Despite the issues, ACVI is such a breath of fresh air. It's incredible how much it achieves without showing a single face. The briefings are super stylish and harken that AC4A feeling, and the exchanges/banter between characters is great. It's also one of the games where I can safely say both JP and ENG voices are mostly excellent, unlike a certain DxM where I simply could not bear to play it with English VA more than 2 missions. So, yeah, I'm definitely celebrating what clearly is my GOTY for bringing a genre/era back from the dead, being complete out of the box and more, so much more. Time to fly high on Raven's wings!
Agreed, I'll likely vote for BG3 partly because I'm petty and want to avoid Bethesda being rewarded for such a formulaic game, but AC6 is easily my personal GOTY
I personally disagree with the briefings being super stylish, in my opinion it's nowhere as good as 4A briefing.. " but it's fine, we don't play this game to watch briefings.
I love how no character had a "Human" face, and if you saw them in game, you saw their AC's emoting what the pilot was feeling. Leaving their true identities a secret. We dont have to know what Rusty looks like to know hes a hell of a pilot for example.
Thank you so much for the generosity, I really appreciate it! I'm glad to see a lot of the OGs coming back from a deep cryo sleep and engaging in this new era! Cheers
This games release actually puts tears in my eyes. I’ve played these games since I was a baby with my father since ps1 days and so much time has passed and my dad is passed now but armored core 6 makes me feel that much closer to him and my child hood.. I’m so greatfuk to fromsoftware for this game it’s perfect for me
@@SilverGlint If they can make more things work at ranges that make sense instead of forcing them to compete in the punch/slash/Zimmerman range, I don't think people would be saying that so much.
@@WillowEppThe projectile speed is too low for ranged builds to work (except the psychotic m+kb manual aim build). Unfortunately that's tied to the boss difficulty so they'd have to take a very different approach to boss design for that to work. Either way, the most viable long-range builds in older games were missile hell builds and that's definitely true once again. I've never made a sniper rifle build work, and maybe that's just my flaws as a player but I've tried it in every gen I've played and never had any success. If they fixed that in this game that would've been extremely impressive.
If From Software can, they could bring back Kings Field as a 1st person game with modern soul setting and still succeed. I, for one, welcome more Armored Cores in the future.
A modern KF is so doable. Modern From Softs mastery of art direction and level design. Start with slightly faster movement and combat, but keep it weighty. Some metroidvania elements in interconnectedness and unlocking paths and abilities. Environmental puzzles could also be done well and lastly a touch of survival horror mechanics lending themselves to a first person perspective. And give us allllll the atmosphere.
The fact that this game hit the actual ground running as a first full return is a damn good thing. I just hope that after Elden Ring DLC they fully lean in hard on their mecha style once more.
It's important because it is a return to form. No live service, no micro transactions, no difficulty sliders, no day 1 patches, just a video game in its purest form. Fun, complete, and stable.
I’m confident Fromsoft can bring the build complexity back now that they’ve so successfully nailed the feel of combat. I can’t wait to see where they take the series next!
Something newer people to the franchise may not know/people may forget: the first numbered title usually isn’t the most robust and balanced. While we don’t know if AC6 will get an expansion DLC or AC6: New Subtitle entry, it’s usually the follow up that fully realizes the vision. Keep the criticism coming, because it could very well impact what comes next.
The main menu theme is actually called "New Era", can't imagine any reason other than it being a new era for the AC series haha. FromSoft is such a legend. Holy shit.
I really appreciate FromSoftware returning to this series. It may be different but it’s a damn good game no question. I’ll continue to chase the clouds over Rubicon💯
developing games are way more expensive and time consuming than it used to be. and while fs have became very efficient at making them with their resource management, its still gonna take quite a time.
Minor balance issues aside the game is an absolute masterpiece in my eyes. I only dabbled in a bit of AC when I was young and wasn't expecting much, AC6 blew me away. Its easily joined one of my all time great games.
Lol “minor” balance issues.. the game’s absolutely busted balance-wise. But I’m having faith in the process that they’ll correct that with upcoming patches these next few months. Other than that, and sadly the game not having as deep mechanical depth as older gens, I absolutely agree. My personal game of the year so far. 🙏🙏
Similar story for me - prior to AC6, my experience with the Armored Core series was a single multi-cross fic which included AC4A. AC6, meanwhile, is the first game where I’ve gone out of my way to 100% the achievements. Balance is a bit scuffed (the Zimmerman and Stun Needle are probably too good), but that just means I’m excited to try S-ranking all the missions again after they get made more balanced.
YEAH, this is anything, but minor. Having weak weapons in your game is okay, but it can't be that entire weapon types such as assault rifles basically are significantly weaker than anything else.@@the.bloodless.one1312
They made this game just feel so damn good to play. From the moment you gain control of the mech in the tutorial all the way to the end of NG++, it just feels so satisfying to zip around and blow shit up.
While I wish the weapon handling was more like Last Raven (Weapons for the Arms, Back, Hangar Bays, Shoulder Extensions, and Inside Extensions), I still love what ACVI is and what it achieves. The focus on close ranged combat and staggering enemies is different from what I'm used to (for some point of reference, I'm used to 3rd Gen Armored Core in terms of everything), but the feel of piloting a 10 to 15 meter tall giant mecha and overcoming overwhelming odds is still there in 6th Gen AC as it was in previous AC generations. Also the fact that recoiling and charged weapons make it so where bipeds have to stop and there's no OS tuning to remove this is gonna take some getting used to compared to the OG Human PLUS upgrade from 1st and 2nd Gen as well as the OP-INTENSIFY upgrade in Early 3rd Gen.
About the shoulder extensions, it seems like at some point during development they considered it because if you look at almost every arm part, they all have a slot or attachment point where they would go.
This game is flawless in my opinion. If they made 5 more of these with the only differences being new stories, missions, arena fights, weapons and mechs id be ecstatic.
Melee weapons are what we always wanted IMO. I also kind of get why they limited lock on range. I would like to try a sniper build but long range fighting isn't as engaging and fun. The Zimmerman hitting as hard as a bazooka doesn't quite feel right but it's fun, and balance takes time.
@@SilverGlint MW is slower and heftier feeling. It has lots and lots of stats, parameters, and graphs. VERY nuanced allocation of parts, ammo, etc., kinda like fighter jet sims.
MW5 still has that War of 3039 DLC first. Hopefully MW6 gives us the Clan Invasion era or, better yet, the Word of Blake Jihad era. I need to pilot my beloved Archangel Celestial Mech, goddammit!
I got into the series shortly before 6's proper announcement (it had only be known about via rumors and heavily watermarked screenshots of at the time dubious credibility) so when it was finally revealed it felt like I had willed it into existence in some way. I hope AC is back for good and that we get a dlc or sequel game down the line because I'm already itching for more after doing all there is to do.
Armored Core 6 has reignited my inspiration for making mechs models and animating them more than ever. Since Ac is the first mech related game that i was exposed to, it helped me in my journey of becoming an engineer and hopefully making an animated series with mechs. I felt proud as someone who loves mech and machine in general, am still able to retain the drive and motivation to like machine and mechs. So yea, ac6 is something that will leave a mark in my life just like the whole ac series and other mechs related stuff. And keep doing your best Silver
I do think an important thing to note is that this is an AC game from scratch, one that while definitely has more budget behind it than any Armored Core before it, also doesn't have near the budget of something like Elden Ring. It is naturally a smaller title with a bit of reservation since AC was on it's way out when AC5 came out anyway. AC6 is the beginning of a new AC generation, and you can bet Fromsoft is gonna reuse nearly every part from this game in the next game, or otherwise DLC could be big and add tons of extra parts. Everything in the current game is significant, at the very least, which you couldn't always say about the earlier games.
While it is very much in the old armored core formula, i cant explain why this one feels like the perfect balance of sticking to its roots and being modernized. I think its just the game feels so good to play, animations are incredible, combat is fluid. Most of all I think the mission design and enemy encounters are such a huge step up from previous titles, and that makes it really engaging for me.
I have finished AC6 and going to half S rank now, and i can say is so awesome to see how wholesome the community is, sharing mechs and builds!!! also the final line "Main system, activating combat mode" give chills like the end of master of arena, ive enjoyed everything of AC6 Abide with Rubicon!!!
A lot of this game definitely feels like a foundation to be built upon...and it's a damn good foundation at that. One can only imagine how FromSoft will further iterate for this generation of Armored Core.
So I havent played an AC game since AC3, but I remember absolutely loving the game (legit I never knew there were more than 4 AC games and when I looked recently and found there to be over 10 I was so confused angry at myself and excited. Then I played AC6 and had the most fun I've had in a while. I am sad the game isnt a bit more long ranged at times, but damn if I don't love me some melee combat. I even ran it back when I played AC3 even though it kinda sucked lol. As much as some people dislike the game, I personally thought it was one of the easier ACs and a ridiculously fun experience. I never played a Souls game because I never found them fun or interesting and I was scared they were gonna make it a Souls-like AC, so glad I was proven mostly wrong. Sure there's some things missing and some things changed arguably for better and some worse, but this game gave me something that I haven't had in a long time in recent gaming. Fun single player experience where I feel amazing playing it. Don't get me wrong something like DMC5, Ace Combat, and some other games did that for a lot of others but with AC6 I have not put the game down even though I've beaten the game about 5 separate times along with S ranking most of the missions. If this is what I have to look forward to in the next ACs, I can not wait to fly again.
I completely agree. Every Armored Core up to and including 6 has been different from the last. I'm fine with the changes made to AC6, even if they aren't all exactly what I'd hoped. I've been saying since this game was announced that if this game is successful (and it has been) it might pave the way for all sorts of new mech games. I seriously can't wait for all the Core-likes.
Makes me so happy to see this game doing so well after 10 years since the last game! Sure some things were lost but at the same time some things were gained in this iteration. Overall really love it and the more I play it the more it's moving on up there as one of my favorite AC games. Main gripe really is just assault rifles not really doing so well cuz I loved using assault rifles since 4. Still some weapons tho definitely got upgraded here like you said, love the melee weapon options
I don't have rose-tinted glasses for the series as I only got into it with the announcement of 6. I've played every game besides Another Age, Ninebreaker, FF, V and Verdict Day. I feel as if 6 has way more in common with the PS1/2 era of Armored Core than the stuff that came after- Maybe not in gameplay nuances but in atmosphere and visuals. Kawamori came back for art and the old sci-fi grunge is comparable to Gen 1 and 3. We have a full-fledged arena full of personality and NG++ is the most Last Raven piece of AC media since Last Raven- It's delightful. The story of 6 is also very unique in its own right, setting it apart from the others. The true crime in AC6 is how meaningless OS tuning is, and how there are only two quads, three RJs and three tank legs in the game- Not to mention the lack of weapon arms. Loved the game- But I hope an expansion or sequel can work on that.
Very good perspective on the game. It lacks naturally some depth that comes with some simplification of systems. Lots of part categories are gone, but like you said it's such a strong atmosphere, it really does feel like a continuation of the gen 1 through 3 philosophy
@@SilverGlint It was definitely a labor of love on From's part. There's even some remnant of their old boss philosophy with the STRIDER being more of a puzzle Arms-Fort. More action-oriented boss-fights didn't go amiss in 6 and there was some of that oldschool part problem solving in the gameplay still (Think how explosives and pulse weaponry work amazingly well against shielded bosses, or how the decision to use RJs gives you unrivalled jump power; Helping you to avoid many of the harder attacks.) I'm out of touch with the community reception but... It's way more fateful to what AC is about than people probably give credit for- Besides shotguns, it also has maybe the most fun FLAMETHROWER in the series! I mean- One with chaingun ammo??? God damn!
With 3 being my favorite generation, I agree. It's got a lot of the 1-3 vibes, while firmly being it's own thing. Once you get into it, it feels like it also manages to integrate the faster paced aspects of 4, while not taking it to the extreme that felt so divorced from the previous generations. Also like how they interpreted the different armor abilities into this new generation as well. Gotta agree the lack of weapon arms is very glaring, even if they would be redundant. They're just such a cool idea they need to be brought back. That said, there's still a lot of good variety while still keeping things fairly focused. Makes me all the more excited about what the next game in the series, or possible DLC expansion, might bring.
@@tinfoilmkiv8394 I don't think the weapon arms are redundant moreso they probably didn't want to take so much extra time balancing those out for a revival. Besides, ACV styled weapon arms would fit nicely in AC6 with their own perks and faults.
@@RippahRooJizah Oh I was more so saying from a design standpoint you could argue they could easily be redundant versus being able to pair up held weapons. But even if they were redundant or worse than hand held options, I'd still want them.
For what it's worth, Things I liked: Combat - The eb and flow is there. Customisation - Simple yet can be decidedly deep with great depth to visual customisation now added. NG+ - A fantastic way to see make a game with varied story. Graphics - Gorgeous, simple. Things I didn't like: Combat range - It's short, no two ways about it. Lack of Customisation Depth - More customisation, side boosters, Over boosters, core units, radiators, hover legs, weapon arms, etc. NG+ - Having to redo missions with only slight variations, it would be nice to have the player re-tread as little ground as practically possible. Mission difficulty consistency - The threat of danger doesn't exist outside of boss battles. All in all it's a fantastic start I hope in the coming DLC's and game series we continue to refine this relaunch of this venerable series because by god it deserves it.
As a veteran I have to say... This game is great. All the changes to the game were made with one purpose in mind: to make game fun. And let's be honest here. It is. It's extremely fun. It plays completly different than most other games but that's the point. Armored Core games were always different from the competition. Focusing more on close range combat makes you way more aggressive, your mind start racing at Mach 3 speed and everything become a second nature in absolutely no time if you let it go into you. It's frantic, it's fast, it's aggressive and it's awesome. It's a spectacular in it's own way. DMC games do it as well, but you don't need five arms, three controllers and set of tentacles to do something cool. No offense here of course. It's still an owesome franchise. Yes, there is a lot of numbers to compare, assembly is the most important part of the game but... Here is the thing. It doesn't fall into the same trap as Monster Hunter falls into: everything is set in stone. There is no additional jewels to slot into your parts (I know OS chips exist, but it's an honest and straightforward upgrade) , you don't upgrade individual parts every half an hour, there is no griding for 0,0001% chance to get a weapon or part. Seeing game comming out. So polished, so focused on doing one thing right is a miracle these days. FromSoftware really understand what drive players and let's pray it will stay that way. I don't care what game they will release next. I'm going to buy it. And if they will need time to polish it? Take it. I won't be mad at all. I know these guys can overdeliver.
Great video, 6 wouldn't be an Armored Core game if it didn't have some obvious issues but we still love it despite of it lol. While I'm not as positive as you this will bring a sea of new mecha games I do still hope you are right that will happen and we get to see true weighty mecha gameplay come back in style outside of AC and Mechwarrior. However I dunno if I exactly agree with the garage being de-emphasized, I honestly think the game did a good job at bringing attention to parts that were usually obvious decisions before, biggest example being generator and boosters which in most of the older games there was the obvious choice and then everything else but in 6 what you want to worry about from energy weapon damage, regular energy refill vs letting it go all red etc for generators or focusing on top regular speed, wanting to quick boost or assault boost a lot etc for boosters gave those part types more meaningful decisions than they had before, the new stats for the arms also made me look at them in a way I didn't before. There certain parts that feel lacking like weapon power balancing feeling a bit uneven atm, FCS not being as impactful as it should or leg parts, while not having many redundant parts, also lacking in choices especially for legs that aren't bipedal but I think outside of the first "done from scratch" game of the gen part selection it did a good job at making at least me check the garage often (when it came to them having impact on your playstyle, the campaign has early easy solutions especially in the weapon selection if you just want to complete the game but some of the older ACs had that issue too). 100% agree on the game having a more focused close range engagement, which arguably helped with making PvE more exciting and focused but we did lose that choice of range of engagement in the process, there's still some weapon that can fight well in 300-500m ranges for certain PvE scenarios like plasma and explosive weapons but it's hard to make those work in PvP due their slow projectile speed and assault boost being so powerful (+ no true sniper weapon) so at least in the current patch it does feel like tactical mid/long range chip isn't much of an option even after the rifle buffs. But you really hit the nail with how much of a cultural impact 6 has had and what that means for the series. People are clinging to it and still playing which means we will at least get a SL/FA/VD style expansion down the line alongside patches/updates and hopefully it will mean that from soft will work on the series more often in the future, who knows maybe even do unrelated new series inspired by it like it happened with souls (or hell just go back to their other mecha series). But as for me rn I'm glad I have a new AC I really like and am still playing even when moving on to other games: slowly doing S ranks, do dumb PvP builds I don't think will work but end being more effective than I thought, try missions with said new build for fun or just go beat up ring freddie for the millionth time. Feels good.
Yes fuck up ring Freddie, that son of a bitch. Yeah, maybe it came off as a bit exaggerated when I mentioned the garage part, but what I meant wasn't necessarily that it was just less of a focus by itself, rather that the gameplay portion was the thing that got more attention in comparison, if that makes sense? The garage is still very present, that's why it respects the AC premise, but the gameplay is the star of the show, unlike let's say gen 1 where the gameplay is... interesting 👁️ enough but the garage carries the whole thing
@@SilverGlint Like the focus between pre and in-mission gameplay getting balanced towards the latter in 6? Yeah I think I see what you mean even if I personally see as a good as long as the garage is still impactful to our playstyle.
You've said everything, that's why imo FromSoft are the best. I absolutely love this game, I love seeing people who never touched any AC entry playing AC6, and more than everything, I love how FS gives lessons to the gaming industry with every game they release.
There are things that may be a bit irksome with the game. The focus on close range and no option to lock the camera behind the AC are the two things that really come to mind. My expectations were blown away. It's easily my favorite story in the series since 4A. And honestly probably one of my favorite stories in gaming since Chrono Trigger and Yakuza 0. I really can't explain how this game. Just... really fired on all cylinders for me. I've always enjoyed AC games. And there's aspects I miss of old AC. But damn, if I'm not just super stoked about this new age of AC
Your insight is superb and I completely agree with you. To the world, "...don't serve anything to me on a platter; I just want a chance to hunt so I can serve my own family." I never forgot that practice makes perfect because it was an early lesson from my Father. Perfection was never the point; it was always the lessons you learned along the journey. I try to create something for someone every day of my life, so I can appreciate Fromsoft's efforts. Believe me, people like me appreciate it.
I fondly looked back to my middle school days playing through AC3 and constantly thought "man, I wish there was a modernized AC game" before AC6 got announced during the Game Awards. As far as I'm concerned, FromSoft nailed exactly what I wished for at its base with how customization works and gave more than I asked for by expanding the single player with side objectives like Log Hunts and secrets ranging from Parts to encounters. While there are some criticisms to be had, like the lack of longer ranged options, leg variety, and the flavorful weapon arms (to name a few), I feel like this is a very solid baseline for them to expand and build upon, just like how Silent Line expanded AC3. My hope now is that at least one of two things happen: 1) FromSoft builds upon AC6 (whether its an expansion or AC7) and refine their mechanics like they did with their Souls games. OR 2) Other companies try to chase the trends set by FromSoft and make their own "Armored Core" game. Never thought I'd see so many Ravens taking flight in the current generation...I'm loving every moment of it!
I am new to the series starting with Ac3p on the vita. I played it weeks before ac6 and man...AC6 is everything I hoped it would be. Bosses were amazing, legs actually made a difference, weapons felt good and the game was fast. Also the story was so well done I still haven't stopped thinking about it. I honestly don't know how most people feel about the game but for me it's my favorite FS game ever.
It's one of my favorite games ever, it's a great game for sure, just a bit of a hot mess of concepts and takes both some steps forward and some steps back when it comes to the formula! That being said, love it
" legs actually made a difference" - i dont feel this. Maybe because played mostly Armored Core 1 and 2 in PVP with friends back in the Day, and Leg Types had a very Big difference and Impact back then. Spiders where the fastest moving without boost. (Remember Boosting in Ground needed Energy not like in 6 where its for free) And with Ground Boost, normal Legs where the Fastest. The second most Fun in pvp i had in 4A. The PVP in 6 is a bit Close Range, but its okay. I Hope for a bit more parts and customisation options in the Future, and a bit more love for Ranged Weapons like higher Projectile Speeds and Ranges of the Railgun Rifles. Armored Core 2 Another Age for Example, was such a good PVP armored core game. 4 For Answer too. I played AC5 online too for a month or two, but nothing beats my pvp expiriences in Armored Core 2. The Strange thing is, AC 1 and AC2 had a Nightmap, where you could actually Hide very well in pvp. I miss such strategys in AC6 a bit.
@@SilverGlintI've always tried to force reverse joint to work in FA but there's so little compensation for losing so much turn speed that it's never worth it. They're just worse biped legs which is really sad.
Finally finished the game and did every mission. It was rough at first, but I found my core builds and had a blast taking on every challenge. Very focused on newcomers with how forgiving the system is and how it offers plenty of powerful options, particularly the melee weapons. In the end, it’s a good starting point to reinvigorate the series and get people interested in sequels
my first experience with armored core was AC4 however I only had the game for a week at most when I lost it. I felt A void and I spent weeks, months looking for another copied of AC4 and finding out that only 5 registered copies existed in my country and were thus unobtainable, so I did the next best thing I watched AC lore videos, gameplay, build guides, character break downs, weapons, heads, torsos, and so on I feel grateful I got to play AC4 when I did because not only was it fun but I was lucky. Lucky that I even got to be apart of this amazing francize. A new age has dawned old Ravens and I can rise with you at long last.
out of all the channels i found when digging for good armored core content your is hands down my favorite, i really like your style. looking foward to watching more from you, both old and new. gotta finish my playthrough of the series first though, after finishing ng++ in 6 i immediately dove into the old games, in the middle of AC 3 right now ;)
Thank you Raven, that means a lot! I indeed plan to go over all the games in great detail, old and new, and try to present the legacy to newer Ravens as best as I Can
It may be a relic of older times with limited resources but I really like kind of game: mission driven focused on dialogues and equipment customization. It may be nostalgia since Ace Combat 5 is my favorite singler player game, but still.
Mostly through will edit for further. Armored core has been entirely optional on if you want to beat it by building for it or by play style since Armored core 2. It's not systems and build driven. It's balanced between. A good pilot can win with anything. In fact, this new entry plays just like a love letter to 2 with updated mechanics from 4 and 5. 4 and 5 were the most divisive being too fast or too slow. Stagger was a thing as far back as ac 2. Not in bar form. It was easier to get stun locked back then as someone rocking a pistol froze you with every single shot. You had to equip an option part to stop that. Pattern based bosses were in fact a thing since at least armored core 2. The patterns were generally less complex. In fact, the majority of the bosses in the pre-patch gameplay of 6 did not have patterns so much as they had moves available for them to use. And they made use of whatever attack was most effective. The main noticeable exception being ice worm. But that's because it only really had one attack. Face bash. Others may have been slow but they weren't a pre-determined pattern. They just used what you were in position for. Stay over the cleaner, it keeps erupting. Stay close to ibis, it kept slashing. It was entirely possible to bait out certain attacks. I have no idea how much has changed with the boss anti spam update for the few bosses that received it.
Gonna do this instead of editing og comment. Armored Core is in fact represented as a melting pot of armored core in its mechanics. It has the movement options of 2 with additional movement from 4, targeting systems of 5. Armored Core 6 is the most armored core that any armored core game has ever reached. If you started at 2 like I did, there's a good chance you feel as I do. This game is a love letter to the franchise and the old heads. Despite the blindness of people that believe everything they see on the internet. This isn't a souls game. I've only played 3 soulsbourne types. This is not what that is. Everything people are saying is an inclusion from souls types? It has been there since armoured core 2. Except for the healing. Which honestly I'm fine with. The biggest thing they've done to this is add healing, checkpoints, and now they give you a resupply before every major boss instead of just some. Edit: Oh yeah. The extended melee options were a touch from 5 or earlier. Honestly a lot of criticism this game gets for not being armored core is from people that started with 4 or 5. Which both are considered the shitty games of the franchise depending on who you ask. Before those two, leg types also did matter a lot more. Which now they matter again. Basically ignore criticism from people who started at 4 or 5 because they don't actually know much about the game mechanics involved in armored core. Those aren't the old games.
This new generation of AC is brilliant. It feels so good to just do shit, let alone kill things. I'm interested to see how its new features, like ACS Overload and the range game are adjusted. Hopefully one day, we get proper snipers, as well as a balanced stagger system. Looking forward to the future!
I never even heard of armor core until like literally two days before AC6 released from my coworker. And boy I think it's quickly became one of my favorite games of all time. Never have I known how much I needed something until I received it lol
My favorite AC game is one of the more flawed titles in the series, so as much as I'll happily gripe about some of AC6's design decisions, I'll still be here playing it for a good long while. We'll see where things go from here. In the mean time I'm going to keep trying to deepen my understanding of what's in front of us right now.
As much as I wish to say I was an old gen armored core fan, I only played AC4, ACFA, and AC1 after my brother got into the series a few months before AC6's release
That Last Raven music at the end really got me missing that game. Nexus/Last Raven's story is my personal favorite, AC6 is a close 2nd, and AC1 Master of Arena is 3rd.
I remember going through the garage and thinking, "Wait... Where are the sniper rifles!?" I do miss the satisfaction of making a sniper in ACFA and targeting enemies so far away that I couldn't even see them, and sniping them out of existence.
This game is my first Armored Core game, and the first Fromsoft game I've played for over an hour (Dark Souls killed my computer, and I just didn't get Elden Ring). I love the level design and combat in this game, and will be taking inspiration from it for the FPS I'm working on. I particularly like the openness of the levels. I think of this kind of design as "wide linear" level design.
I don’t even notice any issues with the game but maybe because I’m a new raven, besides playing the original AC on the original PlayStation. I love this game and hope for more content in the near future.
Ah AC 6 I'm getting old call back from this game to Last Raven. Inglorious Iguazu is the Evangel of this timeline. V.II Snail is the anti thesis to what Jack-O stood for. And Rusty is the Zinaida of this timeline, the ACE pilot you always hear about all the time when they show up.
I may forget things about fromsoft games in the future, but I'll never forget some of the best bros in gaming history, solair, seigward, blaidd, and of Couse rusty.
I cant deny that Armored Core 6 is easily the best playing of the series but in the sequel expansion i wanna see a return of missing features like: the weapon arms, hover legs, dual shoulder weapons, shoulder chain guns and ammo storage, side extensions, "inside" weapons, radar parts and possibly a map.
ACV styled weapon arms would be great. Some of that other stuff I could be fine without, though, like hover legs (unless they are reinvented), dual shoulder weapons, or a map/radar. AC6 doesn't need all that stuff back if the game doesn't quite support it.
Just beat the first two missions of chapter five, almost beating the first playthrough. My only other experience was with Last Raven. I like a lot the changes they made to the flow of combat, gameplay is more involving, exciting and has more player skill involved instead of more dependent on stats. It's more dynamic too, movement and positioning is more important to consider, given the various possibilities of attack and defense, close and long range, you and your enemies have at your disposal. It's like a dance, while Last Raven is was more about creating a good build that deal lot of damage, allowed you to hit shoots consistently and you was able to control easily managing the energy output. Like you said menus and garage was more important. My only problem is the game have some brick walls from nowhere, that completely invalidates your build and practically demands you to use something else entirely, because they change the rules you expect at that mission (like no checkpoint or asking you to kill a entire fucking army without resupply, which means there only a few weapons and parts that becomes viable). And some bosses that their design or arena don't match that well with the fighting style of the AC (the recycling robot for example) or again forces you to go into a specific direction with your build. I understand the intent, that is to make you try different parts, but the idea by their own admission is that those missions should favor one play style but still be possible in others. Since I like a light high speed build, and this limit the options of weapons, there is a lot of situations that seems impossible with such builds. Something for them to get a better balance in design in a next game. But that is a minor gripe, my overall opinion is very very positive. This is probably the best mecha game I ever played, if not the best among the best for sure.
The only thing is we're definitely not getting a pile of games this generation. It's hard to say where DLC is gonna go but my guess is this game was far more work than could be churned out every year like the games in some generations.
As one of the 9 ancient fossils, I do love AC6. I can’t wait for the next release, which I hear is already in the works. They do need to improve the matchmaking system however. Add a true matchmaking random map selection system for both 3v3 and 1v1 matches. And how about multiple teams per match? The game has 4 main factions between Balam, Arquebus, RLF, and the PCA. A 3v3v3 would be sublime…
I have a suspicion that instead of new full releases that can carry over your save data, FromSoft might pull a Capcom Monster Hunter and instead bring new iterations within the "generation" as DLC expansions. I have no idea how that'd actually work in practice - would you be forced to finish the base Fires of Rubicon game at least once before the expansion content or would it just be a different tab under the mission menu? - but I found it an interesting thought.
Wow that was great insight as to introducing a new genereation of gamers to not just armored but the mecha game genre as a whole. You just got a sub. If there was one thing that could have made ac6 way better imo is being able to have melee weapons to both arms instead of just the left arm.
Thank you for opening my eyes a bit more & appreciating this game more. I used to be on the fence about this game mechanics, but you reminded me about the things that made armored core, Armored Core.
while I'm having less fun in PVP because of how the game is balanced and the inclusion of that stagger mechanic, the story mode incorporates the new mechanics pretty flawlessly and definitely earns AC6 as one of, if not the most satisfying and entertaining AC game yet. I'll still be playing LR pvp with the boys but its alr Plus the animations and designs are literal mecha porn they're so nice to look at
This game proves the thesis that fast mechs need fast turn speed. Although admittedly I think For Answer already proved that slow turning with fast mechs wasn't fun, it's so silly that you QB backwards hundreds of meters instead of just turning to get an enemy back in your sights and it's not believable in-universe by any means. Full camera movement and quick turning is the new standard and as someone who still loves the older generations I'm very happy to accept that.
Coming from Project Phantasma, I never found this boss design to be a negative. I'd imagine Phantasma would evolve into a spectacle boss like Balteus if From brought it back post-souls gameplay design.
Even as a old AC fan I believe AC6 was a Massive upgrade from all the previous titles. Yeah they put in the heals and stagger meter but that all fine with me. I hope they add more weapons and badass looking armor parts later on to mass around with.
Honestly, the way I got into this game was about as random as it can get. I saw someone in my "followed" feed on Twitch streaming the game, thought "hey, isn't the series that mech game on the switch I liked was based on?," and bought it, knowing full-well the difficulty of FS games and planning on refunding it if it proved to be too much or not my thing. Currently, I'm about halfway through my NG+ playthru, and if it weren't for the release of TotK, a game I'd been eagerly awaitng since 2019, AC6 would easily be my own personal GOTY.
Im so happy Fromsoft decided to make AC6. It was the game I never knew I wanted. You can probably tell from my pfp, but I love arcade jet games like Project Wingman. They'll always have a special place in my heart, but honestly AC6 is EXACTLY the game I THOUGHT Ace Combat would be. A game where you go fast and kick ass, and most importantly (to me) get to pour hours and hours on customization of your loadouts, paint job, and decals. You FEEL how much of a badass you are, and isnt just lip service. Dont get me wrong, Project Wingman did a good job of this too, Ace Combat 7... sorta. But the difference in how bombastic the gameplay of Armored Core really made me FEEL like and ace pilot. I havent felt this much childlike wonder since first booting up Elden Ring.
I guess the 2020's are a time in my life where I find absolutely PEAK games, just to find out the franchise has been going on for a couple decades. Welp, now I just gotta wait for the next entry... see you guys in another 12 years lol
I was never that into AC. The last one i played was AC3 on the ps2. I'm glad i picked this up, as i forgot how fun these games are. This is my 2nd favorite game of the year, and one of the most fun and addictive experiences I've had in the last 20 years. I'll be playing this one for quite awhile.
while I would like slightly higher ranges the overall Closer range of 6 I feel is superior to that of the kinda comical distances you see in 4A, For example when fighting white glint you get the moment where it appears you kill white glint and then white glint gets back up and keeps moving despite being critically damaged, now then a similar thing happens in 6 during the fires of raven ending when you fight rusty, while the white glint moment is cool pretty much exclusively because of how insanely hyped up white glint is the rusty moment is cool because you actually see it happen. in the white glint fight you are too far away to actually see it happen which i feel detracts from the experience. I would still like to be able to have a long range type sniper build in this game maybe extension of projectile ranges and allowing for a very poorly tracked soft lock at long ranges allowing you to get some long range pot shots off on a target before you engage in the close range combat would be nice, but I feel having really long ranges like in AC4A really would make the game a worse experience. and as AC6 is very close range despite the crazy speeds you can achieve in 4A AC6 often feels faster just because of how close you are. Very exited for an expansion of parts in the next game or maybe even in a expansion, Extra boosters, Flares, Radar ect. AC6 is easily my favorite AC game it by far is the most fluid to play even if the previous games have some awesome extra versatility.
Hold up, you're cooking! I agree, there's a fine thread they are hovering when it comes to getting the engagement range, time to kill and pacing of dog fights with the last few games, they haven't quite got it yet, but a middle ground between 4th and 6th gen would be awesome
What flaws? Only things I would’ve liked is a few more ranged options. Few more body parts particularly chest and legs. More tuning and stability options for custom ability. And flares don’t forget the flares
I really liked the close range focus of a lot of AC6 but I'll admit, it did feel bad to put together a really effective long range build and then feel like it was niche beyond usability. That being said, I think there is a lot of potential for DLC to fit that want. New missions or levels that have a focus on range or scale would be just the way to shake up builds and a great excuse to expand the arsenal!
Despite the issues, ACVI is such a breath of fresh air. It's incredible how much it achieves without showing a single face. The briefings are super stylish and harken that AC4A feeling, and the exchanges/banter between characters is great. It's also one of the games where I can safely say both JP and ENG voices are mostly excellent, unlike a certain DxM where I simply could not bear to play it with English VA more than 2 missions. So, yeah, I'm definitely celebrating what clearly is my GOTY for bringing a genre/era back from the dead, being complete out of the box and more, so much more. Time to fly high on Raven's wings!
Well said!
Agreed, I'll likely vote for BG3 partly because I'm petty and want to avoid Bethesda being rewarded for such a formulaic game, but AC6 is easily my personal GOTY
Its so refreshing listening to "normal English" spoken in a japanese game
I personally disagree with the briefings being super stylish, in my opinion it's nowhere as good as 4A briefing..
"
but it's fine, we don't play this game to watch briefings.
Let's see how far you can fly on borrowed wings.
I love how no character had a "Human" face, and if you saw them in game, you saw their AC's emoting what the pilot was feeling. Leaving their true identities a secret. We dont have to know what Rusty looks like to know hes a hell of a pilot for example.
A staple of Armored Core characterization and performative storytelling
this is one of my favorite things in the entirety of AC, cutscenes showing pilots personalized through their AC's 'body language'
Thanks!
WELL SAID GOOD SIR.
WELL SAID.
I'M 45 YRS OLD...BEEN PLAYING SINCE 96 PS DEMO
Thank you so much for the generosity, I really appreciate it!
I'm glad to see a lot of the OGs coming back from a deep cryo sleep and engaging in this new era! Cheers
N-no don't takeover my device, look here's a comment, now leave me alone.
Good, your contribution has been noted. You are safe, for now.
"Augmented human 621, callsign: Raven. Your safety has now been garuanteed."
"Main system: Activating combat mode."
“I won’t miss”
This games release actually puts tears in my eyes. I’ve played these games since I was a baby with my father since ps1 days and so much time has passed and my dad is passed now but armored core 6 makes me feel that much closer to him and my child hood.. I’m so greatfuk to fromsoftware for this game it’s perfect for me
I confess I also cried multiple times waiting for it, when new material was announced and while playing too. Even making this video ahah
@@SilverGlint love u and ur content bro ❤️
@@vmanog67889 thank you so much :)
"I guess shotguns arent as useless anymore" has GOT to be the biggest understatement of 2023 tho, got me real good xD
Yeah I guess they work now... a bit... fairly... really... super... too well!
I can already hear "anyway, I started blasting"
I like left hand shotgun in last raven pair with pixie2 it carries me through all game
@@SilverGlint If they can make more things work at ranges that make sense instead of forcing them to compete in the punch/slash/Zimmerman range, I don't think people would be saying that so much.
@@WillowEppThe projectile speed is too low for ranged builds to work (except the psychotic m+kb manual aim build). Unfortunately that's tied to the boss difficulty so they'd have to take a very different approach to boss design for that to work. Either way, the most viable long-range builds in older games were missile hell builds and that's definitely true once again. I've never made a sniper rifle build work, and maybe that's just my flaws as a player but I've tried it in every gen I've played and never had any success. If they fixed that in this game that would've been extremely impressive.
Honestly brings me a lot of joy to see folks going "I don't like all the design decisions here, but credit where it's due this is still really good."
Yeah this is the tldr of what I feel about it
Also "fuckin' hell I thought for sure the franchise was dead. Thank fuck, I'll take anything halfway decent, please!"
@@matasa7463 "you telling me they brought back armored core and *didn't* fuck it up? sign me up!"
• Can run on potato device
• The voice acting is really colorful
• Crisp sound effect
If From Software can, they could bring back Kings Field as a 1st person game with modern soul setting and still succeed. I, for one, welcome more Armored Cores in the future.
Well Dark Souls and Demon Souls were the spiritual successors of Kings Field though, but with a 3rd person view instead of an 1rst person perspective.
A modern KF is so doable.
Modern From Softs mastery of art direction and level design. Start with slightly faster movement and combat, but keep it weighty.
Some metroidvania elements in interconnectedness and unlocking paths and abilities.
Environmental puzzles could also be done well and lastly a touch of survival horror mechanics lending themselves to a first person perspective.
And give us allllll the atmosphere.
i dont think first person fromsoftware fantasy game is gonna happen
The fact that this game hit the actual ground running as a first full return is a damn good thing. I just hope that after Elden Ring DLC they fully lean in hard on their mecha style once more.
Hell, I hope we get dlc for this game in the form of more parts
@@lelouche25 honestly I lowkey want a co-op\PVP focused expansion for this game. Pretty much in its own corner of the story basically.
@@CptSourcebird so long as we get more parts I'll be happy. I really hope we can get the LC and HC parts from the PCA.
It's important because it is a return to form. No live service, no micro transactions, no difficulty sliders, no day 1 patches, just a video game in its purest form. Fun, complete, and stable.
I’m confident Fromsoft can bring the build complexity back now that they’ve so successfully nailed the feel of combat. I can’t wait to see where they take the series next!
Something newer people to the franchise may not know/people may forget: the first numbered title usually isn’t the most robust and balanced.
While we don’t know if AC6 will get an expansion DLC or AC6: New Subtitle entry, it’s usually the follow up that fully realizes the vision. Keep the criticism coming, because it could very well impact what comes next.
Precisely, well said
The main menu theme is actually called "New Era", can't imagine any reason other than it being a new era for the AC series haha. FromSoft is such a legend. Holy shit.
I really appreciate FromSoftware returning to this series. It may be different but it’s a damn good game no question. I’ll continue to chase the clouds over Rubicon💯
Only I can fly high enough!
Well if Fromsoft follows the traditional release structure then there should be more armored core next year or the year after that
developing games are way more expensive and time consuming than it used to be. and while fs have became very efficient at making them with their resource management, its still gonna take quite a time.
@@davids7646 I’m gonna say 2025 is when we get some sort of expansion
Minor balance issues aside the game is an absolute masterpiece in my eyes. I only dabbled in a bit of AC when I was young and wasn't expecting much, AC6 blew me away. Its easily joined one of my all time great games.
Great to see it, new Raven joining the ranks
Lol “minor” balance issues.. the game’s absolutely busted balance-wise. But I’m having faith in the process that they’ll correct that with upcoming patches these next few months. Other than that, and sadly the game not having as deep mechanical depth as older gens, I absolutely agree. My personal game of the year so far. 🙏🙏
Similar story for me - prior to AC6, my experience with the Armored Core series was a single multi-cross fic which included AC4A. AC6, meanwhile, is the first game where I’ve gone out of my way to 100% the achievements. Balance is a bit scuffed (the Zimmerman and Stun Needle are probably too good), but that just means I’m excited to try S-ranking all the missions again after they get made more balanced.
YEAH, this is anything, but minor. Having weak weapons in your game is okay, but it can't be that entire weapon types such as assault rifles basically are significantly weaker than anything else.@@the.bloodless.one1312
They made this game just feel so damn good to play. From the moment you gain control of the mech in the tutorial all the way to the end of NG++, it just feels so satisfying to zip around and blow shit up.
While I wish the weapon handling was more like Last Raven (Weapons for the Arms, Back, Hangar Bays, Shoulder Extensions, and Inside Extensions), I still love what ACVI is and what it achieves.
The focus on close ranged combat and staggering enemies is different from what I'm used to (for some point of reference, I'm used to 3rd Gen Armored Core in terms of everything), but the feel of piloting a 10 to 15 meter tall giant mecha and overcoming overwhelming odds is still there in 6th Gen AC as it was in previous AC generations.
Also the fact that recoiling and charged weapons make it so where bipeds have to stop and there's no OS tuning to remove this is gonna take some getting used to compared to the OG Human PLUS upgrade from 1st and 2nd Gen as well as the OP-INTENSIFY upgrade in Early 3rd Gen.
Mhm for sure, that's why I say that it's a different flavor, but it's still absolutely, undecidedly Armored Core. As Armored Core as it gets
About the shoulder extensions, it seems like at some point during development they considered it because if you look at almost every arm part, they all have a slot or attachment point where they would go.
I love the attitude you bring to this game and the community keep up the good work. And Silver Ravens Rule!
Thank you Pink, SR gang let's get it
This game is flawless in my opinion. If they made 5 more of these with the only differences being new stories, missions, arena fights, weapons and mechs id be ecstatic.
Take off your rose colored glasses. The game is not flawless by any objective measure
@@NWOslaveonly flaw is its too easy
@@thepope2184 why must you people act like this? Its so exhausting.
Melee weapons are what we always wanted IMO. I also kind of get why they limited lock on range. I would like to try a sniper build but long range fighting isn't as engaging and fun. The Zimmerman hitting as hard as a bazooka doesn't quite feel right but it's fun, and balance takes time.
I really hope that this gets a proper story expansion, with co-op mode, bounty full of new AC parts and new gameplay modes.
There were 9 of us. Now there are dozens!
Growing everyday, thanks in no small part to work of Ravens like you and other fellow creators
if AC6 revives the mech genre and we see MechWarrior 6 as a downstream effect of it, that'll be amazing. It's a long shot tho.
Wouldn't be surprised if that happened though!
I always wanted to try MechWarrior eventually
@@SilverGlint MW is slower and heftier feeling. It has lots and lots of stats, parameters, and graphs. VERY nuanced allocation of parts, ammo, etc., kinda like fighter jet sims.
@@Boss_Fight_Index_muki I'm a sucker for stats 👀
MW5 still has that War of 3039 DLC first.
Hopefully MW6 gives us the Clan Invasion era or, better yet, the Word of Blake Jihad era.
I need to pilot my beloved Archangel Celestial Mech, goddammit!
You mean chromehounds 2
I got into the series shortly before 6's proper announcement (it had only be known about via rumors and heavily watermarked screenshots of at the time dubious credibility) so when it was finally revealed it felt like I had willed it into existence in some way. I hope AC is back for good and that we get a dlc or sequel game down the line because I'm already itching for more after doing all there is to do.
Armored Core 6 has reignited my inspiration for making mechs models and animating them more than ever. Since Ac is the first mech related game that i was exposed to, it helped me in my journey of becoming an engineer and hopefully making an animated series with mechs. I felt proud as someone who loves mech and machine in general, am still able to retain the drive and motivation to like machine and mechs. So yea, ac6 is something that will leave a mark in my life just like the whole ac series and other mechs related stuff.
And keep doing your best Silver
You should name your first creation....onion chopper 😢
You're very talented in what you do Taro, I'm glad for your newfound inspiration
@@SilverGlint thanks
I do think an important thing to note is that this is an AC game from scratch, one that while definitely has more budget behind it than any Armored Core before it, also doesn't have near the budget of something like Elden Ring. It is naturally a smaller title with a bit of reservation since AC was on it's way out when AC5 came out anyway. AC6 is the beginning of a new AC generation, and you can bet Fromsoft is gonna reuse nearly every part from this game in the next game, or otherwise DLC could be big and add tons of extra parts. Everything in the current game is significant, at the very least, which you couldn't always say about the earlier games.
While it is very much in the old armored core formula, i cant explain why this one feels like the perfect balance of sticking to its roots and being modernized. I think its just the game feels so good to play, animations are incredible, combat is fluid. Most of all I think the mission design and enemy encounters are such a huge step up from previous titles, and that makes it really engaging for me.
I have finished AC6 and going to half S rank now, and i can say is so awesome to see how wholesome the community is, sharing mechs and builds!!! also the final line "Main system, activating combat mode" give chills like the end of master of arena, ive enjoyed everything of AC6 Abide with Rubicon!!!
A lot of this game definitely feels like a foundation to be built upon...and it's a damn good foundation at that. One can only imagine how FromSoft will further iterate for this generation of Armored Core.
So I havent played an AC game since AC3, but I remember absolutely loving the game (legit I never knew there were more than 4 AC games and when I looked recently and found there to be over 10 I was so confused angry at myself and excited. Then I played AC6 and had the most fun I've had in a while. I am sad the game isnt a bit more long ranged at times, but damn if I don't love me some melee combat. I even ran it back when I played AC3 even though it kinda sucked lol. As much as some people dislike the game, I personally thought it was one of the easier ACs and a ridiculously fun experience. I never played a Souls game because I never found them fun or interesting and I was scared they were gonna make it a Souls-like AC, so glad I was proven mostly wrong. Sure there's some things missing and some things changed arguably for better and some worse, but this game gave me something that I haven't had in a long time in recent gaming. Fun single player experience where I feel amazing playing it. Don't get me wrong something like DMC5, Ace Combat, and some other games did that for a lot of others but with AC6 I have not put the game down even though I've beaten the game about 5 separate times along with S ranking most of the missions. If this is what I have to look forward to in the next ACs, I can not wait to fly again.
I completely agree. Every Armored Core up to and including 6 has been different from the last. I'm fine with the changes made to AC6, even if they aren't all exactly what I'd hoped. I've been saying since this game was announced that if this game is successful (and it has been) it might pave the way for all sorts of new mech games. I seriously can't wait for all the Core-likes.
To be honest the changes in AC6 reminds me of how much AC4 changed compared to previous games AC generations.
Makes me so happy to see this game doing so well after 10 years since the last game! Sure some things were lost but at the same time some things were gained in this iteration. Overall really love it and the more I play it the more it's moving on up there as one of my favorite AC games. Main gripe really is just assault rifles not really doing so well cuz I loved using assault rifles since 4. Still some weapons tho definitely got upgraded here like you said, love the melee weapon options
I don't have rose-tinted glasses for the series as I only got into it with the announcement of 6. I've played every game besides Another Age, Ninebreaker, FF, V and Verdict Day.
I feel as if 6 has way more in common with the PS1/2 era of Armored Core than the stuff that came after- Maybe not in gameplay nuances but in atmosphere and visuals. Kawamori came back for art and the old sci-fi grunge is comparable to Gen 1 and 3. We have a full-fledged arena full of personality and NG++ is the most Last Raven piece of AC media since Last Raven- It's delightful. The story of 6 is also very unique in its own right, setting it apart from the others.
The true crime in AC6 is how meaningless OS tuning is, and how there are only two quads, three RJs and three tank legs in the game- Not to mention the lack of weapon arms. Loved the game- But I hope an expansion or sequel can work on that.
Very good perspective on the game. It lacks naturally some depth that comes with some simplification of systems. Lots of part categories are gone, but like you said it's such a strong atmosphere, it really does feel like a continuation of the gen 1 through 3 philosophy
@@SilverGlint It was definitely a labor of love on From's part.
There's even some remnant of their old boss philosophy with the STRIDER being more of a puzzle Arms-Fort. More action-oriented boss-fights didn't go amiss in 6 and there was some of that oldschool part problem solving in the gameplay still (Think how explosives and pulse weaponry work amazingly well against shielded bosses, or how the decision to use RJs gives you unrivalled jump power; Helping you to avoid many of the harder attacks.)
I'm out of touch with the community reception but... It's way more fateful to what AC is about than people probably give credit for- Besides shotguns, it also has maybe the most fun FLAMETHROWER in the series! I mean- One with chaingun ammo??? God damn!
With 3 being my favorite generation, I agree. It's got a lot of the 1-3 vibes, while firmly being it's own thing. Once you get into it, it feels like it also manages to integrate the faster paced aspects of 4, while not taking it to the extreme that felt so divorced from the previous generations. Also like how they interpreted the different armor abilities into this new generation as well. Gotta agree the lack of weapon arms is very glaring, even if they would be redundant. They're just such a cool idea they need to be brought back. That said, there's still a lot of good variety while still keeping things fairly focused. Makes me all the more excited about what the next game in the series, or possible DLC expansion, might bring.
@@tinfoilmkiv8394 I don't think the weapon arms are redundant moreso they probably didn't want to take so much extra time balancing those out for a revival. Besides, ACV styled weapon arms would fit nicely in AC6 with their own perks and faults.
@@RippahRooJizah Oh I was more so saying from a design standpoint you could argue they could easily be redundant versus being able to pair up held weapons. But even if they were redundant or worse than hand held options, I'd still want them.
4 and 5 is where I first was introduced into Armored Core, I love to see this massive surge of newcomers into the series
For what it's worth, Things I liked:
Combat - The eb and flow is there.
Customisation - Simple yet can be decidedly deep with great depth to visual customisation now added.
NG+ - A fantastic way to see make a game with varied story.
Graphics - Gorgeous, simple.
Things I didn't like:
Combat range - It's short, no two ways about it.
Lack of Customisation Depth - More customisation, side boosters, Over boosters, core units, radiators, hover legs, weapon arms, etc.
NG+ - Having to redo missions with only slight variations, it would be nice to have the player re-tread as little ground as practically possible.
Mission difficulty consistency - The threat of danger doesn't exist outside of boss battles.
All in all it's a fantastic start I hope in the coming DLC's and game series we continue to refine this relaunch of this venerable series because by god it deserves it.
As a veteran I have to say...
This game is great. All the changes to the game were made with one purpose in mind: to make game fun.
And let's be honest here. It is. It's extremely fun. It plays completly different than most other games but that's the point. Armored Core games were always different from the competition.
Focusing more on close range combat makes you way more aggressive, your mind start racing at Mach 3 speed and everything become a second nature in absolutely no time if you let it go into you. It's frantic, it's fast, it's aggressive and it's awesome. It's a spectacular in it's own way. DMC games do it as well, but you don't need five arms, three controllers and set of tentacles to do something cool. No offense here of course. It's still an owesome franchise.
Yes, there is a lot of numbers to compare, assembly is the most important part of the game but... Here is the thing. It doesn't fall into the same trap as Monster Hunter falls into: everything is set in stone. There is no additional jewels to slot into your parts (I know OS chips exist, but it's an honest and straightforward upgrade) , you don't upgrade individual parts every half an hour, there is no griding for 0,0001% chance to get a weapon or part.
Seeing game comming out. So polished, so focused on doing one thing right is a miracle these days. FromSoftware really understand what drive players and let's pray it will stay that way.
I don't care what game they will release next. I'm going to buy it. And if they will need time to polish it? Take it. I won't be mad at all. I know these guys can overdeliver.
Great video, 6 wouldn't be an Armored Core game if it didn't have some obvious issues but we still love it despite of it lol. While I'm not as positive as you this will bring a sea of new mecha games I do still hope you are right that will happen and we get to see true weighty mecha gameplay come back in style outside of AC and Mechwarrior.
However I dunno if I exactly agree with the garage being de-emphasized, I honestly think the game did a good job at bringing attention to parts that were usually obvious decisions before, biggest example being generator and boosters which in most of the older games there was the obvious choice and then everything else but in 6 what you want to worry about from energy weapon damage, regular energy refill vs letting it go all red etc for generators or focusing on top regular speed, wanting to quick boost or assault boost a lot etc for boosters gave those part types more meaningful decisions than they had before, the new stats for the arms also made me look at them in a way I didn't before. There certain parts that feel lacking like weapon power balancing feeling a bit uneven atm, FCS not being as impactful as it should or leg parts, while not having many redundant parts, also lacking in choices especially for legs that aren't bipedal but I think outside of the first "done from scratch" game of the gen part selection it did a good job at making at least me check the garage often (when it came to them having impact on your playstyle, the campaign has early easy solutions especially in the weapon selection if you just want to complete the game but some of the older ACs had that issue too). 100% agree on the game having a more focused close range engagement, which arguably helped with making PvE more exciting and focused but we did lose that choice of range of engagement in the process, there's still some weapon that can fight well in 300-500m ranges for certain PvE scenarios like plasma and explosive weapons but it's hard to make those work in PvP due their slow projectile speed and assault boost being so powerful (+ no true sniper weapon) so at least in the current patch it does feel like tactical mid/long range chip isn't much of an option even after the rifle buffs.
But you really hit the nail with how much of a cultural impact 6 has had and what that means for the series. People are clinging to it and still playing which means we will at least get a SL/FA/VD style expansion down the line alongside patches/updates and hopefully it will mean that from soft will work on the series more often in the future, who knows maybe even do unrelated new series inspired by it like it happened with souls (or hell just go back to their other mecha series). But as for me rn I'm glad I have a new AC I really like and am still playing even when moving on to other games: slowly doing S ranks, do dumb PvP builds I don't think will work but end being more effective than I thought, try missions with said new build for fun or just go beat up ring freddie for the millionth time. Feels good.
Yes fuck up ring Freddie, that son of a bitch.
Yeah, maybe it came off as a bit exaggerated when I mentioned the garage part, but what I meant wasn't necessarily that it was just less of a focus by itself, rather that the gameplay portion was the thing that got more attention in comparison, if that makes sense? The garage is still very present, that's why it respects the AC premise, but the gameplay is the star of the show, unlike let's say gen 1 where the gameplay is... interesting 👁️ enough but the garage carries the whole thing
@@SilverGlint Like the focus between pre and in-mission gameplay getting balanced towards the latter in 6? Yeah I think I see what you mean even if I personally see as a good as long as the garage is still impactful to our playstyle.
You've said everything, that's why imo FromSoft are the best. I absolutely love this game, I love seeing people who never touched any AC entry playing AC6, and more than everything, I love how FS gives lessons to the gaming industry with every game they release.
There are things that may be a bit irksome with the game. The focus on close range and no option to lock the camera behind the AC are the two things that really come to mind. My expectations were blown away. It's easily my favorite story in the series since 4A. And honestly probably one of my favorite stories in gaming since Chrono Trigger and Yakuza 0. I really can't explain how this game. Just... really fired on all cylinders for me. I've always enjoyed AC games. And there's aspects I miss of old AC. But damn, if I'm not just super stoked about this new age of AC
I really appreciate the fact that mech games are gonna finally get recognized. So many mech games just never make it west
I'm halfway though new game +
I dont know how, but it just keeps getting better 😭
It will keep getting better
Your insight is superb and I completely agree with you. To the world, "...don't serve anything to me on a platter; I just want a chance to hunt so I can serve my own family." I never forgot that practice makes perfect because it was an early lesson from my Father. Perfection was never the point; it was always the lessons you learned along the journey. I try to create something for someone every day of my life, so I can appreciate Fromsoft's efforts. Believe me, people like me appreciate it.
Can't listen to Rusted Pride without tears welling up in my eyes.
I fondly looked back to my middle school days playing through AC3 and constantly thought "man, I wish there was a modernized AC game" before AC6 got announced during the Game Awards. As far as I'm concerned, FromSoft nailed exactly what I wished for at its base with how customization works and gave more than I asked for by expanding the single player with side objectives like Log Hunts and secrets ranging from Parts to encounters.
While there are some criticisms to be had, like the lack of longer ranged options, leg variety, and the flavorful weapon arms (to name a few), I feel like this is a very solid baseline for them to expand and build upon, just like how Silent Line expanded AC3.
My hope now is that at least one of two things happen: 1) FromSoft builds upon AC6 (whether its an expansion or AC7) and refine their mechanics like they did with their Souls games. OR 2) Other companies try to chase the trends set by FromSoft and make their own "Armored Core" game.
Never thought I'd see so many Ravens taking flight in the current generation...I'm loving every moment of it!
I am new to the series starting with Ac3p on the vita. I played it weeks before ac6 and man...AC6 is everything I hoped it would be. Bosses were amazing, legs actually made a difference, weapons felt good and the game was fast. Also the story was so well done I still haven't stopped thinking about it. I honestly don't know how most people feel about the game but for me it's my favorite FS game ever.
It's one of my favorite games ever, it's a great game for sure, just a bit of a hot mess of concepts and takes both some steps forward and some steps back when it comes to the formula!
That being said, love it
I want more content tbh. More pvp expansion like online arena with matchmaking and ranks F - S. Pvp can be greater then this tbh
" legs actually made a difference" - i dont feel this. Maybe because played mostly Armored Core 1 and 2 in PVP with friends back in the Day, and Leg Types had a very Big difference and Impact back then.
Spiders where the fastest moving without boost. (Remember Boosting in Ground needed Energy not like in 6 where its for free)
And with Ground Boost, normal Legs where the Fastest.
The second most Fun in pvp i had in 4A. The PVP in 6 is a bit Close Range, but its okay. I Hope for a bit more parts and customisation options in the Future, and a bit more love for Ranged Weapons like higher Projectile Speeds and Ranges of the Railgun Rifles.
Armored Core 2 Another Age for Example, was such a good PVP armored core game.
4 For Answer too.
I played AC5 online too for a month or two, but nothing beats my pvp expiriences in Armored Core 2. The Strange thing is, AC 1 and AC2 had a Nightmap, where you could actually Hide very well in pvp. I miss such strategys in AC6 a bit.
@@DevouringKing for gen 4 particularly legs were kinda all samey, and to be fair pvp always had a lot of issues
@@SilverGlintI've always tried to force reverse joint to work in FA but there's so little compensation for losing so much turn speed that it's never worth it. They're just worse biped legs which is really sad.
The Ashen One and the Tarnished: *start a new age*
Armored Core crawling out of its bed: It's the age metal and machines, sons.
Finally finished the game and did every mission. It was rough at first, but I found my core builds and had a blast taking on every challenge. Very focused on newcomers with how forgiving the system is and how it offers plenty of powerful options, particularly the melee weapons. In the end, it’s a good starting point to reinvigorate the series and get people interested in sequels
my first experience with armored core was AC4 however I only had the game for a week at most when I lost it. I felt A void and I spent weeks, months looking for another copied of AC4 and finding out that only 5 registered copies existed in my country and were thus unobtainable, so I did the next best thing I watched AC lore videos, gameplay, build guides, character break downs, weapons, heads, torsos, and so on I feel grateful I got to play AC4 when I did because not only was it fun but I was lucky. Lucky that I even got to be apart of this amazing francize. A new age has dawned old Ravens and I can rise with you at long last.
out of all the channels i found when digging for good armored core content your is hands down my favorite, i really like your style. looking foward to watching more from you, both old and new. gotta finish my playthrough of the series first though, after finishing ng++ in 6 i immediately dove into the old games, in the middle of AC 3 right now ;)
Thank you Raven, that means a lot! I indeed plan to go over all the games in great detail, old and new, and try to present the legacy to newer Ravens as best as I Can
Daemon x Machina, in the corner: "they don't know I'm an amazing mech game released in recent times"
I honestly didn't enjoy DxM too much, but mostly because of the expectations I had
It may be a relic of older times with limited resources but I really like kind of game: mission driven focused on dialogues and equipment customization. It may be nostalgia since Ace Combat 5 is my favorite singler player game, but still.
As someone who loved 1 and 2 but wasn't really playing games when the others came out I find 6 to be what I always wanted out of those games.
as an oldgen myself completely agreed and ive seen similar sentiment amongst a few others in the same boat
Mostly through will edit for further.
Armored core has been entirely optional on if you want to beat it by building for it or by play style since Armored core 2. It's not systems and build driven. It's balanced between. A good pilot can win with anything. In fact, this new entry plays just like a love letter to 2 with updated mechanics from 4 and 5. 4 and 5 were the most divisive being too fast or too slow.
Stagger was a thing as far back as ac 2. Not in bar form. It was easier to get stun locked back then as someone rocking a pistol froze you with every single shot. You had to equip an option part to stop that.
Pattern based bosses were in fact a thing since at least armored core 2. The patterns were generally less complex. In fact, the majority of the bosses in the pre-patch gameplay of 6 did not have patterns so much as they had moves available for them to use. And they made use of whatever attack was most effective. The main noticeable exception being ice worm. But that's because it only really had one attack. Face bash. Others may have been slow but they weren't a pre-determined pattern. They just used what you were in position for. Stay over the cleaner, it keeps erupting. Stay close to ibis, it kept slashing. It was entirely possible to bait out certain attacks. I have no idea how much has changed with the boss anti spam update for the few bosses that received it.
Gonna do this instead of editing og comment. Armored Core is in fact represented as a melting pot of armored core in its mechanics. It has the movement options of 2 with additional movement from 4, targeting systems of 5. Armored Core 6 is the most armored core that any armored core game has ever reached. If you started at 2 like I did, there's a good chance you feel as I do. This game is a love letter to the franchise and the old heads. Despite the blindness of people that believe everything they see on the internet. This isn't a souls game. I've only played 3 soulsbourne types. This is not what that is. Everything people are saying is an inclusion from souls types? It has been there since armoured core 2. Except for the healing. Which honestly I'm fine with. The biggest thing they've done to this is add healing, checkpoints, and now they give you a resupply before every major boss instead of just some.
Edit: Oh yeah. The extended melee options were a touch from 5 or earlier.
Honestly a lot of criticism this game gets for not being armored core is from people that started with 4 or 5. Which both are considered the shitty games of the franchise depending on who you ask. Before those two, leg types also did matter a lot more. Which now they matter again. Basically ignore criticism from people who started at 4 or 5 because they don't actually know much about the game mechanics involved in armored core. Those aren't the old games.
This new generation of AC is brilliant. It feels so good to just do shit, let alone kill things.
I'm interested to see how its new features, like ACS Overload and the range game are adjusted. Hopefully one day, we get proper snipers, as well as a balanced stagger system.
Looking forward to the future!
I never even heard of armor core until like literally two days before AC6 released from my coworker. And boy I think it's quickly became one of my favorite games of all time. Never have I known how much I needed something until I received it lol
My favorite AC game is one of the more flawed titles in the series, so as much as I'll happily gripe about some of AC6's design decisions, I'll still be here playing it for a good long while.
We'll see where things go from here. In the mean time I'm going to keep trying to deepen my understanding of what's in front of us right now.
Precisely how it should be.
the only issue I really have is that there's lightweight tank treads but no lightweight quad legs
As much as I wish to say I was an old gen armored core fan, I only played AC4, ACFA, and AC1 after my brother got into the series a few months before AC6's release
It’s my first AC game and I’ve played it for 100+ hours already. It’s too good
That Last Raven music at the end really got me missing that game. Nexus/Last Raven's story is my personal favorite, AC6 is a close 2nd, and AC1 Master of Arena is 3rd.
I remember going through the garage and thinking, "Wait... Where are the sniper rifles!?"
I do miss the satisfaction of making a sniper in ACFA and targeting enemies so far away that I couldn't even see them, and sniping them out of existence.
This game is my first Armored Core game, and the first Fromsoft game I've played for over an hour (Dark Souls killed my computer, and I just didn't get Elden Ring). I love the level design and combat in this game, and will be taking inspiration from it for the FPS I'm working on.
I particularly like the openness of the levels. I think of this kind of design as "wide linear" level design.
All we need now is more parts, weapon arms, dual back weapons and maybe extensions
I don’t even notice any issues with the game but maybe because I’m a new raven, besides playing the original AC on the original PlayStation.
I love this game and hope for more content in the near future.
Ah AC 6 I'm getting old call back from this game to Last Raven.
Inglorious Iguazu is the Evangel of this timeline.
V.II Snail is the anti thesis to what Jack-O stood for.
And Rusty is the Zinaida of this timeline, the ACE pilot you always hear about all the time when they show up.
This game is so fucking good just hearing Rusty's theme gives me chills.
The last part reminds me of ALLMIND:
"Augmented human 621, callsign: Raven. Your safety has now been garuanteed."
. Aby's (younger) sister confirmed?
I didn't want to give it away so easily but... (help me)
AC6 is incredible man. This old dinosaur remembers AC 1, 2 and Kingsfield.
I may forget things about fromsoft games in the future, but I'll never forget some of the best bros in gaming history, solair, seigward, blaidd, and of Couse rusty.
I cant deny that Armored Core 6 is easily the best playing of the series but in the sequel expansion i wanna see a return of missing features like: the weapon arms, hover legs, dual shoulder weapons, shoulder chain guns and ammo storage, side extensions, "inside" weapons, radar parts and possibly a map.
ACV styled weapon arms would be great.
Some of that other stuff I could be fine without, though, like hover legs (unless they are reinvented), dual shoulder weapons, or a map/radar. AC6 doesn't need all that stuff back if the game doesn't quite support it.
Mhm, likewise
Just beat the first two missions of chapter five, almost beating the first playthrough. My only other experience was with Last Raven. I like a lot the changes they made to the flow of combat, gameplay is more involving, exciting and has more player skill involved instead of more dependent on stats. It's more dynamic too, movement and positioning is more important to consider, given the various possibilities of attack and defense, close and long range, you and your enemies have at your disposal. It's like a dance, while Last Raven is was more about creating a good build that deal lot of damage, allowed you to hit shoots consistently and you was able to control easily managing the energy output. Like you said menus and garage was more important.
My only problem is the game have some brick walls from nowhere, that completely invalidates your build and practically demands you to use something else entirely, because they change the rules you expect at that mission (like no checkpoint or asking you to kill a entire fucking army without resupply, which means there only a few weapons and parts that becomes viable). And some bosses that their design or arena don't match that well with the fighting style of the AC (the recycling robot for example) or again forces you to go into a specific direction with your build. I understand the intent, that is to make you try different parts, but the idea by their own admission is that those missions should favor one play style but still be possible in others. Since I like a light high speed build, and this limit the options of weapons, there is a lot of situations that seems impossible with such builds. Something for them to get a better balance in design in a next game.
But that is a minor gripe, my overall opinion is very very positive. This is probably the best mecha game I ever played, if not the best among the best for sure.
A lot of the points you touched are some of my gripes with the game too.
I'm making a video about those actually.
Very good work.💫
The only thing is we're definitely not getting a pile of games this generation. It's hard to say where DLC is gonna go but my guess is this game was far more work than could be churned out every year like the games in some generations.
As one of the 9 ancient fossils, I do love AC6. I can’t wait for the next release, which I hear is already in the works. They do need to improve the matchmaking system however. Add a true matchmaking random map selection system for both 3v3 and 1v1 matches. And how about multiple teams per match? The game has 4 main factions between Balam, Arquebus, RLF, and the PCA. A 3v3v3 would be sublime…
Cheers fellow ancient fossil!
Ok, I see what you did there , time to listen masters of arena soundtrack again
I have a suspicion that instead of new full releases that can carry over your save data, FromSoft might pull a Capcom Monster Hunter and instead bring new iterations within the "generation" as DLC expansions. I have no idea how that'd actually work in practice - would you be forced to finish the base Fires of Rubicon game at least once before the expansion content or would it just be a different tab under the mission menu? - but I found it an interesting thought.
Wow that was great insight as to introducing a new genereation of gamers to not just armored but the mecha game genre as a whole. You just got a sub. If there was one thing that could have made ac6 way better imo is being able to have melee weapons to both arms instead of just the left arm.
Armored Core has always been, and always will be, the fast-paced high-octane Gundam franchise the international world always wanted and deserved
The best thing is this game has tons of potential to get better.
I hit the coral AC(don't remember the actual name.) Been loving every second
Thank you for opening my eyes a bit more & appreciating this game more. I used to be on the fence about this game mechanics, but you reminded me about the things that made armored core, Armored Core.
It's easy to react instinctively about the things you love, but sometimes we just need to relax and take some other perspectives in
while I'm having less fun in PVP because of how the game is balanced and the inclusion of that stagger mechanic, the story mode incorporates the new mechanics pretty flawlessly and definitely earns AC6 as one of, if not the most satisfying and entertaining AC game yet.
I'll still be playing LR pvp with the boys but its alr
Plus the animations and designs are literal mecha porn they're so nice to look at
This game proves the thesis that fast mechs need fast turn speed. Although admittedly I think For Answer already proved that slow turning with fast mechs wasn't fun, it's so silly that you QB backwards hundreds of meters instead of just turning to get an enemy back in your sights and it's not believable in-universe by any means. Full camera movement and quick turning is the new standard and as someone who still loves the older generations I'm very happy to accept that.
Btw, im on my 5th playthrough and my third liberator ending. Because I DEMAND THIS BE THE CANNON ENDING.
Coming from Project Phantasma, I never found this boss design to be a negative.
I'd imagine Phantasma would evolve into a spectacle boss like Balteus if From brought it back post-souls gameplay design.
Yes true I keep thinking about how phantasma actually had some hints of this current approach and it's not bad!
Awesome video. What was the song playing at the end?
AC Last Raven - 5 Point Five
I love it I struggled a lot first play through, second one I breezed by and the third I dominated. So fun and challenging
Even as a old AC fan I believe AC6 was a Massive upgrade from all the previous titles. Yeah they put in the heals and stagger meter but that all fine with me. I hope they add more weapons and badass looking armor parts later on to mass around with.
Honestly, the way I got into this game was about as random as it can get. I saw someone in my "followed" feed on Twitch streaming the game, thought "hey, isn't the series that mech game on the switch I liked was based on?," and bought it, knowing full-well the difficulty of FS games and planning on refunding it if it proved to be too much or not my thing.
Currently, I'm about halfway through my NG+ playthru, and if it weren't for the release of TotK, a game I'd been eagerly awaitng since 2019, AC6 would easily be my own personal GOTY.
Wonderful to know. The previous games are just as charming
Im so happy Fromsoft decided to make AC6. It was the game I never knew I wanted.
You can probably tell from my pfp, but I love arcade jet games like Project Wingman. They'll always have a special place in my heart, but honestly AC6 is EXACTLY the game I THOUGHT Ace Combat would be.
A game where you go fast and kick ass, and most importantly (to me) get to pour hours and hours on customization of your loadouts, paint job, and decals. You FEEL how much of a badass you are, and isnt just lip service. Dont get me wrong, Project Wingman did a good job of this too, Ace Combat 7... sorta. But the difference in how bombastic the gameplay of Armored Core really made me FEEL like and ace pilot.
I havent felt this much childlike wonder since first booting up Elden Ring.
Btw, I miss shoulder parts ;-;
I guess the 2020's are a time in my life where I find absolutely PEAK games, just to find out the franchise has been going on for a couple decades.
Welp, now I just gotta wait for the next entry... see you guys in another 12 years lol
I was never that into AC. The last one i played was AC3 on the ps2. I'm glad i picked this up, as i forgot how fun these games are. This is my 2nd favorite game of the year, and one of the most fun and addictive experiences I've had in the last 20 years. I'll be playing this one for quite awhile.
Welcome back, you were always a Raven, you just weren't sure yet.
@@SilverGlint thanks man. It's great to be back! And now that I am, I'm not going anywhere.
while I would like slightly higher ranges the overall Closer range of 6 I feel is superior to that of the kinda comical distances you see in 4A, For example when fighting white glint you get the moment where it appears you kill white glint and then white glint gets back up and keeps moving despite being critically damaged, now then a similar thing happens in 6 during the fires of raven ending when you fight rusty, while the white glint moment is cool pretty much exclusively because of how insanely hyped up white glint is the rusty moment is cool because you actually see it happen. in the white glint fight you are too far away to actually see it happen which i feel detracts from the experience.
I would still like to be able to have a long range type sniper build in this game maybe extension of projectile ranges and allowing for a very poorly tracked soft lock at long ranges allowing you to get some long range pot shots off on a target before you engage in the close range combat would be nice, but I feel having really long ranges like in AC4A really would make the game a worse experience.
and as AC6 is very close range despite the crazy speeds you can achieve in 4A AC6 often feels faster just because of how close you are.
Very exited for an expansion of parts in the next game or maybe even in a expansion, Extra boosters, Flares, Radar ect. AC6 is easily my favorite AC game it by far is the most fluid to play even if the previous games have some awesome extra versatility.
Hold up, you're cooking! I agree, there's a fine thread they are hovering when it comes to getting the engagement range, time to kill and pacing of dog fights with the last few games, they haven't quite got it yet, but a middle ground between 4th and 6th gen would be awesome
What flaws? Only things I would’ve liked is a few more ranged options. Few more body parts particularly chest and legs. More tuning and stability options for custom ability.
And flares don’t forget the flares
I really liked the close range focus of a lot of AC6 but I'll admit, it did feel bad to put together a really effective long range build and then feel like it was niche beyond usability.
That being said, I think there is a lot of potential for DLC to fit that want. New missions or levels that have a focus on range or scale would be just the way to shake up builds and a great excuse to expand the arsenal!