map detailing is awesome and realistic, mech modelling and movement is just so cool, even the shake from weapons hitting you and the flash of munitions exploding around you can really make you jump if your not expecting it, graphically this game is quite superior to some other games out there but this is all let down.
If i was to compare this to a meal in a restaurant i would have to say
"It looks fantastic, tastes awful oh and where's my dessert?"