Amazon Maximum Age: 20 years Amazon Minimum Age: 144 months Binding: Video Game Brand: Sega Of America, Inc. EAN: 0010086690088 ESRB Age Rating: Teen Label: Sega Of America, Inc. Manufacturer: Sega Of America, Inc. Model: 69008 Platform: PLAYSTATION 3 Publisher: Sega Of America, Inc. Release Date: March 20, 2007 Sales Rank: 4596 Studio: Sega Of America, Inc.
Features:
Multiplayer functionality - Up to eight players to battle online
Join one of six factions specializing in different aspects of battle
30 missions played out in detailed futuristic 3D environments
Fly through canyons and rip through cities battling multiple enemies
Deploy Quick Boost and Over Boost features for precise explosive movement and precision control of AC units
Product Description: Armored Core 4 reinvigorates next-generation platforms with the classic action that defined mech games! This 10th anniversary edition of the hit games has an all-new storyline, new environments, and online capability. Engage Primal Armor the all-new defense shield that adjusts its strength according to specifi c battle conditions
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Good Effort - Not Enough Substance
Armored Core 4 comes from a long line of mech action games. The simplest thing to say about Armored Core 4 is that if you liked previous Armored Core games, you will like Armored Core 4. Otherwise, the game is a mixed bag.
AC4 takes place in the distant future, placing you in the role of a lone mercenary fighting huge enemy forces with his "AC" mech - the titular "Armored Cores". These mechs are humanoid in shape and carry weapons in their mechanical arms. If you've ever seen a "Gundam" episode, that's the basis they're working with - think a robot that is basically just a giant person in shape.
The gameplay itself seems promising, but gets somewhat repetitive. The ACs have two weapons (one in each hand) that range from assault rifles to miniguns to rocket launchers to laser guns to laser swords. There are also shoulder-mounted weapons like missile launchers and decoy launchers to lure missiles away from you. Control uses a simple left-stick-moves right-stick-looks system, and it's fairly intuitive. The other main gameplay feature is the booster, which is basically a jetpack that can propel you upwards or rocket you forwards or sideways. The main failing of the controls is that they're not particularly balanced; things that should be connected in purpose are set far apart on the gamepad. For example, pressing L2 uses the boost, but pressing L1 switches your left-hand weapon, and pressing square fires the left-hand weapon. The controls don't seem natural even after you get used to them.
There are a variety of missions in single player mode with some decent gimmicks to set them apart, from "destroy all the enemies" to "get past the enemy's defenses and defeat their anti-air guns" to "drop into hostile territory and maneuver past anti-air guns to reach the targets on the ground". However, the difficult varies way too much from mission to mission - some are just "destroy scattered enemies" with a generous time limit, while others in the same group of missions may have unreasonable time limits or throw you against entire walls of incoming fire. There are some battles against enemy ace pilots, and these are fairly interesting, but the other missions seem to boil down to "shoot all the enemies, who are shooting at you".
The other part of single player is customizing your AC with a wide variety of parts and weapons. Every single part of the frame can be upgraded with a variety of different pieces, from the head down to the legs. Each also carries different statistics, so you can build a thin, fast mech, or a bulky, heavy, high-defense mech. The numbers involved are probably enough to make most casual players shy away - it's difficult to enjoy giant robot action when you have to wade through a sea of statistics to get to it. Besides parts, you can also customize your AC with a detailed set of colors - almost every part can be individually colored, and there are two different methods of picking colors in addition to a pre-set palette. It's also possible to create your own emblems to apply to your mech on various locations.
The graphics in AC4 are decent, but not exceptional enough to be worth it - while the game itself is fairly dated, it's still a PS3 game, and should be a little more impressive than this. Shooting things with missiles and guns feels like it should be more cinematic - as it is, you're basically launching yellow ovals toward the enemy that make weak explosive impacts. The mechs are neat and there's a wide variety, but they're all basically geometric shapes that have been squashed together to make a humanoid shape. The buildings and environments are even more shapeless, with damage effects resembling something from the PS2.
The sound is even more generic than the graphics. The music is hardly worth mentioning - it's just standard futuristic chimes and beeps, without any real independent merit. There's not much voice acting - it's pretty much limited to your Mission Control operator and the voiceovers done for the cutscenes (which is only one guy).
As a whole, AC4 feels like it should be a lot cooler and more fun than it is. Unfortunately, the final product falls short of its ambitions, and feels kind of shallow. Online multiplayer allows for some potential fun, but since the game itself is kind of boring, it can only carry it so far. This game feels most like a 6/10 - good effort, but not enough substance.
Written by James Shea
Rating: - Not horrible, but not great either
I first started playing AC back when the first came out on Playstation and feel in love with the game. I played the first three damn near every day and when AC4 was announced i felt a surge of of happiness and anticipation swell up. But when i FINALLY buy it, im slapped in the face with a confuseing Garage, a schematics system that takes a bit to figure out and numerous other aspects i didnt like. The game isnt bad, but its not something i would pay 60 bucks on, or 20 bucks for that matter. Like most of the user reviews here say, some missons can take up to 2 hours just to get past, which is a total turnoff personally. All n all, id suggest renting it first prior to buying, it may save you some money. I just hope the next one follows the previous AC installments and not AC4's layout and design.
Rating: - This is a game that requires thinking as well as expert handling
The Armored Core series has long suffered gripes and complaints from most American reviewers for pretty much as long as the franchise has existed. It is, however, not a bad title. The thing about Armored Core is that it involves a lot of thinking. A large part of the game revolves around testing parts out, as you literally build a war robot out of hundreds of different parts to choose from, all of which offer varying stats, that leave it up to the pilot to figure out what suits his play style best, and what will help him out the most in missions.
Many people get turned off by the level of depth this game has, which often leads to confusion. Its not a bad title, you just have to be prepared to expect alot of trial and error. Satisfaction comes from completing the often infuriatingly difficult missions [which often turn out you were using the wrong mech setup the whole time] as well as making a very successful robot that trounces competition [other players] Despite poor reviews by those that misunderstand this game, I'll leave it to the fact that this franchise has survived 13 iterations and is still pulling strong, that this is a good franchise, just not for everyone.
Now onto Armored Core in and of itself. It is the most recent game released in America, and for those unsure about this series, this is probably the best one to get into, as by now they have addressed plenty faults from the earlier iterations. The earlier ones did indeed have troubling control layouts, but thankfully it fits just fine on the xbox controller. Anyone who has played Halo or Gears of War will have no trouble grasping the controls, just remember to map the boosting and firing controls to the triggers and not the buttons! The graphics in this game are the best so far, but are no where near as good as something like Mass Effect or Halo, suffering that typical muddy texture feel that most Japanese games seem to have. Music is rather nice in this game, it feels more epic than the techno beats of older games. Sound Effects aren't great but you'll forget them under huge amount of concentration you'll have during fights. The UI is a bit funny, but with some tinkering you'll understand it fine. As far as difficulty, this game can be maddeningly hard for newcomers, but overcome it and you can definitely say you've played a game.
In the end, this game is not for everyone, but don't bash it. Its good, you just have to have some patience and work that brain a little and have some fun, its giant robots with guns.
Rating: - Best PS3 game I have
It's everything you'd want from Armored Core. I certainly loved it. Parts, missions, online, and not to mention it's graphically awesome.
My one complaint is the lack of content. The game is short, though entertaining through it. However, the sequel, which is already on the way, will fix that.
Rating: - Horrible Control Design
I bought this game a while ago, about a year or so ago. I started it but never got around to finishing it, until now, and I have to say this is the worst game I own for the PS3. Aiming is frustratingly near impossible, vehicle customization is frustratingly unintuitive, and the only reason why I'm attempting to finish this thing is because I spent $50 on it but I am seriously considering cutting my loses and selling it to a local game shop. I know this review isn't very technical but I felt compelled to write one out of sheer frustration with the game's poor interface and game play. I had less frustration with playing Lair. My conclusion, Save Your Money.
- Good Effort - Not Enough Substance
- Not horrible, but not great either
- This is a game that requires thinking as well as expert handling
- Horrible Control Design
