Armored Core 6 made a good impression on us

We got exclusive access to the closed presentation Armored Core VI: Flame of the Rubicon and share with you my experiences and knowledge. So let’s summarize what we have learned and observed.

The presentation had an interesting intro, where you became a robot explorer of their studio space. Unfortunately, more than a corridor and a semblance of an elevator shaft were not opened to us. Shortly thereafter, he took the floor Yasunori Oguraexecutive producer FromSoftware, which is responsible for the above game. He (and the interpreter) accompanied us throughout the presentation.

Who doesn’t happen to know this series, which started in 1997, when the original Armored Core came out on the PlayStation 1, so it’s a mech action game similar to Titanfall, for example, but I don’t want to compare it to it. A total of 16 games have been released in the Armored Core series, the last of which came out ten years ago. But what’s specific to this series is that you go into battle with a makeshift mech.

Assembling fur is not only a visual activity. With a thoughtful combination of elements, you create unique killing machines that give you freedom in a certain direction and bring a varied gaming experience. This is where the classic “what you do is what you get” principle applies.

The main concept of the Armored Core series was precisely this. creating your own fur in your image. FromSoftware’s philosophy focuses more on smooth flow and good gaming experiencewhich are complemented by expansive, dynamic map and resourceful combat system. Thus, the developer’s concept finds a balanced combination of these two views.

The design of the game rests on three main pillars, the first of which forms a massive 3D level design. The spaces in which you move are usually multi-level, literally gigantic. It seems that you have so many opportunities to move in space and nothing depresses you. Your movements are dynamic, free and, combined with shooting, allow you to experience a great fight. You can fly, change position frequently, fly through floors, bounce, use space tactically – whatever your mech composition allows. Thanks to the varied terrain, you won’t be bored.

Then a second pillar is built. tactical combat system. It reflects your gear and how you build your mech, so be careful and feel free to test out different combinations to find the one that perfectly complements your play style. In addition to the offensive components, do not forget about the defense.

But he also makes a good game balanced difficulty and the resulting satisfaction that the player will experience due to the adequately adjusted game difficulty. This has become the third pillar and helps balance the fundamentals of Armored Core.

Most of the presentation was dedicated to introducing the playstyle, completing missions, showing combat, and upgrading mechs. Except story-driven single player game we can also look forward to online mode with PvP battles.

The mission included an assignment from Balam Industries where we had to secure a large cargo structure, Grid 086, which was being occupied by an aggressive group of smugglers called RaD.

At first I was impressed by the futuristic and minimalistic UIčka processing, which shows everything you need without breaking the gameplay. Then a huge open space, literally impressive to the point of being breathtaking. On the one hand, you want to run and jump, but at the same time you understand that you don’t have a parachute and the energy to control the jets is not infinite, so you stop at the end of the traverse. and start using your brain.

Battles taking place on multiple levels at once make you want to be constantly on the move and looking for ways to cope with the situation and the space. You can combine your ranged combat skills, then run up to an enemy and land on them from close range, and then teleport to another location. You can literally play and gracefully dance and surprise your opponent with surprise attacks that you mark as a target and always turn towards him. Some fights take place indoors, but there are also opportunities to use the space in different ways, although not as freely as outdoors.

In some missions there are so-called “supply points”, which will mainly receive ammo boxes, repair kits and other similar materials. One of the features available to you is scan the neighborhood. Thanks to this, you will know if something is hiding around the corner and, perhaps, how many enemies are around you and how far they are. The scan also penetrates through walls. Then the enemies are highlighted for a while and the distance to them is indicated.

But what left me a little indifferent was the fact that opening the door with Knitting it doesn’t have hard mode. You just come in, press the button and wait for it to kind of “crack”. I know the game isn’t about that, and that’s not what it’s about, but pressing a few buttons in some order won’t hurt. This will contribute to the feeling that you have done something for it. Something more than one keystroke.

He is at the end of the mission. final bossto the liquidation of which may also join other players. However, in the demo, they faced a big challenge without help, and the fight was abandoned before a winner could be determined.

In case of death, the mission can be restarted from the last checkpoint. or play all over again.

Mech Build Mode can be activated from the ‘Build’ menu item, at least that’s how it was seen in the demo. It will open up for you editor, in which you can transform your mech. The menu is divided into separate parts of the “body”. For example, you can select a head and it will immediately show you what can be installed instead. Each part has a detailed description with numerical data, so if it’s a weapon hand, you’ll see it struggle statistics.

Also an important parameter weight. It’s a good idea to make a real iron golem that nothing will kill, but to get off the ground with such weight and fly up to the floor above, most likely, the challenge will be awarded a medal for courage.

The game seemed very interesting to me. Functional, dynamic, action-packed, but I can’t get rid of the feeling that after a while it will become a little insipid and boring, although space and dynamics can significantly delay this time. For casual games, this might be a good choice. But we won’t know until August 25, 2023, when Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon releases on PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox One.