A New Ace Combat Game Might Be Already in Development

The Ace Combat series had its first release back in 1995 on the PS1. Since then we’ve been having fun with its mix of arcade and flying sim mechanics. On August 18, an Ace Combat 25th anniversary retrospective panel was held, and a joint production between Bandai Namco and ILCA was announced.

ILCA is the Japanese studio responsible for the new Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl remakes. They’ve also worked alongside other studios helping the development of games like Yakuza 0, Dragon Quest XI, NieR: Automata, and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4.

In fact, the ILCA studio also made the cinematics and environment production for Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. The series producer Kazutoki Kono explained why they are drafting the former studio:

“Project Aces staff will of course continue to be involved in the development of this new project, but as we celebrate 25 years and 3m copies sold, we’ve come to understand we have many fans of all tastes. Our small team can’t handle it all alone, so we’re looking to expand the Ace Combat team in a big way.”

“That’s why we want to form a business alliance with ILCA, who will become more deeply involved in the Ace Combat series than ever before, and create a new Ace Combat. We hope this opportunity will allow us to add even more staff to the Project Aces team.”

In his closing statement, Kono added, “More than anything, I hope fans are happy to know that the next game is underway. With this new staff, we’re creating a new Ace Combat—a new era. I don’t know where we’ll be in the next 25 years, but the Ace Combat series will continue, and to everyone who supports us and creates with me—I will continue to give it my all.”

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.