Harabec Weathers, on 20 June 2012 - 07:19 PM, said:
I'm pretty sure you won't have to buy one of the "Prime variants" before you buy a variant chassis and its very likely that the variant chassis models will be available for purchase right away.
From the May Dev chat on Twitter
http://www.pixelhunt...hat-on-twitter/
Q: How will the player’s initial ‘mech(s) be selected?
A: Players will get 1 free mech to start. They can chose from 4 1 in each class – light, med, heavy, assault (Bryan)
A: You will be able to choose from a selection based on the role you want to play (Russ)
If there are no jump capable medium mechs choosable at launch, that will not be the end of all things. This isn't a
big thing, but it is a thing. There has been some concern by some members on these boards that medium mechs have a less clear role than the other weight classes. Their strong suit seems to be flexibility - the ability to float around from role to role as needed. I was not a big fan of jump jets personally in the previous MechWarrior PC titles, but I see that the have a place.
Elite and Legendary founders package purchasers will likely be playing their founder's mechs, not rushing off to buy a variant medium. Veteran founders package purchasers might, but their numbers are surprisingly few according to
http://mwomercs.com/...ers-pack-sales/. That leaves the 100% F2P player.
*** I suggest having a jump capable medium mech available as a starting choice for 100% F2P players. I can think of no better mech for a casual player to dabble in many roles such as scouting, raiding, fire-support and brawling.