Overview
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve is the new entry in the Ace Combat flight combat series, developed by Bandai Namco Aces and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. It launched on 2 October 2026 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam, with Deluxe Edition owners playing early from 28 September.
OtaHub's take
Players take the role of a pilot pulled from the sea and brought aboard the carrier Endurance. When the legendary ace Rex Cope, “The Wings of Theve”, is killed, officer D.D. gives the player Cope's name, dog tags and lead position in Joker squadron so the legend can live on. Beyond the campaign, the game has an air base lobby for up to 100 cross-platform players, co-op modes and 4v4 versus.
According to SteamDB, the game reached 52,694 concurrent players on Steam on 3 October 2026, nearly four times Ace Combat 7's record. The PS5 version holds a Metacritic score of 88. The PC version has drawn complaints about crashes, missing flight stick options, and the Ace Combat Zero pre-order bonus not running standalone on Steam due to licensing limits.
Verdict
Ace Combat 8 suits flight combat fans and anyone after a cinematic campaign packed with spectacular dogfights. PC players should wait for the first crash fix, while console players can jump in now.
