Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War[lower-alpha 1] is a 2006 arcade-style combat flight simulation video game developed and originally published by Namco for the PlayStation 2. The game was first released outside of Japan by the newly formed Namco Bandai Games. It is the sixth mainline title in the Ace Combat series.

Not to be confused with the Balkan Wars.
Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War
Developer(s)Namco
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Naoto Maeda
Producer(s)Hiroyuki Ichiyanagi
Designer(s)Ryosuke Waki
Programmer(s)Hiroki Odagaki
Yoichi Murakoshi
Composer(s)Keiki Kobayashi
Tetsukazu Nakanishi
Hiroshi Okubo
Junichi Nakatsuru
SeriesAce Combat
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • JP: March 23, 2006
  • NA: April 25, 2006
  • EU: September 15, 2006
  • AU: September 21, 2006
Genre(s)Air combat simulation
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Gameplay
The player firing missiles at enemy fighters

The player assumes the role of a fighter pilot through 19 story missions and a split screen multiplayer mode. Each mission features different objectives including both air-to-air combat and ground attack. Ace Combat Zero introduces branching missions which allow multiple paths to be selected.[1] The player's aircraft is armed with a machine gun and standard missiles that can lock on to air, ground and naval targets. Special weapons including air-to-air missiles, air-to-surface missiles, rockets and bombs can also be equipped. At the end of each mission players are ranked on their performance and awarded credits to buy new aircraft and special weapons.[2]

The player has the opportunity to fly 35 different planes including real-world production and prototype models as well as fictional planes. Customizable special weapons for each plane are selectable as in Ace Combat 04.[3] Alternate paint schemes can be earned by shooting down enemy aces in each mission.

Zero retains Ace Combat 5's wingman command system, allowing the player to issue orders to the AI wingman using the DualShock controller's directional pad.[4] The option to return to base to rearm during long missions also returns from Ace Combat 04.

The gameplay is simpler and more action-oriented than other combat flight simulator games. The player aircraft carries much more ammunition than a real plane and has infinite fuel. On easier difficulty settings the player can survive several missile hits, while on the hardest a single missile can destroy the player.

Ace Style

The player's actions during each mission influences an Ace Style gauge. The game categorizes the player as one of three types of aces, which are described in the game manual:[5]

  • Mercenary: An ace who lives for power and money and focuses on having the strength to obliterate enemies and receiving rewards.
  • Soldier: An ace with an eye for war who can get through any battle, follows orders effectively and knows how to act spontaneously to deal with any situation.
  • Knight: An ace who places pride before anything else and who lives by the code of chivalry by defeating the powerful and helping those in need.

Destroying neutralized enemies and neutral targets will gravitate towards the Mercenary style, while protecting allies and sparing disabled enemies and neutral targets will gravitate towards the Knight style. Players who balance the two approaches gravitate towards the Soldier style.

The player's Ace Style determines the content of radio chatter, which rival aces the player encounters[6] and the content of FMV cutscenes. The different Ace Styles also lead to varying unlockable planes and paint schemes.

Plot

Setting

The game is set in the alternate universe of Strangereal where Earth has different landmasses and history. Set fifteen years before the events of Ace Combat 5, it depicts a war mentioned in that game between the Belkan Federation and a coalition of other countries. An extremist right-wing political party takes control of Belka with the aim to restore the country's former strength and stability. Motivated by an economic crisis and a need for natural resources, Belka invades several neighboring territories that had previously seceded from the Federation.[7][8] The plot is framed by a journalist a decade later researching a legendary ace pilot called the "Demon Lord."[9][10] The player controls a pilot known by the call sign Cipher, a silent protagonist.

Synopsis

The country of Ustio is invaded by Belka and hires foreign mercenaries to oppose the Belkan air force.[8] A mercenary squadron called Galm Team, consisting of Cipher and his wingman Pixy, help the coalition defend and liberate Ustio.[11] Galm Team gain a reputation as skilled pilots after defeating a squadron of Belkan aces in a contested airspace called B7R, nicknamed "the Round Table."[12]

Coalition forces enter Belka based on intelligence that Belka may be developing nuclear weapons.[13] Galm Team meets the pilots of Crow Team including PJ, an idealist who believes he fights for peace.[14] Galm and Crow Teams destroy a Belkan anti-aircraft laser weapon[15] and accomplish further victories in Belka and the Round Table.[16] Cipher earns the legendary nickname "The Demon Lord of the Round Table."[17] Meanwhile, Pixy becomes increasingly disillusioned by the war, especially after the coalition indiscriminately bombs a Belkan city.[18] During a combat air patrol, Galm and Crow Teams intercept and shoot down a flight of Belkan nuclear bombers only for Belka to detonate seven nuclear weapons within their own borders. Over 12,000 people are killed by the explosions.[19] In the aftermath, Pixy fires on Cipher before deserting.[20] PJ replaces Pixy in Galm Team. Galm Team eliminates remaining forces within Belka while the coalition forces the Belkan leadership to capitulate.[21] Belka is forced to cede large amounts of territory and the victors begin political negotiations over how to split the territories' natural resources.[22]

A group of Belkan and coalition soldiers and airmen frustrated with the politicians secretly form a rebel organization called A World With No Boundaries. They launch a coup d'état in Belka, attack Galm Team's airbase in Ustio and seize control of a Belkan nuclear MIRV.[23][24] Their goal is the destruction of the existing structures of nations and borders to end the conflict and allow the world to be rebuilt.[25][26][27] Galm Team destroys the rebels' command aircraft[28] and launches a final sortie to stop the nuclear missile. They fight through the Round Table to a dam facility where Cipher destroys the missile's control systems.[29] However, Pixy reappears in an experimental fighter, shoots down and kills PJ and remotely launches the missile. Cipher engages Pixy in a duel in the Round Table. Pixy is shot down and the missile is destroyed in flight.[30]

Ten years later, the journalist's interviews and research reveals the fates of several of the war's aces. The MIRV's existence was covered up, while the use of nuclear weapons led to a global arms reduction.[31] Most of the surviving rebels quietly disappeared or returned to civilian life.[32] Pixy survived the downing of his aircraft and is now in a conflict zone near a disputed border. He has realized the erasure of borders would not change the world[33] and is now trying to learn about what borders mean to people.[34] Cipher disappeared from history after the war's end. Pixy asks the journalist to pass a greeting to Cipher if he is ever found.[35]

Reception

The game received positive reviews. It holds a 75/100 score on Metacritic.[36] As of January 2008, it has shipped 792,000 copies worldwide.[42] IGN's Juan Castro graded the game at 8.8/10, stating that Namco took a chance in slowly evolving the series, and it offers "slight modifications" into the engine". He also took note of the story as different from other console flight games and the cooperative mode is a blessing to fans.[41]

Computerandvideogames.com lauded the game's release date as a refresher from the multiple games of different genres that came out at the time. He noted the good graphical presentations and the sheer difficulty provided by the Aces.[37]

Eurogamer's Rob Fahey, however, said the game's "incremental" changes confuse players with what has changed between this and Unsung War.[38]

Notes
  1. In Japanese: Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (エースコンバット・ゼロ　ザ・ベルカン・ウォー, Ēsu Konbatto Zero Za Berukan Wō). Released as Ace Combat: The Belkan War in Europe.

References
  1. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. p. 17.
  2. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. pp. 20–21.
  3. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. p. 19.
  4. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. p. 6.
  5. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. pp. 22–23.
  6. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. p. 9.
  7. ACES WEB：ACE COMBAT ZERO THE BELKAN WAR. 2020-12-25. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  8. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War NTSC manual. Namco Bandai Games. 2006. p. 7.
  9. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 1. Narrator: 10 years ago, there was a war that engulfed the world. The Belkan War. And in that war was a pilot who trailed across the sky, and disappeared from history. He was a lone mercenary who inspired both fear and admiration. He is the man I seek.
  10. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 4. Narrator: My pulse raced at the astounding accomplishments of the mercenary known as "Demon Lord." I forgot about my job and read everything I had on hand.
  11. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Glacial Skies, Annex, Juggernaut, Flicker of Hope, Diapason.
  12. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Round Table.
  13. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Briefing. Level/area: Bastion.
  14. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Mayhem. PJ: 'I fight for peace. That's what I'm up here for.' / Pixy: 'While you're up here "fighting for peace," tons of blood is being shed on the ground. Some "peace," kid.' / PJ: 'And I'm here to put an end to that.' / Pixy: 'You think you can stop the bloodshed by shedding more blood? Flyin' with all those ideals swimming around in your head is gonna get you killed.'
  15. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Sword of Annihilation.
  16. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Mayhem.
  17. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Mayhem. Allied Squadron: 'That kind of pilot... They call a Demon Lord.'
  18. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Inferno.
  19. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: cutscene between levels 12 and 13. Narrator: According to the official records, more than 12,000 people died.
  20. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Stage of Apocalypse.
  21. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Lying in Deceit, The Final Overture.
  22. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: cutscene between levels 14 and 15. Narrator: A treaty declaring the cessation of hostilities was signed in Lumen, a city on the border of South Belka and Osea. It was a one-sided treaty that heavily favored Osea. The borders of the affected countries that fluxed greatly over the past years finally settled down at the cost of many human lives. The battlefield shifted to the tables, and the politicians from all countries squabbled with each other over the rights to the underground natural resources - the initial cause of this war.
  23. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: briefing. Level/area: The Talon of Ruin.
  24. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: briefing. Level/area: The Demon of the Round Table.
  25. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Valley of Kings (Mercenary/Soldier). Wizard 1: We will carry out the new creation of destruction through the power of righteousness. Territories, peoples, authorities, all will be liberated. This is the new state, A World With No Boundaries, we'll create. Neither nations nor nationalities have meaning. We will erase these unnecessary borders. The World With No Boundaries will pen a new story. The world will change.
  26. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Valley of Kings (Knight). Sorcerer 1: The battle to reline the borders has moved to the meeting boardroom. Those lines will give birth to new conflict. Rising above countries and armies, our world with no boundaries will become one. For the ideal. For the people. It's time for a perfect world without restrictions or wars. V2 will erase the old one.
  27. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Zero. Pixy: Can you see any borders from here? What has borders given us? We're going to start over from scratch. That's what V2 is for.
  28. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Talon of Ruin.
  29. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: The Demon of the Round Table, The Valley of Kings.
  30. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Level/area: Zero.
  31. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 11.
  32. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scenes 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.
  33. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 17. Pixy: It may be true that the world has no need of borders. But would getting rid of them really change anything? The world won't change for the better unless we trust people. Trust is vital in a peaceful world... But that will never happen.
  34. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 17. Pixy: I want to see for myself what borders really mean and what their volition really is... I may not find what I'm looking for, but I still wanna try.
  35. Namco (2006-03-23). Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War. Namco. Scene: Scene 17. Pixy: If you do meet him, give him a message for me. 'Yo Buddy. Still alive? And thanks, friend. See you again.'
  36. "Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  37. "Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War review". Computer + Video Games. Future plc. May 30, 2006. Archived from the original on December 1, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  38. Fahey, Rob (September 5, 2005). "Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  39. "エースコンバット・ゼロ ザ・ベルカン・ウォー (PS2)". Famitsu (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Archived from the original on August 22, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  40. Kasavin, Greg (April 25, 2006). "Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War for PlayStation 2 Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on April 30, 2006. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  41. Castro, Juan (April 21, 2006). "Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War". IGN. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
  42. Ichinoya, Hiroyuki (January 30, 2008). ""『エースコンバット』シリーズ全世界累計1,000万本突破！"". Ace Combat Web (in Japanese). Namco Bandai Games. Archived from the original on March 11, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
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