It’s been many years since the last proper installment in the Ace Combat franchise.
While it’s true that two Ace Combat games did come out in recent years, namely Assault Horizon and Infinity, they had little to nothing to do with the main storyline of the series.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown promises to change that.
Taking place after the event of Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation, Ace Combat 7 tells the story of an Osean Air Defense Force pilot, callsign Trigger – a member of Mage Squadron.
In the year 2019, the Osean Federation has been in heavy tension with the Kingdom of Erusea, after the former have erected a space elevator in the Usean continent. Believing the Oseans are using the space elevator to try and take over the entire Usean continent, the Kingdom of Erusea took military action, resulting in the Lighthouse War.
The Erusea forces have managed to capture the space elevator, as well as a number of Osean Arsenal Birds that were protecting the space elevator. These Arsenal Birds are large, turboprop-engined UAV carriers that can hold up to 80 unmanned combat aircraft.
UAVs have played a critical role in the Lighthouse War, from terror attacks to aircraft interception. It is possible that this is not even the extent of what UAVs may be capable of doing in this new installment to the franchise.
We don’t know a lot about our heroic pilot Trigger, but the E3 trailer has provided us with much insight into his role in this game.
It appears that Trigger was involved in an incident that resulted in the possible conviction for war crimes. As punishment, the Osean pilot is reassigned to Spare Squad – a penal squadron consisting mostly of convicts and criminals who have committed atrocious acts. There, Trigger will have a chance to redeem himself as cannon fodder for the Osean Air Force.
The convicts of Spare Squad have appeared in previous trailers for Ace Combat 7, but it is only now that we know their true purpose and identity.
Ace Combat 7 is scheduled to appear again in Gamescom 2018, but it is currently unknown whether Bandai Namco will reveal new information about the game or new playable demos and missions to try out.
Having personally experienced the Virtual Reality demo of the game, I must say that I am pumped up and looking forward to what Bandai Namco will have in store for us.
It is also noteworthy that Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown have yet to receive a full release date. Previously the game was scheduled to release in 2017, yet it has been delayed to an unknown release date sometime in 2018.
Since nothing is set in stone at the moment, it is even possible that Bandai Namco may yet again delay the release of the arcade combat flight sim.
Once Ace Combat 7 will come out, it will do so on PlayStation 4, PSVR, Xbox One, and PC. This is the first game in the series to arrive on PC on day one.
Some of our posts include links to online retail stores. We get a small cut if you buy something through one of our links. Don't worry, it doesn't cost you anything extra.
