# Armored Core: Verdict Day
**Armored Core: Verdict Day** (アーマード・コア ヴァーディクトデイ, *Āmādo Koa Vādikuto Dei*) is a mecha action game developed by [FromSoftware](https://www.edgepedia.org/fromsoftware) and published by Namco Bandai Games, released in September 2013 for [PlayStation 3](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation-3) and [Xbox 360](https://www.edgepedia.org/xbox-360) as an entry in the *Armored Core* series[1](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb16777505f) • [2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1). It was announced through Weekly Famitsu and launched in Japan on September 26, 2013 at 6,800 yen, reaching North America and Europe the same month[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360) • [1](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb16777505f). The game centers on mech customization, a short solo campaign, and a persistent team-based faction war fought online; FromSoftware closed the online services on March 31, 2024, leaving the story missions playable offline[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | September 2013; Japan September 26 at 6,800 yen; PS3 and Xbox 360[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360) • [2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1) |
| Developer / publisher | FromSoftware, Inc.; Namco Bandai Games[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1) |
| Missions and customization | 90 new missions across 7 continents; 150+ parts advertised for loadout customization[5](https://web.archive.org/web/20140220023426/http:/www.armoredcoregame.com/) |
| Multiplayer | While online services were active, players formed squads of up to 20 members and enlisted in factions to fight for territory in a persistent world war[6](https://www.metacritic.com/game/armored-core-verdict-day/details/) |
| UNAC system | AI-piloted companion mechs, up to 8 owned with DLC, used to fill in for absent teammates[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/game/armored-core-verdict-day/details/) |
| Online shutdown | Services ended March 31, 2024; World Mode, mercenary features and rankings lost, story missions remain offline[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html) |
| Reception | Metacritic 66/100; IGN 7.6/10, praising customization and criticizing dated graphics and a steep learning curve[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020) |
## Setting and story
One account places the setting roughly 200 years after the events of *Armored Core V*, during a conflict called the Verdict War fought over structures known as the Towers, with three factions in contention: Sirius [Corporation](https://www.edgepedia.org/corporation), VENIDE, and the Evergreen Family[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020).
## Gameplay and customization
**Mech building** is the core activity. The official site advertised more than 150 parts for customizing loadouts[5](https://web.archive.org/web/20140220023426/http:/www.armoredcoregame.com/), and one review-count source puts the total above 500 parts[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020). Practically every part from the legs up to the head can be swapped and adjusted; a build carries two weapon arms, can fit shoulder docks for additional weapons, and the reactor is chosen to power the whole loadout[8](https://www.eurogamer.de/armored-core-verdict-day). Weapon damage is divided into three types, kinetic (KE), chemical (CE), and thermal (TE), each matched by corresponding armor defenses, so part selection is a matter of matching offense and defense across these categories[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020). Customization extends beyond performance to appearance: emblems can be saved (up to 64, with 135 layers each), alongside decals and camouflage patterns, and mech weight affects mobility[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020).
**The UNAC system** gives solo players AI-piloted companion mechs. The game's adaptive AI was advertised as creating unmanned AC units to even the playing field in online matches[5](https://web.archive.org/web/20140220023426/http:/www.armoredcoregame.com/). While online services were active, players who played alone could recruit a squad of AI-controlled mechs and use the co-op and multiplayer feature sets[6](https://www.metacritic.com/game/armored-core-verdict-day/details/). The solo campaign functions mainly as a tutorial that unlocks pilots for the UNAC pool, drawing on them when no human teammates are available[8](https://www.eurogamer.de/armored-core-verdict-day). DLC added fully customizable UNACs, with ownership capped at 8 and a compatibility pack required[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1).
## Multiplayer and the persistent war
The signature mode was a persistent faction war while online services were active. Players formed squads of up to 20 members and enlisted in one of the in-game factions to wrestle control of territories from other players[6](https://www.metacritic.com/game/armored-core-verdict-day/details/). During territory conflicts, players chose a side, and battle outcomes could change the world's balance[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360). In the core Verdict War, a server-wide territory conflict among the three factions, once one faction unified the world a one-hour truce began, after which a new world war opened[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020). The Xbox listing records online multiplayer for 2 to 10 players and online co-op for 2, plus voice chat and leaderboards[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1).
**Server closure.** FromSoftware terminated the online services for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions as of March 31, 2024[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html). Features lost include World Mode, mercenary features, territory customization, ranking and team menus, while Story Missions remain playable offline[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html). Trophies and achievements tied to online elements became unobtainable, and the Soldier Model DLC became unavailable[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html). At shutdown, a player who canceled the login attempt could continue the game offline[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1). Earlier companion services, ACVD-LINK and the Armored Core Official Partnership, had already ended on January 1, 2016[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html).
## Development and release
The game was announced through Weekly Famitsu as in development at FromSoftware for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with the Japanese launch set for September 26, 2013 at 6,800 yen[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360). The Xbox Marketplace listing gives an original North American release date of September 24, 2013, with Namco Bandai Games America as publisher and FromSoftware as developer[2](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1). The [Bibliothèque nationale de France](https://www.edgepedia.org/bibliotheque-nationale-de-france) records the work as dated September 2013, first released in Japan and released the same month in the United States and the European Union[1](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb16777505f).
Two carryover features were announced at reveal: a reformed matchmaking system based on *Armored Core V*'s, and the ability to import *Armored Core V* save data[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360). The transferable data includes the pilot name, the current AC with its coloring, emblem and decal, already acquired parts (including DLC parts), emblem pieces, garage settings, and AC data; parts whose performance had been altered are reset to default stats[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html).
## Reception
The game received a Metacritic score of 66/100[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020). IGN gave it 7.6/10, crediting attractive, detailed customization and satisfying mech combat while criticizing dated graphics and a steep learning curve[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020).
## Design lineage and comparison with Armored Core V
Verdict Day was built directly on *Armored Core V*'s systems: it reformed that game's matchmaking, allowed save-data import, and kept the territory-war structure[3](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360) • [4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html). The structural emphasis shifted further toward multiplayer. Eurogamer's German review characterizes the game as radically multiplayer-focused, with missions usually played in a team of up to three colleagues, and describes the solo campaign as completable in four or five hours, functioning mainly as a tutorial that unlocks UNAC pilots[8](https://www.eurogamer.de/armored-core-verdict-day). In the former persistent faction war, once one faction unified the world a one-hour truce began, after which a new world war opened[7](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020).
With the 2024 server closure, the persistent war that defined Verdict Day is no longer playable, and the game survives primarily through its offline story missions and its customization systems[4](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html).
## References
1. [Notice de titre conventionnel "Armored core. Verdict day (jeu vidéo)", Bibliothèque nationale de France](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb16777505f)
2. [ARMORED CORE™: VERDICT DAY™, Xbox Marketplace listing](https://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/ARMORED-CORE-VERDICT-DAY/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8024e4d0864?nosplash=1)
3. [Armored Core: Verdict Day announced for PS3, Xbox 360, Gematsu](https://www.gematsu.com/2013/02/armored-core-verdict-day-announced-for-ps3-xbox-360)
4. [Contact / FAQ, FromSoftware, Inc.](https://www.fromsoftware.jp/ww/faq-games.html)
5. [Armored Core: Verdict Day, archived official site](https://web.archive.org/web/20140220023426/http:/www.armoredcoregame.com/)
6. [Armored Core: Verdict Day details, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/armored-core-verdict-day/details/)
7. [装甲核心：审判日, Baidu Baike](https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%A3%85%E7%94%B2%E6%A0%B8%E5%BF%83%EF%BC%9A%E5%AE%A1%E5%88%A4%E6%97%A5/17636020)
8. [Armored Core: Verdict Day – Test, Eurogamer.de](https://www.eurogamer.de/armored-core-verdict-day)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Video games and digital play › Games and gameplay › Individual game titles › Individual PlayStation-platform game titles › Action-adventure and open-world titles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license