Moments before he and his team from FromSoftware stepped onto the stage to accept the Game of the Year award for Elden Ring, fans of Hidetaka Miyazaki and From’s past works got blindsided by an announcement in the form of a return to Armored Core.
The now-director and president of From got his start with the company as a designer and planner on the Armored Core series back in 2004 before eventually leading the team into a new era with the Dark Souls series.
And, with the announcement of Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon, it will also be the company’s first time revisiting the series since Miyazaki became president in 2014.
This return to the franchise will be co-developed by Bandai Namco and FromSoft as they look to collaborate, revive, and reimagine the series’ legacy with action gameplay that will excite fans like no other.
This means players should expect many of the gameplay and design features implemented in recent titles from the studio will find their way into Fires of Rubicon.
Armor Core resurrected with first installment since series designer Miyazaki became president in 2014
According to the developers, a focus on massive three-dimensional environments, rapid maneuverability, and vehicular combat is the name of the game—something From has nailed in previous entries and will likely take to levels fans won’t expect in this decade-spanning sequel.
The mechs in this game, as with other entries for the series, are key and the team is well aware of that in how they approach its action and scale.
As for the story, a mysterious substance found on the remote planet Rubicon 3 was used as a resource by humanity but soon caused a catastrophe that engulfed the entire planet and surrounding stars—creating the Burning Star System and setting the stage for what follows.
Miyazaki helmed the project as its initial game director and has since been relieved by long-time From designer Masaru Yamamura.
You can expect to hear more about Armored Core VI and all its details sometime in 2023, as the initial reveal has it slated to release sometime in the next 12 months.
