Looks like Armored Core is back on the menu

High-level details and images for a new Armored Core game have reportedly leaked from a survey

According to details obtained from a leaked consumer survey, From Software is reportedly looking to bring back its MIA mecha series Armored Core after a long drought.

For years, fans have wondered about the state of the Armored Core series, which has felt like it could re-materialize at any point and stand a good chance of reaching a wider, potentially newer, audience. 2013’s Armored Core: Verdict Day was the last major release, and ever since, fans have kept themselves going with the occasional non-committal developer quote. It hasn’t seemed like a new Armored Core was completely “off the table” — at least not in the way that some fandoms struggle to keep hope alive — but a grand mecha game comeback at From Software really hasn’t looked like a priority, either.

That said, there are finally signs of movement. As outlined in a ResetEra post, the Souls, Sekiro, and Elden Ring studio has reportedly shown footage of an upcoming Armored Core game as part of a consumer survey that also included plot details and screenshots, the latter of which recently leaked online, albeit with some pretty gnarly watermarks.

Screenshots of the upcoming Armored Core game from the consumer survey by FromSoftware.

Source: https://t.co/rn0fLxrjJQ pic.twitter.com/rAKWGwS0Pt

— Mordecai (@EldenRingUpdate) January 10, 2022

Beyond these images, which have since spread online, the ResetEra leaker also had a bit to say about the game’s name. “The survey listed a choice of titles for the game, so I guess that hasn’t been decided on yet,” according to Red Liquorice. “Most of them were Armoured Core: [Something] including just ‘Armoured Core’ and both AC: 6, AC: VI, and other subtitles I can’t remember, some of the choices didn’t include AC in the name at all.”

Reportedly set on the “devastated” planet Bashtar, this unannounced Armored Core game is described by the survey as having a “massive and three-dimensional map,” gear like guns and also a blade and shield for an added sense of “urgency,” body-part customization to vibe with different playstyles, and a “sci-fi world created by Hidetaka Miyazaki.”

Oh, and the battles are pitched as “tense and challenging.” I’d expect nothing less.

Given the team’s immensely popular action-RPGs, From Software commands more attention and respect these days from a worldwide audience, to the point where I feel like a significant number of folks who have never been attached to Armored Core would be willing to give a new game the time of day. I say that as someone who’s very much in that camp. Similar to how Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls gave new life to ideas previously seen in King’s Field, I’d love to see what a more modern take on Armored Core might look like.

I hope this game strikes fans as a fresh new step for the series, rather than just another long-overdue continuation. There’s arguably an opening in the market either way.

On the topic of mecha games, in a 2019 interview, From Software producer Masanori Takeuchi told Destructoid that “if we were to make something modern, something new, we’d need to consider how to appeal to Europeans or Americans. Obviously, we’d put our own flavor in it as well, but we need to consider how it would appeal to a wide audience and people who didn’t get brought up on robot anime.” Food for thought.