Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve Review – Ghost in the Shell

The useful part

You're a pilot, but rather than sitting in the cockpit of a fighter jet, the opening of Ace Combat 8: Here, on a mission attempting to protect a commercial flight, you're once again on the wrong end of the Satoan ace pilot's missiles, and as you plunge into the ocean, you see the body of Rex slowly descend into the depths. As he died, his soul seemingly imprinted on your own, and you're haunted by his melancholic, disembodied voice, a constant narrator and commentator through every moment of Ace Combat 8.

How it works

• The sense of necessity runs deep through the narrative of Ace Combat 8, whether in your inherited position as the Wings of Theve, Cope's own sense of obligation, or in the increasingly desperate missions...
• This isn't a fight for glory or for territory, it's for survival, and the narrative does a good job of balancing its gung-ho, Top Gun-esque moments with a touch of moralising and consideration.

Details worth keeping

The war is not going well for the FCU, and since they're woefully undermanned, you're immediately thrust into a fighter jet as a navigator, sat behind living legend Rex 'The Wings of Theve' Cope, despite barely having had time to dry behind your ears. That's not the end of Rex Cope, or his handle The Wings of Theve, though. D.D., the FCU's social media guru and master manipulator, sees the opportunity to keep Cope's death under wraps, giving you his dog tags, name and position at the head of Joker wing, all in an effort to keep the myth and legend of The Wings of Theve alive.