Ace Combat 6 Discussion Thread

[CaptHawkeye]

So anyone else pick it up?

I've been playing it for a few hours now. They fixed some things that worried me about the demo thankfully. Like enemies who were obscenely easy to kill. As it turns out, that was just a result of the demo being set to "piss easy" mode. In game, enemy fighters can now take much more varied damage. Unlike previous games where an enemy was gaurunteed to need 2 missles to kill every time, this game varies its damage system. Some enemies are down in a single hit, others can up to 3 impacts before they go down.

Component damage! It's not drastic but it's present. My A-10 got hit by a SAM as it was flying away from an enemy armored group, after impact Ghost Eye informed me that I was hit the tail, lo and behold, my aircraft was harder to control. The elevators were sluggish and the rudders ceased operation entirely.

I like how you can select which aspect of the mission you want to put emphasis on. The missions themselves are also much longer and more detailed. This is probably to make up for the fact that the game is short. According to game guides, only 13 missions.

And of course, in keeping with the standards of the AC series, the levels look BEAUTIFUL.

[NeoGoomba]

Is the soundtrack up to par as well?

[Darksider]

Is it just me, or does this game seem slightly more challenging than the last one in the series?

[CaptHawkeye]

Is the soundtrack up to par as well?

Frankly I haven't been very impressed by what i've heard thus far. The "Invasion of Gracemeria" music from the demo has been replaced by some kind of synthicized crap. It follows the same basic tune but they changed some things that just ruin the song.

Is it just me, or does this game seem slightly more challenging than the last one in the series?

It is. And it needs to be, considering it's probably going to be the shortest of the games. They upped the difficulty of enemy aircraft so you have a reason to use the "Allied Cover" function. And so that the aircraft roles in the game (I.E: Interceptor/Attacker/Multirole) are more pronounced.

[Medic]

I also like the high-G turn, it's precisely the something needed to end endless circling in multiplayer mode, that and the ESM aircraft.

Also, the last mission is the ultimate incarnation of TRD. (Trench run disease)

[Andrew_Fireborn]

Ultimate you say?

What this time? Multiple super short, little warning 90+ degree turns?

A shifting maze of tunnels with pursuit?

A collapsing, obstruction filled tunnel, which requires exacting timing (And very specific missile firing) to get through?

I want to know how pissed off my friend is going to be next time I see him.

[Shroom Man 777]

Goddamn those trench runs. Ace 3 had the worst one, IIRC.

[Medic]

Actually it's not a kilometers long tunnel like in 5 or even as long as Megalith in 4 -- no, the unique (curse-worthy) aspect to this short trench is the fact that there' land, naval AND air assets shooting at you and you divide your efforts between shooting down missiles in the trench, blowing up generators and taking down air defenses that drive you insane.

Then you... well, i don't wanna give it away but the 2nd trench is more just like WTF then actually difficult.

[Laughing Mechanicus]

Bastards, it's a full month before it's out over here.

How many planes are there approximately? Does it have a system like Ace Combat X where you can upgrade individual parts for aircraft? And what's this blather about 'emphasising' parts of certain missions mean? Could you give me an example?

[Shroom Man 777]

So, how is it different from the other Ace games?

[Medic]

There are numerous gameplay differences to include yet one more previously unmentioned: if you lock onto an aircraft with a conventional missile and the HUD says "shoot" and you fire before the other aircaft maneuvers too much to break this 'optimum' lock then the missile will be fired with a much higher accuracy. Even if the bandit pulls a hi-G turn you'll see the missile point at the PREDICTED flight path, and not lagging behind in it's pursuit.

As for the missions though they're broken down into as few as one but as many as 6 objectives (lettered A - F) and if you destroy all targets in any one of these sub-objectives, you fill up a meter (either just a fee bars or all the way) that allows you to call in a LOT of friendly fire-support, either offensively or covering you.

However, these objectives / operations all occur simultaneously so the trick is (especially when aiming for S's in missions) to not let any one group of allies totally fail. Often, there will be 4 objectives and 4 friendly units tackling those areas but the 'quota' is 3. In other words, you can let one entire group fail.

[CaptHawkeye]

Bastards, it's a full month before it's out over here.

How many planes are there approximately? Does it have a system like Ace Combat X where you can upgrade individual parts for aircraft? And what's this blather about 'emphasising' parts of certain missions mean? Could you give me an example?

It doesn't have as many aircraft as previous games. And it seems they ditched "upgrade parts" for the other system of "flying time with aircraft" back. Also weapon selections and purchases.

By "emphasising" I mean many missions consist of different objectives. As the game goes on it gets harder and harder to support numerous operations. Usually you need at least 2 of the operations in a mission to be successful to win. As the player, you can choose which op you want to concentrate on for the time by setting your radar. When you do that, the radar will only see targets and enemy/friendly aircraft that are participating in the operation.

So, how is it different from the other Ace games?

It's fairly different. The controls and basic aspects of the formula all here. But as usual, some things have been changed/brought back/ditched alltogether. For one thing, your wingman and allies in this game aren't pushovers any longer. They still don't do as much damage as you do, but even without "Allied Attack" function engaged, your wingman and nearby aircraft still get their share of badies.

[Starglider]

From reading the forums, the game mechanics and graphics look great. However it seems to be somewhat smaller in scope than AC5 or even AC4. AC5 in particular had just about every military aircraft built after 1960 in there somewhere - and several cool super-planes, which are conspiciously absent in AC6. I imagine this is just due to the amount of designer time creating all the high-res assets soaked up. The next one will probably be rather bigger, since they can reuse the engine and all the existing vehicle models.

[Medic]

Ah, Starglider makes an important note: expect hypothetical AC7 to be to 6 what 5 was to 4 cause of recycling previous efforts. 5 really was the best cause of the length of the game and cornucopia of aircraft.

This may not bode well for PS3 fans though, who knows how good this engine will port to the PS3? That and if they go through the effort to make a AC6 port to PS3 then it only delays a sequel. More thab likely, this switch to x360 is permanent for this generation. (Sepherius' faith notwithstanding )

I'm very satisfied with the game though and online is decently fun although I only played it on launch night and fairly late at that so there were very few games. (I was finishing my campaign all last night) The single most impressive visuals in the game are burning oil refineries in the far distance, a mountain with raging ground battles all up it's slope and finally, the final normal mission cutscene introducing a superweapon with tracers blazing everywhere.

That's mission 15 but there is an unlockable 16 I don't have yet. (There's a spot for it in free mission)

[Sea Skimmer]

My god was that opening stupid as shit. Hey lets start our grand surprise attack with two planes blowing up a suspension bridge, which in a design defying manner does not even collapse! It would just be crazy to have used some cluster bombs to blast all the planes parked in the open on that military airfield that’s within freaking sight of the bridge!

The terrain does look nice, but I’m damn sick of hearing missile warnings AFTER I already broke the lock.

[CaptHawkeye]

My god was that opening stupid as shit. Hey lets start our grand surprise attack with two planes blowing up a suspension bridge, which in a design defying manner does not even collapse! It would just be crazy to have used some cluster bombs to blast all the planes parked in the open on that military airfield that’s within freaking sight of the bridge!

Another thing i've got to say, in fact two things about the story which bug me.

A. It is an exact carbon copy of AC4. I'm not kidding you. The AC games have always had the same basic storyline. But AC6 shamelessly copies AC4 to the letter.

B. It pits only two countries against one another. "But Hawkeye, AC4 did that too!" No it didn't, AC4 depicted the ISAF, a COALITION of allied forces against the Eruseans. That way, it made sense that the Eruseans were able to kick Usea's ass so easily alone, but how they were turned back when the numerous allied powers of the ISAF fought back and overpowered the Eruseans. In AC6, it is literally just Emmeria and Estovakia. I may be nitpicking here, but it seems kind of weird that Emmeria could have its ass so badly kicked it totally withdraws from the mainland and less than a few months later, invades and takes a solid foothold on the land. Where did all of Emmeria's legions of military forces magically appear from? They lost the mainland. And since they lost it so fast, their is no way they could have evacuated all of their forces before they lost the continent. Unless Sea Skimmer is right, and the Estovakians are a bunch of retards.

The game just seems to be rushing itself. Back in AC4, it was common to take part in several infrastructure raids or pre emptive strikes before a major land advance was carried out. In AC6, you literally go from defense of your last airfield to invasion of the mainland in 2 missions.

[Starglider]

Unless Sea Skimmer is right, and the Estovakians are a bunch of retards.

Well, it's hard to imagine those flying fortresses being a good use of scarce economic resources...

The game just seems to be rushing itself. Back in AC4, it was common to take part in several infrastructure raids or pre emptive strikes before a major land advance was carried out. In AC6, you literally go from defense of your last airfield to invasion of the mainland in 2 missions.

Another nice thing about AC4 was that even once you'd got your forces ashore (and Bunker Shot was a RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME mission, the AC5 version wasn't as good), the Erusians kept trying to force you back again, with things like the mass cruise missile strike (that nearly worked).

Unfortunately it isn't out here for another month, but yeah, I get the impression that the storyline was pretty rushed and cookie-cutter along with the mission design. Plus these countries are third-raters in the AC world; AC5 had irritating characters, but the overall plotline of superpower-confrontation-started-by-defeated-regeime-in-hiding was awesome. Suffered seriously from the Nuclear Weapons Taboo, but then most Japense productions do (at least the AC games have some nukes).

[CaptHawkeye]

Well, it's hard to imagine those flying fortresses being a good use of scarce economic resources...

At least AC4 provided a decent justification for the existence of its Deus Ex Superweapons. Stonehenge was constructed to deal with what was supposed to be an apocalyptic asteroid strike. And Megalith was constructed as a fallback mechanism. Stonehenge just happened to be good at shooting down aircraft too. Megalith of course, could not be used against aircraft, but it could be used as a terror weapon.

Another nice thing about AC4 was that even once you'd got your forces ashore (and Bunker Shot was a RIDICULOUSLY AWESOME mission, the AC5 version wasn't as good), the Erusians kept trying to force you back again, with things like the mass cruise missile strike (that nearly worked).

That's what made it feel real. The Eruseans didn't feel like they were just "following the script". Fighting them felt real. When you got pushed back to North Point, the ISAF didn't immiedietly counter attack, they committed their forces to a Battle of Britian style defensive attrition. And they did that for several missions. No invasion was planned until much later in the campaign.

When ISAF intelligence pointed out that the Aegir fleet was about to attack North Point, they didn't deploy you on the harbor attack mission immiedietly. They deployed you to an important oil field, which if destroyed, would drastically stall the departure of the Aegir fleet and leave it sitting exposed in the harbor while the Eruseans stretched their forces thin to deal with protecting inland infrastructure and the Aegir flee, while also trying to carry out attacks into North Point. Forcing them to juggle more than they could handle.

[Stark]

Are you saying that AC6 isn't a good AC game?

[CaptHawkeye]

Are you saying that AC6 isn't a good AC game?

No. In fact, I think it's almost as fun as AC4, which beats it by only a little. I'm just nitpicking the story because it is clearly the weakest aspect of the game. I consider the gameplay more important. Which remains strong.

Yeah, the AC series is known for its sometimes excessive story wank in the games. I guess they're still trying to match the peak they hit with AC4 which actually did have an interesting narrative PLUS awesome gameplay. Despite this, they seemed to care more about improving the combat system this time instead of just loading the game with more aircraft and "zomg melodramatic narrative". Since they were succesful in that aspect, the game works well. AC6's excellent gameplay makes up for its lackluster story.

[Medic]

Buying AC6 for storyline / coherent and believable high-level strategy = confused consumer. It's about gameplay first and foremost. Extra is just that, nice if it's there and well done but I'll take storyoine excesses / stupidities, I mean, it is a Japanese product, hence preachy-as-a-rule.

[Medic]

CFA-44 Railgun whores = frustrating

Scenario for you.
1) I'm in F/A-18F with ECMP jamming pods
2) currently, I'm only at long-range-missile-range of only 1 fighter (and allies all around me)
3) I'm currently jamming no less!
4) *dies horrible death from magical hypervelocity slugs*
5) *adds name of xbox live handle to "Black List"* for future... reference

Seriously. Fucking. Lame. The funnest servers are the ones where they limit aircraft to tech level 2, so you see no F-22's, Berkut's, Rafales, Typhoons but mostly the (totally fake but oh-so-necessary for an AC game) CFA-44 -- WITH RAILGUNS!

That aircraft is online plays worst shortcoming, that and infinite turn in circles afterburning guy (you'll meet more than a few, piloting mostly F-22's ) but they can be dealt with usually with teamwork. (but mostly only with patience and luck and a lot of wasted ammo)

[CaptHawkeye]

Yeah, I played one online match yesterday and EVERYONE was using the F-22. I was the only person on the server who was using an F-14D. (As it turns out, the post game report said I was number 1 anyway. )

All I had to do to avoid them was bank a lot. I didn't even need my High-G turns much. As for shooting someone down? A lot of them seem to think that flying down a canyon will save them. When the only thing it will do is provide a nice, straight path for my short range weapons.

But that match gave me an insight into XBox Live mentality, unfortunantly. You see, even in a player match, no one DARES to play for fun or personal preferance. You can't tell me EVERYONE just happens to be an F-22 fan. They're all playing the game's uber fighters because they don't want their precious score to be hurt.

Edit: I'm getting to the end of the game and I just played the mission where we have to withdraw from the battlefield due to Estovakia's new scorched earth policy. Jesus Christ Shamrock is a little bitch. Before he was just annoying, now I fucking hate him with a passion.

"Oh noez I don't care Ghost Eye I kill enemy to save family!"

Hey fuckwit, you aren't the only one with a family. You've been given an order you are GOING to follow it. What's worse, the game automatically lumps you in with him, with no way to actually follow Ghost Eye's order. So you get punished too.

Honestly, after an incident like that, I don't know why anyone would let Shamrock fly again. He's a selfish loose cannon.

[Adrian Laguna]

That aircraft is online plays worst shortcoming, that and infinite turn in circles afterburning guy (you'll meet more than a few, piloting mostly F-22's ) but they can be dealt with usually with teamwork. (but mostly only with patience and luck and a lot of wasted ammo)

I don't see why they're so hard. Their flight path is predictable, so arrange for them to fly straight into you. Alternatively, use the guns, you can't miss (much) with guns.

[Mobius]

Play-asia shipped my copy today with the stick; can't wait.