-
Developer: From Software
Publisher: Tommo
Genre: Strategy
Region: NTSC
Format:
Release Date: 15 Nov 05
User Rating
9 (4 votes) -
- The mech sim retains much of its gameplay mechanics and addictiveness for its jump to the PSP, but still only for those hardcore fans.
Overview
The PSP has had a rough start out of the gate; there is no doubt about that. The platform has yet to find any game that can fully take advantage of its hardware and capabilities and use those to create a great game. Well today we are going to check out a series in the Armored Core series which has had some very rough outings on the PSP. Well now the series has made a change of direction from the PS2, and moved onto the new PSP hoping to have more success. So can Armored Core: Formula Front start a new upward trend for the series? Read our full review to find out!
Gameplay
One of the key concerns that anyone will bring up when making a game such as Armored Core to the PSP is how to make the size of the Mechs fit into such a small screen. This is something that I was interested to see as the battlefields are usually of a grander scale and they usually seem to take a lot of screen to make it work. So the big question is would From Software be able to create a game that would be able to cope with the smaller screen.
Let me make one thing very clear for those who have never played the Armored Core series before. Be prepared for a very in-depth and time consuming simulation adventure. In Formula Front you will be taking the reigns right away, and you will find that you are in for a very complex world. You are given five AC units and then it is basically your job to take them to Armored Core glory. Think of it in terms of simulation racers like Gran Turismo – you take the cars (mechs) you have, race (fight) them against other cars (mechs) in tournaments, collect the bounty to buy more parts and make your car (mech) more powerful. This game is not for those wanting a more casual pick up and play experience. As with Gran Turismo, Armored Core can be very addictive and extremely rewarding, but only to those few who can spare the time to uncover all its hidden treasures.
Once you get your AC fully tuned it is then time to take them into battle and this is where the game really has some good and bad. There are two different control schemes, basically one for new players and one for veterans. The latter of the two is actually the more difficult and troublesome one, and I have to say that I found the controls to take a while to master. The battles in the game aren't long, especially if you didn't do a good job tuning. Many times you will have to retry the same battles over and over again after tweaking your AC. This however does help you learn pretty quick what works in battle and what doesn't.
The controls do take time to get used to if you haven't played in the series before, but at the same token the it works pretty well. One thing I was a little disappointed to see was that the Armored Core formula hasn't changed much in Formula Front. In fact what it seems like the developers did was just tweaked this game to make it capable to work on the PSP and then shipped it with a new name and some new environments. In the end I was impressed with the quality of a Mech game on a PSP. It wasn't perfect with some troublesome controls, but it was good enough that it left me with a moderately impressed feeling.
Graphics
Like I mentioned earlier, the visual style of the game was something that I did worry about in Formula Front. I was a bit skeptical to see how the game was going to manage bringing such a big environment into such a small screen. And although the visuals weren't perfect, that part of them were very nicely done. The big gripe I had with the visuals however was the lack of detail in the environments. It seemed as though the developers kind of left those to the side and never really developed them to their full potential. In the end Formula Front is a good looking game, but it still had room for improvement.
Fun Factor
I am not always a huge fan of this style of simulation Mech game. In fact I have normally found this series to be below par. But I ended up being quite impressed with how well they got this game to translate onto the PSP. Sure the game had some flaws, but the overall feel of Formula Front was a very successful one. It combined a ton of customization options for your AC and then offered some good gameplay along side that. The game does take time to get accustomed to, but that is to be expected from such a complex game.
Overall
Armored Core: Formula Front is one of the few games that have actually done better on the PSP than I thought it would. This game is not perfect but it combines a good deal of simulation with customization, and this will appeal to fans of the series. If you are a fan of the series and wondering whether this is a worthwhile game to pick up, I would recommend renting this game before buying, and for everyone else this game is definitely worth a rental.
- Gameplay
7.0 - Graphics
7.0 - Fun Factor
7.0 - Overall
7.0
