For veteran gamers of a certain age, Battletech Technical Readout 3025 is an iconic book of late-80s and early-90s gaming. One glimpse of the Marauder-nee-Zentraedi on the cover is enough to send thrills up the leg of a pair of sweatpants and moisten up some dice. Technical Readout 3025 compiled dozens of now-classic FASA mech designs, many of them stolen from Robotech, and presented each mech with detailed statistics and history about its exploits. Among the many classic designs like the Shadowhawk, Battlemaster, and Atlas are a lot of silly or forgotten designs. With our nostalgia glasses set on the night table of cynicism it turns out most of the designs are silly. Naturally, we're celebrating only the dorkiest.









Zack: Remember when FASA was a company that made games instead of a company that "leveraged" its "properties" into "bankruptcy?"

Steve: I don't know what any of that meant but it seems sarcastic. I do remember I had some Battletech box with these plastic figurines that Keith and Jamie melted using one of those creme brulee torches.

Zack: Plastic figurines? Real men played Battletech with the foldable cardboard mechs that came with the original box.

Steve: I played Battletech at Dave & Busters one time but I couldn't figure out how to shoot any of my guns so I just kept running into people.

Steve: I have the opposite problem with babes.





