Timeline advanced, new weapons, new engines, new mechs:

http://mwomercs.com/news/2017/07/1859-patch-notes-14126-18jul2017

Is the general consensus that those of us banging around in the old gear are going to be in a steep disadvantage going against the new shiny stuff?

unknown. i have been messing around with old builds, just changing out a weapon or two... or putting LFE engine where STD or XL used to be. Being able to run LFE with AC20 on Atlas could be a game changer.

all of the new tech seems pretty well balanced right now, i.e. ER lasers same damage more range more heat, the advanced ballistics are hotter than the original versions, etc...

Update is nice, but player population is at an all time low of moronitude(I made that word up). Play at your own risk. 12-1 rolls happen every game.

I haven't been back to MWO since before the skill tree change, keep hoping for actual gameplay changes or new maps to get me off the fence, but seems like the emails they send just mention new mechs for sale...

Has anything improved since we got tired of getting rolled by 12 man comp try-hard teams in the group queue and stopped playing? Is the match maker still geared toward making us fodder for the comp teams to practice on?

I miss MWO sometimes, but then I recall the repeated frustration of getting rolled by comp teams in the group queue and find something else to play.

I wish they would crank out a campaign and coop.
I maxed out my ability to play the game and just couldn't compete. LOL

Don't bother playing PUG solo queue, unless you want to be angry. I'm pulling my usual match score I always do (340+) which is strong, but my win/loss has plummeted due to the amount of clowns in the game at the moment, and for the first time in MWO history, is negative. Essentially you're at the mercy of the random matchmaker and jackasses in the queue that get thrown onto your team.

It only became this way in the last week or so.

I still play in the group queue with Baron and a couple of others from time to time. we were playing last night and were batting about 50% wins in 7 or 8 rounds so can't complain. There is a separate "COMP" queue now but to be honest I dont know how it works as I have not looked into it at all.

Scout mode with 4 players is a blast though. My favorite game mode

Yes there are a lot of potatoes in the game right now