‘Armored Core VI’ Gets a Sortie Date For Its Mechs
The countdown to Armored Core VI has begun.
FromSoftware is one of gaming’s biggest names right now. Established in 1986, the developer made a name for itself with incredibly popular titles like 2022’s Game of the Year, Elden Ring. Before they hit it big with the Souls games, I knew them from a PS1 game that became the obsession of many mech fans for console gamers: Armored Core. Released in 1997, the series revolved around creating custom mechs to take into missions. For every successful mission, you got more credits and parts to make your mech even more powerful. It was a very detailed game for the PS1 at the time and is one of my fondest memories of the PS1.
The series has since had spinoffs and sequels that went well into 2013 with the last title being Armored Core: Verdict Day. The series ended up skipping the PS4 and Xbox One gen with FromSoftware paying special attention to the Souls series. Fans were worried the franchise was done until a trailer for a brand-new entry was revealed at the Game Awards. Gamers were hoping for some more juicy info during the presentation in February nothing new to pop up. Well, the wait for the newest entry just got a lot shorter with new info revealed by Bandai Namco.
via FromSoftware
Release Date and Story Details
Bandai Namco released a brand new trailer that revealed the game will be out on August 25th. The trailer shows off a variety of mechs fighting a variety of enemy mechs on a planet called Rubicon. The dialogue in the trailer is very vague in what is going on in the game itself story-wise. There are plenty of explosions and great-looking gameplay that make for a very effective trailer.
The story bits that were released were revealed to PlayStation Blog by FromSoftware. Players will be playing an augmented mercenary who is piloting a giant customizable mech, as is tradition. They went on to give a small synopsis of the game’s plot:
“Armored Core VI is a new story that takes place on the planet Rubicon, where a powerful energy source called “Coral” has been discovered. But this isn’t stuff that looks pretty in aquariums–Coral is extremely volatile, and it’s already caused a massive disaster that nearly turned all of Rubicon to ash many years prior. But those futuristic megacorps just can’t resist the siren song of Coral and continue to war for it to this day.”
The world of Rubicon will be filled with huge structures and underground facilities. The team said the “structures cover a planetary surface wracked with extreme cold and contamination in the aftermath of the great disaster” and that players will be exploring them as they proceed through the story. The game will have players exploring Rubicon while doing different types of mission-based progress just like the previous games.
New Details and Returning Features
The PlayStation Blog post was chock full of new info on the game from the developers. They adding a few new, never been used features to the game series. They emphasized 2 specific ones, which are “Stagger” and “Assault Boost.” “Stagger” lets players put Armored Cores into a stunned state if hit too many times in a small window. This will cause the systems to overload, leaving an opponent open for counter-attack. How easily you can stun someone depends on a variety of factors like weapons and the distance you are attacking from.
“Assault Boost” lets players switch between melee and long-range fighting at the flick of a button. This is incredibly useful with how frantic it can be piloting a mech in a battle. The Game Director Masaru Yamamura had a lot to say about the new feature.
Assault Boost is an offensive action that helps close the gap between enemies and lets you quickly go from long distance to close range,” Yamamura tells us. It will also provide some incredible chain abilities when fighting, as he describes vividly: “Say you activate Assault Boost to make your approach while using machine gun fire and a missile salvo to stagger the enemy, then use your pulse blade to score a direct melee hit once you’re up close.”
via PlayStation
Yamamura also confirmed the game’s movement speed will be closer to something between Armored Core 3 and 5. He then clarified the game “has been developed to bolster the changes of tempo and combat. With instantaneous bursts of speed and sudden changes of tempo, combat can often reach dizzying heights.” For example, the game will be sporting huge boss encounters once more. Now being on newer systems, they can be even bigger and more intimidating than ever before.
“There will be a rich variety of powerful enemies of all shapes and sizes,” says Yamamura. “Huge combat helicopters, heavily armored mobile turrets, and unmanned heavy demolition machinery that’s programmed to indiscriminately crush intruders. Armored Core VI will offer a number of explosive battle experiences that challenge players to fight against the odds and overcome these ginormous, more abnormal mechs.”
Players will also be fighting enemies their own size for more intense boss battles that may take a few tries to understand their patterns like any other FromSoftware game and Punch-Out has trained gamers to do. Players will also be able to fight plenty of different mechs in the returning mode, The Arena. Pilots can test their mettle here to fight a wide variety of mechs in simulation.
“There are a lot of different AC frames and a lot of colorful characters to fight in the Arena, so we hope the players confront them all and aim for the top rank. You can even encounter the real version of these opponents while out on missions. These are more formidable than their simulator counterparts, and will confront the protagonist with their own ideals and motives in the heat of battle.”
via PlayStation
Customizing the Armored Core also got a small upgrade with custom paint jobs and more focus on melee weapons to let players stand out more.
“One aspect we focused on in Armored Core VI is melee weapons, exclusively equipped to the left hand,” Yamamura continues. “These can include a cluster bomb thrower, a chainsaw or pulse blade, lances, and other more idiosyncratic weapons. Since the main weapons are firearms, the melee weapons are more focused on that strength of individuality.”
Special Editions and Pre-Order Bonuses
The game is already up for pre-order and has a few special bonuses.
MELANDER C3 G13 Special Customization “TENDERFOOT”
– MELANDER C3 parts set *Early Unlock
– Emblem *Early Unlock
– Exclusive AC Decal
The Bandai Namco store also has a Collector’s Edition and Premium Edition. They both are very similar except the Premium Edition also comes with a large Garage to display the figure in as well.
COLLECTOR’S and PREMIUM EDITION CONTENTS
GAME – ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON
GARAGE – A garage where you can park your ARMORED CORE, inspired by the one available in the game. Size: 32 cm*Only in Premium
ARMORED CORE FIGURINE – Size 19 cm
STEELBOOK – Original art STEELBOOK case
PIN BADGES – A set of 4 pin badges featuring in-game emblem patterns
STICKERS – A set of 45 stickers to personalize your computer, mobile phone, etc.
ARTBOOK – An exclusive 40-page hardcover artbook. Dive deep into the world of ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON with never-before-seen visuals.
DIGITAL SOUNDTRACK – Discover the complete ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON original soundtrackAdvertisement
via Bandai Namco
Armored Core holds a special place in my heart and I am incredibly glad it is back. Hopefully, it catches on again and we see even more of it in the future.
Armored Core VI will be releasing on August 25th for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC
“To secure peace is to prepare for war.” – Armored Core Verdict Day
