Ace Combat 8: WINGS OF THEVE, the latest main installment in the Ace Combat series after a seven-year hiatus, is scheduled to launch on October 2 for PC (Steam), PS5, and Xbox Series X❘S. Alongside a new gameplay walkthrough trailer showcasing mechanics and customization options, the development team at Project Aces recently shared insights into their development process, particularly how they achieved the game’s high level of realism.
During a media interview featuring GameWatch, Ace Combat franchise director Kazutoki Kono and Ace Combat 8 producer Manabu Shimomoto explained that licensing real-life aircraft requires meticulous attention to visual accuracy, though this is no simple task. “We invest significant effort into making everything as precise as possible, but fighter jets are essentially repositories of military secrets, so certain aspects cannot be fully replicated using only public data,” Shimomoto noted.
Consequently, the aircraft design process for Ace Combat 8 involved a cycle of collecting public resources, creating prototypes, and submitting them to manufacturers for accuracy checks.
“Manufacturers would point out issues like, ‘This component is outdated,’ or ‘This detail is incorrect,’ prompting us to refine the designs incrementally,” Shimomoto said. “Interestingly, some feedback was based on non-public information, leaving us to question, ‘Is it permissible to know this? Can we actually implement it?’”
Despite these challenges, the team maintained close collaboration with manufacturers, even incorporating their input into in-game descriptions. “The individuals who design these aircraft are deeply passionate about their work, and this dedication is evident not just in the visual fidelity of the jets but also in the accompanying text,” the developers stated.
Beyond licensing, the developers ensured realism in Ace Combat 8 by recording authentic fighter jet sounds at military bases. Shimomoto recalled enduring Okinawa’s summer heat while using shotgun microphones to capture aircraft sounds, humorously referring to it as a “recording session from hell.”
The team also visited an aircraft carrier museum, gathering reference photos and performing photogrammetry scans. On-site measurements aided in recreating the carrier at full scale. Notably, Ace Combat 8 is being developed at a true 1:1 scale, unlike previous entries that used exaggerated dimensions. This means aircraft carriers, fighter jets, and hangars exist within a 100-kilometer-square world using real-world proportions. Kono emphasized that this approach makes first-person views in the game feel more akin to real-world footage than in prior titles.
Ace Combat 8: WINGS OF THEVE is set to release on October 2 for PC (Steam), PS5, and Xbox Series X❘S.