Armored Core: Asset Management (2025)

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"Armored Core: Asset Management"
Creator(s)	Tim Miller
Network(s)	Amazon Prime
Production company(s)	Blur Studio, Amazon MGM Studios
Animation studio(s)	DIGIC Pictures
Director(s)	Dave Wilson
Writer(s)	Peter Watts, J. T. Petty
Composer(s)	Rob Cairns
Starring	Keanu Reeves, Erin Yvette
Run time	11 minutes
Air date	December 10, 2024

"Armored Core: Asset Management" is the eighth episode of the animated anthology series Secret Level by Blur Studio and Amazon MGM Studios featuring original stories set within the worlds of numerous video games, including Armored Core.^[1]

"Armored Core: Asset Management" premiered on Prime Video on December 10, 2024.^[2] The episode is contained in its own setting and has no direct links to previous games.^[3]

Overview[]

Armored Core Twitter[]

FromSoftware, Inc. Operating Officer[]

Plot[]

"Armored Core: Asset Management" starts with the protagonist drinking alone in a bar until a young man attempts to interact with him. He reacts violently, slamming a mug into the man's face before being thrown to a wall in retaliation. An unseen feminine voice tells him that the man is a friend, to calm down and finish their drink. He begrudgingly refuses and shoves the man while leaving, resulting in an older bar goer "Old Salt" to de-escalate the situation, explaining that the protagonist is "last of the old-school augs" and "don't make them like that anymore."

Once outside, the protagonist antagonizes a mechanic by snatching a cigarette from their mouth, resulting in him being shoved to the ground. He lays in the snow and smokes the cigarette while a narration of Old Salt talking to the young man in the bar is heard. It is revealed that the protagonist is a troubled individual who is a pilot of a "Core."

Production[]

The short story for "Armored Core: Asset Management" was written by a Canadian science fiction author Peter Watts. Initially, Tim Miller wasn't planning on doing an Armored Core episode, but after reading the short story he changed his mind.^[5] Originally, the events were supposed to take place within ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON universe, on Rubicon 3. Pilot was supposed to be Raven, Dispatch — Handler Walter, and The Voice — Ayre. The Pilot's AC was originally named CHICXULUB, and Shrieker was just a simpler name he used. The story was then adapted for screenplay by J. T. Petty. In the final version, among other changes, all the references to ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON were cut (possibly to avoid spoilers for the game), Walter's role was significantly reduced and the ending was rewritten, effectively making the episode a standalone story not connected to any particular game.^[6]

Keanu Reeves was cast for the role of Pilot during a meeting with Tim Miller regarding another project. He did the shooting of the episode in one 13-hour session, despite having a fractured kneecap and a cold.^[5] The Voice was performed by Erin Yvette, who also voiced Ayre in ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON.

The episode was produced by an American production company Blur Studio and a Hungarian 3D animation studio DIGIC Pictures.^[7] The latter had previously made the ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON reveal trailer.^[8] FromSoftware had no involvement in the production of "Armored Core: Asset Management".^[3]

Cast[]

• Keanu Reeves - Pilot
• Erin Yvette - The Voice
• Temuera Morrison - Old Salt
• Patrick Schwarzenegger - The Kid
• Steve Blum - Dispatch, Mechanic

Gallery[]

Armored Cores[]

Promotional images[]

Videos[]

Trivia[]

• Pilot's AC SHRIEKER features a raven emblem on its left side.^[9]
• The ACs in Press promotional screenshot 01 are armed with MG-014 LUDLOW machine guns and BML-G1/P32DUO-03 back mounted missiles.
• A preview clip has the protagonist describe an unseen feminine voice as "a few grams of unstable isotope stuck in my brain stem", which could infer that the protagonist made Contact with a C-pulse wave mutation like Ayre.
  • The feminine voice mentions obsolete augmentation surgery, a theme primarily only explored in ARMORED CORE VI FIRES OF RUBICON.
• A shot of a broken photograph with the Pilot has the Rubicon Liberation Front's slogan written on it, "Forged in ash, we stand as ONE!"
• All the enemy ACs, although reminiscent of Balam designs, have "Arisawa Heavy Industries" printed on them.^[10][11][12]

External link[]

• Armored Core: Asset Management on the Secret Level Wiki on Fandom

References[]

Speculation[]