Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon treads a very dangerous path when it comes to its relationship with Souls games. On one hand, the Armored Core series predates From Software’s Souls series by a massive amount of time, and its return is a good time to remind everyone that From does so much more than just Berserk-inspired RPGs. On the other, the Souls series itself has changed a lot of expectations for games, with multiple games from Nier: Automata to Darksiders 3 all incorporating “Souls-esque” elements.

In the case of Armored Core VI, it’s really refreshing to see a lot of those ideas enhance the game without stripping it of its identity. Make no mistake, Fires of Rubicon is an Armored Core game, through and through. We got to try out the game for 4 hours and everything you love about Armored Core- from the complex customization to its love for handing you itemized invoices at the end of your mission, are all intact, a far cry from my own Armored Core at the end of the missions.

Using The Souls Magic

The biggest way you’re going to see the Souls Series rear its head in Armored Core VI is in the healing system. Your giant mechs now have Estus Flasks in the form of Repair Kits, letting you restore your health on the go. Admittedly this is going to be the most controversial feature, just because of how similar it is to the Souls series.

This also works with the game’s new checkpoint system, the Sherpas. They allow you to restock your equipment in the middle of a mission, while also acting as a checkpoint if you die and don’t intend on starting from the start again. Even large mission size aside, I feel like they’re the best compromise for people who might be a tad neurotic about running out of bullets- you don’t have to worry as much if you know there’s a resupply coming in the middle of the level.

It even tops up your Repair Kits and health, while resetting you in front of the boss if you happen to get squashed. Some may complain that this takes away the “challenge” of Armored Core but I have more than enough game over screens to my name to argue to the contrary. It doesn’t seem like Sherpas are entirely optional either- the only one I’d encountered in my run forced its equipment on me, so I can see some frustration from series veterans.

Personally, though, I’m a big fan of what this does to the game. As a result of being able to top up your health, we’re given Armored Core VI’s main feature- it’s huge map design. Missions can be longer simply because you have the ability to top yourself off now, and thanks to From Software’s overall excellent level design you always feel like you’re rewarded no matter which way you choose to explore.

The souls comparisons basically stop there- from then on out it’s just more Armored Core goodness, as your mech dodges, flies and lunges around enemy combatants. It’s the best way to evolve a series- taking parts of other series and using it to enhance the core gameplay.

Well, there is one more thing to look forward to- big maps also means the ability to hide things, and in our chat with the developers as well as our own hands-on we discovered there’s the occasional hard enemy just wandering around, with the promise of good guns. Maybe I’m an optimist, but considering Elden Ring had things like Malenia and Placidusax in optional areas, I’d love to see some similar levels of absurdity in Fires of Rubicon.

Hyper Aggressive Combat

There’s also a lot to praise with the combat in Amored Core VI. The game’s very clearly aiming to get players into more intense dogfights- you have so many tools that prioritize getting in there, from the Sekiro-esque posture system to the Assault Boost. Meanwhile, boss patterns are a lot faster too, needing you to be able to change directions on the fly to avoid an armored tank with a fully automatic rifle from tearing you a structurally superfluous new behind.

Unfortunately, four hours and limiting the area to the start of the game wasn’t enough to fully explore the limits of the posture system- could I break a mech’s posture by skipping dodging and going straight for dakka? Just how many missiles can I strap to my mech before it falls over from its own recoil? These are the questions I look forward to answering in the full release.

One thing that really makes me excited for the bosses was a fine gentleman by the name of Juggernaut. This boss is indestructable from the front, forcing you to outmaneuver it to get behind it and give him the ol’ Caesar special. I feel like part-based damage is practically a staple for mech games, and seeing how it’s implemented with Juggernaut does make me hopeful we get something bigger and cooler in the full game, too.

While the mechanics are aggressive, the game is actually fairly paced. On the grand scale of Armored Core games, Rubicon feels much slower than For Answer, though not quite so slow as Verdict Day. It’s a pretty strange feeling, all things considered- because once you actually get your hands on the controls you still feel like you’re piloting a B-52 at 10 times its maximums speed.

Free Customization

Of course, the most important part of any Armored Core game is the customization. Not that it was ever a worry, but I’m glad to see that the paint options are all pretty much good to go from the start of the game. While you will need to unlock parts, I’m glad there’s nothing stopping me from cosplaying Char Aznable in a bright red mech and pretending it’s having any effect on my thruster output.

That being said, I’m a huge fan of the many design decisions going into Armored Core: Fires of Rubicon. Some may complain about constantly having to compare it to the Souls series but I think it’s for the better here- those games made huge strides in how players can interact with the design, and seeing them incorporated into Armored Core while still having the game feel like itself is no easy task, yet From Software are on track to pull it off excellently.

We’re barely a month out from the release from the release of Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon, and the future couldn’t be any brighter for aspiring mech pilots. It’s definitely going to be one to look out for.