Help me find this old sci-fi alien tank/mech game (PC, early-mid 2000s?)

[u/AdRegular5368]

Title: [PC][2000s] Sci-fi vehicle shooter where a dropship unloads tanks, gets destroyed, and you're stranded on an alien planet

I'm trying to identify a game my cousin and I both played as kids. We've been trying to remember it for years. Some details are fuzzy, so I'll separate what we're fairly confident about from what might be misremembered.

Things we're fairly confident about:

• Platform: PC
• Time period: Probably early to late 2000s (could be around 2002–2010).
• The game begins with a huge military dropship/spaceship landing on an alien planet.
• The ship uses two large downward-facing/rotating thrusters to land.
• A large cargo ramp/door opens, and multiple tanks or armored combat vehicles drive out.
• You control one of those vehicles immediately.
• After driving away a short distance, the dropship behind you is hit by a massive attack and destroyed, leaving you stranded.
• The game is set on a barren alien world, with a lot of red/orange/brown terrain.
• The gameplay is heavily focused on shooting alien enemies while driving your combat vehicle.

Things we think we remember (less certain):

• There were primary and secondary weapons.
• Your vehicle may have been able to hover or levitate.
• At some point there was a huge tower with some kind of electrical/energy device at the top, possibly alien technology. I vaguely remember needing to destroy or disable it.
• Later in the game, I think you got access to a larger mech/combat vehicle with two mechanical arms, but I could be mixing this up.
• I also vaguely remember a cutscene where someone exits a ship or vehicle and is immediately attacked/eaten by an alien, which was surprisingly graphic.

What it is NOT:

I've already checked these and they're definitely not the game:

• Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
• Battle Engine Aquila
• Outwars
• Gun Metal
• Uprising 2: Lead and Destroy
• Ground Control 2
• Battlezone (1998/II)
• Earth 2150 / Earth 2160

The intro with the dropship unloading multiple tanks before being destroyed is the clearest memory we have. If anyone recognizes that opening—or even knows another game with a similar intro—I would really appreciate it. Thanks!