Air Combat

This article is about the video game. For the use of aircraft in war, see Aerial warfare.

Air Combat
European box art
Developer(s)	Namco Arsys Software
Publisher(s)	Namco
Series	Ace Combat
Platform(s)	Arcade, PlayStation, Mobile phones (Japan only)
Release	Arcade 1992 PlayStation
Genre(s)	Arcade, Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer
Arcade system	Namco System 21 "Polygonizer"

Air Combat (エアーコンバット, Eā Konbatto), also known as Ace Combat (エースコンバット, Ēsu Konbatto) for the Japanese PlayStation versions, is a semi-realistic flight-sim action game developed and released by Namco in 1992 for the Namco System 21 "Polygonizer" arcade system and released in 1995 for the PlayStation home video game console. It is the first part of the Ace Combat series. All subsequent games retained the original Ace Combat name. The game mainly involves dog fighting and has three levels of play; Cadet, Captain and Ace. This game was the predecessor of the PlayStation series. It had an arcade sequel, Air Combat 22.

Story

A terrorist force starts an uprising and inflicts massive damage across an unnamed country. Efforts to defeat these terrorists through conventional means failed and the situation turns desperate; in response, a mercenary air force is assembled to take the fight to the enemy and free the nation from the terrorist forces.

Gameplay

Air Combat is mostly considered an "arcade style" flight game due to its semi-realistic physics and the fact that many planes can carry up to 65 missiles, an impossibility in real-life aircraft. The goal of the game is to destroy enemy targets dispersed throughout the various levels and earn money (extra money can be earned by destroying non-target, optional enemies) to purchase additional aircraft and special weaponry, a feature that continues with the current Ace Combat games (excludes Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere and Ace Combat: Assault Horizon). In arcade versions, the player simulates an F-16 aircraft exclusively, but in PlayStation version, the player can choose from several different planes in the game ranging from F-4 Phantoms to Su-27 Flankers and Stealth aircraft, albeit painted in a special "Phoenix" color scheme. Later in the game, the player can select a wingman to accompany them during a mission, the player can "instruct" the wingman to perform one of three different actions.

Playable Aircraft (PlayStation version)

• McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom II
• Grumman F-14A Tomcat
• McDonnell Douglas F-15C Eagle
• Lockheed Martin F-16C Fighting Falcon (available in both arcade and PlayStation versions)
• McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C Hornet
• Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk
• Lockheed Martin/Boeing YF-22A Lightning II
• Northrop Grumman YF-23A Black Widow II
• Sukhoi Su-27M (Su-35) 'Flanker-E'
• Mikoyan MiG-29S Izdelyie 9-13S 'Fulcrum-C'
• Mikoyan MiG-31B 'Foxhound-A'
• Saab JAS-39A Gripen A
• Dassault Rafale C
• Panavia Tornado F.2
• Eurofighter Typhoon F.2
• Fairchild Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II

Reception

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	60%

Review scores

Publication	Score
Famitsu	31 out of 40
IGN	7.0 out of 10
PlayStation Official Magazine – UK	6 out of 10

Air Combat received mixed-to-positive reviews. IGN described the gameplay elements as "rock solid", though noted on its graphical flaws, stating that "the flickery images and bland colors do nothing to showcase the PlayStation's graphics prowess". Air Combat was awarded Best Flight Sim of 1995 by Electronic Gaming Monthly.

External links

• Template:Gamefaqs
• Air Combat at MobyGames
• Air Combat at Killer List of Videogames