Elden Ring's success is expected to drive Armored Core 6 to record-breaking sales for the series

Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon — (Image credit: From Software)

Bandai Namco expects Armored Core 6 to break series sales records, thanks to FromSoftware's growing popularity.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz earlier today at Gamescom 2023, Bandai Namco Europe CEO Arnaud Muller says the company has heightened expectations for FromSoftware. Specifically, the publisher has increased expectations for Armored Core 6 sales, thanks to FromSoftware's popularity after the record-breaking launch of Elden Ring last year.

"This is an opportunity for us to truly widen the audience of the Armored Core games," Muller says. "My ambitions are not on par with Elden Ring, but our ambitions are way bigger than the previous Armored Core games," the Bandai Namco Europe CEO continues.

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It's true that FromSoftware's popularity around the world skyrocketed with Elden Ring's launch last year. We're not saying FromSoftware was exactly a niche developer prior to the game's release, but 20 million sales for a single-player RPG in one year will certainly help make your name known around the world and catapult you into newfound fame.

"Thanks to Elden Ring, FromSoftware has become a seal, a guarantee of quality, and therefore people will see that the Metacritic of this game is great, [that] it's challenging but very rewarding, [and say] 'I wanna try that game,'" Muller adds. Our own Armored Core 6 review awarded the game with 4.5 stars out of 5, noting that it was one of FromSoftware's best stories to date.

"This is a big step up in this franchise. We are not going to be able to match Elden Ring numbers but we will way surpass what Armored Core previous games have done," Muller continued. It's difficult to gauge sales figures for the Armored Core series at large since FromSoftware first started making the games all the way in 1997.

There are claims online that Armored Core 2 is the best-selling game in the series to date, with just under a million copies sold worldwide. We can see why Bandai Namco doubts Armored Core 6 can reach Elden Ring's sales figures, but we can also see why the publisher expects the new game to surpass series sales figures so far.

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.