ACE COMBAT 8 Launches Today: Platforms, Cross-Play, 100-Player Hub and Season One Explained

Official promotional imagery courtesy of Bandai Namco Entertainment.

ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE launches worldwide today, October 2, 2026, bringing the flight-shooting series back with its first mainline entry in seven years. The game is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam.

Alongside a new campaign set in the fictional Strangereal universe, Bandai Namco is making online play a major part of the release with cross-platform multiplayer, cooperative missions and a virtual Air Base capable of hosting up to 100 players.

ACE COMBAT 8 platforms and launch details

ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE walkthrough trailer — official Bandai Namco promotional image

Developed by Bandai Namco Aces, ACE COMBAT 8 uses Unreal Engine 5 alongside proprietary technology to deliver large-scale environments, detailed terrain, realistic cloudscapes and changing weather conditions that can affect a mission.

  • Release date: October 2, 2026
  • Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam
  • Developer: Bandai Namco Aces Inc.
  • Multiplayer: Cross-platform online play

The biggest online mode in ACE COMBAT history

ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE First Look — official Bandai Namco promotional image

Bandai Namco describes ACE COMBAT ONLINE as the series' largest multiplayer offering to date. Players create and customize a mercenary pilot before entering the Air Base, a virtual social hub supporting as many as 100 players.

The online lineup includes Co-Op Assault and Co-Op Warfare, along with limited-time emergency missions and PvP events. The multiplayer side also has its own progression, rewards, training activities, arcade content and Jukebox features.

What Season One adds

Season One introduces the Premium Ace Pass reward track. Players who redeem the Premium Ace Pass or Premium Ace Pass Plus can unlock the ADFX-02 Morgan-PIXY and a collection of special skins for the aircraft.

The Premium Ace Pass Plus also immediately unlocks the first 30 of 100 Ace Pass levels, including the standard and premium rewards attached to those levels when redeemed.

A new war in Strangereal

The campaign begins after the Federation of Central Usea falls under occupation by the Republic of Sotoa. Players become the “Wings of Theve,” fighting alongside Baxter, Tasha and Coster as Joker Flight in an effort to reclaim the FCU homeland.

Bandai Namco is also supporting the story with HOUR ZERO, a four-part live-action prequel featuring Josh Holloway, Brandon Routh and Tamlyn Tomita.

For longtime fans, October 2 marks a major return: a new mainline ACE COMBAT campaign and the franchise's most ambitious multiplayer structure are arriving together on current-generation platforms.

Source: Bandai Namco Entertainment. Images are official Bandai Namco promotional media.

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