Bandai Namco Entertainment Asia announced that ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE, the first mainline entry in the franchise in seven years, has reached 1 million units worldwide, the fastest in the franchise. ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE is available now in Standard Edition and Deluxe Edition on PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC via Steam.
In addition to a sales record-setting launch weekend, ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE is now one of the best entries in the ACE COMBAT franchise, ranking second based on critics’ scores listed by game review aggregate sites. It sits right behind the series’ best, ACE COMBAT 04: Shattered Skies, which was released in 2001 for PlayStation®2. Players and critics are drawn to the new sequel’s Campaign Mode, a cinematic experience that puts players in the role of an ace pilot in a fictitious world at war. ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE also delivers an online multiplayer experience that is the most expansive in the series, with cross-play bringing pilots together across platforms and from around the world. Online multiplayer delivers a thrilling range of PvE and PvP modes and features a virtual Air Base lobby hosting up to 100 players, where they can customise and progress their online character, train and track rewards, engage with fun activities such as playing classic Bandai Namco arcade games, and pair up to sortie.
The ACE COMBAT series has continued to expand worldwide by leveraging the strength of its long-running IP, which celebrated its 30th Anniversary in June 2025. Continuing the franchise’s legacy, ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE pushes the boundaries of visuals and gameplay in an arcade-inspired aerial action game. Players jump in the cockpit of a wide range of real-world fighter planes to experience single- and multiplayer jet combat in breathtaking visual fidelity, entering intense battle theaters across expansive environments featuring realistic cloudscapes and finely rendered terrain.
ACE COMBAT 8: WINGS OF THEVE also offers a Premium Ace Pass for ACE COMBAT ONLINE. The pass can be purchased separately and is also included with the Deluxe Edition’s Premium Ace Pass Plus Voucher, which unlocks the pass for one season after launch. The Premium Ace Pass Plus grants an instant unlock of 30 Ace Pass levels, giving players a head start to claim the first 30 tiers of seasonal rewards, along with a season-long track of bonus rewards including aircraft skins, avatar costumes, and the playable ADFX-02 MORGAN–PIXY additional aircraft.