Day 7 of 30
Launch tracker
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve
The first Ace Combat in seven years adds live multiplayer with a paid pass and changes how the planes fly, and long-time fans will judge both.
In short
As of 12 October, 83% of 14,408 player reviews recommend it. Players who finish the campaign call it the best in the series, for its story, its cast and its music. Anyone who wants a long single-player campaign on a controller has good reason to buy it now. Players who come for multiplayer, fly with a stick or a keyboard, or play on a PC near the minimum spec may prefer to wait for the update Bandai Namco has promised.
Timeline
Read in early access, then at Day 1, 7 and 30.
Each update compares what players recommend and say with early access.
Early access
Published 29 Sept 2026
Day 1
Published 2 Oct 2026
Day 7
Published 8 Oct 2026
Day 30
Due 31 Oct 2026
So far
Positive reviews, day by day.
Updated daily, with reviews up to the end of 11 October 2026 (UTC).
28 September to 1 October are early access for Deluxe Edition buyers; launch day is 2 October.
Each point is the share of that day’s reviews that recommend the game, in every language. Days run on UTC, so a late-night launch counts its first hours with the next day. The chart also counts players who activated a key bought from another shop, which the headline figure leaves out, so their totals can differ by a point or two.
Show the numbers
| Date | Ace Combat 8 |
|---|---|
| 29 Sept | 70% of 2,299 |
| 30 Sept | 81% of 1,251 |
| 1 Oct | 82% of 1,083 |
| 2 Oct | 70% of 1,769 |
| 3 Oct | 80% of 1,498 |
| 4 Oct | 85% of 1,549 |
| 5 Oct | 86% of 1,017 |
| 6 Oct | 88% of 781 |
| 7 Oct | 86% of 703 |
| 8 Oct | 86% of 619 |
| 9 Oct | 87% of 580 |
| 10 Oct | 89% of 592 |
| 11 Oct | 87% of 602 |
Day 7 · 8 Oct 2026
What players make of Ace Combat 8 a week in.
87% of the 2,103 reviews posted from 6 to 8 October recommend it, up from 70% on launch day. Players who finish the campaign call it the series’ best, and crashes that stop the game from starting are now the main complaint.
- 6 to 8 October
- 87% positive, from 2,103 reviews30
- Launch day
- 70% positive, from 1,769 reviews30
- All reviews
- 82% positive, from 12,990 reviews30
- Sales
- 1 million copies, the fastest in the series41
- Fixes
- An update promised on 9 October, with no date yet40
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 10 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- A week in, players who finish the campaign call it the series’ best.
- The story, the cast and the music carry most reviews from players with 15 hours or more, and the closing missions win the most praise. A minority of veterans find the plot forced, the radio chatter relentless and the campaign too close to Ace Combat 7.30
- Crashes now stop players before the game starts.
- Most negative reviews come from players with an hour or two who never got past a black screen, a loading screen or an engine crash in the opening cutscenes. Players who got it running report stutter and frame drops in the late missions, even on high-end PCs.30
- Players tell each other to buy it for the campaign and skip multiplayer.
- Multiplayer is the most common complaint among players who otherwise love the game, from dropped connections to teams in upgraded jets taking every kill. A few enjoy it and find it better than Ace Combat 7’s.30
- Keyboard and mouse players feel left out, and the Zero bonus has faded.
- Players without a controller say the game is hard to play without mods. The Ace Combat Zero bonus, the main grievance in early access, has almost dropped out of the reviews.30
Themes raised
| Theme | Reviews, of 47 |
|---|---|
| Story and cast | 25 |
| Crashes and performance | 13 |
| Music and sound | 13 |
| Multiplayer | 8 |
| Visuals | 6 |
| How the planes handle | 5 |
| Missions and difficulty | 3 |
| Flight sticks and controls | 1 |
| The Ace Combat Zero bonus | 1 |
| Price | 1 |
Day 1 · 2 Oct 2026
What players make of Ace Combat 8 on launch day.
70% of the 1,769 reviews posted on launch day recommend it, down from 76% of 4,633 in early access. Players who finished the campaign praise it most, and multiplayer has replaced crashes and the Ace Combat Zero bonus as the main complaint.
- Launch day
- 70% positive, from 1,769 reviews30
- Early access, 28 September to 1 October
- 76% positive, from 4,633 reviews30
- All reviews
- 76% positive, from 6,976 reviews30
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 3 October 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- Players who finish the campaign rank it among the series’ best.
- Many have reached the end and call it a step up from Ace Combat 7, with a cast they grew attached to, varied boss fights and music to match. A few find the story weaker than older entries or the later missions too hard.30
- Multiplayer now draws more complaints than crashes.
- Some players can’t get into matches at all, and others describe teammates who quit mid-match and a pass that crawls unless you pay. The paid Morgan still crowds the skies, though some welcome the return of co-op in the style of Ace Combat Infinity.30
- PC trouble has eased for most but still costs the game some players.
- Fewer reviews raise crashes than in early access, and several say it runs smoothly. Long shader loads, slow menus and a first mission that won’t load still turn others against it.30
- The heavier planes are winning veterans over.
- Most players who mention the new flight model now prefer it to Ace Combat 7’s and praise the weight and sound of the jets. Flight stick owners still find support poor, and the Ace Combat Zero bonus that angered early buyers has almost dropped out of the reviews.30
Themes raised
| Theme | Reviews, of 44 |
|---|---|
| Story and cast | 16 |
| Multiplayer | 9 |
| Crashes and performance | 7 |
| How the planes handle | 7 |
| Music and sound | 7 |
| Missions and difficulty | 7 |
| Visuals | 4 |
| Anti-cheat and DRM | 2 |
| Flight sticks and controls | 2 |
| Paid jets and passes | 2 |
| The Ace Combat Zero bonus | 1 |
| Price | 1 |
Early access · 29 Sept 2026
What players make of Ace Combat 8 in early access.
68% of the 2,014 reviews posted in the first 21 hours of early access recommend it, though only 49 of the first 99 did. Most complaints are about crashes, PC performance and the Ace Combat Zero bonus.
- Launch
- 2 October 202631
- Early access
- Three days, for Deluxe Edition buyers31
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 531
- Multiplayer
- Co-op and PvP modes, with a seasonal Ace Pass31
- Pre-order bonus
- Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War30
- First 21 hours
- 68% positive, from 2,014 reviews30
Read in full
We read every one of these reviews on 29 September 2026 and judged each by what it says.
- The campaign, the music and the look win most players over.
- Most positive reviews praise the story, the cast and the soundtrack first, and many veterans rank it above Ace Combat 7. A few find the voice work weak and the cutscenes slow to get through.30
- Crashes and PC performance drive the negative reviews.
- Players report crashes in the opening missions, a memory leak and heavy demands even on high-end PCs, with ray tracing and upscaling they can’t switch off. Many say they will change their verdict once a patch lands.30
- Pre-order buyers feel misled over Ace Combat Zero.
- The bonus game was sold as a separate application, but on PC it only runs from inside the full Ace Combat 8 install, with no achievements or cloud saves. Console players get it as its own game, and the store’s wording changed after early access opened.30
- Flight stick owners feel shut out.
- Only a few supported sticks work and the controls can’t be freely remapped, which angers players who flew Ace Combat 7 with their own. Keyboard and mouse players call the controls stiff.30
- The heavier planes split veterans.
- Jets turn slower and carry more weight than in Ace Combat 7. Some find the fights more satisfying once they adjust; others say it no longer feels like Ace Combat.30
Themes raised
| Theme | Reviews, of 141 |
|---|---|
| Crashes and performance | 83 |
| The Ace Combat Zero bonus | 36 |
| Flight sticks and controls | 33 |
| Story and cast | 27 |
| Music and sound | 27 |
| Visuals | 24 |
| How the planes handle | 21 |
| Multiplayer | 16 |
| Anti-cheat and DRM | 9 |
| Paid jets and passes | 7 |
| Price | 6 |
| Camera and field of view | 6 |
Questions
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, in short.
Is Ace Combat 8 worth it?
Most players say yes. As of 12 October, 83% of 14,408 reviews recommend it. They praise the campaign, the music and the look. Since launch the complaints are mostly about multiplayer, PC performance and flight stick support, and the Ace Combat Zero bonus that angered early buyers comes up far less.30
Why can’t I find a match in Ace Combat 8?
Bandai Namco says matchmaking can fail when players connect from PCs below the system requirements, and asks online players to use Windows 11 and install the game on an SSD. Dropped connections and long searches are among the most common complaints from players who otherwise enjoy the game, and a fix is promised without a date yet.4030
Is Ace Combat 8 co-op or multiplayer?
Is Ace Combat Zero a standalone game with the pre-order?
Not on PC. The pre-order bonus, Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War, only runs from inside the full Ace Combat 8 install there, with no achievements or cloud saves. Console players get it as its own game.30
What’s in the Ace Combat 8 Deluxe Edition?
Does Ace Combat 8 support flight sticks and HOTAS?
Only a few supported sticks work, and the controls can’t be freely remapped, which is one of PC players’ main complaints.30
How does Ace Combat 8 run on PC?
Well for most players a week in, but not for all. The negative reviews now come mostly from players who never got past a black screen, a loading screen or an engine crash in the opening cutscenes, and players who got it running report stutter and frame drops in the late missions even on high-end PCs. It needs a graphics card with hardware ray tracing, and Bandai Namco has promised fixes without a date yet.3040
What PC do you need for Ace Combat 8?
The minimum is a GeForce RTX 2060 (6 GB) or Radeon RX 6600 XT with a Core i7-10700K or Ryzen 5 3600X, 16 GB of RAM, Windows 11 and 150 GB on an SSD, for upscaled 1080p at 30 on Low. It needs a graphics card with hardware ray tracing. The recommended PC, an RTX 3070 or RX 6800 with 32 GB of RAM, aims at upscaled 1080p and 60 on Medium.30
When does Ace Combat 8 come out, and on what?
2 October 2026, on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. Deluxe Edition buyers could play from 28 September.31
How much is Ace Combat 8?
$69.99 for the standard edition.30
What we’re watching
What Day 30 will cover.
- Whether Bandai Namco’s promised update fixes the crashes at start-up
- Whether matchmaking settles, and how paid jets shape multiplayer
- Whether players who finish the campaign keep recommending it
- Support for flight sticks and keyboard and mouse
Sources
- 30Steam: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, user reviews and review history (opens in a new tab) Accessed 29 Sept 2026
- 31Bandai Namco Entertainment: Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve takes flight today (early access, launch date and the Deluxe Edition) (opens in a new tab) Accessed 29 Sept 2026
- 40Bandai Namco on Steam: Ace Combat 8 upcoming update plans and online matchmaking status, 9 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026
- 41Bandai Namco on Steam: Ace Combat 8 passes a million copies sold, 9 October (opens in a new tab) Accessed 10 Oct 2026