Power armor, let’s talk about it. Science-fiction power armor to be exact. Let’s take a trip down video game lane to look at some of the medium’s bests. This time I will take armors I like but rank them according to the usefulness in combat or just in general. So with that said let’s suit up.
#10:Doomguy’s armor(Doom)
While Doomguy’s armor isn’t really that special it does deserve its credit. The armor has no protection on the arms and the entire chest is covered EXCEPT FOR THE ABS. And I think that’s why it deserves mentioning. If you are able to fight demons of hell on Mars in armor that covers the entire body except for the arms and literally the vital organs you have a very dependable piece of clothing. Props do go to Doomguy himself for his skills because that armor wouldn’t be that much of use on most people. Oh, I also really like the design of the helmet.
When fighting demons from Hell on Mars you want your six-pack and biceps to show baby.
#9:CMC armor(Starcraft)
Now to talk about some armor that’s almost a wearable tank. The Confederate Marine Corps Powered Combat Suit or CMC Powered Combat Suit for short (yeah that’s not much shorter…) is this giant bulky armor that’s used in the Starcraft games and can’t be penetrated by most small arms. While it doesn’t necessarily grant you special powers, it’s the closest armor that’s still armor without being an actual mech suit. I just wanted to focus on Tychus Findlay’s Armor. You see during the events of Starcraft 2 he is forced to wear the armor until he completes his tasks. The armor itself is his actual prison. Imagine being freed from your confinement only to remain in handcuffs until you complete a certain set of objectives. Just brutal.
Imagine being a badd-ass at all times. Even if you don’t want to be.
#8:A.R.I.D.(The Fall)
Not many people will know this armor but the Mark-7 Combat suit deserves a spot. It’s not really the armor (even though it can protect the user from impacts from extreme heights) but the A.I. called A.R.I.D. in the suit that makes it such a good suit. the A.I. is designed to protect the user when they lose conscience. If that happens A.R.I.D. will take over the suit and get the user to safety. Just think about it, you have a space adventure and fall into a space-cliff and pass out only to wake up back in the ship’s hospital. Now that is a useful suit.
All the space adventures and you won’t experience any of them.
#7:Power Armor(Fallout)
Next up is THE armor you need to survive the apocalypse. Fallout’s power armor can be equipped with Tesla Coils which allows you to fight enemies up close without even lifting a finger by shocking them. A unique ability that no other armor has on the list I think is the ability to heal you when you are wounded and somehow can reflect 50% melee damage back. Now how does that work? If someone punches you their fist just slips and hits them in the face? Or if they hit you with a bat it bounces off you and back at them? Well anyway aside from that weirdness it has jetpacks and slight stealth capabilities. Hell, even the paint makes you stronger or it can even make you more charismatic. How the hell does that work?
Walk around looking angry all the time in this cool suit.
#6:Infernox Armor(Ratchet and Clank 3)
Ok so maybe it’s me being in a Ratchet and Clank mood since the PS4 remake but I’m going to give this spot to the Infernox armor. The armor first appears in a box as a hyper mode power. Once activated you take no damage and your Wrench does a crap-ton of damage while being on fire. After finishing the game and starting the challenge mode you can buy the armor for one million bolts. While it doesn’t absorb 100% damage 90% is close enough and you can look like a baddass at all times. This armor looks great and certainly deserves its spot as the only armor that makes you effectively invincible (at least for a little time).
Look at how cool (and expensive) that hell armor is.
#5:Recon armor(Halo 3)
The Spartan armor comes in all shapes and sizes. The later Halo games give the Spartan armor different abilities like invisibility, jetpacks or even holograms. The only problem is that you can only have one ability at a time, but hey being able to fly or create holograms is neat right? Another great thing is the shielding the armor has that protects you from a certain amount of hits but needs to be recharged when destroyed. I personally don’t like the overly detailed designs the armors got when 343 took over so if I had to pick one type of armor it would be Recon armor. Aside from looking cool Recon armor had quite the legacy back in the day. You see the armor was only available to the Bungie staff and not even a handful of people they personally picked. It was the armor everyone wanted and envied back in the day. That’s why it’s on the list. Not only because of the powers it had but the fact that it was an actual rare piece of armor back in the day.
Ah yes. The elusive armor is now available to all but back in the day this was the equivalent of encountering a shiny Pokemon.
#4:Advanced RIG(Dead Space 2)
I love the RIG’s designs. But I like the Advanced Suit’s design the most. So this suit is really awesome. Aside from the helmet coming together in tiny pieces around your head, you have this screen on your chest that shows you data which is useful and looks really cool. But what gives this suit such a high spot on the list is the powers it gives you. You can fly Ironman style with jets coming out of your shoulders and boots plus the ability to slow down objects or actually use Force grabs. I also like the fact that your life is displayed on your back. The best thing of all is that the suit is not even designed for combat but for engineering. A suit with those powers and it’s just an engineers outfit? Now that’s cool.
Man The design of this suit is amazing. Being able to slow down objects or pull them to you is the best.
#3:Nanosuit(Crysis)
The Nanosuit is the suit of dreams. There are several different modes that give you different abilities. There is super speed which is self-explanatory but still cool nonetheless. The defense mode allows you to take more hits and even bullets as long as the suit has juice. Then there are the two coolest powers. Super strength that gives you almost hulk-like power and the best power ever, invisibility. You can sneak into the girls’ shower and be a creeper or beat up the high school bullies. You can also impress all the athletic girls at school by using your super speed. It’s the ultimate tool to fight history’s greatest thread named high school.
Being able to disappear, run fast, take a lot of hits or increased muscle strength is what makes this such a good suit.
#2:Augmented Reaction Suit(Vanquish)
The Augmented Reaction Suit is amazing. Aside from looking like the most badass thing ever the ARS(hehehe arse) only has two powers. There are thrusters that allow you to slide at extreme speeds on the ground. You look like an absolute bad-ass sliding on the ground shooting stuff it’s the coolest thing ever. And aside from jets to slide around with you can ACTUALLY SLOW DOWN TIME! Tell me what powers are cooler than that. Nothing, that’s what. Aside from you being able to slow down time at will, the suit will slow down time if it notices you are in danger. It’s one of the coolest suits there is and one of the best powers there is.
Kamen Rider-Esque armor with time slowing powers might be the coolest shit ever.
#1:Gravity Suit(Super Metroid)
So of course, you knew this was going to be number one. In this list I tend to focus on the powers the suits bestow on the wearer and the design of it. And as far as power go the Gravity suit is probably the best. Not only do you have an enormous amount of weapons and tools, but the suit allows you to defy gravity. You have a grappling hook, the ability to survive in extreme temperatures like lava and freezing colds and te ability to turn into energy contained in the Morph Ball. Sure,there are suits that can slow down time or turn you invisible but for as long as you use the Screw Attack AND Power Bombs you are unstoppable. Truly this suit is worth the number one power armor.
This suit has everything. You are unstoppable in this suit.
And that’s my pick for the best sci-fi power armors. Which one would you want if you could only pick one? Again as you can see by this list I would choose either the gravity suit or A.R.S. If you don’t agree or think some spot should be higher or lower let us know. Come back next month for a new list. Any suggestions for a list are welcome.
If you are interested in any of these games you can check out our reviews for the following games:
The Fall:
https://gamingboulevard.com/2015/07/review-the-fall/
Fallout 4:
https://gamingboulevard.com/2015/11/review-fallout-4/
Crysis 2:
https://gamingboulevard.com/2015/11/review-fallout-4/
