Mechwarrior 2: Mercenaries fans have waited a long time for a Direct3D patch so they could soak up the power of the powerful 3Dfx board. Early this week, when the special 3Dfx version was released to stores and a 3Dfx patch was released to folks who didn't want to buy another copy of the game, many thought the wait was over.

　　But it wasn't. People who had purchased an early version of the non-enhanced version of Mech 2: Mercenaries instead of the later 1.05 version noticed a problem. It appears that a slight oversight at Activision didn't check compatibility problems with gamers upgrading the original Mercenaries with the 1.05 patch and then moving up to the 3Dfx patch. It just wouldn't work. So after downloading the large patch, early Mercenaries adopters were left out in the cold.

　　Now Activision has released a Direct3D patch in beta form on its site that allows 3Dfx owners to get a taste of a greatly enhanced 16-bug graphic mech gameplay.

　　And the minimum system requirements have been boosted from a 486/66 to a Pentium 133. This might be a good time to upgrade, considering that Intel is dropping chip prices on August 1st.