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The Names in Armored Core: Nineball

The Essence of Armored Core

Anyone familiar with the game of pool will be familiar with the "nine-ball" format. Unlike other pool formats, nine-ball is generally played one-on-one, and remains to be a popular event in major pool sporting tournaments. The primary appeal of a nine-ball game is its mano-a-mano format, offering spectators a duel of fates between two competitors whether it is in the spirit of friendly competition, or bitter rivalries. It is this very same format and emotionally charged atmosphere that surround Armored Core's defining attribute - the arena.

Cue in AC Nineball and its pilot Hustler One, the primary antagonist of the original Armored Core and its subsequent spinoff, Master of Arena. Namesake aside, the AC's arsenal is reminiscent of that of a pool player; its complete loadout includes a folding grenade launcher, a pulse rifle, a four-shot small missile pack, and a laser blade. Its pilot, Hustler One, is an even bigger enigma. With only one known official portrait ever to have existed, no one has ever confirmed his likeness.

Hustler One's only known picture

In some ways, Nineball's weapons does remind of someone playing pool. The grenade launcher serves as a cue stick while the grenade shot resembles a giant cue ball - a fiery sphere of explosive force that obliterates whatever gets in its way (in most cases, that would be you). The right-arm pulse cannon spits out a rapid barrage of bluish orbs to pummel unfortunate foes. His other armaments are basic bread-and-butter weapons, giving him a wide variety to choose from depending on what the situation calls for.

In his AC: Ninebreaker incarnation, Nineball moves on to more modern parts while still capturing the spirit of the classic design. The small missile set is replaced by a micro-missile pack, and the pulse rifle is swapped for the more iconic RL linear rifle, giving him a greater punch and a more daunting profile. In addition, this remake gets fitted with the CR98E2 core part, which has the ability to launch an independent machinegun exceed orbit to complement the other weapons, making him deadlier than before.