Tag: Armored Core 3

An Unkindness of Ravens

A Nest for Ravens

Armored Core has always been something of a niche catering to the already-niche genre of mecha simulation. The Armored Core trilogy for the PS1 provided mech fans everywhere with the rare chance to build and battle with their very own customized mechs. As players got to know the game better, their skills improved along with their ability to design ACs. It got to the point where bashing the AI rankers wasn’t enough any more and nothing other than an equally skilled human opponent would suffice for competition. But as most AC players surely realized, finding people to play against, let alone skilled ones, was just as challenging as learning to play Armored Core itself.

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Armored Core Portable Controls

One of FROM’s biggest hurdles in converting their PS2 Armored Core titles to the PSP was the control scheme. The inherent difference in the number of buttons on the dual shock and the PSP meant that the controls simply couldn’t be the same. This is evidenced by how FROM’s first portable Armored Core game, Formula Front, was initially an AI arena only. FROM eventually did implement player control, but with automated vertical aiming due to the absence of the L2 and R2 buttons on the PSP. This made for what enthusiasts considered a dumbed down Armored Core experience.

With the release of Armored Core 3 Portable and the announcement of Silent Line Portable, many players wondered how FROM would work around this button handicap. The image below shows how they decided to lay out the default controls.

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Armored Core 3 Portable – New Parts

Here’s a gallery of the new parts that appear on AC3P as well as their stats. Most of the frame parts and weapons are remakes of older AC parts not included in the recent games such as in Last Raven.

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AC3 Matsuri 2 Match Videos

Long time AC fan Naitoh, who has been an excellent source of information on the Japanese Armored Core scene, has recently uploaded videos of “Matsuri 2”, a Japanese Armored Core 3 tournament held back in January of 2003, on his YouTube account. Sadly, we have no further information regarding the tournament such as its rules and part restrictions. Beyond that, the only information we can confirm for sure is the slight lag with the 2nd player because of the i.Link connection, as mentioned by Naitoh himself, a given problem in the AC3 and SL editions of AC.

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Armored Core Chapionship Tournament Season 1

From software, the creators of Armored Core, is sponsoring a tournament for the recently released Armored Core 3 Portable for the PSP. It seems that From plans to go on a tour of various game stores all across Japan for the preliminary matches in this tournament. It’ll be interesting to see how tactics and gameplay have evolved from the original release on the PS2, as well as taking a look at the new parts in action. With the finals date set for October 3, 2009, it is only a matter of time before we get to see results.

Given my lack of Japanese reading skills, I could only decipher that the prizes include the awesome Armored Core model kits made by Kotubukiya plus various extras that I could not read. Please visit From’s officia tournament website for more details (Warning: Heavy on Japanese text): http://armoredcore.net/acct/season1/

The first matches are scheduled to start on August 29, so stay tuned to From’s official site for updates.

Sexy Head Part for Armored Core 3 Portable

This official screenshot sports a sexy new head design previously absent from all preceding AC games. One can only wonder what other new surprises AC3P has in store for its followers and fans. Speculation goes that it’s the equipped head part of the new No.1 Ranker in the arena, replacing Ace as the arena top dog from the original AC3. See more pictures below and in the gallery.

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PS2 Armored Core Games For PSP

As seen from this latest Famitsu magazine scan, Armored Core 3: Silent Line and Armored Core: Last Raven are receiving PSP ports soon as well. The listed release dates mark Silent Line due to release November this year, and Last Raven on March 2010. Two Tenchu games are coming out too, with Wrath of Heaven getting the first release this August, and Fatal Shadows on January next year.

Here’s the official launch page for these games. This was previously a countdown page, as what seems to be the norm for teasers these days.

No word on any changes in gameplay for SL or LR, though there is speculation it will take advantage of the PSP’s ability to connect online and play against other players via the internet as seen from AC3P‘s promo video.

[via Kotaku]

Armored Core 3 Portable for the PSP

From Software, the creators of the Armored Core, recently announced their latest game in the franchise. Armored Core 3, which originally debut on the Playstation 2 back in 2002, is receiving a port to the PSP. Improvements include an increased aspect ratio from the original SDTV 4:3 to the PSP’s 16:9, an improved garage interface reminiscent of Armored Core: Last Raven, and 4-player wireless ad-hoc gameplay. The release date is set for July 30, 2009, according to their official website.

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