The Original Ace Combat Really Surprised Me...

[@jxi8098]

The reason why it was called Air Combat in the international release was due to the game originally being a straight port of the Namco Arcade Game Air Combat. ThunderousFolf made a retrospective on Air combat/Ace Combat 1 that goes into the development of said title. Also nice to see the series I voted for be selected. Moving from AC to AC (both being published by Bandai Namco too).

[@livingreverie5951]

To add on, the game was originally based on an arcade cabinet Also called Air Combat Given it’s a port, the name being carried over was also reasonable in terms of western release

[@tavorskiy]

9:55 - You can use stock color schemes on planes by activating the cheat by entering > during the loading screen

[@CoBALT23]

I hope this turns into a video series like armored core

[@notcole]

👀

[@edgargad2941]

You failed the comprehension check.

[@KeybladeMaster9913]

As a veteran, and MASSIVE fan, of the series I'm so glad that this series is your next review series. I can't wait till you get to the "Holy Trinity" of 4,5, and Zero.

[@SoloWing88]

The Fuel gage in Air is more or less a retextured timer

[@Gammons211]

Yes it is but you can run out of fuel and fall from the sky i had that happen once when i was chasing a rather annoying pilot for awhile

[@SoloWing88]

@@Gammons211 what I mean is the fuel goes down constant rate and when it's out you loose. No speeding up or showing down changes that.

[@Gammons211]

@@SoloWing88 oh ya he wrong bout that

[@henlostinky273]

the air combat/ace combat naming thing is because the true first game in the series is the 1992 arcade game 'air combat'. when they ported it to playstation in japan they renamed it to ace combat, while in the west they kept the air combat name from the arcade game. they changed their mind for AC2 and just kept it ace combat everywhere after that.

[@shawnleeRX78CV01]

If Air Combat give you a good experience, I think you’ll be in for the ride for what the series offers far ahead. I wouldn’t spoil the fun but it’s something you wouldn't expect from a game about planes. Also a little heads up for ace combat 3, do try and get yourself a fan translated JP version where one of the most impressive elements got removed from the international release: a much richer story and animated cut scenes by none other than the studio behind ghost in the shell. On a side note: I binged watched your AC review series. It was really enjoyable to watch, you explained every entry really well (even though I only played 3,FF,SL and 6) so having you going through another AC is something I'm really excited for. Looking forward to your journey towards the rest of the series! :D

[@Ikcatcher]

I am so happy to see you cover another AC franchise, it’s the one franchise which I personally think gets better with every new entry

[@analt2379]

I can’t say I’d agree with “every new entry” air combat to ac 4 sure, but after that you get ac 5 which while not bad is a noticeable dip in quality from ac 4 (which is my personal favourite btw) especially in terms of gameplay then you have zero which if we’re talking about things as objectively as possible is probably the best flight action game ever it uses ac 5’s flight model but has good level design and the story is just amazing after that it’s ac x which is pretty underrated but not on par with 4 or zero Then you have have 6 which has great gameplay and a decentish story but is held back by the dialogue (I also didn’t like the shoot mechanic that much) Then you have assault horizon… ok it isn’t as bad as people say but dfm was unnecessary. Then there’s infinity (which I never played) Finally you got 7 which overall is amazing, good story but it’s annoying how somethings are only explained in aces at war (but understandable considering the circumstances it was made in) it also has the best flight model. Over all it’s really good but I can’t put it on par with zero and personally I liked 4 more. Oh yeah there’s also project wingman for an indie game it’s damn impressive, hell I don’t even expect what they did from most big budget triple A industries.

[@Andrew-vy3lw]

Cant wait for him to cover assassins creed to complete the trilogy

[@kyotra]

Oh no way, I had no idea this was actually the progenitor of the Ace Combat series. My father played this game a lot back in the day.

[@scarface1367]

I'm in love with this game, so much so that I wrote an entire script for an Air Combat remake, even if I doubt it'll ever happen. That being said in comparison to the rest of the franchise it sure does show its age, with stuff like a lack of a true narative like the later games have, extra modes outside of a 1 on 1 multiplayer, and some other things, but for what it's worth, it is the humble beginning for an otherwise great franchise

[@suburbansamurai3560]

Armored Core 6 was my first time playing that series, and I immediately synced with it because it’s structure and story telling method felt very similar to Ace Combat, which I’ve loved since Ace Combat 4. Also, that AC abbreviation! Coincidence??

[@tavorskiy]

Despite the fact that all parts since the second are much better both in graphical and gameplay terms, Air Combat holds a special place in my heart. When I was in elementary school, my relatives gave me an old PS1 and the only disk with this game. It was the early 2010s and there were much better games on PC at the time, but I fell in love with the game and played it every time I came home from school. The crackle of an old TV, the sound of the CD accelerating in the drive, that same legendary sound of the PS1 starting up. I miss those times... Everything felt different then. For me at least.

[@apukami3643]

From AC to AC. I see.

[@scott2100]

Oh Ace Combat, how the mission structure really hasn't changed, and how it has been still great

[@Ferrari_champ]

Ace Combat, one of my favorite gaming series of all time. The most unrealistic but funnest aircraft ever.

[@comchia4306]

I remember my mum taking me to get a cheap copy of this game at a local games shop, circa 2000. This was after i played the 1992 arcade game at the Six Flags in San Antonio. As arcade as it is, i still love it, especially in the music. My only gripe would be the lack of bombs and rockets, which later games fixed.

[@taylorjoseph15]

Man this was a blast from the past. My brother and I had tons of fun in the multiplayer just flying around and doing stunt maneuvers.

[@AidensFarm24]

I'm 40 now, and when this game first came out i xamt begin to state just how impressive it truly was. It was literally groundbreaking on consoles. Honestly even compared to PC flight games of the time its simple pick up and play natire combined with the complete 3d play space was insane. Games like this made ke realize that , maybe aside from VR, we'd never see such a huge transformation in video games ever again as we did with the jump to 3D

[@ninjastreet5]

HELL YEAHHH ACE COMBAT TIME, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A FUN TIME PLAYING THIS SERIES (also imho Ace Combat series sound track tops Armored Core sound track, but both are awesome series that I really love) It feels good that my vote (collectively, our vote) get picked and as the other person said: "Moving from AC to AC" (with both being published by Bandai Namco)

[@PsycheTrance65]

I've been eyeing Ace Combat 7 for a while now. I'm taking this video as a sign that I should go and try it out already 😁

[@jxi8098]

I heavily recommend Skies Unknown. It's the first ace combat I played and got me into the rest of this wonderful series.

[@lesslighter]

well there's max0r ace combat vods.......

[@herbertpocket8855]

Woah! I had no clue getting shot down was so punishing! It’s kind of amazing that they nailed this whole concept on the first go, each game is a refinement of this one basically.

[@chrisparks3747]

Nice intro, I hope you continue with this series! I've been playing Ace Combat games since AC2 in 1997. Even within the Ace Combat community, people are hesitant to call them true flight simulator games; they're usually thought of as flight action games. They really lean into the unreality of giant bosses and superweapons as the series continues

[@astrea555]

Here we go again buddies! Looking forward to your impressions of AC3 and the holy trilogy, as well as the modern games!

[@dhoffnun]

Oh wow - that's a neat perspective to hear. Old guy here: I think the very first computer game I ever played with any regularity was an old DOS flight sim called Jet Fighter - it's why I still play with an inverted mouse to this day - I used a joystick in that game and it programmed my brain: back=up! Oh hey - about the paint - I felt the same way back in the day, and you might be happy to know that there's a cheat code for keeping the "stock" livery instead of the air-show styled AIR COMBAT ones. Ha... wonder how many folks here are old enough to remember video game cheat code magazines :p

[@1024NIN]

So happy you discovered this and armored core all in the same year! Ace Combat was the one I wanted to see the most! Consider me subbed!

[@chimericalical]

Not a veteran of this franchise (actually never played it) but the moment you mentioned novice and expert controls I understood you were playing expert. Colloquially we refer to the novice controls as “Arcade” controls and the expert ones as “flight sim” controls. Star fox has arcade controls. Grand theft auto V has flight sim controls. Also… Left and right in the D-pad make the plane Roll (this is a term for any objects rotation in 3D space. A kick flip and a heel flip is a roll). Up and down are pitch (again, applies to any object moving in 3D space). When you tilt a pitcher to pour a drink you’re pitching it down, after pouting said drink and setting it so it doesn’t spill you’re pitching it up. L1 and R1 are yaw. Automobiles steering wheels rotate the wheels so that the car yaws. Roll = what it sounds like, you roll left and right (relative to poc of veh) Pitch = relative to vehicle pov you point up or down Yaw = relative to vehicle orientation you turn like a car. Arcade just makes it so pushing left and right will roll 90 degrees, then pitch then roll the other way 90 degrees… it’s lame.

[@stringbones9360]

Very very excited to see someone go through Ace Combat for the first time with a retrospective lens. Looking forward to more! Also, if this game felt good to play you are in for a damn good time with later entries.

[@livingreverie5951]

I will say though Do constantly raise your expectations for the music It’s a flagship part of these games And uh Keep an open eye out for Tunnels Project Aces (the dedicated team behind AC) has an extreme thing for them

[@arkratos3727]

So hyped for Ace Combat! Excited to see how the whole series is. Can't wait till you get to the PS2 games I played!

[@dragonandavatarfan8865]

What a great time for you to get into another AC series, espacially this one 😁. For a long time Ace Combat 04 was such a pain to emulate with lots of visual bugs here and there, thankfully since last year the chad devs of Pcsx2 have made lots of improvements to the emulator and so now hopefully playing one of the best ac games should be a pretty enjoyable experience for you, can't wait 👍.

[@northstarprimejaguar0076]

I remember Air Combat. It's like "Virtua Fighter", but with jets. If that makes sense, that is...

[@wanderer2688]

Although not developed by Namco or Project Aces, I hope you cover or take a look at Project Wingman, since it was created by fans as a love letter to Ace Combat during the long period between the release of AC6 and the announcement of AC7. Also, will you include Tom Clancy's HAWX games in the mix? They basically tried to copy Ace Combat with a classic Tom Clancy story without much success.

[@notcole]

I won't be covering it in this series, but I'll write it down 🙂

[@joshuamcwatters6803]

Seeing u tackle armored core, and now do ace combat (2 of my fav franchises) endles happiness. Can't wait till you get to ace combat 5 unsung war (or squadron leader as it was known in oce)

[@Phonixrmf]

Next should be Assassin's Creed, to keep the AC theme going. That or Animal Crossings

[@montywh]

excited for the progression of this series. never really got into Ace Combat that much, outside of one PSP title and the PS3 online f2p game. i did attempt Skies of Deception, but it purely played with the flight sim controls, which were atrocious for a PSP. then attempted Joint Assault, and loved it. had a great story, arcade controls to make it easier, and it had online play so you can join up with randos going through the game alongside you

[@Rubafix989]

I haven't liked an ace combat in a very long time but still voted for this because of the length of the series, that would mean more linked videos. It's a trap ^^

[@wanderer2688]

While Ace Combat is a great game/franchise, it is far from a flight simulator. It's an arcade combat flight game (The original Air Combat was literally an arcade machine game) with very little realism in how planes fly, maneuver, accelerate or their combat capabilities. Seriously, real missiles don't behave at all like how we see in AC. But it was made to be cool and fun to play, and I love it for it.

[@Izolus]

Fun discovering your channel after getting obsessed with armored core. I found myself coming back to your channel not long after a friend got me into ace combat and suddenly I see this

[@XeNes3D]

I love the AC series. 7 was my first introduction, but after falling in love with it back when it came out in 2019, I made it my mission to play the "Holy Trinity" which were the PS2 games. If and when you get to AC 6. No, you've already done a video on Armored Core 6, I'm talking about Ace Combat 6, check out Project Wingman as it was a game created when there was...let's just say a big downhill on Ace Combat games that wasn't making any good impressions with the fans of the series. PW is on Steam and it's well worth it, not to mention that the game has a killer soundtrack and was developed by 2 people that are clearly big fans of the series. The game came out almost a year later after the release of AC 7: Skies Unknown. It's not a part of the AC series, but fans happily accept it with open arms.

[@MommysGoodPuppy]

lets go, another series begins

[@Shamon97]

I'm so happy that you started another series :D Good luck with this one too ❤

[@DoggerZero]

Is this the new series to replace the Armored Core that just finished? If it is, and you're going to play all of then, i'm in for a treat. Two of my favorite franchises back to back.

[@notcole]

it sure is 🙂

[@TrazynTheKleptomanichad]

lesgooo! (when you play AC3 make sure to play the english patch of the japanese release. the english release cut out massive amounts of content )

[@AdonaelHarper]

Hey. Covering another of my favorite AC series. Glad to see some more of these from you. 😄

[@inquinimaris]

This adventure is gonna be real fun real soon. ...Buddy.

[@WarriorTW]

Nice. Another AC series review

[@trashkitty8736]

Man...this kinda makes me wanna start playing through the franchise as well lmao, Ace combat has been on my ''list'' for a while.

[@notcole]

Do it.

[@rga1605]

Ace Combat is a great series, the world gets more complex with each installment, and it's surprising for people trying a flight sim for the first time (because, as you said, it isn't exactly a flight sim). But now I wonder, after you complete your AC series, what you'd think about Project Wingman, which is inspired by the AC series, but it takes a different approach to the flight experience

[@Gammons211]

I love this game i know 4 5 and zero are the holy trinity but this game will always remain the best in my heart nothing beats those color schemes and was so glad to see they added it for the F22 in ac7

[@raivy3864]

I always wanted to get into this series so this is great

[@jamesabernethy7896]

Great review and I will be checking out the rest of your videos when I have time over the Holidays. I never played Air Combat / Ace Combat. Although I play a few different games types, flight games were always hard for me to pick up. There are a small number of flight games or games with flight elements that I really love and they are more on the Arcady style. I've actually watched a few reviews of this game and several lore videos, this game felt like a real technical achievement for the time and it was a great foundation for the series. There are some really passionate game developers, especially in Japan. I wonder how many design a game with the intent of selling it tomorrow and how many intend for it to be loved in 10 years. It's much more common in movies, but there are some that failed on release for a multitude of reasons that become cult classics later.

[@Vault87Fallout]

So Glad I subbed these vids make my post work mondays so much better.

[@datpieceofbread9570]

For terminology's sake, rotation is called roll, and the level steering is the rudder. Looking forward to you getting to the PS2 games

[@EliasSpacer]

Your comments for the last mission reminded me… While it’s not flawless (kind of rough frame rate, not a ton of missions, rather challenging), I loved the N64 dogfighter Aerofighters Assault. It’s got an awesome soundtrack, decent jet variety, cool enemy design and locales, and is overall a nice little lesser known arcade sim dogfighter. Might be worth checking out some time! I do look forward to seeing more videos for Ace Combat too. Only played 4 and 5 myself!

[@ColtonGamingTV]

@chole Watched you stream and if you want a good WW2 flight combat game, look into Secret Weapons over Normandy on the PS2 published by LucasArt's. It takes place in the early part of the war before America got involved but you play as an American pilot who flies with Royal Air Force. There are main missions and training missions in the game and the story is actually really fun though there are a few missions that can be a real pain if you don't know what you are doing. Also, in the "multiplayer" you can also play as a Tie Fighter/X-Wing. Lastly, it has the p51 Mustang though you don't get access to it until late game (it is really good) but the Me-262 is my favorite in that game.

[@agustindanielgimenez9483]

Excellent video, AC2 supports dual shock controls, make sure you configure the emulator properly so that it detects your control correctly. You earned a subscriber 👍

[@Shinhwa22]

do check out the holy trinity of ace combat from the ps2 era , ace combat 4 shattered skies, ace combat 5 unsung war and ace combat zero the belkan war you will love them

[@realacturius]

can't wait til' you get to unsung war and zero belkan war.

[@FreedomFighterEx]

You done with one AC and jump to another AC? Chole, if this went on you gotta play all the game that call "AC" 😂

[@JelliThePilot]

cole the pilot fr, first armored core now ace combat?? cant wait till you get to the ps2 trilogy

[@rsoub4086]

Hope you review tom Clancy's hawx, that game filled the gap that ac was missed in PS3 time

[@ominousmecha500]

Ah yes from AC6 to AC next up is AC2 can't wait for AC0

[@embeddd]

id love to see you try DCS lol

[@JackDout]

Oh hey it's the AC guy, playing another guy that called AC. Very cool AC guy!

[@JackDout]

I meant: playing another game.

[@BigYabai]

An unfortunate discussion that seems to happen every time a new Ace Combat comes around is veterans trying to convince new players to use veteran controls because it actually makes the game easier when you have total control, and new players dismissing it as "elitism"

[@devonwilliams5738]

What are some other franchises with an acronym being AC that you could do?

[@notcole]

oh you know, Assassin's Creed, Animal Crossing, Astral Chain, Assetto Corsa...

[@basty_gaming5750]

Same with the first ARMORED CORE game LOL

[@09Scherzo]

Air Combat is not a straight port of the 1992 arcade game. My understanding is the name change because of a paintballing group in UK having already copyrighted the name at the time

[@akula966]

0:41 Ace Combat is NOT A SIMULATOR. It is an arcade flight shooter.

[@evilbabai7083]

My dude, how did you managed to run it smoothly?! I had no issues with any other game on duckstation, including AC2 and AC3, but this one runs about half a speed and with a heavy audio stuttering no matter what settings I try...

[@det.bullock4461]

What did you use to play the game? Years ago I played the fantranslated JP version of AC3 on an emulator and it looked very glitchy, your gameplat footage is very clean instead.

[@notcole]

I used DuckStation for this video 🙂

[@JohnSmith-ip6kc]

So I’m not much of an expert on Air Combat, because I’ve never played it, BUUUUT for how arcade-centric it is, Air Combat’s much less like that in other games in the series. You’re going to start feeling more and more how realistic the game gets throughout the series. Believe it or not, the way fighter jets handle translates almost EXACTLY to how it does with those jets IRL

[@alterist64]

When this series is done you should move to Animal Crossing

[@JforJegan]

The story gets better as time goes on. For me personally Ace combat 5 was the best.

[@whiskeycorridor90]

Good video. Good game. Now play the 14 others.

[@jettstorm2253]

I definitely prefer to call this series an "Arcade Flight Shooter". I really dont like how unsuspecting newcomers keep getting misled but the "sim" classification. No one is out here calling Need for Speed a driving sim ya know? I hope you enjoy the rest of the series. I'm a big shill for these games lol

[@sandhiwistara9128]

This is definitely new Francise and you will not find a Giant simulator Box in arcade like decade time .... I definitely not Old

[@mrandrossguy9871]

The fact that it STARTED with 2PLAYER SPLIT-SCREEN And how the series seems to have An Identity crises with split screen or no Split screen Also Good Flight Graphics or Bad Flight graphics 🥴😩

[@edgargad2941]

372? WEAKLING Me with 400+ My brother with 1000+

[@Cheapstall]

The title Air Combat comes from the original arcade game

[@luckyspray]

If you like Ace Combat then you deserve my suscription brother

[@marcusspartan]

Not a flight sim, more like an arcade flight action. I love the series by the way... Flight sims are more realistic but more boring. 😅

[@davecam4863]

69 dude!

[@SnakebitSTI]

On the "flight sim" thing... Yeah, the Ace Combat series absolutely is not. It doesn't try to be realistic. I don't know why, but the fanbase can be weirdly stubborn about that. It's not like anyone wishes Ace Combat required hundreds of dollars of peripherals to control a plane properly, or that it required hours of studying to begin learning to fly a plane effectively, per plane.

[@johndoe62804]

The milestone in early PSX library yet at the same time I have to say the game aged badly Playing AC1 on an actual console will be ridiculously harsh with no analog input support nor actual depth of graphics Several good "first" entries exist, yet honestly this is not one of them

[@zephyr8072]

A pity they didn’t continue with the incredibly gay plane paintjobs.