Armored Core VI: YOU DIED in a giant robot

Mostly I don't want my wife to have the image of me wearing a headset and talking to profane children while blowing up giant robots, lol.

I go away for several days on the day this comes out. Dang

We could always set up an Ilxor PvP group, assuming it works that way

I’m into it ^

Let's do it! Apparently the concern now is that it only works that way, instead of having matchmaking yet?

Here's some sensible tech info about the different lock on modes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-Nl4Ymnvl4

Reading some of the reviews, I gotta say I'm quite looking forward to short missions and being able to retry bosses from checkpoint without long runbacks.

Btw I'm Mr_Kitka on PSN if anyone wants to try some casual arena pvp. :)

Just got very excited to see I could download the game and then super let down when, after sitting up til 1am, realising it wouldn't actually let me play it for another 24 hours.

I'll add you Jordan

I'm clubstoic

Can't wait to get your reactions. The way I've always played the Souls games is to basically pick a character path and stick with it, with a few minor tweaks here and there. This game seems to not just encourage but demand tweaks and customization, with tons of options, before every mission/boss, which is a little daunting to me.

In lieu of not being able to play the game yet, I watched a few promo gameplay videos on my nice big OLED TV and it was jaw-dropping

Josh, I'm guilty of that too, I tend to find something I like and stick with it without trying out all the other weapons I'm picking up. Souls games make that harder though, since you've committed to your character stats and upgrading weapons takes a lot of resources. For this one I'm promising myself that I'll experiment with lots of different builds, and I'm hoping it feels freeing to be able to adjust for different levels and bosses.

These seem like helpful tips...the weapon bay is interesting, being able to choose between either having shoulder weapons at the ready vs two alternate arm weapons that you can swap out at will.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjvwUAsvvFw

Coming in with my inevitable "If I didn't like Bloodborne, should I still play this?" post.

I'll let you know once I actually play it, but my impression is that there's really no comparison. Buuuut from what I've gleaned of your tastes, it might not be your thing? It seems to mostly be about combat mechanics and building mechs, not much emphasis on the story, world design, etc.

Coming in with my inevitable "If I didn't like Bloodborne, should I still play this?" post.

― The Banshees of Ed Sheeran (Leee), Thursday, August 24, 2023 7:44 PM bookmarkflaglink

that's like asking "if i didn't like super monkey ball, should i still play yakuza?". they're very different games, this isn't a sekiro vs elden ring situation

do you like any mecha games?

if you're (rightly) hesitant to blindly dump $$$ on a genre you have no previous experience with, you can always try one of the older ps1/ps2 entries on an emulator, watch an LP, or wait for other people's opinions

having said that i'm sure it will have plenty in common with souls games as well:

ravens we are so fucking back pic.twitter.com/SY6joHbGnx

— helena (@yagihimesama) August 23, 2023

This game is going to be exactly like Elden Ring

lol

Also interesting that apparently the campaign is quite short (for a From game), but with new missions/branching paths/other incentives for playing it again in new game plus and ng+2.

That's okay by me. I am hoping this is the sort of thing I can pick up and put down, come back to, mess about with at will.

I pre-ordered Baldur's Gate III last night on a whim, so I'd rather not get sucked into another super convoluted RPG plot that takes up all my attention.

Obvs I'm expecting ACVI to be very involved, but more bitesize perhaps?

I've never played a mech game but I do like customizing weapons/loadouts and seeing numbers go green.

review: https://www.forbes.com/sites/games/2023/08/23/armored-core-vi-playstation-5-review-welcome-back-raven/

I took off tomorrow. Will be on this shit at 12 am sharp.

It's my mum's 70th this weekend so no say off for me. I just jumped on to check it out for 30 minutes and died twice to the first boss.

Great so far. It's going to take a while to get used to the controls and how it handles. I haven't quite worked out how to stop when I do that speed boost thing. I might have a look at changing some of the controls at some point.

Looks and feels GREAT so far, even after just a quick go

*day

i splurged on a dual sense edge controller the other week. mostly for the two extra pedals on the back. i imagine i will be tweaking my button layout as well, putting some of those face buttons on the pedals to limit how often i have to jump my thumb off of the right stick.

i've gotten so used to the claw-like position i'd occasionally have to put my hand in for some From games.

I got that new controller that has back pedals (the Victrix one), but I'm trying to hold it in a relaxed grip with my fingers kind of extended so as not to aggrivate my tendinitis, and using the back buttons would make me curl my grip on even more (and I seem to hit the accidentally a lot). I'm going to experiment with some control schemes for sure though.

No staying up late for me, but I have tomorrow off. :)

This is like learning a new language. Fighter jet game more than anything. But with multiple more dimensions of movement. Hard to wrap your head around at first, but the classic heavy skill check first boss beats the fundamentals into you.

Amusingly enough the actual in-depth training tutorials are available after him.

This is cool. I can see the high skill ceiling this might have and how satisfying it’ll be to really get to grips with it.

Well put, I beat the first boss but I still feel like I don't have enough fingers, lol.

Nice to see Balam Acab is successfully running a megacorporation in the future

Underrated aspect of this game is that it is priced at $60 rather than $70. And Remnant 2 was priced at $50. Personally, I love this trend reversal.

OT but is Remnant II worth my time? I like the look of the aesthetic - Dark Souls meets Returnal or something. Just suddenly seems to be a lot of new games out after a bit of a drought

I haven't played it yet, but people seem to love it. I bought the first one on sale, but by many accounts the second one offers nothing but improvements. Dark Souls meets Returnal sounds about right, from what I understand, though this one seems to favor co-cop.

Co-op, too.

I wish I didn’t splurge on Baldur’s gate and waited for this (not that I’m not enjoying baldurs gate!) too many games to play, Tears of the Kingdom and Pikmin 4 still taking my gaming time too, I’ll wait for this one to go on special but I am looking forward to playing this. Seems like a perfect steam deck game with the its four back paddles.

I'm so torn, because I love From games and this looks really cool, but a lot of the things that keep popping out at me in reviews and descriptions (mech suit, flight simulator, build management) are just not in my wheelhouse. Like, Balder's Gate, that one is easy. I don't care how good the reviews are, I know I have absolutely no interest in it. But this one is trickier.

I'm loving AC so far, although the boss at the end of chapter 1 is a bit of a wall. Prior to that was the first time I seriously had to build a mech just for that level (the four stealth ACs where one of them has the energy shield, and I think that's the deal here. I'm still getting used to the idea that not only is it not an admission of defeat to go back to the garage in order to beat a boss, but it's the whole point?

I tried the first Remnant game and it felt good to play, but I bailed because I didn't like the rogue-like elements in this type of game. When I die in a Soulslike I want to throw myself at the same scenario and learn it, not have it changing under my feet. But people seem to be loving Remnant 2, it's probably good, haven't looked into it at all.

I watched the digital foundry video for remnant 2 and it seems like a very pretty game, was tempted to grab it for that alone

the boss at the end of chapter 1 is a bit of a wall

So when that guy is swapping out, like, a dozen different specific components to complete his boss-specific cheese build, is that as complicated as it seems? All those (in a sense) moving parts to keep track of? That seems super challenging, like 4D resource management that rewards obsessive attention to detail. With the Souls games, the whole "get good" concept underscores that you get better the more you try something, but this seems different, demanding you constantly tweak and adjust not just your approach but also your robot build.

Swapping parts is definitely not a cheese, it’s part of the game.

From Soft is not known for elegant user interface, but I have to say they’ve done a great job this time around. It’s very easy to customize everything and swap out and experiment.

I wouldn’t say you really have to “keep track” of anything. It’s all there in your inventory or the store. If you’re hitting a wall, you can go into the inventory and slap some different stuff on to see if it makes your life easier.

All the parts that aren’t weapons or legs are less significant. Will give you some edge or another depending on the situation, but your guns and mode of movement are the important things. The inventory menu looks more intimidating than it actually is.

By "keep track" I mean remember what all the different parts and weapons do and what their particular application is. And by "cheese" I was just invoking the literal words of that youtube dude posted right before me, when he said there was a particular combination of parts and weapons that makes that boss battle easier (an introductory boss battle, I should note, that seems to be taking some people hours to win). That guy, too, seems to suggest that constantly buying and selling and swapping equipment is, yeah, part of the game. I'm just personally trying to figure out if that kind of trial and error battling seems fun. I know it sure is for some people; a lot of gamers already love this one, but there are a lot of types of games that others love that just don't click with me. Like I said, my instincts are that I would probably like this, but my conflicting instincts are that it may hit the spot for a certain type of person and not others. Just like the Souls games do.

So yeah, I guess I'm ultimately trying to gauge the difficulty and complexity level. I've seen accounts of Souls fans struggling with this one, because it requires a more involved/intricate system of trial and error than what From typically requires.

It seems like you can ignore most of that stat complexity, at least in the early game. When you're making a new build it's mostly about the legs and weapons, and then putting together whatever else that doesn't put you over the weight/energy limits. It just takes a few moments, although I'm sure there will be more flexibility later in the game.

And the other parts are surprisingly intuitive for the most part, like picking an FCS part that is better for short vs medium vs long range, depending on your weapons.

Anyway I was reluctant to use a YouTube build, but I arrived at a similar one out of necessity. I wanted to use pulse weapons to take down its shield and laser cannons for high damage, and tank legs are the only ones capable of carrying that weight. But even though I've gotten closer, I still have not beat Balteus, that phase 2 is brutal.

If you spend 6 hours on a boss, you’ll be grateful for a YouTube build. And it’s not cheating!

Fightin Cowboy did an in depth review, and in the comments someone says the one detail he didn't offer was the difficult level, and his reply: "Most reviewers are getting stuck on bosses, if that's any indication."

This must have been what it was like when "Dark Souls" came out and no one knew the tips and tricks yet.

I can honestly say I’ve never met a game that made me this blindingly angry.

Whewwww, I did it, by the hair of my chin. The old step away, come back and win on the third attempt. Ended up using pulse gun + machine gun and two laser cannons, with the tank build.

If anyone's interested (accidentally included the penultimate attempt in there too)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQopZLKKJ6I

That looks utterly batshit.

How do you reload? Is there tons of ammo?