After a ten-year hiatus, FromSoftware brought Armored Core back to life by producing a new mainline entry titled Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon. Series newcomers and veterans alike have been wondering where Armored Core 6 would be placed in the series chronology and timeline. But before we jump straight into the answer, we can look back at prior titles to notice a pattern in the chronology.
After gathering information from Japanese sources like Chotto Yorimichi and Yahoo! Japan Chiebukuro, we found out that FromSoftware created a new timeline every time it released two mainline entries. We can thus split the series timelines before Fires of Rubicon into Armored Core 1-2, Armored Core 3 with the rest of PS2-era games, and Armored Core 4-V.
Armored Core 1-2 Chronology
The inaugural Armored Core game that launched in Japan in July 1997 is not the first title in the chronology. That honor went to Armored Core: Project Phantasma, a stand-alone expansion released in Japan in December 1997 with a story that took place two years before in ED 156. The 1999 title Master of Arena had a story that ran concurrently with the original Armored Core in the year ED 158.
Armored Core 2, the series’ first title released for PlayStation 2 in 2000, took place in the same universe in the year ED 223. In 2001, From Software released Another Age as a direct sequel with a story in the year ED 228.
- Armored Core: Project Phantasma
- Armored Core and Armored Core: Master of Arena
- Armored Core 2
- Armored Core 2: Another Age
Armored Core 3-Nexus Chronology
The PlayStation 2 era saw a golden age of the Armored Core series. Other than the Armored Core 2 series, From Software also released Armored Core 3 in 2002 with a completely new setting. The company then made multiple games for the same console, with most of them having interconnected stories. A majority of the titles in this generation (except Nexus and Nine Breaker) were also released for the PlayStation Portable.
In this series’ universe, Armored Core 3 took place in the year 186. The 2003 direct sequel Silent Line moved on to the year 203. From Software treated the 2004 Armored Core Nexus as a new mainline title despite not using a number, but its story was still situated in the same universe in the year 260. Armored Core: Last Raven, the last entry for both the PS2 era and Armored Core 3 continuity released in 2005, took place in the year 261.
The 2004 arena-based spin-off titles Nine Breaker and Formula Front do not have a major storyline, but the Japanese community believes that both titles could be included in the Armored Core 3 universe between Nexus and Last Raven. Nine Breaker hinted at a plot that an organization made the arena training program due to a period of peace from corporate conflicts. Formula Front‘s unmanned Armored Cores also served as an inspiration for the AI opponents in Last Raven‘s VR Arena.
- Armored Core 3
- Silent Line: Armored Core
- Armored Core: Nexus
- (Armored Core: Nine Breaker and Armored Core: Formula Front)
- Armored Core: Last Raven
Armored Core 4-5 Chronology
Armored Core 4 was the first series title that From Software produced for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The new mainline entry came out in 2006 with a new storyline that was completely separate from the previous generations. Two years later in 2008, From released For Answer as its direct sequel.
When From Software revealed Armored Core V in 2010, it claimed that the 2012 title would not have any connections with the Armored Core 4 timeline. However, the 2013 direct sequel Verdict Day later revealed that the Armored Core V timeline did take place many years after Armored Core 4 and For Answer in the same universe.
- Armored Core 4
- Armored Core: For Answer
- Armored Core V
- Armored Core: Verdict Day
Armored Core 6 Chronology
During the Taipei Game Show 2023 held in February, Bandai Namco published an interview video with Armored Core VI‘s producer Yasutaka Ogura. One of the questions asked pertained to the new game’s connection to past titles. Ogura answered that Fires of Rubicon‘s actual storyline would not have a direct connection with Armored Core V.
It remains to be seen whether From Software will add a story connection in the future. But as it stands as of the new game’s release on August 25, 2023, Armored Core 6 has its own storyline unconnected to any other titles in the entire series chronology.
Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.
