Armored Core 3

"A great AC game, with all that that entails"

Armored Core 3 is the latest of six games in the series, and as such, it follows the same basic concept. Anyone familiar with the series should already know what to expect. In fact, I would go so far as to say that AC3 takes the best aspects of all the previous games (minus a few exceptions) and puts them all into one game, and then adds a few things that fans of the series had always dreamed of and wished for. It won't win over any new fans, but as far as Armore Core as a series is concerned, this is about as good as it comes.

Graphics:

The graphics in this game are the best of all the AC games to date. AC2 and AC2: Another Age had very detailed mech designs, but the environments were a bit drab. AC3 takes the old mech designs and makes them all a bit more sleek and stylish, then spruces up the environments a bit to make them more interesting. It's still no Metal Gear Solid 2 in terms of visual presentation (water effects in AC3 are especially dull), but with improved mechs, improved environments, and improved explosions, it doesn't get much better than this. All the little parts and gizmos on your AC really come alive when you activate them, and the stealth parts' purple glow is a great touch.

Sound:

The sound has also been given an upgrade for this installment. The missles sound much more intimidating, overboosting and laser fire sound fiercely appropriate, and of course, the explosions rock. Topping all this is the surround sound option for in-game sounds, which is just the icing on the cake. The music is a bit lame at times, but Armored Core has always had crappy music. It's sort of a choppy, subdued techno. The introduction song, which also appears in the last mission and in a lot of arena matches, is the one standout. It's a classical score mixed with some techno for a very dramatic effect. Powerful.

Controls:

AC3 has the same controls as the very first Armored Core on the PSX, with some minor tweaks for the new abilities. Yes, this means no dual analog. You can use the left analog in place of the d-pad if you wish, but strafing and looking will forever be stuck on the shoulder buttons. For my oldskool gaming philosophy, that works just fine. It works just fine for a lot of other AC fans as well, but for newcomers to the series, and those who have grown accustomed to the dual analog controls that modern third-person games utilize (Max Payne comes to mind), it can be frustrating. It is very responsive though, so if you can get used to the button layout, actually playing the game is a breeze.

Story:

Armored Core's stories have always been minimal at best. From Software wants players to be able to customize everything about their mech and play experience, so the player has very little interaction on the story aside from blowing things up. They don't show your character or have your character speak in any way, because that would involve them telling you what your character is like--you wouldn't be able to control it. That's just the way Armored Core is, and the way it always will be. However, the missions always have a semblance of plot progression, with various companies going under and usually someone trying to take over the world. In AC3, you play the part of a mercenary in the distant future, hired out by companies who are at war with each other. Everyone and everything is under the thumb of a computerized AI known as the Controller, which acts as a sort of government agency, police force, and security system all in one. The ending doesn't make much sense, but the story is mostly there to increase the atmosphere and style of the game, as opposed to being entertaining in its own right. It doesn't matter, just play the game.

Gameplay:

This is where Armored Core, and Armored Core 3 in particular, really shines. You pilot a giant robot called an AC, and you get to build the entire thing from the ground up. We're talking legs, arms, core, head, generator, firing control system, radiator, and all manner of weapons, defense items, boosters and etc. You can literally build it any way that you can imagine, perfectly fitting whatever suits your playing style. Then you take your creating into the field for missions or one-on-one battles in the arena.

Missions consist of your basic attack, defend, and escort varieties, but AC3 has some real twists to it. You face off against giant flying metal monster robots, massive killer submarines, hordes of invisible mobile suits (impressive cloaking, by the way), other Acs (sometimes ganging up on you), and even the environment itself, as some missions have intense heat or electricity generators in them that can slowly eat away at you through the entire level.

In the arena, you take on a fellow AC one-on-one, and see who comes out on top. Your rank in the missions determines what arena rank you belong in, helping make sure that you are up against someone of a similar skill level. You can also take on human opponents in the arena, to see who is the better designer and/or pilot.

If you have played any of the previous games in the series, you will immediately recognize a lot of things. The speed is pretty intense, as opposed to the slower moving AC2 and AC2: Another Age. Some of the missions are very similar to one encountered in previous games as well. The ''Destroy Massive MT'' mission from Another Age is back, with a twist, for example. The last level is also very similar to the last level of the very first Armored Core for the PSX. They seem to have taken all the best things from the previous games and included them here, except adding little twists and improvements to each. In addition, AC3 has a ton of new features not seen before. Some missions offer you the chance to use some of your reward money to hire a consort; a partner to help take the brunt of some of the more difficult missions. After beating the game, an extra arena opens up that allows you to take a computer controlled partner and square off against two AI enemies, for a four player battle. Speaking of which, four human players can also face off with some extra PS2s and the trusty iLink cable. Overweight mechs are handled differently now: instead of pass or fail, you can take an overweight mech into the field, albeit at a severe performance decrease. This helps people new to the game who might get intimidated by the huge number of parts available. You also have the ability to drop parts, so you can decrease the weight of your AC by dropping a gun with no ammo left, for example. You can also choose guns and other weapons for a secondary arm weapon now, instead of just melee weapons. It seems to me that they took all my favorite things from the previous games and combined them into AC3, then added a bunch of things that I always wished I could do.

They did leave out a few key components though, most notably online play (the Japanese version at least had direct dial) and the cooperative missions from Another Age. Also missed is the ranker from Master of Arena, which let you create an AC from scratch and assign it AI attributes for the arena. Considering what you do get with AC3 though, I would say these are small prices to pay. They just would have made a good thing even better.

Final Verdict:

If you are looking to get into Armored Core, this is the game to do it with. If you can get past the hours and hours of customization, the clunky controls, the boring songs, and the non-existent story that all AC games are known for, this is arguably the best in the series. If definitely has a lot to offer.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/13/02, Updated 09/13/02