Armored Core 2 (PS2)

So here is Armored Core 2, probably one of the very first PS2 games I rented and possibly one of the toughest.

I never had the opportunity to play the first Armoured Core so going into this one raw was a whole different experience. The campaign follows a missions based structure, and effectively it's built around making a name for yourself as a mercenary, making a killer AC with the money and parts you earn and becoming the best there is as the Nine Breaker of the Ravens.

Most of my time spent playing this as a kid was in AC2's multiplayer mode. Surprisingly enough, the head-to-head mode is alot of fun to play and makes a decent substitute to Virtual-On or anything of the equvilent, which obviously, the PS2 lacked at the time. AC2's controls also, although clunky, helped establish the feel of being inside a mecha better than anything I had played before it - even Mech Warrior 2.

If anything let this game down it would have to of been, firstly, the average PAL port which naturally ran slower than it's NTSC counterpart but also featured rather annoying borders on both sides of the screen. And also, the lifespan. As difficult as it is, Armoured Core 2 is short, very short. Yet there is an expansion pack available for it which was released barely a year after Armoured Core 2's original release.