ACE COMBAT™ 7: SKIES UNKNOWN

Trigger

Average japanese game port - no graphics options, changing the controls options doesn't work for mouse at all, and even though I don't have any controllers connected to the computer the game is showing xbox one and PS5 prompts, at the same time, interchangeably.

Вообще не ожидал, что игра настолько понравится. Слишком казуальная, сюжет для галочки -- но веселье от полётов дарит. Доволен!

I am genuinely sad that my first ever steam review of a game is going to be a negative one, but here we are. And maybe sad is not the right word, because I am irritated if not outright angry. Let’s start from the beginning. The issue that encompasses all my specific issues stems from the fact that the game is an obvious PC port of a console game and carries with it all kinds of short-sights and compatibility issues. For me personally, it is the way the planes are controlled. I don’t have a stick, so it is a choice between controller and MKB. And the options to customize them are extremely limited on what can be changed in the category that matters to me. MKB has one specific issue that I cannot ignore so it quickly becomes unplayable. In order to maintain a directional input with the mouse, you need to keep moving it in that direction. And well, my desk space is not unlimited. And every time you must lift the mouse you stop the input and add “noise” each time you lift and place it from the surface. In comparison, Freelancer (old game, great game), had a neutral position, and moving the mouse from it induced specific input, like controller stick. You move the mouse back from toward that neutral position to stop the input. I have seen this done in other games as well. Why that is not present here, I don’t know. It was allowing you to manage the movement in all axes that matter with just the mouse. But here, you have to still use the keyboard for some of the axes, acceleration/deceleration, and whatever else you might have to do. And don’t forget that some keyboard gets stuck when certain buttons are pressed together. Then we go to the controller… This is apparently the intended input as it is mainly PS4 game (exclusive VR locked to PS4, for example). I have an xbox controller. Left stick is not in a good position (for me) to make precise movements that isolate X and Y axes. That means that each time I want to pitch, I also turn ever so slightly, and vice versa. I saw ppl complain about xbox controller sensitivity and I think this is part of it for me as well. But I cannot change anything in the game regarding that. In comparison, Call of Duty has quite comprehensive setup for the controller and sticks you can do in-game (not to mention also having aim-assist on top of it). Here, there is nothing. Some people are using third party software to remap the input, but a game should work from the box, not require from you to install additional software. I was considering getting a HOTAS and a Stick for this (been thinking about it regardless of the game for some time as I am interested in planes), but then I read that BANDAI NAMCO made a deal with Thrustmaster to only support specific versions of their peripherals (not even their full lineup). That is extremely consumer unfriendly. And, again, some people have found work-arounds for that (through third party software), but that falls again in that category I mentioned on the controller side. Let’s move to the gameplay side. Here, I feel my view will be a bit skewed, as my main issue is controlling the plane first. And that is a very basic part of the whole game. And if that is not working well enough for me, everything else gets refracted through that lens. I managed to go through 6 missions (including one that is apparently notorious for its difficulty), and did a few tries on the 7th. I played on Normal difficulty, which is second to the highest. The game is difficult in the sense that the room for error is small. Not about getting shot down (that is one thing), but the objectives themselves require you to be very focused on them. The game uses dialogue between the other pilots as exposition while at the same time you are busy dealing with whatever is happening on the screen. The cognitive load this causes is quite high. And my main problem is not that I must listen to what I need to do, but that this second channel I need to track (the dialogue) is full of fluff that is meaningless until it is not. Do I need to know if there are some ppl betting on who will crash or who will not? The game both gives you the impression of something that is not serious while it pushes you to achieve very tight game objectives. And there is little to no indication on what you should prioritize vs what you should try to ignore if you missed it in the dialogue. Briefings pre missions are informative, but they also are not covering the whole mission, in the sense that “there might be surprises”. So, you NEED to listen to pointless banter while dodging missiles, trying to align your plane with targets, checking your radar for missiles that you need to dodge, and fighting the controls. Dodging incoming missiles is its own can of worms. You can see them on your radar, so dodging at the right moment or even ignoring them if they are not guiding properly toward you is possible. But you can get locked into having to dodge repeatedly missile after missile, while the game requires you to NOT waste time. In many situations, it seems dogfighting is counterproductive. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes you are not the one choosing. Even if your aim is to just extend and continue to chase objectives, you still lose time dodging missiles, and whether or not that happens feels completely out of your control. Mission variety is good (the ones I managed to play). And I think the design of them is good. But my struggle with the control side of the plane makes certain obstacles far more challenging than what was probably intended. Planes and weapons. What I tried was good. The planes had distinct enough feel. But that feel is more about what their stats say than what the plane is. It is an arcade game after all, you won't see the game differentiate a delta wing's instantaneous vs. sustained turn rate the way a sim would. You will feel an A-10 be more sluggish than an F-16 though. The way weapons are depicted is also interesting (again, the ones I managed to try). There are good options to choose from, and what you choose WILL matter in a mission. You have broadly two categories from my POV – guided and unguided weapons. Guided means that the game will lock on targets for you. With my issues with controls, those were the preferred options. Unguided require precision that I struggle to replicate in game (certain unguided weapons have AoE effect, so the guidance requirement varies). I saw videos of players online being extremely precise with their handling and aiming, but I can tell you for sure, they are NOT using an xbox controller. Aiming at a ground target with your plane cannon requires precision (precise SMALL movements) that the controller is not capable of without tinkering with the sensitivity (and I can’t from the game alone). I played a bit with the dead zone of my controller, and it helped me a bit with the general controllability of the plane, but that also killed the precision part even more as it shortens the space in which you move from little to all the way. If the game was allowing me to use the d-pad AND, it would have been A LOT better. But I don’t have that option out of the box. I feel I have two competing problems that the stick fails to solve. To summarize, the game is not accessible enough for me. And mind you, I don’t want the game to be easy. The game IS challenging, it is intense, and those are good things for me. But I want the challenge to be fair. And if I am struggling with the basics because Bandai Namco did not spend enough time to create solid input device customization, that is on them, not me. One last thing to mention here, and I am trying to be careful with it. The community of that game is not very helpful. I tried looking at guides and saw elitism and memes in large portion of it. The expectation that you need to “git gud” answers every complaint toward the game. So, have that in mind if you decide to give it a shot.

If you like the Ace combat or are interested in trying the series out this is a REally great game to play! I feel the story is a little haphazard with how it's told... but it does come together at the end which is nice! Can't wait to Play AC8!

Really good game in my opinion, if you already expect it being arcade/unrealistic shooter. If you played games like DCS, War thunder (non arcade mode) or il2 sturmovik series then it is probably not for you. I do like the graphics of the game and I am surprised how smoothly it runs on my laptop, with it being instaled on external T7 ssd disk. Missions are fun, currently I passed first 8 missions, the only one that was really hard was mission 6, I tried playing with A10 or F16, but what worked for me was F14 equiped with 8 anti air missiles to shoot down more targets in less time. Story of the game is engaging, but a bit confusing due to having completely alternative universe/history of earth and made up states. Some people might dislike this with the fact that planes that would be enemies in our world can fly on the same side. I actually don´t mind this because you can choose whatever you want. I would rate this game solid 8/10, it runs smoothly, it is fun, but you need to keep up with the story and understand the lore of the game. I am not familiar with the rest of this series, last time I played ace combat was on psp when I was a little kid so it was even more confusing than now, but I think I will check the rest of this series. Also you can buy this game for about 10 euros on sale, and I do think for that price it is definitely worth it!

kinda boring

The voice acting is bad, the dialogue is bad, the music is meh, but the actual flying and blowing things up is super fun. The missions are well designed.