About MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat
MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat is a vehicle simulation game that Activision developed and published as part of the MechWarrior series, which belongs to the BattleTech franchise. The MS-DOS version came out on July 24, 1995. Windows followed in December 1995 and the Mac in July 1996, and the PlayStation and Saturn versions reached North America on April 4, 1997, with Bandai Visual publishing the Arcade Combat Edition in Japan. John Spinale directed the game, Josh Resnick produced it, Sean Vesce and Zachary Norman designed it, and Gregory Alper and Jeehun Hwang wrote the music.
The year is 3057, and the game recreates the Refusal War. You join one of two clans, Clan Jade Falcon or Clan Wolf, and fight through up to 32 missions. It plays as a tactical simulation that combines real-time first-person combat with a physical simulation of your mech. DOS.Zone’s description names two of the BattleMechs you can pilot, the Timber Wolf and the Mad Dog, and sets the fighting on 3D battlefields. The original release also supported multiplayer.
How it runs in your browser
Play opens the game’s page on dos.zone in a new tab. DOS.Zone then starts the original MS-DOS release in js-dos, an open-source DOSBox build that runs inside web pages and recreates a PC there. The site hosts the files, so you have nothing to install, no disc or files of your own to provide and no account to register. No ads appear on DOS.Zone.
The listing tags MechWarrior 2 as 3D action, a first-person and third-person shooter and a simulator, and it holds a rating of 5 from three player reviews. It doesn’t mention saving or multiplayer, so read the page before you plan a full campaign for either clan.
Controls and devices
You’ll want a keyboard and mouse. DOS.Zone doesn’t list the key bindings for this game, so spend a few minutes in its own options menu before your first mission. When the emulator has finished loading, click inside its window so your input goes to the game.
DOS.Zone does provide virtual on-screen controls for phones. This game was made for a keyboard and mouse, though, so a desktop or laptop is the sensible choice. Phones haven’t been tested, and Chromebooks haven’t been confirmed.
Who it’s for
It suits BattleTech fans who want to revisit the Clan campaigns as they looked in 1995, and players who like tactical combat seen from a cockpit rather than over a soldier’s shoulder. If you’d rather fly than walk, Wing Commander, Origin Systems’ space flight simulator from 1990, runs on DOS.Zone in its MS-DOS version too. For a different kind of cockpit from the same year, Descent puts you in a ship inside robot-filled mines.
Is MechWarrior 2: 31st Century Combat Free, Safe and Official?
Can I play MechWarrior 2 online for free?
Yes, as a single-player game. DOS.Zone runs the 1995 MS-DOS version free in a browser tab, with no account and nothing to install. Its listing doesn’t mention the original’s multiplayer.
Is this the PlayStation version of MechWarrior 2?
No. It’s the original 31st Century Combat for MS-DOS, running in an emulated PC. The PlayStation and Saturn releases came later, in 1997, under the name MechWarrior 2: Arcade Combat Edition.
Can I play MechWarrior 2 on my phone?
DOS.Zone offers virtual on-screen controls for phones, but MechWarrior 2 was built for a keyboard and mouse and we haven’t tested it on a touchscreen. A computer is the better fit.
