Armored Core For Answer

Rating Teen Genre first-person-shooter Publisher Ubisoft

Super-Robos, Mechs, VT-Jockeys, New Types, what ever you call them there is no denying that our culture, specifically our gaming culture, is infatuated with the idea of giant robot suits since time immemorial.  Voltron, Gundam, Ultraman, Macross, even the Power Rangers utilize these magnanimous super suits.  As they have changed so has the technology, and much like those brightly colored heroes, our ability to replicate the experience has evolved too.  From the cult classic gritty MechWarrior, to the not so popular R.A.D. Robot Alchemic Drive, to the equally obscure Steel Battalion behemoth on the XBox, those that follow the trail will be eventually led to or at least cross the demure yet inspiring Armored Core series.

With an impressing number of titles under their belt, the latest and greatest title from Ubisoft is Armored Core For Answer or 4A, the jaw-dropping scale up from the recent Armored Core 4.  The new and improved 4A features short but far more enjoyable amount of gameplay.   You will immediately find yourself destroying titan class mobile fortresses, entire air and naval battalions, and even punching through enemy lines with the use of your VBOL rocket pack.  The game again throws dozens of Lynx teams at players to destroy, one-on-one battles, and even a round of two with the legendary ‘White Glint’ pilot.  Featuring more than double the customizable parts of its most recent predecessor, For Answer allows for additional tuning of each vehicle, as well as the usual nearly unlimited customization.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of building a mech from the ground up, it can be a little like trying to jetpack across the English channel.  That is, if you begin by staring at a pile of jetpack parts.  Nearly everything from two-legged, to four-legged, to tank-treaded styles can be selected and modified.  You can decided on anything ranging from small and fast to big and beefy.  Create a purely aerial machine with hundreds of rockets or go for the ninja package with dodgy jets and a beam sword for those close encounters.  Everything from ECM jammers to simple radar enhancers can be slapped onto any megabot.  But, with such a wide range of options and a fairly healthy purse with which to aquire more doomy bits, the various enemies will eventually get the better of your ‘perfect machine’.

With a headache inducing level of difficulty, Armored Core For Answer will have players wondering if certain levels are joking as they run out of ammunition half way through, or die for their tenth time.  No, For Answer isn’t just there to make you feel bad, it simply should come with a more detailed label reading, “Be Advised, The ESRB Has Rated This Game F for F*&$ing HARD”.  The give or take, constant upsets with level difficulty are most often circumvented by overhauling of your chosen mech.  Maybe missles instead of miniguns or a sabre over a one-shot rail rifle?  And sometimes you just put down the old duelshock and go for a run.

The game features all the multiplayer aspects of its big brother as well as with the growing rarity of split-screen co-op.  Armored Core For Answer takes its place among a host of other quick-sell, hard to find titles that belong on every niche gamers shelf.  Fast action, incredible difficulty, co-op, and thousands of pieces to make a robot from all take this title to its predetermined heights.