Following concerns over Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War being offered exclusively as a pre-order incentive for Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, Bandai Namco Entertainment has provided clarification on the reasoning behind this approach.
During the concluding Ace Combat 8 Information Bureau livestream on September 28, the development team at Project Aces detailed that they cannot release Ace Combat Zero’s port as a standalone product due to expired licensing agreements with aircraft manufacturers.
The inclusion of authentic fighter jets in Ace Combat games is made possible through licenses secured from their manufacturers. The sale of each game is governed by these licenses, dictating terms such as distribution methods and timing.
Although The Belkan War was originally launched in 2006 for the PlayStation 2, Bandai Namco Entertainment received approval from jet manufacturers to distribute the game as a pre-order bonus, as this aligned with their contractual terms. However, these contracts do not permit the game to be sold independently at a later time, resulting in its absence from retail platforms.
The developers emphasized that this decision is not intended to inconvenience players and urged those interested in the port to pre-order Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve. Fans have until October 2 to secure the digital edition for the pre-order rewards, which include The Belkan War and the F-14A playable jet. Only initial physical releases of the game will feature pre-order codes.
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve is slated for release on October 2 for Windows (Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X❘S.