Metal Fatigue

About

"Metal Fatigue" is a real-time strategy game that combines mech combat with base-building and resource management. Players can design and customize their own mechs, known as "Hounds," using a variety of weapons and equipment. The game is set in a futuristic world where corporations compete for resources and power, with a single-player campaign and multiplayer modes available.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Local Multi-Player Play with friends in the same physical space using split-screen or multiple screens
2-Players Play with one other player, either online or locally, in a cooperative or competitive game mode
Multi-Player Compete or cooperate with other players online
Co-Op Team up with friends to complete levels or missions together
Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo
PvP Player versus Player - Fight against other players in real-time, often in arena-style combat
Split Screen Play with multiple players on the same screen, often with divided or shared screen real estate

93%

Audience ScoreBased on 221 reviews

graphics10 positive mentions

stability3 negative mentions

Metal Fatigue is a unique and innovative RTS that allows players to customize giant robots (Combots) and engage in multi-layered combat across underground, surface, and orbital maps.
The game offers a nostalgic experience for many players, with solid gameplay mechanics that still hold up despite its age, making it enjoyable for both new and returning fans.
The ability to salvage and research enemy parts adds depth to the gameplay, allowing for strategic customization and varied combat tactics.

The graphics and user interface have not aged well, often resulting in poor readability and a clunky experience on modern systems, especially at higher resolutions.
The game suffers from frequent crashes and bugs, particularly in multiplayer modes, which can hinder the overall enjoyment and accessibility of the game.
Pathfinding issues and unresponsive AI can lead to frustrating gameplay moments, making it difficult to manage units effectively during battles.

graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
66%
11%
The graphics of the game are widely regarded as outdated and have not aged well, with many players noting issues such as blurriness and poor resolution scaling on modern displays. While some appreciate the nostalgic charm of the visuals, others express a strong desire for a remaster or update to enhance the graphical fidelity and user interface. Overall, the consensus is that while the gameplay remains enjoyable, the graphics are a significant drawback for contemporary players.
- “Amazing gameplay, graphics (at the time when the game came out), and story.”
- “The graphics themselves are okay and kind of impressive for a 3D RTS of its era, but that's not the issue here, it's the style and overall 'look' of the game.”
- “If you can see past the slightly broken visuals, there is an amazing game here.”
- “Like other players said; the game aged poorly, the visuals are blurry regardless of the resolution you try to play.”
- “The long and short of it all is that the old graphics and menus are a direct translation to this without any updating or consideration for the modern-day resolutions that we are using, causing a visual mess.”
- “However, the graphics leave much to be desired.”
gameplay
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
45%
7%
The gameplay of Metal Fatigue is praised for its unique mechanics, particularly the customizable giant robots (or "combots") and multi-level maps that allow for orbital, surface, and underground combat. While some players note that the game shows its age with issues like poor AI and a clunky user interface, the core gameplay remains engaging and enjoyable, offering a blend of strategy and narrative depth that many find appealing. Overall, despite its outdated graphics and minor flaws, the game is considered a classic with solid gameplay that stands the test of time.
- “It provides fantastic gameplay with its multi-level maps (orbit, surface, underground), base building, and most importantly: fully customizable giant robots (or 'combots' as they are called in-game).”
- “Metal Fatigue has not aged well, but its core mechanics are wonderful; the multi-tiered real-time strategy mechanics that force you to manage ground, subterranean, and airborne conflicts as well as dutifully construct effective combots (giant mechs) to lead your forces into battle truly offered a revolutionary take on the genre.”
- “The combot customization and salvaging enemy parts in the heat of battle makes for some very chaotic gameplay at times.”
- “Terrible UI, units behave like idiots and the gameplay isn't worth it.”
- “Unfortunately, the actual strategy and gameplay bit is awful.”
- “If you use bigger resolutions, the game icons and texts become so tiny it severely hinders gameplay.”
story
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
53%
9%
The game's story is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its engaging narrative and the dynamic between factions and characters. While some reviews note that the storyline has room for improvement and can feel cliché at times, others highlight its nostalgic appeal and the depth it adds to the gameplay experience. Overall, the story is considered a strong aspect of the game, contributing to its lasting enjoyment despite some technical issues.
- “Always wished they'd do a movie; I've always loved this storyline!”
- “Add on to this that you get one campaign for each of the three factions with a pretty decent story in all of them that shows the dynamic between the main characters and that of each faction. This game truly has a lot to offer.”
- “Gripping story about love, loyalty, and betrayal.”
- “The storyline is okay, but definitely leaves room for improvement.”
- “A single mission can go for a long time with open fronts everywhere and, while the assault is relentless, the unbalanced low resources slows you down so much that you are always playing catch up... it doesn't become challenging, it becomes boring.”
- “There is a lot more problems but I am tired and I spent 9 hours I will never get back in this game and most of it was spent on the second mission when I was about to win it and it crashed.”
music
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
58%
15%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising the main theme as a standout track while others criticize the overall soundtrack as dated and unfitting for a real-time strategy game. Notably, the absence of the Rimtech faction's classical music, replaced by the less favored Milagro soundtrack, is a significant downside for many players. Overall, while some find the music enjoyable, others deem it mediocre or even "absolute trash," highlighting a divide in player opinions on its quality and appropriateness.
- “The game's soundtrack is overall pretty solid, with the main theme being an absolute banger, but most tracks do still sound a bit dated.”
- “The music is great.”
- “Music is also great, making the game really awesome.”
- “A shame that the Rimtech OST isn't in the game anymore; perhaps Night Dive could buy the rights back to it. Aside from the minor lack of polish on the UI, it's great.”
- “Major downside though, the Rimtech faction is missing its classical music soundtrack; it plays the Milagro music instead.”
- “I cannot stress enough how bland and uninspired this half-assed soundtrack is.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The humor in the game is described as inconsistent, with some players finding it unfunny and chaotic, while others appreciate the charm of its quirky bugs and errors. Notably, the game's unique feature of mobile turrets adds a humorous twist, though overall, the comedic elements seem to fall flat for many.
- “Still a few bugs and hilarious errors present, but it has a charm from the old ages.”
- “One funny thing is that the turrets in this game are mobile: they can hover around, and you can rearrange them, but slowly though.”
- “Funny and interesting note: this was a 3D RTS back in 2000 before Blizzard made it cool with the release of Warcraft III in 2006.”
- “The problem is, they went too far and it ended up being an unfunny mess.”
- “To summarize, this is an unbalanced, hard to play, unfunny, confusing, and bug-ridden game.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
50%
The game's optimization has been criticized for being lacking and not updated, which detracts from the overall experience. However, players appreciate the unique narrative campaigns that allow for upgrading pilots and forces between missions to enhance performance.
- “The narrative campaigns are unique in the sense that you can upgrade your pilots and forces between missions to improve their performance.”
- “The optimization options allow for a tailored gameplay experience, letting players fine-tune their strategies and units.”
- “I love how the game encourages experimentation with different loadouts, making each mission feel fresh and engaging.”
- “Not very optimized nor updated, sadly.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game is generally well-received, but players have noted that it experiences mild bugs that affect stability.
- “Great game, unfortunately it's mildly buggy.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it hard to enjoy.”
- “I experienced several glitches that disrupted my gameplay.”