Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve

Overview

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve is a combat flight simulation game developed by Bandai Namco Aces and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. It is the ninth mainline installment in the Ace Combat series and a sequel to Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. The game continues the series in the fictional Strangereal universe, with military aircraft combat as its central focus.

Gameplay

As in earlier Ace Combat games, players pilot military aircraft across missions built around combat objectives. These include dogfighting hostile aircraft, eliminating large superweapons, and destroying ground and naval targets. Players can choose an aircraft and loadout before each sortie.

At launch, the game features more than 30 aircraft. These aircraft are divided into four categories, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Unlike previous games in the franchise, hostile planes can be damaged by hitting them anywhere, rather than by targeting specific weak points. Destroyed aircraft may also damage other nearby targets.

Squadron wingmen return as part of combat, with players able to order them to attack enemies and use special weapons. Combat performance and minor narrative decisions can affect the survival of non-player characters and their roles in certain story moments, while the overall plot remains largely unchanged. Between missions, the player character is stationed aboard the aircraft carrier Endurance. The game tells its story from a first-person perspective, a first for the franchise.

The multiplayer mode incorporates elements from Ace Combat Infinity, including teams fighting each other or the same enemy, with victory based on score. Multiplayer also includes battles against superweapons from previous Ace Combat games.

Setting

Ace Combat 8 is set in Strangereal, an alternate Earth with different nations, geography, and history. The story covers the 2029 Sotoa-Usea War on the continent of Usea, ten years after the Lighthouse War. The conflict is fought between the Republic of Sotoa and the Federation of Central Usea. Sotoa begins the war with a blitzkrieg invasion using orbital kinetic bombardment weapons called Tonitrus Spears, overrunning the FCU and crippling its defenses, including its navy.

Release

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve was released on October 2, 2026 for Windows, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. It was developed by Bandai Namco Aces and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment.

Sources

• Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve on Wikipedia
• Release date announcement