Ace Combat 8: Wings Of Theve Review; Per Caelum Vola

After seven long years, the wait is finally over for a new entry in Bandai Namco’s Ace Combat series. Right off the bat, Ace Combat 8: Wings Of Theve ticks all the boxes you’d expect from a game in the long-running arcade flight-shooter series by Project Aces.

There is intense war drama, massive war machines, catastrophic superweapons, supervillains, excessive missile payloads that defy the visually limited hardpoints on your aircraft, engaging missions and gameplay, and, most importantly, an excellent soundtrack.

I should note that I purchased my copy of the game on Steam. With 18 hours clocked in and the campaign completed, this review will focus primarily on the gameplay and story, with less emphasis on the multiplayer elements simply because I haven’t spent much time with them just yet.

One of the biggest changes this time around is the jump to Unreal Engine 5. Naturally, this makes Ace Combat 8 the best-looking entry in the series so far, and it is perhaps the first game in the series to have most of its cutscenes rendered in real time.

While some may worry about the usual Unreal Engine 5 hiccups, I’m glad to say that the game ran without a hitch on my system. For reference, I played on High settings at 1080p with DLSS enabled, using an 11th Gen Core i9-11900K, RTX 4070 and 32GB of RAM.

I’m also playing the game with a controller, which I highly recommend. Unfortunately, as much as I would have preferred using my Logitech HOTAS, the Steam version of Ace Combat 8 does not yet support third-party flight sticks, which is disappointing. Bandai Namco has promised to address this in a future update.

Familiar Controls, Welcome Changes

As for the gameplay itself, the changes are fairly minor. Veterans of the series will feel right at home, while newcomers shouldn’t have much trouble getting into the action.

The High-G Turn mechanic returns, allowing you to quickly pitch your aircraft by pressing both triggers on the controller. Like before, using this manoeuvre can cause your aircraft to stall, although its implementation in Ace Combat 8 is much more forgiving. Another change is that it now takes slightly longer for your aircraft to ice up when flying through clouds, giving you enough time to find an exit point before your flight systems completely freeze.

These are minor quality-of-life improvements, but personally, I welcome them. Before you bark about realism, remember that the Ace Combat series is first and foremost an arcade flight shooter, let alone a power fantasy.

Wingman commands also make a return, and they pretty much mirror the ones offered in Ace Combat 5. Pressing Up on the D-pad orders your squadron to focus on targets directly in front of you, Left has them disperse and attack enemies within your vicinity, Down orders them to provide cover, while Right toggles whether your wingmen can use their special weapons.

These commands are simple yet essential. Fret not, your squadmates are actually quite capable, and in certain missions, they’re necessary to help you get the job done. For example, some operations require the swift disposal of naval and ground targets, and the quickest way to achieve this is to dispatch your wingmen while you handle the rest. Your squad will prioritise critical targets while ignoring others.

Player responses also make a return. During certain missions, you’re given the choice to answer Yes or No, even while you’re in combat. Only some choices affect the flow of the story, while most simply change the reactions you’ll receive. Despite their simplicity, some prompts do deliver some good “hell yeah!” moments.

Outside of combat, you’ll also occasionally get button prompts during cutscenes. These fall firmly into the “press X to salute” category rather than being actual quick-time events. They’re mostly there to give the player something to do and perhaps check whether you’re still awake. Failing to press the button does not affect your progress whatsoever, which makes me wonder why they’re included in the first place.

Building Your Perfect Killing Machine

As for progression and customisation, players can purchase new aircraft and upgrades with earned in-game credits via the Aircraft Tree, which is accessible before starting a new mission. This time around, you can equip more upgrades that affect your aircraft’s manoeuvrability, weaponry and countermeasures, although the available options depend on which model you’re deploying.

Ace Combat 8 also lets you equip an additional special weapon, bringing the total to two. This is a much-welcome addition, as it allows players to customise their loadouts based on the type of mission they’re about to tackle, whether it involves mostly ground targets, aerial enemies or a combination of both.

Speaking of loadouts, you can save different combinations as well, although you’ll only gain access to this feature after completing the campaign.

Some Of The Best Missions Yet

Mission types range from series classics such as escorting targets, maintaining air superiority and eliminating specific enemies. While all of these sound familiar on paper, each mission has its own flavour and twists to help it stand out.

I have to say that Ace Combat 8’s missions are among the better designed ones in the series. To keep players on their toes, Project Aces has introduced higher stakes for crucial missions, requiring you to act quickly or risk severe allied casualties or even mission failure.

Then there are the “boss fights” and ace duels, which are signature staples of the series and something I genuinely enjoy. By my definition, fights against superweapons or heavily armoured vehicles, airborne or otherwise, fall under the boss fight category. There are plenty of these throughout Wings Of Theve, but enough to keep them from overstaying their welcome.

Ace duels, meanwhile, are enemies that engage you in proper dogfights, requiring you to outmanoeuvre and outgun them. They’re still bosses, but I wouldn’t group them into the same category because their fights are much more up close and definitely personal.

The ace duels in Ace Combat 8 are exciting and intense, but sadly, there aren’t many of them. Perhaps that’s a good thing, though, because the ones I encountered are quite memorable.

Bite-sized versions of these encounters are available through so-called elite enemy squadrons that you’ll encounter throughout the game. They’re a far cry from the proper boss encounters, although they can become more challenging when you crank the campaign difficulty up to Elite.

A Different Kind Of Ace

Now, let’s move on to Ace Combat 8’s story. Traditionally, the series has maintained a zero-to-hero approach for the player, often starting them out as a nobody before eventually bringing them to legendary status. AC04’s Mobius One and AC0’s Cipher, aka Demon Lord, immediately come to mind.

Ace Combat 8, on the other hand, takes things differently and almost immediately puts you into the shoes of a larger-than-life ace pilot known to everyone as the titular Wings Of Theve. However, the truth is that this particular person is merely a propaganda piece fabricated to garner public support and strike fear into the hearts of the enemy. Hell, he even has an in-story song.

In reality, you’re just a regular air serviceman, a survivor who was picked up by the aircraft carrier Endurance, one of the last bastions of a crippled coalition of nations known as the Federation of Central Usea (FCU). Short on manpower, you’re immediately put into service as part of the carrier’s air force in the FCU’s efforts to drive back the invading Sotoan army.

I have to say, this approach is a breath of fresh air. You barely get to know anyone from the FCU, yet your very first task with them is to maintain the facade of a non-existent legendary hero.

Those are some seriously large shoes to fill. And despite how good of an in-game pilot you are, the story doesn’t hold back in reminding you that this responsibility isn’t something to be taken lightly. This is where the real zero-to-hero arc begins, and it’s quite the ride.

Despite being based on a Western-like perspective, as with most of the past Ace Combat games, Wings Of Theve’s story is exactly what you’d expect from a Japanese studio. Heck, some moments are almost borderline anime-like, and I’m all for it.

The whole “war is bad” lesson is still there, and there are certain things that may or may not reflect real-life events. However, the way the story is written isn’t preachy or on the nose, as you might expect from some Western developers. And thankfully, there’s no “Millennial” writing or humour to be found here.

Of course, the delivery isn’t perfect. You can expect plot conveniences, questionable motives and the occasional exposition dump. Despite this, the better parts of Ace Combat 8’s story kept me engaged throughout the campaign.

Great Wingmen, Mediocre Villains

As you’ve already seen from the trailers and previews, the game has an abundance of characters, with your own squadron members being the major highlight. They’re well-written and likeable, with further development as the story progresses.

However, the same can’t be said for the main antagonists. The only description that comes to mind is that they’re cookie-cutter anime villains, more in the arrogant aristocratic sense rather than the maniacally laughing type. While other characters, even those who merely exist in the background, get some form of development, Ace Combat 8’s antagonists are almost two-dimensional.

Despite this, I do like that the enemy faction has a strong presence throughout Wings Of Theve’s story. Shadow Squadron, the nation of Sotoa’s elite air force, announces its arrival by playing its signature tribal chant through open radio frequencies.

I did raise an eyebrow at their initial introduction, but given that combat against them is much more engaging, that reaction eventually changed to anticipation in later missions. And since this is an Ace Combat game, Shadow Squadron’s chanting is often accompanied by excellent music scores, which brings me to the next part of my discussion.

The Soundtrack Goes Hard

The soundtrack for Ace Combat 8: Wings Of Theve is superb. Not all of the tracks are home runs, but a very good number of them, including the publicly available “Everflow”, hit hard and are absolutely worth revisiting. There’s a good mix of genres too, ranging from orchestral to rock, with even a touch of flamenco thrown into the mix.

As someone who has held AC0’s soundtrack as the series’ best for the longest time, I am glad to say that Wings Of Theve’s has finally won me over. It’s as if Keiki Kobayashi, the series’ legendary composer, gave Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s award-winning soundtrack a listen and told everyone to hold his ramune.

Because, by George, he absolutely delivered.

If there’s anything for me to complain about here, it is the criminal fact that Bandai Namco has yet to release Ace Combat 8’s soundtrack online. For now, you can only enjoy it through the in-game music player.

Conclusion

I wouldn’t go as far as to say that Ace Combat 8 is the best game in the series, but it is definitely up there. It is memorable and enjoyable, and a solid recommendation for both newcomers and longtime fans alike.

Wings Of Theve is a game where I find myself revisiting certain missions and boss fights, and at the time of writing this review, I’m already doing a second playthrough on Elite difficulty. Moreover, there’s still plenty of unlockables to go through even after the credits roll.

After seven years, Ace Combat is back, and I’d say both Project Aces and Keiki Kobayashi have done a damn good job of making the wait worthwhile.