The fourth main entry of the Armored Core series, the game serves as a reboot for the franchise and is set in the future where a war has made the nations of Earth devastated and their respective governments have been replaced by corporations.

[5] Amid overpopulation, dwindling resources, and civil unrest, six major corporations launch a coordinated global uprising known as the National Dismantlement War, which overthrows all countries on Earth and ushers in a new world order of corporate-enforced peace: the Pax Economica.

Kojima technology is instrumental in the creation of NEXTs, next-generation Armored Core mechs, and the corporations begin waging a shadow war among themselves for control of it.

Anatolia is one of a handful of colonies that enjoys autonomy from the corporations, but this was solely due to the wealth of the late Professor Jarnefeldt, a leading NEXT engineer.

Akva Vit gains the backing of the Bernard and Felix Foundation (BFF), Leonemeccanica, and Rayleonard, while GA forges an alliance with Eqbal and Rosenthal.

Notably, he assassinates BFF's entire leadership by sinking their seaborne headquarters, protects Anatolia from a retaliatory strike by an Akva Vit-developed superweapon, and leads critical operations against the increasingly desperate Rayleonard.

[6] Bryan Vore of Game Informer opened his review by stating the "biggest surprises" found in Armored Core 4 is the multiplatform status of the title and the "next-gen graphical makeover".

[1] Gamespot's Magrino described the game as a "more visceral experience" and wrote that the streamlined boost mechanics allowed for greater freedom of movement.

He praised the faster gameplay and commented that mech customization felt streamlined compared to previous entries, while still offering a considerable amount of depth for those who decided to dig deeper.

[4] Game Informer's Vore felt that mech customization was still as inaccessible as it had been previously, writing: "Do we really need to worry about four separate booster classes?

While GameSpot's Magrino acknowledged that online multiplayer was a "much-anticipated feature", he believed that the limited map and game type selection "doesn't offer much to get excited about".

[5] Game Informer's Vore agreed, adding that the lack of respawn mechanics severely limited the playtime in multiplayer matches.