It's a mechanical story, devoid of human emotion. Not that anyone will care, though, as the 10 Story Missions are fast-paced and offer a steady challenge.
They're also considerably longer than the Armored Core norm, with checkpoints that give you a second chance should you fail to dodge one missile too many as well as an aerial support Garage that you can call in mid-mission should you need to resupply. But Armored Core 5's real twist is its online focus. When playing Armored Core 5 for the first time, you're asked to join an existing team or create your own, and seeing as the European and Japanese servers are separate - likely to avoid us getting a severe paddling at the hands of a nation raised on Gundam and Evangelion - I decide to be the founding member of the nonsensical Stealth Toads.
This was a quick and painless process with options for creating your own emblem and team colour scheme and choosing an Enlistment Method that's Free, Closed, Screening based or Password protected. Once registered, you can trade AC parts with other team members and tackle Story Missions in teams of two - with the extra help coming at the cost of half your pay packet. Then, once you've dealt with all manner of long-range sniper mechs and armoured trains with multiple turrets and missile pods, you can get stuck into the far more numerous 83 to be precise Order Missions.
These are more akin to the classic Armored Core operations from the past and have you sweeping through modestly-sized maps from top to bottom in around five minutes of trigger-happy carnage. The way you build and pilot your humanoid tank has also been changed to make individual design choices more meaningful while placing a stronger emphasis on the surrounding environment. For starters, you can no longer hold the boost button to make like a rocket man till you run out of energy, as you're limited by the jumping capabilities of your legs - and while you can still glide across a river, you'll have to use a new vertical leapfrogging technique called Boost Drive if you want to reach the top of a conveniently placed skyscraper.
This gives Reverse Jointed ACs a more distinct advantage over Tank legs, as while caterpillar tracks offer unparalleled pivoting when stationary - and are still the only way to fire heavy weapons on the move - those with bendy knees can pogo between buildings while raining down fire. The new Scan Mode also opens up a wealth of stealth options by letting you launch a limited supply of Recon drones that can detect enemies through buildings, and although head-to-head combat is still the primary focus once two ACs collide, switching to Scan Mode can be useful, as your energy recharges twice as fast.
Aside from a universal Boost attack that lets you bash into opponents for critical melee damage, you have to enter Attack Mode to fire your ranged weapons. It's here that Armored Core 5 shakes things up further; while past games have featured solid and energy-based munitions, the armoury is now split three ways between Kinetic, Chemical and Thermal weapons.
This means you can design an AC that's particularly resistant to one weapon type or moderately defensive against all three - but, crucially, it's always going to be susceptible to something. Your preferred legs, meanwhile, are more important than ever as they dictate your overall armour and resistance ratings.
By removing the advanced tuning systems and unnecessary balance stabilisers from Armored Core 4 and then replacing them with a more accessible specialisation system that lets you upgrade your Pulse Machine Guns and Sniper Cannons simply by using them, Armored Core 5 retains its hardcore edge while lowering the barrier to entry for beginners.
It's still got a lot of statistical depth, but each number now feels more weighted and less arbitrary. The presentation also harks back to earlier games, with a gritty and often alien aesthetic, and although the frame-rate can sometimes drop dramatically when you're being swarmed on all sides, this still ranks as the most visually accomplished Armored Core to date even if the sci-fi setting doesn't compare to the fantasy charms of From's last hit.
But if there's one defining area where Armored Core 5 stands out from its predecessors, it's the online turf wars. Simpler in principle than the persistent battlefields of Steel Battalion: Line of Contact, Conquest Missions offer teams the chance to try to capture valuable Territories that will raise their Team Level and unlock better AC parts.
These take the form of five-on-five battles where the defenders have to guard a tactical objective while the attackers have just 10 minutes to capture or destroy them, and by letting teams devise strategies that combine the inherent strengths and weaknesses of different AC designs, the game becomes as much about effective team synergy as it does individual piloting skill.
This is a sentiment that sums up Armored Core 5 rather well, as while the series has always championed the lone mercenary routine with a multiplayer sideline, the focus has shifted from solo sorties to co-operative campaigns. It's still the hardcore spectacle we know and love, with its Moonlight laser blades and hidden AC parts, but by bringing mecha enthusiasts together in a team-based environment that isn't restricted to one-on-one arena battles, we finally have a game on which an online community can be built.
Because if there's one thing that Armored Core excels at, it's supplying the tools to create something special. If AC6 looks anything like it, I won't buy it and, from conversations with others, get the impression that a lot of people share that view. I love Armored Core games and was poking around, looking to see what was going on with an AC6 today, then happened on this thread. If you want slow, bulky, tactical, online combat, then go play Mech Warrior Online.
If you want blurring action, pitted against insane odds, then play Armored Core. If the developers of Armored Core can't fill that niche then I'm simply not interested in anything new they may produce. If there are more players whom want games like Armored Core V, it is a sound business choice to invest in such a game but, without any doubt, some players were and will be lost.
I entered through 4 and 4a, I'm young and a relatively new member to the community who got into bc when i was 10 or 11 i was all "Fuq yeah mechs are cool". What I love first and foremost is the overall design of the games. I'm a fan of those sleek, symettrical mechs, but the blockier, heavier, scaled down, and more industrial feel of fifth gen is also something I enjoy greatly. By nerfing the AC's, I feel like piloting skill is even more of a necessity than it was in previous games.
Wheras in FA your enemies say "Oh shit a NEXT we're screwed", having enemies that are more than capable of ending you in a couple shots that arent gigantic Arms Forts was a refreshing feeling to me. My single greatest example of how satisfying it was to go back to fifth gen and master the mechanics? The heavier feel is just great imo. Power weapons like the cannons require you to stand still and when they connect and stagger foes with that chipping effect on the armor it feels satisfying to use except the scope and slow reticule that is.
My main gripe with the fifth gen AC's, from the POV of someone who came in via fourth gen, is that, while piloting skill is a huge factor, your build is as well. In fourth gen, what i assume made it different from past titles was you could make a NEXT that suited you and no matter the armor or firepower differences, if you knew your shit you could make it work.
That is MUCH harder to do in V and VD, though imo, this could also be due to the fact that while I'm much better at the game than my pre-teen self was, I'm still not what i'd consider "great". All in all, I love the world and universe, as well as the refreshing fact that AC's arent godlike in these titles and characters even object to attempts at taking down certain enemies in "just an AC! It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but for those who take the time to learn the systems, its pretty damn fun.
AC4 and FA are the black sheeps of the series. They lack the essentials that make what an Armored Core game is. The concept of the Next is equally absurd; the GeForces that would create with the boosting from side to side would kill the pilot. Plus the things emit constant Kojima particles when on thus destroying the planet. Can you shove your head even further up your own ass? I got to play in a four-player co-op match being led by an operator, and Its just got too many controls and nuances to its play that someone can't just jump in and start blowing shit up.
I tried to do just that, though, and despite meeting an explosive and inevitable demise, can at least say the mechs contorlled srprising well and the game's effects looked gorgeous. I always pefered not to use vehicles in most games.
Usualy they are just coffins you can drive, because they lack mobility what you could have when you are on foot. I just don't like how most of them handle.
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