Steel Haze From ‘Armored Core VI’ Gets A New Model Kit This December

The new VIOS kit of Steel Haze by Kotobukiya.

Kotobukiya

One of the more memorable characters in Armored Core VI was Rusty, the player’s “buddy”, and his initial ride of choice gets a new model kit this December.

Now, we already had the initial build of Steel Haze get the 30MM model kit treatment a while back, and the updated version of Steel Haze towards the end of the game was recently given a very nice Robot Damashii toy.

However, Kotobukiya has a long and storied history with the Armored Core series and has been making model kits of notable designs from these games for decades.

This is where this model kit comes in, as Kotobukiya is handling this new Steel Haze release.

Priced at 17,050 yen (or around $116 at the current exchange rate), it’s a pricey kit, but it looks to be quite special. This is because it is part of the new Variable Infinity Overed Scale, or VIOS, line, and much bigger as a result.

To explain, the original and main line for previous Armored Core kits from Kotobukiya was the standard Variable Infinity series of kits. I bought a few over the years, and they’ve all been very nicely done.

This new line, though, offers bigger kits with greater detailing. For something like the initial Steel Haze design, this makes a lot of sense, as Steel Haze is a fast-moving AC and has very delicate-looking limbs.

Now, at the normal Variable Infinity scale, these parts would be understandably small and fragile, so this new scale, in theory, affords greater strength, while still maintaining the level of detail from the games.

This is where the previous and smaller 30MM kit from Bandai Spirits was more limited, and hopefully, where Kotobukiya can really shine.

Released this December, you can pre-order this upcoming Steel Haze kit from places such as HobbyLink Japan. In the meantime, check out the video below to see the first time you meet your “buddy” in Armored Core VI.

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