A beautiful game with good gameplay and a serviceable plot. It doesn't have the same level of charm as some of it's older brothers, but its definitely a good return to form.
I am patiently waiting for Ace Combat 8
there is no deeper meaning behind the high ah score i gave to this game, ace combat 7 is the final result of a formula that has been perfected over the course of 7 iterations and the thrill and childhood fantasy of flying a fighter plane has never been done better than this, it is by no means realistic and better for it, ace combat 7 (and all the other ace combats) are not an attempt to simulate what air combat but the childhood fantasy of what a kid thinks air combat is like and it is better for it, so to summarise, flying plane cool
9 Awesome. Gameplay & Music. Story cool.
I love flying and destroying things
Ace Combat 7 sells the power behind the "Trigger" callsign like a crack dealer in a busy New York alleyway. The way it builds up the legend of your character right in front of your eyes is commendable, upselling that by building up villains that only escalate in magnitude.
The mission structure is fantastic with each level heightening the stakes and spectacle, All of which is also scored to perfection enhancing the masterfully constructed set pieces even more.
The only stumbles AC7 has are with its convoluted storyline. This doesn't really break the experience since the gameplay and level structure really keeps the story moving at all times and never really lets the convolution take hold of the plot.
The gameplay feels very responsive while providing the difference in weight and variation of feel between different planes that I find is usually missing in pseudo-arcade-simulation flight games.
“Stick With Trigger And You'll Make It.”
The mission structure is fantastic with each level heightening the stakes and spectacle, All of which is also scored to perfection enhancing the masterfully constructed set pieces even more.
The only stumbles AC7 has are with its convoluted storyline. This doesn't really break the experience since the gameplay and level structure really keeps the story moving at all times and never really lets the convolution take hold of the plot.
The gameplay feels very responsive while providing the difference in weight and variation of feel between different planes that I find is usually missing in pseudo-arcade-simulation flight games.
“Stick With Trigger And You'll Make It.”
RELEASE THE DRONE
Cool soundtrack that comes with a free game.
fantastic
top gun if it was good
Fun as hell and surprisingly engaging story. Great variety of mission styles and lots of challenges to complete.
Got this game during the Top Gun Maverick craze during summer 2022. No clue what was happening during the story but the gameplay and score were amazing and so much fun
theres no way he can shoot down all those guys
Love these games, it's exactly. What you would think. Sadly only complaint is not as many planes as in other games, and a bigger focus on air to ground targets. But overall great game.
This review contains spoilers
Ace combat was recommended to me from a mutal friend who was showing me flight games on his stream, I liked the gameplay of it and bought it when it went on sale, I had a idea what kind of game it was from the stream and also I finished Project Wingman before it. When I loaded into the game and went into the 1st mission I had a hard time but got used to it very fast, The music captured my interest and I wanted to hear more mission themes, the story with Trigger going through different squads and being blamed for the ex president's death had me like what the fuck kind of twist just happened?, I enjoyed the layouts of the missions BESIDES defending mckinsey I HATED him, The selections of planes always had me thinking which one I should use and tried using most of them and get a feel for them with different SP weapons and parts, I eventually got the F22 Raptor and it was wraps for the rest of the game and replaying the game but the best part was doing the different maneuvers such as cobra maneuver and kulbit maneuver. Fav mission was between Lighthouse or Last Hope they gave me CHILLS and always love going back and playing them again and again, Mr X was very fun to go against every time trying to be on his tail while he does crazy moves dodging my missiles and machine gun, The fight when he's in the X02 gave me chills and I had a bit of trouble but cooked him anyways, I think it was a fitting end for him and felt bad for him in the end since the skies were all he wanted to be at. The final mission had me fucked up trying to catch them annoying ass drones and the twist with them able to "shred their wings" and have a smaller drone try to upload my data to the rest of the drones was crazy and going into the tunnel and out the space elevator was something I never seen in a game before and solidified the rating for me. If you read this then please play this game and before I end this entry, I love Count's character he's my GOAT.
BELKAN WITCHCRAFT
High g turns and variable weather conditions = cool as fuck.
A shame that the missions are hardly built around those really cool things and are more concerned with staying consistent with the shitty story, especially toward the end. Having to identify every enemy before being allowed to shoot is the lamest shit mechanic ever in an ac game.
A shame that the missions are hardly built around those really cool things and are more concerned with staying consistent with the shitty story, especially toward the end. Having to identify every enemy before being allowed to shoot is the lamest shit mechanic ever in an ac game.
Its ok fun combat but the story is dogshit
I always enjoy fighter jets but this ones story was confusing and overly complex
This review contains spoilers
Cada mapa tinha sua própria identidade com seus próprios objetivos, cada um deles realmente me fazendo sentir em uma guerra. First Contact, Pipeline Destruction, Stonehenge Defensive, Stonehenge Defensive e Homeward foram as minhas favoritas.
Story sucks. Gameplay is pretty solid. DLC planes are cool, but should just be in the game.
My first time playing an Ace Combat game and this is such a well-built game top to bottom, gameplay, mission design, music and the god-damn variety. Sheeesh.
ace combat is really fucking good
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown was a frustrating game as a newcomer, that grew on me over time
A couple days ago, I finished up Ace Combat 7, after taking a rather long break from the game, and I’m rather surprised with how much I enjoyed the game when everything was said and done.
However the game is riddled with issues, especially to people who have never played a game like this before, which I just so happen to be.
Firstly, the story and characters are… not good, the story picks up and I feel gets a bit better as the game goes on, same with the characters, but they never come close to hitting the level they should. I can count the amount of characters I remember anything about on one hand, despite AC7 (Ace Combat 7) introducing probably two dozen or so characters that serve a purpose throughout the story over the course of the game.
And the worst part? The most interesting characters that you actually want to learn more about don’t interact with the player, or do really much of anything until the last three or so chapters. They get the majority of their screen time in cutscenes where they explain what they’re doing periodically.
And the story in general is weak, as I said I do feel it picks up towards the end, but overall the narrative is mediocre at its best.
Another major problem I have with the game, is how poor a job it does explaining its mechanics, it was admittedly fun and rewarding to figure out some of these mechanics on my own. But despite these being some of the more advanced mechanics that the game clearly wants you to figure out on your own, they are far too important not to be explained to the player. The best example I can think of is the High-G turn, a mechanic that allows you to turn your plane much quicker then normal. I don’t believe this mechanic is ever explained to you, and if it is it’s glossed over, despite being crucial for later missions.
That’s another problem, the mission structure is pretty bad, half the missions are just racking up as many points as possible from destroying ground units and shooting down other pilots. These missions are long, tedious, hard as hell, and far too frequent.
Which is a real shame, because some of the later missions are so incredibly fun and unique when you’re not scrambling around trying to get as many points as possible, but I’ll be back to that point later.
The game has some ludicrous difficulty spikes that most won’t be ready for as well.
I only have one more point as a negative, and that’s the shop/buying parts and planes. It’s pretty bad, it’s structured like a skill tree where you need to buy multiple things before you can get to what you want. This… doesn’t work well, and almost incentivizes you to have prior knowledge before you dedicate yourself to try and unlock something. I mean it took me 18 out of the 20 missions in the game before I finally got the plane I wanted, and at that point I would have had to farm for hours if I wanted to go buy something else in a different path. It’s a really bad system that should never have been implemented.
Now, with all that said, I still loved AC7 for what it was, even as a person who has never played a game even remotely like it before. And despite all its shortcomings it’s still a very good game, and here’s why.
First and foremost, the gameplay feels phenomenal, the planes control brilliantly, dog fights are challenging and very rewarding, and overall everything feels fine tuned to make this a definitive fighter sim experience. I seriously can’t praise it enough, I could spend extensive time practicing with the movement and combat just to learn it better, it’s that good.
Also, despite many missions being… okay at best, many missions, especially the later ones are awesome! They have incredible set pieces and moments that are designed to make you feel like a badass. I won’t spoil anything, but it’s staggering how good the later missions are and how creative they are compared to the earlier ones.
On the topic of being a badass, AC7 tries very hard to make you feel like one. It makes you feel like the Ace that it makes Trigger out to be, and it succeeds. From the excellent boss fights to the later set pieces, to your allies on comms praising you, everything is designed to give you a power fantasy.
The music is also top notch, not what I was expecting, but still phenomenal none the less.
And graphically? It’s gorgeous, the game looks stunning, the cutscenes and gameplay alike almost look like they were designed with the 9th generation in mind, which, of course, they weren’t.
One of my favorite things about this game is how it rewards experimentation, it rewards you making the game more challenging on yourself by using the advanced controls by making more high level maneuvers and mechanics easier to pull off with this control scheme. But even without advanced controls, the game encourages you to think outside the box, mix up your strategy, try out different planes and special weapons to see what works best for you in specific missions. And I honestly feel that’s one of the best things about this game, and something it gets right.
And even with all that said, AC7 has so much more to it then just the campaign, stuff I haven’t even touched yet, such as a multiplayer and VR mode. You can really feel the love packed into this game by Project Aces and it’s incredible.
So, overall, how is Ace Combat 7? It’s a game that’s rough around the edges, a game that makes some amateurish mistakes, and a game that’s alienating to people not familiar with the genre. But it’s also incredibly well tuned in all of its core gameplay systems, a game loaded with plenty of optional content, and a game that is genuinely fun and a game that rewards creativity. It’s a very good game, and I’m excited to work my way back through the rest of the series now that I’ve completed it.
7/10
A couple days ago, I finished up Ace Combat 7, after taking a rather long break from the game, and I’m rather surprised with how much I enjoyed the game when everything was said and done.
However the game is riddled with issues, especially to people who have never played a game like this before, which I just so happen to be.
Firstly, the story and characters are… not good, the story picks up and I feel gets a bit better as the game goes on, same with the characters, but they never come close to hitting the level they should. I can count the amount of characters I remember anything about on one hand, despite AC7 (Ace Combat 7) introducing probably two dozen or so characters that serve a purpose throughout the story over the course of the game.
And the worst part? The most interesting characters that you actually want to learn more about don’t interact with the player, or do really much of anything until the last three or so chapters. They get the majority of their screen time in cutscenes where they explain what they’re doing periodically.
And the story in general is weak, as I said I do feel it picks up towards the end, but overall the narrative is mediocre at its best.
Another major problem I have with the game, is how poor a job it does explaining its mechanics, it was admittedly fun and rewarding to figure out some of these mechanics on my own. But despite these being some of the more advanced mechanics that the game clearly wants you to figure out on your own, they are far too important not to be explained to the player. The best example I can think of is the High-G turn, a mechanic that allows you to turn your plane much quicker then normal. I don’t believe this mechanic is ever explained to you, and if it is it’s glossed over, despite being crucial for later missions.
That’s another problem, the mission structure is pretty bad, half the missions are just racking up as many points as possible from destroying ground units and shooting down other pilots. These missions are long, tedious, hard as hell, and far too frequent.
Which is a real shame, because some of the later missions are so incredibly fun and unique when you’re not scrambling around trying to get as many points as possible, but I’ll be back to that point later.
The game has some ludicrous difficulty spikes that most won’t be ready for as well.
I only have one more point as a negative, and that’s the shop/buying parts and planes. It’s pretty bad, it’s structured like a skill tree where you need to buy multiple things before you can get to what you want. This… doesn’t work well, and almost incentivizes you to have prior knowledge before you dedicate yourself to try and unlock something. I mean it took me 18 out of the 20 missions in the game before I finally got the plane I wanted, and at that point I would have had to farm for hours if I wanted to go buy something else in a different path. It’s a really bad system that should never have been implemented.
Now, with all that said, I still loved AC7 for what it was, even as a person who has never played a game even remotely like it before. And despite all its shortcomings it’s still a very good game, and here’s why.
First and foremost, the gameplay feels phenomenal, the planes control brilliantly, dog fights are challenging and very rewarding, and overall everything feels fine tuned to make this a definitive fighter sim experience. I seriously can’t praise it enough, I could spend extensive time practicing with the movement and combat just to learn it better, it’s that good.
Also, despite many missions being… okay at best, many missions, especially the later ones are awesome! They have incredible set pieces and moments that are designed to make you feel like a badass. I won’t spoil anything, but it’s staggering how good the later missions are and how creative they are compared to the earlier ones.
On the topic of being a badass, AC7 tries very hard to make you feel like one. It makes you feel like the Ace that it makes Trigger out to be, and it succeeds. From the excellent boss fights to the later set pieces, to your allies on comms praising you, everything is designed to give you a power fantasy.
The music is also top notch, not what I was expecting, but still phenomenal none the less.
And graphically? It’s gorgeous, the game looks stunning, the cutscenes and gameplay alike almost look like they were designed with the 9th generation in mind, which, of course, they weren’t.
One of my favorite things about this game is how it rewards experimentation, it rewards you making the game more challenging on yourself by using the advanced controls by making more high level maneuvers and mechanics easier to pull off with this control scheme. But even without advanced controls, the game encourages you to think outside the box, mix up your strategy, try out different planes and special weapons to see what works best for you in specific missions. And I honestly feel that’s one of the best things about this game, and something it gets right.
And even with all that said, AC7 has so much more to it then just the campaign, stuff I haven’t even touched yet, such as a multiplayer and VR mode. You can really feel the love packed into this game by Project Aces and it’s incredible.
So, overall, how is Ace Combat 7? It’s a game that’s rough around the edges, a game that makes some amateurish mistakes, and a game that’s alienating to people not familiar with the genre. But it’s also incredibly well tuned in all of its core gameplay systems, a game loaded with plenty of optional content, and a game that is genuinely fun and a game that rewards creativity. It’s a very good game, and I’m excited to work my way back through the rest of the series now that I’ve completed it.
7/10
After some time away, the Strangereal alt-history world is revisited as drones begin to flood the skies for mass warfare.
While I enjoyed the actual dogfighting action, I will say the campaign in 7 does not reach the same emotional heights the series made with its 4th and 5th numbered entries. It's not boring by any means, but there were story threads that I expected to see followed through that just... weren't addressed again.
I still need to check out the DLC missions (which I'm not sure have separate entries on here). Despite my hangups, this is still a solid entry in the series and hopefully not the last.
While I enjoyed the actual dogfighting action, I will say the campaign in 7 does not reach the same emotional heights the series made with its 4th and 5th numbered entries. It's not boring by any means, but there were story threads that I expected to see followed through that just... weren't addressed again.
I still need to check out the DLC missions (which I'm not sure have separate entries on here). Despite my hangups, this is still a solid entry in the series and hopefully not the last.
fuckin cool! got me into the franchise. some frustrating missions but you can probably attribute that to me just being bad at the game
This game is so fucking fun and the soundtrack makes you feel like a complete badass. An absolute experience.
Wonderful jets game, amazing soundtrack and a well voice acted story overlaying engaging dogfights.
The king has returned! It's great to see one of my favourite franchises come back in such triumphant fashion, with a mainline entry that finally seems to have hit some mainstream appeal. This game feels like everything a modern Ace Combat game should be. The improved visuals and weather effects are a very welcome addition, making a game that takes place entirely in the skies finally achieve a dynamic environment that isn't just a blank space. The clouds providing temporary cover, lightning knocking you off course, wind pushing against your plane, it's a great addition to the formula.
As a longtime fan of the series, the main draw in AC games for me is the narrative, because the series always wears its themes on its sleeves, and the overly dramatic and grandiose plotlines it comes up with are so enjoyable. In this case, Ace Combat sticks to what works, with a story that delivers on what the series is best at, though it does fall into the trap of relying a bit too heavily on nostalgia with certain key moments and threads. It's an overall fun story, but some lacking characters and a few too many ideas that don't quite mesh together, keep it from the heights of the past.
On the gameplay front, this is, to me, the best in the series. The plane handling is as top notch as ever, with additions like the Post Stall Maneuver offering some fun ways to pull off some truly insane stunts for those willing to dive deeper into the physics. The real highlight though is the mission variety, with almost every mission having some uniquely designed objective and play space that make the levels stand out more than any other game beforehand. The plane variety is a bit lacking compared to older entries, and the parts system doesn't really add much of anything meaningful to customize the gameplay, resulting in a bit of a tedious unlock progression system that is more of a distraction that a fun system to engage with.
Special mention to the excellent 3 DLC missions sold separately for this game, offering 3 of the absolute best missions in the game. While it is unfortunate that these are sold separately and not included in the game, their quality is at least worth the asking price.
Overall, it is a triumphant return for this classic franchise. While the structure and narrative of the campaign are a bit messy, a result of what was supposedly a tumultuous production, it still sticks the landing, and with the improvements made to gameplay, coupled with some truly excellent mission design, AC7 takes its place with the best in the series. I really hope this leads to the franchise getting more entries, because it shows that the formula that works best for Ace Combat is the formula that always did work, and after some rough years of experimentation after the PS2 era, I'm glad to see that the game has retained the identity that made me fall in love with the series in the first place.
As a longtime fan of the series, the main draw in AC games for me is the narrative, because the series always wears its themes on its sleeves, and the overly dramatic and grandiose plotlines it comes up with are so enjoyable. In this case, Ace Combat sticks to what works, with a story that delivers on what the series is best at, though it does fall into the trap of relying a bit too heavily on nostalgia with certain key moments and threads. It's an overall fun story, but some lacking characters and a few too many ideas that don't quite mesh together, keep it from the heights of the past.
On the gameplay front, this is, to me, the best in the series. The plane handling is as top notch as ever, with additions like the Post Stall Maneuver offering some fun ways to pull off some truly insane stunts for those willing to dive deeper into the physics. The real highlight though is the mission variety, with almost every mission having some uniquely designed objective and play space that make the levels stand out more than any other game beforehand. The plane variety is a bit lacking compared to older entries, and the parts system doesn't really add much of anything meaningful to customize the gameplay, resulting in a bit of a tedious unlock progression system that is more of a distraction that a fun system to engage with.
Special mention to the excellent 3 DLC missions sold separately for this game, offering 3 of the absolute best missions in the game. While it is unfortunate that these are sold separately and not included in the game, their quality is at least worth the asking price.
Overall, it is a triumphant return for this classic franchise. While the structure and narrative of the campaign are a bit messy, a result of what was supposedly a tumultuous production, it still sticks the landing, and with the improvements made to gameplay, coupled with some truly excellent mission design, AC7 takes its place with the best in the series. I really hope this leads to the franchise getting more entries, because it shows that the formula that works best for Ace Combat is the formula that always did work, and after some rough years of experimentation after the PS2 era, I'm glad to see that the game has retained the identity that made me fall in love with the series in the first place.
Ace combat is one of those rare franchises that manages to deliver good to amazing games even more than 2 decades after its beginning. Ace combat 7 is no exception. It is a flight sim that presents flight in a very unrealistic manner. You are able to do impossible stunts, carry hundreds of missiles and other physics defying stuff. If you are a diehard player of realistic flight sims like DSC then I don't recommend AC 7, but if your knowledge of fighter jets is “they are cool” then I highly recommend you give it a try.
Story
Unlike a lot of other modern flight sims, this one has an actual story, and a fairly engaging one at that. The shortest way I can describe it is Metal Gear Solid, but worse. The storyline is set in a war between two countries in an alternate universe. It isn't your regular cookie cutter war story. By this I mean that it has some weird elements and a deeper moral message if you're willing to look for it, but it can also be very campy at times and that weirdness can go both ways. The worst part is the way they handle the characters. Some get replaced too quickly, while others seem useless.
Gameplay
It is an arcade flight sim, whereas I said before you can do impossible maneuvers and can carry dozens of missiles. This applies to all the planes in the game, of which there is a wide variety. They range from popular ones (F-22, F-15, SU 27) experimental (YF-23, SU 47, FB-22) to completely fictional (ADFX-01, X-02, Darkstar). You acquire them with points you earn during the missions. Grinding will be required if you want all the planes. In addition to aircraft, you can also get special weapons, like missiles with very long range, extra guns and more. Gameplay pacing is fantastic, as the mission you are playing is rarely similar to the previous. Bosses are okay, although they are rare. Returning players will notice one big addition to the mobility - PSM (post stall maneuver). They turn the previously improbable mobility to downright silly. Overall, I would describe the gameplay as fun. There is also multiplayer, but I couldn't be bothered with it.
Graphics and artstyle
Since you won't be looking at the ground at a very close range, it can get away with lower quality textures while still maintaining AAA levels of graphics. Other than that, everything else – plane models, weather, cutscenes make the game look very beautiful.
Atmosphere
It did make me feel like an unstoppable ace pilot at times.
Soundtrack
Probably the best in the franchise thus far. The Latin adds a level of mysticism that is just right for AC 7. Favorite part is “Archange”.
Final Thoughts
Dog.jpg
Story
Unlike a lot of other modern flight sims, this one has an actual story, and a fairly engaging one at that. The shortest way I can describe it is Metal Gear Solid, but worse. The storyline is set in a war between two countries in an alternate universe. It isn't your regular cookie cutter war story. By this I mean that it has some weird elements and a deeper moral message if you're willing to look for it, but it can also be very campy at times and that weirdness can go both ways. The worst part is the way they handle the characters. Some get replaced too quickly, while others seem useless.
Gameplay
It is an arcade flight sim, whereas I said before you can do impossible maneuvers and can carry dozens of missiles. This applies to all the planes in the game, of which there is a wide variety. They range from popular ones (F-22, F-15, SU 27) experimental (YF-23, SU 47, FB-22) to completely fictional (ADFX-01, X-02, Darkstar). You acquire them with points you earn during the missions. Grinding will be required if you want all the planes. In addition to aircraft, you can also get special weapons, like missiles with very long range, extra guns and more. Gameplay pacing is fantastic, as the mission you are playing is rarely similar to the previous. Bosses are okay, although they are rare. Returning players will notice one big addition to the mobility - PSM (post stall maneuver). They turn the previously improbable mobility to downright silly. Overall, I would describe the gameplay as fun. There is also multiplayer, but I couldn't be bothered with it.
Graphics and artstyle
Since you won't be looking at the ground at a very close range, it can get away with lower quality textures while still maintaining AAA levels of graphics. Other than that, everything else – plane models, weather, cutscenes make the game look very beautiful.
Atmosphere
It did make me feel like an unstoppable ace pilot at times.
Soundtrack
Probably the best in the franchise thus far. The Latin adds a level of mysticism that is just right for AC 7. Favorite part is “Archange”.
Final Thoughts
Dog.jpg