What you need to know
- Armored Core 6, developer FromSoftware's award-winning mecha action game that launched in August, is getting a new Patch 1.05 update.
- The update is scheduled to release on December 19, and will add a variety of new features and pieces of gameplay content to the game.
- These include ranked 1v1 and 3v3 PvP modes, new PvP maps to play on, ranked leaderboards, new AC parts for buildcrafting, and customization options for nameplates.
- Notably, this is the first major content update for the game that's come since launch; previous patches have been focused on squashing bugs and making balance adjustments.
Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon — FromSoftware's frenetic, high-octane mecha action game that released in August earlier this year — is getting a massive (and free!) surprise update this holiday season, and it's the best Christmas present I could have asked for. We can skip all that gifts-under-the-tree nonsense, because I'm headed back to Rubicon 3.
The update drops on December 19 (which is tomorrow, at the time of writing) and adds several new features and pieces of content, the most significant of which is a ranked PvP mode. In it, you'll be able to face off against other players "of similar skill based on your rank" in 1v1 duels or 3v3 team battles, similar to the unranked multiplayer matches that've been available since the launch of Armored Core 6. Notably, FromSoftware says ranks are split up into UNRANKED, D, C, B, A, and S divisions, with 1v1 and 3v3 ranks determined separately. To rank up, you'll need to gain Rank Points (RP), which is done by playing (and presumably, winning).
Accompanying the arrival of ranked PvP is a ranked leaderboard where you can see how your performance compared against everyone else in the world, as well as new PvP maps for you and your opponents to blast each other to smithereens on. The official Armored Core 6 account on X (formerly Twitter) also confirmed that new AC parts are being added, too, which will give you additional options to consider when customizing your AC's build in both PvE missions and PvP.
In addition to the aforementioned new game content, Patch 1.05 is also finally adding something fans have been asking for since Armored Core 6's release: customizable nameplates. Once the update goes live, you'll be able to change the design and color of the nameplate that other players see when they're in a multiplayer lobby with you, with different options becoming available as you "earn nameplates by playing against each other" in PvP. Sweet.
All in all, it looks to be an awesome patch, and is quite reminiscent of Elden Ring's PvP-focused Coliseum Update that launched a year ago in terms of scale and focus. It's also the first major content update that Armored Core 6 has gotten since it came out; patches before this have only made balance adjustments or fixed bugs and performance issues.
As for what's next for Armored Core? Right now, it's unclear, though fans are hoping FromSoftware has some kind of expansion in the works that will launch after Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC releases (possibly next February, if a recent leak is to be believed). Personally, I'd love to see some sort of co-op PvE experience come to the game, which is now the only thing it's missing.
Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is available now on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One consoles, Windows PC, PS5, and PS4. It's my favorite game of 2023, and also undoubtedly one of the best Xbox games and best PC games available for fans of challenging and intense mecha combat. Notably, you can pick it up for some big 33% discounts right now on Xbox and PlayStation, which makes it an excellent holiday gift for gamers.
