Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion, Reduced Size, Expanded World – Switch 2 Review

The first Daemon X Machina wasn't exactly a masterpiece, but it came out at a time when Armored Core seemed like a distant memory, and it emulated it quite well. Now that FromSoftware's mecha series has regained momentum (or at least I hope so), Marvelous hasn't abandoned the franchise; instead, it has transformed it, reworking the gameplay formula and drawing from other sources to carve out a new niche.

The Arsenals become smaller and more akin to power armor, the spaces become wider and adopt an open-world structure, there are dungeons, loot, and bosses roaming the map in an MMO style... Is this Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion perhaps what the series needed? Let's find out.

Reading opinions around, I often see it described as a blend of Armored Core and Monster Hunter; that's fair, but I also notice a lot of Xenoblade Chronicles X. The main plot quickly takes a backseat, serving more as a thread to provide context and punctuate our escapades. The true protagonist of First Studio's work is the ruined world in which the story unfolds: vast, hostile... and sadly empty.

Whether chasing the next mission objective or exploring for secrets, the levels don't offer many attractions: fast travel bases, charging stations, military outposts, abandoned depots... the classic icons to tick off a list and crumbs in an economy that demands a lot of grinding to see everything. Occasionally, an interesting vista pops up, but for the most part, the barren and devastated locations are far from the variety and atmosphere of Mira. Thematically, it might make sense, but they quickly become tiresome after yet another fetch quest.

The story itself is surprising, and not in a good way. It's rare to encounter a script so sparse and yet so boring. Perhaps it's the uncharismatic characters, the cheap melodrama, or the festival of stereotypes, but every time allies and/or enemies gather and start "lore dumping," you feel like skipping. Not bad for what is essentially a boss rush against mutants in exoskeletons straight out of Vanquish, Astral Chain, and Knights of Sidonia (the manga, not the album). The chats with ordinary mortals are better, with souvenir photos, card games, tuber hunts, and other minor tasks. Nothing that hasn't been seen a million times elsewhere, but better than the sermon on the meaning of life from the usual madmen bombing colonies.

Gameplay-wise, Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion doesn't stray too far from its predecessor (which in turn drew from FromSoftware's imagery), but it presents itself on a "smaller scale" and introduces new mechanics that significantly expand the range of options. The Arsenal's basic equipment includes the usual five armor pieces, from various archetypes and freely combinable, two main weapons, two secondary, one shoulder support, and an auxiliary device. The sheer volume of parameters to consult to optimize field performance is impressive, and as always, we'll also have to balance memory consumption and weight.

Not satisfied? Now the stats of every single component tend to fluctuate, and not by a little, so the choice is expanded by the countless variants we can collect, along with further improvements that can be made via specific mods. By eliminating Immortals, we can extract their DNA, from which to obtain active and passive abilities in exchange for the humanity of our alter ego, who will progressively become more deformed (no, this has no impact on the story or interactions with the rest of the cast). All weapons have a mastery level that unlocks bonuses with frequent use, and specific techniques that draw on stamina and Femto (reactor energy) reserves, and we'll even have a "regular" sized mech in the garage as a temporary power-up. If you like to maximize every aspect of your build, adding the farming of necessary parts, you'll lose your mind, even if it's not at all necessary to complete the adventure.

Already after the first few encounters, the monsters infesting the map and normal Arsenals don't seem to have answers against our agility or firepower. The combat system is fluid, dynamic, and highly customizable (although it has so many button combinations that it's easy to get lost), unfortunately, the AI doesn't seem capable of utilizing it adequately. To compensate, the many bosses often use treacherous AOEs, skills that are heavily overclocked compared to our version, hitboxes as big as houses, and other stratagems that make encounters challenging but sometimes frustrating.

This detracts from an already uninspired pace. The long chains of side missions feel too much like filler, and the main ones have this tricky balancing that doesn't fully enhance them, not to mention the monotony of the dialogues. Tinkering with your Arsenal and deploying it in battle is the most fun element of the package, but your stay will vary significantly based on how much you can tolerate the plethora of unengaging activities and their fluctuating quality.

On the content front, Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion is no joke, quite the opposite. The campaign can be completed in about ten hours, but between optional missions, an Armored Core-style arena, dungeons, collectibles, secret bosses, grinding, online co-op, and more (including PvP soon), the accumulated playtime skyrockets. There are even motorcycle races (although the driving model is terrible) and an entire collectible card game, complete with tournaments. Much of the content offered by the Marvelous title is self-contained and doesn't truly enrich the experience, but having more options is not unwelcome.

As for the technical aspect, initial impressions saw the Switch 2 edition as a kind of abomination. A situation I believe I avoided, because after a couple of updates, Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion runs quite well on Nintendo's hybrid platform. The presentation is far from perfect, with low-resolution textures, slowdowns when the action gets too close to the camera or when changing areas, and long loading times, plus sporadic crashes to further spoil the fun, but it can be played without particular difficulties. Perhaps it can still be optimized, and maybe add gyroscope support to help with free-aim weapons, like bows and sniper rifles.

Personally, I preferred the cel-shaded style of the original, which was more distinctive, compared to the pseudo-realistic one adopted here. The mech designs, however, are always excellent; some doubts about the Immortals, which oscillate between simplistic and "I'm not sure what I'm looking at." The English voice acting is a bit stiff, the Japanese is better. The soundtrack is not bad, ranging from electronic to heavy metal, with a lot of great tracks to pump adrenaline during skirmishes. It's a shame that most of the time you can't hear them over the clang of gunfire and explosions...