For lonely men obsessed with big robots, Armored Core 4s online portions where you can test your mech mettle against kindred spirits is the stuff of dreams. But in reality, even the most hardcore robot nut is going to feel let down by this disappointing blaster.
While players can spend hours offline customising their robots and creating unique killing machines, the online battles are staged in barren environments that dont capture any sense of the futuristic world youre supposed to be protecting, and the options for twatting your steely opponents is limited to traditional scenarios such as one-on-one deathmatches and group battles.
Things arent much better in the single-player mode either; although the robots are brimming with death-dealing technology, most of the missions simply involve shooting aerial targets in tight, claustrophobic arenas, meaning youre more likely to stand on the spot and fill the air with bullets than master your mechs boosting capabilities.
The opportunity to bolt on bits and bobs to your automaton can be satisfying- especially when the best items become available as the main game unfolds - and fans of the series will get much fun from pimping their ruinous robot.
But with bland graphics and brisk missions that are over much too quickly, Armored Core 4 is another disappointment for mech fans.