And yet another superb Ace Combat game.
Ace Combat is surely one of the best gaming experiences I've had all year. I was first introduced to the series with Ace Combat 4, which was recommended to me by forum posters on Gamespot. I totally loved it, which forced me to keep my eyes peeled for the next installment. I didn't buy the game right away at launch but eventually I saw it at my local video game store for a good price and decided to get it. After all, I thought it was a sure bet, and it was.
Ace Combat 5, like 4, takes place in a fictional world resembling our own. Your country, Osea, is worried that their traditional rivals, the Yuktobanians, might be planning something after spotting a couple of their spy planes hovering over Osean territory. They send your squad of four to investigate and by that point things sort of degenerate.
The storyline is pretty good and is actually told well this time, compared to Ace Combat 4's disjointed story. It is told by cutscenes between the missions but also through great voice acting during the missions. You always feel involved in everything that is happening around you, and you also feel responsible since you're the squad leader.
Now don't think for a second that this is a simulation; from the storyline to the gameplay this is a Top Gun styled game. The physics are unreal, you're able to do airpin turns at Mach 2 speeds and can do maneuvers that would be simply impossible in real life. On top of that, your plane carries godly amounts of ammunition, up to 100 missiles and they always have unlimited machine gun ammo. You are clearly a one man carnage machine and that's the way they wanted it. Still, I can't help but hope that they add a bit more realism for the next installment, but I think it would get in the way of the epic storyline, so my guess is that it won't happen.
The graphics are pretty good, especially when using the cockpit view. That view allows you to view the cockpit from all angles from the inside which is awesome. They should really do that for driving games too. But aside from that, you don't really get to see too much of the graphics considering the speeds at which you're flying and that you're there to basically blow stuff up.
The sound steals the show. Now, I actually preferred the soundtrack in Ace Combat 4, but this one is no slouch. The music is epic, gets you pumped up and carries the storyline perfectly. The voice acting is great and the radio banter is entertaining. The sound effects are powerful and dead on. Really, what more can you ask? Nothing. Perfect sound, kudos to Namco.
Sadly there is no multiplayer in this game. Do I have to mention that it would be totally awesome to have online dogfighting? I don't. I hope that for the next game they add that. As it stands, the core game is longer than 4, and they have added an extra arcade mode that is basically a light continuation of 4's story. It's nothing to go crazy at however. You also have the possibility of unlocking more and better planes if you meet certain requirements in missions, like the previous AC games. One thing, they took out the 2 player support from the previous game, which might affect slightly huge 1v1 dogfighting fan, but overall isn't a factor. All in all, this game has pretty good length and replay value, but it clearly screams (I do) for multiplayer support.
This game shouldn't be missed by anyone who likes a good shooter, a good story, good music or heck, even dogfighting aficionados :) Try it, you'll love it.
