I write this review coming from a place of love. I've played Ace Combat ever since I was young and have loved every aspect of it. Were the previous games in the series without flaw? Of course not. However I feel Ace Combat 07 would have been much more enjoyable if it took a few pages from the previous games books so to speak.

Before I delve into what I did not like, ill state what I did. The visuals are breath taking, and are very much in line with what an Ace Combat game from this generation of gaming should look like. I've heard of the massive ♥♥♥♥♥ storm regarding ultra-wide support but in my own experience on a 1080p monitor with 60 frames, I'm more than satisfied with how the game looks. The aircraft models look as they should, and it seems great care was taken by the developers to accurately represent them. (Makes me wish other aircraft such as the FB-22 Strike Raptor or F-5F Tiger II were in the game... Oh well one can dream). The added mechanics of clouds really has changed the dynamic of the game in a good way. I don't feel like its turn-and-burn to avoid getting bounced by enemy aircraft, utilizing clouds with the high-G turning can really help when you're trying to dodge missile. Overall, the game LOOKS like an Ace Combat game should in 2019, and this is where I cannot fault them.

The soundtrack is just as it should be, amazing and in line with Ace Combat. The remixes of previous songs was greatly appreciated, and the only time I felt myself confused was with the song with a french vocalist at the ending credits. (is this a space elevator, or an eiffel tower?

There ARE SPOILERS AHEAD, as I will now be discussing what I did not like in Ace Combat 07

The story feels like its all over the place, and ultimately I cant feel connected with any of the characters. The opening cutscene introduces this gritty tomboy who grew up with her pilot grandfather. The main character however does not have any interaction with her until later, when you're introduced to the 444rth Penal Squadron. Even then, it would have served her character MUCH BETTER if she was an actual pilot flying with you. Instead you get these, frankly d**chy sounding wing mates that I ultimately cannot feel anything for. Count is the WORST of them all, in my opinion, as he spends a majority of the story being whiny and always claiming "Oh that was just luck! I'm better than Trigger!" or "Hey Trigger lets compare later so I can show you I'm best!" It honestly gets old, especially as you do the entire mission basically by yourself since wing commands are no longer a part of the game. Towards the end he flips his personality out of nowhere and tries to act like he's been your good buddy the whole time but it comes off as a "really? so all those times you couldn't shut up about being better than me in that nasty tone was just sarcasm huh?" Honestly Clown, your first wing mate, was much more charismatic but he just vanishes after you get transferred. Imagine if you eventually become his wing mate again, and there ends up being some tension because of your crime? That would have been infinitely more interesting than count's incessant mouthing off. The other members of your squadron are so forgettable that I cant really say much about them. Wiseman didn't get enough time to develop as a character, so when he bites the dust I cant really feel remorse.

Mihaly was mindly interesting, but his stoic appearance doesn't do him much good. Unlike Yellow 13 in AC04, the scientist does little to explain enough of Mihaly's character to make him feel important. He ends up feeling like just another top ace that I need to down. In AC04 you fight the man who's love you killed, as his only challenge in the sky. In AC05 you fight bitter pilots who wish to see the two nations that brought their fatherland to ruin burn in the fires of war. In AC07 you fight a man who lost his whole country, was shot in the face by his friend, but didn't care cuz he likes to fly. I'm sorry what? It just seems so forced to me, and ends up ruining him as a character for me. Even the Akula from Assault Horizon had a more justifiable goal for wanting to bring world ruin than Mihaly.

The princess's character is also underdeveloped. It would have been an absolute joy to see more of her struggles, after realizing she coaxed her country further into a bloody war that was started by young military leaders in Erusia (Which by the way, is only BARELY touched on). it would make her selfless attempt to save refugees, as well has her selfless effort to climb the space elevator and stop the power transfer to the Arsenal Bird all the more grounded. I wanted more of Cossette, but ended up feeling like her character was out right wasted.

The multiplayer feels lacking for a 2019 title. No co-op whatsoever, not even co-op campaign. its just so damn disappointing. I would have loved to fly around, dog fighting enemies with my friends and just having a good time in general. It feels like such a missed opportunity for the series, and ultimately I cant help but wonder why such a feature was not added in, especially with a story that felt so hollow. One can hope that co-op multiplayer will be added in the future but it seems unlikely.

Taking a departure from the negatives let me end the review with a few more things that i appreciated, now that ive written all this and had a chance to really think. The whole Drone vs Man motif for a flying game is interesting, and a good motif to have. I also appreciated the nostalgia trip, seeing stonehenge tell the Arsenal Bird to go die in a dumpster fire was more than satisfying. (especially since I played AC04 when I was young, and hearing the shells go off coupled with the music scared the living daylights out of me!) Seeing Farbanti again was a joy too, especially with how beautiful it was in AC04, it just FEELS satisfying.

Ultimately I cannot recommend this game for the price point they are asking. If it dipped to 35 dollars id say grab it, maybe 45 if your a long time fan and just wanna enjoy a modern feeling Ace Combat, knowing full well that the story is not up to par compared to the previous entries. I have comments enabled so that people can discuss stuff with me, but please do understand I write this review with love. I'm not trying to review bomb the game(frankly all the people complaining about joysticks must not have played the previous titles at all), I'm merely trying to get my opinion out there so that maybe AC08 can be a return to the amazing storytelling with relative simple, but satisfying game play i remember loving as a kid.

I write this review coming from a place of love. I've played Ace Combat ever since I was young and have loved every aspect of it. Were the previous games in the series without flaw? Of course not. However I feel Ace Combat 07 would have been much more enjoyable if it took a few pages from the previous games books so to speak. Before I delve into what I did not like, ill state what I did. The visuals are breath taking, and are very much in line with what an Ace Combat game from this generation of gaming should look like. I've heard of the massive shite storm regarding ultra-wide support but in my own experience on a 1080p monitor with 60 frames, I'm more than satisfied with how the game looks. The aircraft models look as they should, and it seems great care was taken by the developers to accurately represent them. (Makes me wish other aircraft such as the FB-22 Strike Raptor or F-5F Tiger II were in the game... Oh well one can dream). The added mechanics of clouds really has changed the dynamic of the game in a good way. I don't feel like its turn-and-burn to avoid getting bounced by enemy aircraft, utilizing clouds with the high-G turning can really help when you're trying to dodge missile. Overall, the game LOOKS like an Ace Combat game should in 2019, and this is where I cannot fault them. The soundtrack is just as it should be, amazing and in line with Ace Combat. The remixes of previous songs was greatly appreciated, and the only time I felt myself confused was with the song with a french vocalist at the ending credits. (is this a space elevator, or an eiffel tower? There [b]ARE SPOILERS AHEAD[/b], as I will now be discussing what I did not like in Ace Combat 07 The story feels like its all over the place, and ultimately I cant feel connected with any of the characters. The opening cutscene introduces this gritty tomboy who grew up with her pilot grandfather. The main character however does not have any interaction with her until later, when you're introduced to the 444rth Penal Squadron. Even then, it would have served her character MUCH BETTER if she was an actual pilot flying with you. Instead you get these, frankly d**chy sounding wing mates that I ultimately cannot feel anything for. Count is the WORST of them all, in my opinion, as he spends a majority of the story being whiny and always claiming "Oh that was just luck! I'm better than Trigger!" or "Hey Trigger lets compare later so I can show you I'm best!" It honestly gets old, especially as you do the entire mission basically by yourself since wing commands are no longer a part of the game. Towards the end he flips his personality out of nowhere and tries to act like he's been your good buddy the whole time but it comes off as a "really? so all those times you couldn't shut up about being better than me in that nasty tone was just sarcasm huh?" Honestly Clown, your first wing mate, was much more charismatic but he just vanishes after you get transferred. Imagine if you eventually become his wing mate again, and there ends up being some tension because of your crime? That would have been infinitely more interesting than count's incessant mouthing off. The other members of your squadron are so forgettable that I cant really say much about them. Wiseman didn't get enough time to develop as a character, so when he bites the dust I cant really feel remorse. Mihaly was mindly interesting, but his stoic appearance doesn't do him much good. Unlike Yellow 13 in AC04, the scientist does little to explain enough of Mihaly's character to make him feel important. He ends up feeling like just another top ace that I need to down. In AC04 you fight the man who's love you killed, as his only challenge in the sky. In AC05 you fight bitter pilots who wish to see the two nations that brought their fatherland to ruin burn in the fires of war. In AC07 you fight a man who lost his whole country, was shot in the face by his friend, but didn't care cuz he likes to fly. I'm sorry what? It just seems so forced to me, and ends up ruining him as a character for me. Even the Akula from Assault Horizon had a more justifiable goal for wanting to bring world ruin than Mihaly. The princess's character is also underdeveloped. It would have been an absolute joy to see more of her struggles, after realizing she coaxed her country further into a bloody war that was started by young military leaders in Erusia (Which by the way, is only BARELY touched on). it would make her selfless attempt to save refugees, as well has her selfless effort to climb the space elevator and stop the power transfer to the Arsenal Bird all the more grounded. I wanted more of Cossette, but ended up feeling like her character was out right wasted. The multiplayer feels lacking for a 2019 title. No co-op whatsoever, not even co-op campaign. its just so damn disappointing. I would have loved to fly around, dog fighting enemies with my friends and just having a good time in general. It feels like such a missed opportunity for the series, and ultimately I cant help but wonder why such a feature was not added in, especially with a story that felt so hollow. One can hope that co-op multiplayer will be added in the future but it seems unlikely. Taking a departure from the negatives let me end the review with a few more things that i appreciated, now that ive written all this and had a chance to really think. The whole Drone vs Man motif for a flying game is interesting, and a good motif to have. I also appreciated the nostalgia trip, seeing stonehenge tell the Arsenal Bird to go die in a dumpster fire was more than satisfying. (especially since I played AC04 when I was young, and hearing the shells go off coupled with the music scared the living daylights out of me!) Seeing Farbanti again was a joy too, especially with how beautiful it was in AC04, it just FEELS satisfying. Ultimately I cannot recommend this game for the price point they are asking. If it dipped to 35 dollars id say grab it, maybe 45 if your a long time fan and just wanna enjoy a modern feeling Ace Combat, knowing full well that the story is not up to par compared to the previous entries. I have comments enabled so that people can discuss stuff with me, but please do understand [u]I write this review with love[/u]. I'm not trying to review bomb the game([i]frankly all the people complaining about joysticks must not have played the previous titles at all[/i]), I'm merely trying to get my opinion out there so that maybe AC08 can be a return to the amazing storytelling with relative simple, but satisfying game play i remember loving as a kid.