Armored Core 4 demo: Flown, tested, reviewed

Admittedly, the Armored Core franchise is built for a niche market. And like every niche market, it will always carry a loyal following from a relatively small community that, no matter how badly their game fares, will always find some redeeming tweak that keeps them following the brand.

And in From Software‘s case, keeping the fans happy worked – Armored Core has enjoyed 11 video game installments up to this point, with Armored Core 4 being launched as the franchise reaches its 10th anniversary (that would be this October).

But while the past selection of AC titles have done little to change AC‘s own established game mechanics (with the exception of Armored Core: Nexus), Armored Core 4 has come in with attempts to breath new life into the franchise. Whether its innovations succeed will be left up to player’s impressions, which is why I’m here. Moving on with the article, we’ll taking a look at From Software/Sega‘s AC4 game, and we’ll examine just what sort of moves it has made to keep it looking fresh, courtesy of this AC4 demo we’ve just put through its paces.

The full Armored Core 4 review is available at the Full Article.

Admittedly, the Armored Core franchise is built for a niche market. And like every niche market, it will always carry a loyal following from a relatively small community that, no matter how badly their game fares, will always find some redeeming tweak that keeps them following the brand.

And in From Software‘s case, keeping the fans happy worked – Armored Core has enjoyed 11 video game installments up to this point, with Armored Core 4 being launched as the franchise reaches its 10th anniversary (that would be this October).

But while the past selection of AC titles have done little to change AC‘s own established game mechanics (with the exception of Armored Core: Nexus), Armored Core 4 has come in with attempts to breath new life into the franchise. Whether its innovations succeed will be left up to player’s impressions, which is why I’m here. Moving on with the article, we’ll taking a look at From Software/Sega‘s AC4 game, and we’ll examine just what sort of moves it has made to keep it looking fresh, courtesy of this AC4 demo we’ve just put through its paces.

Familiar ground? not exactly…
First off, since the AC franchise has been a PlayStation-exclusive up until AC4, the 360 version’s controls may take a bit of getting used to – double for players accustomed to AC‘s traditional configuration. For example, this means what used to be “strafe left” and “strafe right” on the analog controls have been swapped with “boost” for L2, and “quick boost” for R2. End result: me quick-boosting towards a bullet volley instead of flyingaway from it. Fiona will be pissed…

Slight confusion aside, however, once players get used to the new controls, AC handling is fairly ergonomic, as the dual analog setup closely mimics setups seen in the 360’s stock of FPS titles. Targetting was another big plus – the new FCS layout (or lack of…) meant that whatever time I spent trying to aim and fire in past games like Last Raven was allocated to more important matters – like dodging, navigating and trying to stay alive. Other details on the HUD are gone (like the altimeter), with most of your AC’s vital readout now allocated to a rather small central display on the top of your screen. Yes, I noticed too – the layout’s strikingly similar to Sega’s Virtual On franchise. Wrapping up these details in the game’s tutorial mode, we move on to the other important game aspects.

Visuals
In-game graphics were crisp and accurate as expected, although visual effects for the background environments were what caught my eye. For example, your battle against Raven Amazigh puts you on the African Savannas at sunset, with heat waves radiating in the distance, and the dust from the ground kicking up as your AC takes flight.

Throw in the ominous chorus you’ve heard from the “God is force” AC trailer, and you can imagine this firefight will be keeping your adrenaline stoked until its end.

Destructible environments also added a nice touch to game effects – heavy weapons like bazooka shells left convincingly large holes and craters in whatever they hit – a good reminder of why you shouldn’t let one tag you. On the note of projectiles, bullet rendering was realistic this time around, with machine gun and rifle fire resembling small, difficult-to-track streaks of light. Be thankful for the revamped lock box – you’ll be spending plenty of time trying to dodge these “streaks.”

Sound
Music and sound was improved as well. Music was never really an AC strong point, but the game music fits the scenery come AC4, although it was still weak, being easily drowned out at times by the game’s plentiful stock of gunfire and explosions. Speaking of gunfire, the gun blasts also saw noticeable refurbishing – the machine guns rattle off like real machine guns, and the rifles give off a heavy, robust report when fired.

Gameplay
Moving on to the gameplay proper. Ravens comfortable with Last Raven or Nine Breaker’s comparatively slow speeds will want to keep alert, as AC4′s combat pacing is felt to be closer to Silent Line and AC3, injected with better frame rates visuals. Sadly though, the enemy AI doesn’t seem to receive much of an upgrade, and even Amazigh’s Barbaroi AC, for all its blazing speed, was predictable to track and finish off with a couple of (okay, an understatement – several) well-placed grenade shots.

What the AI doesn’t have for intelligence, however, it makes up for in firepower and numbers – One mission has players fighting off swarms of attack helos, while their supporting missile cruisers and battle ship pelt you with missile barrages from above and heavy cannon fire from below. Not exactly an even match, but remember – it only took 30 or of you guys to win the National Dismantlement War years ago.

Final thoughts:
The game felt lacking on single-player mode. While game graphics and sound were good, the biggest flaws I could find would be the repetitive missions. The game pretty much involves just me blasting one target after another, and while there are interesting game moments, it was mostly a rinse-repeat process that just doesn’t spark any real excitement. Where’s the variety?

However, I’ve always felt AC’s redeeming factor was its multiplayer mode. And the game’s large stages, as barren as they were for single-player mode, gave hints of the sort of variety AC should be enjoying come multiplayer battles. Remember: AC centers on the capabilities of the Ravens – that means you, and every other bloke out there who’s willing to show up on Xbox Live for a good fight.

The games also plays an important factor. And while old-time players will be happy to know that the AC part customization is still there, first-timers are definitely going to be turned off at the thought of having to build their own mech from the ground up. On the other hand, AC4’s revamped game physics and controls should make it easier for newcomers to get accustomed to the game – we just advice them to stick to the corporation’s pre-fabricated frames until they learn the ropes.

For the veterans, new strategies will have to be thought out in light of the new game physics. For example: Back cannon-firing in mid-air is now do-able for bipedal, reverse-joint, and quadrupeds legs. There’s also the matter of the removal of radiators and overheating, which makes the concept of aerial combat just a little more reachable even for the heavier frames.

There you have it – while newcomers might have teething problems getting used to the Armored Core 4, they will be happy to know that this game does not have as difficult a learning curve its past titles were cursed with both design and control-wise. For the ravens (that’s the vets), the game carries over essential design elements from AC games – such as the garage system and weapons selection – that keeps it feeling like an AC title, while injecting it with healthy new innovations to make it more clean-cut (like the new HUD).