https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVCv_uG6vFc
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is one of my most anticipated games of 2019, so I sat down with Erich from Guideranx to play the opening missions. We’ll release even more videos of our playtime — so check below for additional parts, because I just couldn’t put this game down. It’s an awesome iteration on the action-simulation flying formula this series is known for, and it’s a return to the Strangereal setting fans prefer over real-life diversions like Ace Combat: Assault Horizon.
In Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, you play as a pilot of a fictional nation at war. The airplanes and weaponry are real, but the politics are entirely invented. You’ll engage enemy aces in dog-fights, and use a series of special weapons to complete mission objectives over realistic map environments. The story hews close to war potboiler territory, featuring political conspiracies, questions of war-time ethics, and the morality of drone warfare. That’s just on the story side of things, because the gameplay is fast-paced, sending waves of enemy pilots (or ground-based vehicles) after your airman.
There are plenty of changes in Ace Combat 7. Most notably, weather has a variety of special effects on your fighter — thick clouds will obscure your vision, freeze up your jet, block missile lock-on, or disable you if you’re stuck by lightning. Wind currents will push your vehicle around mid-air, too. In the singleplayer campaign, you’ll find a variety of upgrades you can purchase and unlock to improve any of your preferred jets.
This is an essential return to the dog-fighting fun and high drama of the best games in this storied series. The music is pretty awesome, too. Check out our playthrough above, and I’ll continue to post new videos in our gameplay series below for your viewing pleasure — or displeasure. We’ve got a lot to say about this very strange setting. The game might be a weird Japanese otaku’s version of war, but that doesn’t diminish my love one bit.
