Ace Combat 7:
Skies Unknown Review

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (1995) is the latest flying and shooting game in the Ace Combat series of games. It features lots of real-life aircraft to master and weather conditions that impact gameplay and controls, while still retaining a fast-paced arcade-like style of gameplay that forgoes some elements of realism for a more exciting and accessible experience.

Alongside a single-player narrative campaign, which carries on the story from previous entries and sees you you play a pilot nicknamed "Trigger" in a war known as The Lighthouse War, you can play in online multiplayer dogfights in teams or solo, allowing for flexibility in how you choose to play.

You fly around, controlling your speed and direction, and blast air and ground targets in a series of dogfights and attack runs. Similarly to Star Wars Squadrons, you need to quickly evade inbound missiles using flares, and fire on faraway ships with a variety of different weapons. The weather also affects your ability to do certain actions; for example, flying through clouds hinders your visibility and ability to target enemies, and lightning strikes can disrupt or temporarily disable scanners and controls.

The PS4 version also has levels designed to be played in virtual reality, offering a greater sense of immersion and realism.

There have been several Ace Combat games, both main series games and spin-offs, over the years and are available on a wide variety of platforms:

• Air Combat (1995) Playstation
• Ace Combat 2 (1997) Playstation
• Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere (1999/2000) Playstation
• Ace Combat 4: Shattered Skies (2001/2002) PS2
• Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (2004) PS2
• Ace Combat Advance (2005) Game Boy Advance
• Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (2006) PS2
• Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception (2006) Playstation Portable
• Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (2007) Xbox 360
• Ace Combat Xi: Skies of incursion (2009) iOS
• Ace Combat: Joint Assault (2010) Playstation Portable
• Ace Combat Assault Horizon: Trigger Finger (2010) iOS
• Ace Combat: Assault Horizon (2011) Xbox 360, PS3
• Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy (2011) 3DS
• Ace Combat: Northern Wings (2011) iOS, Android (No longer available to download officially)
• Ace Combat Infinity (2014) PS3
• Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+ (2015) New Nintendo 3DS
• Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (2020)

Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 12 months ago.