The only good mech game is ZoE2 and Mech Warrior.
And no, I have not played Steel Batallion
There's something to be said for the PS1 Armored Core games, too, although the PS2 games have never done it for me. Carnage Heart was also nice, but I guess it's not really a trad mech game. The MechAssault games on Xbox had fun if not great multiplayer. I think the genre is more hit and miss than it is bad.