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Will critics warm to Armored Core 6 given FROMSOFT's reputation, or will it still fail to make a mark?

cormack12

Gold Member
Given the previous scores of the franchise and the recent Metal Wolf Chaos remaster, is it a dream too far? Will critics be forgiving and give it a FROM bump given their consistent souls output/acclaim, will it genuinely be able to make a mainstream mech game that is worth an 88-92 MC. Is it destined to struggle to make the low 80s?

Elden Ring94
Sekiro91
Dark Souls: Remastered85
Dark Souls III89
Bloodborne92
Dark Souls II90
Dark Souls89
Demon's Souls89


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Naked Lunch

Member
As a huge fan of the AC series, I could care less what the critics and players say. The series has always been niche - im just thankful its back.

But I do find it funny so many gamers are suddenly interested and hyped the for series when the past games got universally shit on - on gaming forums in particular.
Armored Core V and VD had massive haters on forums. Impossible to even talk about the games back then.
 

Saber

Gold Member
What really matters is if they gonna retain and expand what it ready exists. Focus on what their plans are for the game.

Why should you be concerned by critics? They could give a low score for the most silly reasons. Fromsoftware never gave any reason to not trust them.
 
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Matt_Fox

Member
It was bizarre when Geoff Keighley introduced the trailer at the Game Awards. He was shaking, like his brain was broken to hype levels never attained, and you're thinking wow - what's he about to announce???

Then it was Armored Core 6, and a collective Wtf from the audience.
 

begotten

Member
Screw reviewers. I remember renting 2 a bunch and then buying 3 on PS2 back in the day. They were mediocre trash but they were fun mediocre trash.

Next gen AC6 with a not so cancerous looking UI and menu would be some real hot mediocre trash.
 

tmlDan

Member
I honestly think it'll get a score bump from the fromsoft super fans but it'll be mediocre.

I just dont trust mech games.
 

Drizzlehell

Banned
I never actually played that series to be honest. I was always curious about it but somehow never ended up playing any of them. I'm not even sure what to expect of this new one. I'm guessing it'll be more in line with something like Mechwarrior games, only maybe a bit lighter on the simulation aspect (but definitely not an arcade shooter either).
 
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begotten

Member
Mecha games just don’t do well in west, so to me scores don’t matter for games like this.

It has nothing to do with the West. It's not the Wests' fault that Japanese people give these games a pass because they froth the genre and then we play them and go "Wtf is this average arcade shit"

Mecha games have been historically bad. End of story.
 

Juza

Member
wow the previous titles considered failed based on metacritshit or on the plagiariser who live on Souls-like lore and worried about his income.
 

Fbh

Member
I'd like to see more of the game first.

Looking at past entries isn't that useful because by the time this is out it will have been 10 years since the last game and FROM is a pretty different developer now. 10 years is more time than between Witcher 1 and 3

What I forsee though is this maybe getting some pushback. Longtime fans will be upset about changes while souls fans will be upset it's not mecha souls
 
Fromsoftware is starting to get the Nintendo and sony treatment where their other non-popular IP are getting reviewed higher just based on reputation and industry placement alone.
 
I’ve been a FROM gamer since the Kings Fields days but never cared for Armored Core. I’ll wait to see what the general thoughts are on the game before giving the series another whirl.
 

Reizo Ryuu

Gold Member
The only way it will have less niche following, is if they drastically change the control scheme, you could do a lot of cool shit in the previous games, but it required performing a voodoo ritual with your fingers in .5 seconds; the bar of entry is just pretty high.
 

CosmicComet

Member
The only way it will have less niche following, is if they drastically change the control scheme, you could do a lot of cool shit in the previous games, but it required performing a voodoo ritual with your fingers in .5 seconds; the bar of entry is just pretty high.
This is true.

It required inputs to do even pretty basic things.

Targeting was very manual with you having to aim up and down with the top triggers to keep something in your sights.

Honestly just having an actual lock on/orbiting target feature would go a long way to make it more accessible to the masses.
 
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CosmicComet

Member
It has nothing to do with the West. It's not the Wests' fault that Japanese people give these games a pass because they froth the genre and then we play them and go "Wtf is this average arcade shit"

Mecha games have been historically bad. End of story.
Armored Core games are ANYTHING but arcade.

Terrible take.

If they were arcadey they would have a much smaller barrier of entry and more people would have gravitated to them.

If anything they were too complicated and that made them daunting to get into.
 

Crayon

Member
Oh yes they'll be swayed by the zeitgeist where From is on top of their game. They'll be having a more thorough look than past games with an especially open attitude. Which is fine. It's video game reviews.
 
I can only speak for myself, but mech games don't interest me. I've tried a couple. I even bought a physical copy of the Metal Wolf Chaos remaster. But I don't find them very fun to play and looking at the general sales data for mech games, it seems I'm not alone. So, no I don't expect this game will change much, unless it's a radical departure from the mech genre.
 
Doubt it. Armored core comes with a learning curve. Most did or will probably not even give it a decent shake.

Its going to be odd if they suddenly turn around and reward or praise it with high scores.
 
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Bigfroth

Member
I'm sure some critics will have side-by-side videos of AC6 and Elden Ring playing while commentating saying it just isn't the same, why isn't it like Elden ring? You can't even summon Torrent?! lol, I hope AC6 doesn't look, play, or remind me of Elden Ring, I liked the AC games back in the day. It's definitely a niche series though.
 

Kenneth Haight

Gold Member
As a huge fan of the AC series, I could care less what the critics and players say. The series has always been niche - im just thankful its back.

But I do find it funny so many gamers are suddenly interested and hyped the for series when the past games got universally shit on - on gaming forums in particular.
Armored Core V and VD had massive haters on forums. Impossible to even talk about the games back then.
It is pretty funny to see the souls veterans all like “aww yeah Armored Core, BIG FAN, always have been” 😂

I played a few back on the original PS1 and PS2 I think and can barely remember them apart from “mech game”. Can’t say they have had much impact on me overall but the trailer for the new one looks LIT. And if they can really give the heavy feel of mechs, the combat mechanics are balanced and the atmosphere right this will be fantastic.
 

SlimeGooGoo

Party Gooper
Meh, From Software's best game is still Demon's Souls and it has the lowest score of them all.

As long as it's fun (i.e. no souls lock-on combat again), it's enough.
 
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No, they weren't, they were unique 'okay' at best games that developed a little bit of a niche audience. If From Software folded before they made Demon's Souls nobody would even talk about them or those games anymore.
 

diffusionx

Gold Member
I feel like, if From doesn’t turn off a significant number of “From fans” with AC6, then they didn’t do their job and just made a Souls game with a mech skin. But it seems like they actually are trying to make a proper Armored Core game. So, I fully expect most nu-fans to be disappointed with this. Some will like it, maybe they’re larping but chances are they would have liked the old ones but they never gave it a chance because it was niche. This series always had fans going back to PSX.
 
Armored Core was never that good, and many of the core flaws that were given a pass from the first game were never remedied.

It was also a series making money off a niche audience. Mech games in general aren't very popular unless they fuse into another popular genre. But Japanese Mech games are even more niche.

The Souls games created a situation where it was trending among friends and social media so you had to try it too, and that grew every game giving us Elden Rings success today. I don't see a Mech game being able to replicate that momentum.

Maybe if they were releasing Armored Core games at the same time they were releasing Dark Souls 1-3, it could have resulted in similar brand build up, but from scratch in 2022? No sir.
 

Arsic

Member
It’ll depend on the game.

Even games from highly respected studios get bad marks if they mess up. Cyberpunk for example.

So if this AC doesn’t advance the formula and incorporate some of the learnings their studio has gained from other titles, then it’ll flop. If it’s AC refined with some innovation, then it’ll do well.
 

Kadve

Member
The series has always been a niche one with a dedicated fanbase. It doesn't need reviewers shouting in your face to buy it in order to sell.
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
If you havent put atleast 40 hours into an Armored Core game, you have no right to review it.
Sorry but thats just how it is.
If you couldnt stomach it for the minimum time it takes to really say you played the game....shut the fuck up.

Armored Core was/is a niche title, but they were all great games, and most of the criticisms against armored core could easily be levied against most Souls game.
Steep learning curve, A story, Inputlag, thrown at the deep end and expected just to know shit(you will learn the hardway), technical masterpieces if they came out a generation earlier, amazing framerates for a powerpoint, time sinks once you actually get into them, the build that works with how you play makes you feel immortal.
 
It will definitely be intersting, especially for the fact that a a lot of people seem to assume Miyazaki is the one making this game or that don’t realize how much different his games are than the rest of From’s library. Even DS2 was highly divisive amongst fans

I’ve already heard a bunch of people screaming “mech souls”
 
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