2002's Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries has maintained a multiplayer following far longer than most games, and is now being given away for free as a gesture of goodwill. With publisher Microsoft's blessing, the stewards of the multi scene at Mektek.net have made Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries available as a free download.
Originally released as a standalone expansion for Mechwarrior 4, Mercenaries offers multiplayer giant mech action as well as a story-driven campaign with three possible endings. Whichever mode you pick, the point of the game is to customize your war machine with whatever parts you can get your hands on, and then use it to blow the hell out of everything in explosive third-person action gameplay.
Does this mean that we're going to start finally hearing more about Mechwarrior 5? We can hope. In the meantime, hey, free game!