Are you excited to play FromSoftware’s latest game? Or perhaps, are you simply waiting for the Elden Ring DLC and want to see what the deal about these mech games is in the meantime? Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is looking to be the biggest game in the series, and it may already be if you’re reading this in the near future. While Armored Core VI will likely be a good entry point for beginners, you may want to check out the rest of the series so you can get an idea of what to expect. Here’s everything you should keep in mind when getting into the Armored Core series.
Official Methods of Playing the Armored Core Series in 2023
The first major hurdle when it comes to playing the Armored Core games is being able to play it through official means. Unfortunately, previous titles in the series never received any remasters to modern platforms. This means you’ll have to break out your old consoles if you still have them and want to play these games the way they were intended to be experienced. To make things more irritating, it will be quite difficult to find copies out in the wild at reasonable prices.
These games can sell for potentially hundreds of dollars. There are very few games in this series that aren’t valuable. Perhaps you can find a more reasonable deal if you go digging, but that’s probably going to take lots of time and some good, old-fashioned luck. If you do happen to stumble across a good deal, however, be sure not to sleep on it. Even if it wasn’t the game you were planning on playing first, it will likely be a great addition to your collection.
How the Armored Core Series is Organized
You may have noticed that there are many Armored Core games without numbered titles. Are these spin-offs? The answer to this is a little bit complicated and requires you to understand how these games belong to different generations. The previous Armored Core games are split up into five generations. Each generation begins with a numbered title that also begins a new scenario and/or universe.
This means that pretty much every numbered game can be approached with little to no knowledge of the series. Of course, there may be some titles you may want to start with before others, but we’ll get into that a bit later. Here’s a general overview of every generation in the Armored Core series so you can easily categorize each game in the series.
Generation 1
- Armored Core (1997, PlayStation)
- Armored Core: Project Phantasma (1997, PlayStation)
- Armored Core: Master of Arena (1999, PlayStation)
The first generation of Armored Core laid the groundwork for everything that followed it. These games take place in a dystopian sci-fi setting where an apocalyptic event called the Great Destruction forced surviving people to flee underground. Two corporations known as Chrome and Murakumo Millenium now control most of what’s left of humanity. As the two corporations continuously battle each other, this opens up a war economy. Mercenaries known as Ravens pilot mechs called Armored Cores in the hopes of making a name for themselves.
This premise is going to feel familiar across pretty much every generation, and that’s because the first generation established the core themes of the series. You’ll notice that most Armored Core games utilize dystopian settings where corporations rule and war is a cruel business. The first generation is good if you want to get a solid idea of what Armored Core is all about and don’t mind how dated these games might feel.
The structure and progression found in the majority of Armored Core titles originate from these games. Elements such as the arena and the ability to carry over your saves to other games within the same generation started here as well. Overall, the first generation did a pretty great job at defining what Armored Core is as a series.
Generation 2
- Armored Core 2 (2000, PlayStation 2)
- Armored Core 2: Another Age (2001, PlayStation 2)
Armored Core 2 presents the first major graphical leap for the series. The second generation shares the same universe as the first generation, but many years have passed. This generation is one of the only times that the Armored Core games do not take place on Earth. Instead, these games focus on the colonization of Mars. This helps make the second generation of Armored Core stand out from the rest.
As the story is somewhat connected to the first generation, you may want to play those games before you get to this generation, but it is not a necessity. However, if you want the better graphics and performance of the PS2 Armored Core games, it may be a good choice to consider the next generation instead.
Generation 3
- Armored Core 3 (2002, PlayStation 2, later ported to PSP)
- Silent Line: Armored Core (2003, PlayStation 2, later ported to PSP)
- Armored Core: Nexus (2004, PlayStation 2)
- Armored Core: Last Raven (2005, PlayStation 2, later ported to PSP)
As you can see, the third generation of Armored Core is the most extensive of them all. In fact, some fans split this generation into two parts. Armored Core 3 and Silent Line make up the first half of this generation, while Nexus and Last Raven make up the second half. The first two titles still make use of the classic Armored Core control scheme, while Nexus decided to shake things up and modernize the controls with a twin-stick layout.
Armored Core 3 is something of a reimagining of the original Armored Core game. It features a very similar setting and storyline. If you can get past the awkward control scheme, it’s a solid introductory title to the series. It may be tempting to start with Nexus thanks to its modernized control scheme, but it’s best to start with Armored Core 3 and Silent Line if you can.
If you get to Last Raven too quickly, you will likely have a miserable time. It is notorious for being the most difficult game in the series, despite the modern control layout. This is definitely a game you may want to avoid until you gain a bit more experience. Overall, the third generation is great if you want the most refined version of classic Armored Core gameplay. After this generation, things are going to change quite a bit.
Generation 4
- Armored Core 4 (2006, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
- Armored Core: For Answer (2008, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
We reach another graphical leap with the fourth generation of games. These games are considered the fastest in the whole series. In fact, some fans consider these games to be too fast for their liking. What does that mean exactly? The mechs in Armored Core 4 and For Answer move a lot quicker than previous mechs in the series. This generation is great for action game fans who are looking for a combat experience at breakneck speeds.
An interesting thing to note is that these games are where Hidetaki Miyazaki (who you likely know if you’re a FromSoftware fan) got his start as a game director. With the fourth generation, there is definitely a noticeable shift in art direction and the style of the soundtrack. Everything is more minimalistic, and that even applies to the level design. You’ll find yourself piloting your mech through some very barren environments compared to previous games in the series.
It’s worth noting that For Answer is usually considered to be the best of the two fourth-generation games. It contains several improvements over Armored Core 4 and has one of the more intriguing stories in the series. It isn’t required to play Armored Core 4 before you play For Answer, but it may give you a better appreciation for this generation’s universe.
Generation 5
- Armored Core V (2012, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
- Armored Core: Verdict Day (2013, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
Unfortunately, the fifth generation of the Armored Core series is often considered to be the weakest, but it still has its fans. There are several reasons for this, but there are a couple of primary ones. Firstly was this generation’s focus on online multiplayer. Considering that the series is known for its single-player content, not every fan appreciated the shift in focus. It also makes it the generation that’s a bit harder to return to as finding other people to play with is going to prove to be a little difficult.
Secondly, this generation changed the movement mechanics of the series a bit too much for some fans. While the fourth generation was fast, the fifth generation plays very differently from everything else in the series. This is not to say the movement mechanics are necessarily bad, but it does make the gameplay feel quite a bit different from previous entries. This generation still may be worth playing if you’re interested, although you need to approach it with appropriate expectations.
Generation 6
- Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon (2023, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC)
Last, but not least, we have the upcoming Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon. While this could technically start a sixth generation, we may not see the Armored Core series structured as it was before. Games are generally more expensive to make now, and it may make more sense to develop a DLC expansion for Armored Core VI instead of making a separate game to follow it.
Besides all that, however, this game is looking to be a great entry point for newcomers. It looks to place a greater emphasis on its action-game mechanics compared to most previous entries, but that’s not to say that it won’t be a solid mech-building simulator either. While Armored Core isn’t suddenly going to turn into a Dark Souls game, it definitely appears that FromSoftware will be applying many things they’ve learned since the fifth generation of Armored Core.
Spin-Offs
- Armored Core: Nine Breaker (2004, PlayStation 2)
- Armored Core: Formula Front (2004 in Japan, 2005 in other regions, PSP, PlayStation 2 in Japan only)
While these technically count as part of the third generation of Armored Core games, there’s a reason why they belong to a separate category here. They aren’t necessary to play if you want to enjoy the third generation of Armored Core. In addition to this, these titles aren’t exactly celebrated by fans. Nine Breaker is often regarded as the worst title in the Armored Core series, and Formula Front isn’t far behind.
Nine Breaker may be worth playing if you want to improve your Armored Core skills, but that’s about all it’s good for. There is no traditional campaign, as the game takes place during a time of peace. Instead, players have access to training missions that are meant to grow their skills as a pilot. On the other hand, Formula Front focuses more on the building process, allowing an AI to pilot your AC for you. However, in the North American version of the game, you can still choose to pilot your AC manually if you wish.
Which Generation of Armored Core Should You Start With?
As mentioned earlier, it should be safe to start with any numbered entry that strikes your interest. However, there are a few generations you may want to choose to play above the other ones. The best places to start are probably the third and fourth-generation games. While you may need to get used to some awkward controls, Armored Core 3 is a great introduction to the series and will give you a good idea of what it’s all about. However, you will definitely want to avoid Last Raven until you’ve played quite a few games, as it’s often considered to be among the most difficult games FromSoftware has ever made.
The fourth-generation games are the most accessible for new players. Armored Core 4 and For Answer featured modernized controls that won’t take much time to adjust to. However, these games are so fast that they may not be the best representation of the rest of the series. If you want to check out any of the older games after you play the fourth-generation titles, you may have a more difficult time adjusting to the classic controls.
If you can stomach the visuals and performance, it still may be worth playing the first generation of Armored Core games. As I stated before, it will give you a solid idea of what the series is all about. You may find that they hold up surprisingly well thanks to their solid game structure. However, no one is going to blame you if you decide to go with Armored Core 3 instead.
Unofficial Methods of Playing the Armored Core Series in 2023
If you want to play the Armored Core series on modern devices, you will need to use emulators. For this to be legal, you must dump any necessary game files or BIOS files by yourself from games and consoles you own. Any files obtained from the internet are illegal.
Fortunately, most of this series is quite playable through the means of emulation, with the exception of Armored Core V and Verdict Day (although this may improve or may have already improved recently). As long as you have a device that is capable of emulating the original PlayStation, PS2, PSP, and PS3 or Xbox 360, you can play the majority of the series through the means of emulation if you desire.
For the first generation of Armored Core games, I recommend using DuckStation for PlayStation emulation. As for the PS2 titles, PCSX2 will play them well, as long as you have hardware that can handle it. For the third generation, you can also play many of them through PSP emulation, which will be less demanding, but I recommend playing the original PS2 releases if you can. Armored Core 4 and For Answer run pretty well on both RPCS3 and Xenia if you have a rig that’s capable of running these emulators.
What You Should Know Before Starting Any Armored Core Game
If you’re a fan of the Dark Souls games or Elden Ring, you should know that Armored Core doesn’t play much like them. It’s going to challenge you but in a different way. Much of the difficulty in previous games comes from building an effective Armored Core. You will have to experiment with different parts to see what works best for your build. Sometimes, the difference between victory and defeat can come down to a single part of your build. Other times, a single part can make you consider reworking your entire build.
If you’re starting with Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, that’s the most essential thing you need to know. Otherwise, Fires of Rubicon looks to be a somewhat different action experience compared to previous games in the series. This is to be expected, as FromSoftware hasn’t made an Armored Core game in almost a decade.
Hopefully, this guide gave you a good idea of how to approach this series and what you may want to start with! There are a lot of games in this series, and many of them are worth your time if you find out that the Armored Core series is for you. For more coverage on Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, be sure to keep your eyes on Final Weapon!
