After having spent nearly half a decade delivering one excellent Soulslike title after another, FromSoftware is finally read to go back to its niche mech action series Armored Core. And though the upcoming Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is going to differ from what’s now become known as the classic From experience in some crucial ways, several design philosophies that the developer is strongly associated with will still be retained.
For instance, in spite of Armored Core 6 not being Soulslike, you can expect it to be a challenging game. Speaking during a recent Tapei Game Show broadcast, producer Yasutaka Ogura said that the game is designed around encouraging players to pay careful attention to mech customization and using the bevy of available options to find the best way to “overcome difficulties”.
“In this game, as always, we have striven to create a game that poses a stiff challenge for our players, and I’m confident we have achieved that,” Ogura said. “Our approach to the issue of difficulty level in Armored Core 6 is slightly different to other titles, in that the most distinctive feature of the Armored Core series is the combination of parts to customize the player’s mech. As this lies at the title’s core, it is really the adjustment of these parts that is the key to overcoming difficulties in the game. This is the point on which we placed most emphasis, in combination with the action system. We have designed a game that rewards using the most appropriate actions in each situation to overcome difficulties and attain a sense of achievement.”
Meanwhile, echoing similar previous statements by FromSoftware, Ogura went on to add that Armored Core 6’s boss fights will once again serve as a “highlight” of the experience, as you’d expect from any new game developed by the studio.
“Battles against various boss characters have always been series highlights, and we have striven to maintain that here, by employing many of the same techniques that have been successful in the past,” he said. “Boss battles in FromSoftware games often require close observation of enemy movements, to catch that little tell so that you know just when to attack, and how best to make your move. That’s certainly the case again in this title, so I am confident that our users will find the boss battles extremely enjoyable.”
He added that boss battles in Armored Core 6 will also be significantly more dynamic than past FromSoftware titles, owing to the aggressive movements and attacks of your mech enemies, which will also lead to battles blending both close- and long-range combat.
“Because of the use of mechs, both the player character and enemy characters have extremely dynamic movements,” Ogura explained. “As robots, their dynamist is only matched by the aggressiveness of their movement. Attack distance, in particular, changes frequently, from close-range to far, then from far back to close again. In that respect, the dynamic action of these battle scenes really serves to keep players on their toes.”
Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is due out sometime this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.