Armored Core (Japanese: アーマード・コア, Hepburn: Āmādo Koa) is a third-person shooter mecha video game series developed by FromSoftware.

The series centers on a silent protagonist who takes on work as a mercenary pilot in the far future, operating large robot combat units known as Armored Cores at the behest of corporate and private clients.

As the player completes missions for these clients, they gain credits to improve their Armored Core and unlock further opportunities to make money.

Several story continuities exist, spread across 13 main games, seven spin-offs, and three remastered re-releases, with different releases divided by a different set of "generations" of sequels that starts with every numbered entry.

In 2007, the series was adapted to manga by Fujimi Shobo as Armored Core: Tower City Blade, and in 2024, to television by Tim Miller as an episode of Secret Level titled Armored Core: Asset Management, starring the voices of Keanu Reeves, Erin Yvette, Temuera Morrison, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and Steve Blum.

Following centuries of rule by an artificial intelligence called The Controller, its decay leads to the destruction of much of humanity's underground network, causing them to look toward the surface for safety.

However, the Coral, thought to have all burned, has begun to reappear, bringing multiple corporations into conflict for control of it which, in turn, has brought the attention of mercenaries.

[16] The game's mechs, called Armored Cores (or ACs for short), are highly customizable with hundreds of parts and weapons that can be purchased from an in-game shop or by fulfilling certain requirements.

[17] Different parts can provide gameplay advantages in certain terrains or against certain enemies, which forces the player to put thought into how to approach the construction of their mech as each sortie often has different obstacles and hazards to overcome.

[18] An Arena mode introduced in Armored Core: Project Phantasma gave players the opportunity to fight opponents outside of missions for additional rewards.

In the original PlayStation era, local split-screen multiplayer modes were the primary method, generally featuring head-to-head battles.

2004's Armored Core: Nexus introduced the LAN multiplayer mode, in addition to connecting through their internet service and allowed up to 4 players to fight in matches together.

[23] Online multiplayer was first introduced in the Japanese release of Armored Core 2: Another Age, but was removed in other regions due to the PlayStation Network Adapter not being ready in time.

The game's mechanics revolve around taking on missions from various clients for pay, using earned money to customize the player's Armored Core unit.

[28] Like its predecessor, Master of Arena allowed players to import save files from both the original Armored Core and Project Phantasma to continue their progress.

[34] As a narrative sequel to the original trilogy, Armored Core 2 transitioned the series away from the post-apocalyptic setting and added more science fiction elements, such as Mars colonization.

[35][4] The title did overhaul the visuals from the original game, taking advantage of the added power of the new console, but overall designs stayed similar.

[39] The Japanese version of Armored Core 2 was the first title to include online broadband play, allowing players to fight each other over the internet.

Very little gameplay was changed from the earlier PlayStation 2 titles, instead focusing on incremental improvements and minor features like USB mice, computer-controlled allies, and surround sound.

[43] Like other expansions in the franchise, players could import their progress from Armored Core 3 into Silent Line, retaining their parts and credits from the earlier game.

[61] Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is another reboot of the series, unrelated to any past games, set in an alternate future where humanity has developed an interstellar civilization.

The player character, codenamed "C4-621" is an augmented Armored Core pilot sent to the distant planet Rubicon 3 to fight in a war between corporations, the government and the local inhabitants for the control of a highly valuable resource called "Coral" which exists only there.

[62] Removing the focus from story-based missions, the game is instead built around an Arena mode where the player must compete with computer-controlled opponents to increase their rank.

The making of Armored Core solidified FromSoftware's development skills, and in July 1999, they released the multiplayer action game Frame Gride for the Sega Dreamcast.

In 2005, FromSoftware would start to produce a series of licensed games based on the various anime properties under the banner Another Century's Episode.