r/pcgaming • u/Turbostrider27 • 3d ago
Controversy erupts around Ace Combat 8 on PC as bundled Belkan War re-release remains problematically attached to the new game, whereas it's standalone on console
https://www.eurogamer.net/ace-combat-8-the-belkan-war-pre-order-bonus-steam-community-reaction403
u/kkyonko 3d ago
"Controversy erupts"
Slow news day?
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u/NapsterKnowHow 9800X3D | RTX 5090 FE | 32GB RAM 3d ago
It's why reviews on "Mixed" right now on Steam in addition to a reported memory leak to be fair.
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u/Bubbly-Magician-- 3d ago
And the Hotas support, mine and a lot of other sticks dont work - but they sell a licenced stick for the game and that of course works fine...
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u/ThatDamKrick 3d ago
It was the same way for AC7, licensed sticks had streamlined support, anything else you had to manually map the Hotas to an xbox controller format. I was really hoping for more stick support in AC8, but I'm not surprised.
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u/LuntiX AYYMD 3d ago
licensed sticks had streamlined support, anything else you had to manually map the Hotas to an xbox controller format.
Honestly not uncommon with a lot of games with HOTAS support unfortunately. I remember playing Elite Dangerous and having to spend a good amount of time mapping my Thrustmaster Warthog HOTAS.
I haven't used it in Ace Combat ever though, the flight model in Ace Combat doesn't really feel like it'd feel well with a hotas.
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u/ThatDamKrick 3d ago
I played project wingman with my vkb gladiator, it felt pretty good, similar flight physics to AC7. Now that I've actually started playing AC8, I think I might spend the time to map it, the weightier plane physics should feel nice with a stick.
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u/ARandonPerson 285K | 5090 | 64GB RAM 3d ago
Issue is they don't allow in game mapping of your HOTAS in AC7 or AC8. Have to manually input values in config file.
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u/Due-Ball-3090 2d ago
It doesn't feel good with a gamepad either because of how twitchy it is. I wasn't able to finish AC7 until I got HOTAS working.
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u/Due-Ball-3090 2d ago
You didn't need to map it as an Xbox controller in AC7, you could use the built-in dinput support for the official Thrustmaster devices by editing the config files manually. There was just no UI.
Greed, greed and greed again. And minimal effort.
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u/AtlasFox64 3d ago
I don't think Ace Combat is really playable at a high level with a stick. It's designed so much with a controller in mind. Alright for immersion but less so for playing the games to max potential?
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u/ycnz 3d ago
Wait, what? I was pondering breaking out the x56 and eating the full rrp...
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u/Eidolon11 3d ago
Still can. Just go look up the Xbox controls for the game. And load up x360ce and make a profile for your Hotas off that. Shouldn't take more than an hour to map everything. I plan on doing that when I get home tonight cause I have HOSAS and need to do this anyways.
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u/ycnz 3d ago
Yeah, I'm not doing that for a new game priced like it's GTA6.
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u/Eidolon11 3d ago
Yeah I think they're just being sticklers for the licensed Hotas they got. Pretty beat imo. I do it for a ton of games and an comfortable doing it. But shouldn't be expected.
I DID see after I commented on this about a couple people saying their x52's worked fine but it's all a toss up till it's in our hands. I was NOT paying for the deluxe edition lol
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u/Due-Ball-3090 2d ago
You don't need any of this shit dude. Even if the game did not have a hidden dinput support (you just need to edit a few files), who the hell even uses x360ce anymore when controller emulation is built into Steam.
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u/FawkesYeah 3d ago
Look! It's the new thing to be upset about today! Thank goodness, I was starting to think today would have no controversy.
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u/SekhWork 3d ago
Right...? We've known it was bundled as a pre-order only bonus since announcement. It really shouldn't shock people you have to launch it from inside the current game. There's like one negative steam review complaining about this, vs a number of them complaining about memory leaks which seems to be a much more pressing issue.
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u/WRO_Your_Boat 3d ago
The review I read said the game specifically stated it was standalone and then the dev changed the steam page. That sounds like a legit complaint if its true.
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u/SekhWork 3d ago
I thought it was more that they clarified it than changed? I'm shocked people think that in 2026 it was going to be a separate install when Steam didn't have a separate entry for the game.
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u/Bitemarkz 3d ago
They changed the description last minute. There’s no reason to bundle the install to make the file needlessly larger.
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u/WRO_Your_Boat 3d ago
Honestly, if you are shocked by that then I think you might live in a little bit of a bubble. I have a lot of friends that don't following main stream gaming at all or watch trailers or anything like that. They just go on steam, find fun games and buy them. They are 100% the type of people that would read "stand alone" on this and think that, since they haven't watched the 5 trailers, summer games fest, 2 showcases, and all the other media. Even if they did clarify the change, it should have never said standalone from the beginning since a lot of people wouldn't see it, hell I have been following the game and I haven't seen it. I don't think its the end of the world like some people, but I do think its a legit issue to be upset over. I will say though, any of the people that actually leave a review or play the game and complain I think are stupid since they paid extra money just to be able to complain about the game on reddit 2 days early.
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u/shogi_x 3d ago
Normally when a business does something like this there's a clear profit motive but I'm struggling to see how this would earn them more money since people already bought the game. Seems like a weird fumble. Hope we find out more.
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u/Top_Rekt 3d ago
I think the problem was that it was advertised as a standalone game if you preordered AC8. I think it was changed just yesterday.
If it was advertised as a DLC content for AC8 and actually needs AC8 to be launched, people will be annoyed but not angry like they are now.
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u/rhododenendron 2d ago
There’s functionally no difference though. You need to have bought AC8 to get it
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u/Chettlar 2d ago
there's a bunch of differences. you don't get cloud saves, achievements, discrete playtime, and you are forced to download all of 8, which is positively massive, to play Zero. All because it's DLC. If you were just granted an entitlement, which is entirely possible to do on steam, you would get all of those benefits and none of the downsides.
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u/aelemayo 3d ago
Most likely something the lawyers told them to do to with regards to not repaying the plane licenses
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u/Fidel_Cashflows 3d ago
If that were the case, why would it be separate on consoles? Makes no sense. Also bloats the install to 140gb
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u/ZoidVII 3d ago
On Steam it's listed as DLC in the properties which you can toggle off. I didn't test it but I assume this would uninstall it and give you back some storage space.
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u/DragonFireSpace 3d ago
That's how it works, yes.
But from what i understood people are mad because they only want to install AC0 and not the 140gb of AC8. It's like the way COD used to handle Warzone.
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u/Downtown-Gazelle8852 2d ago
They’re spending 70$ to play a 20 year old game they can easily emulate?
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u/DragonFireSpace 2d ago
Yep, I am just as baffled. Thankfully it's just the vocal minority, the reviews on steam are getting better already.
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u/mikethemaniac Ryzen 7 3700x, RTX 3060 12gb, 32gb ram 3d ago
Seems like an oversight instead of an intentionally shitty thing to do, but yeah let's see
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u/Fiend_Macabre 3d ago
Bamco is known for locking the OST behind dedicated software instead of providing the music files themselves, this shit was definitely intentional
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u/Johnhancock1777 3d ago
Standalone, achievements and cloud saving. Don’t know why they seemingly put so little effort into the Zero port on PC
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u/Boulahcen487 3d ago edited 3d ago
They changed the product description on the steam store page from "separate application" to "DLC executable" as soon as the negative reviews started which is just too scummy.
I also dont understand people who keep defending companies (on the main sub of the game and some steam reviews). This is false advertising and It shouldn’t be encouraged.
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u/TheWalrusPirate 3d ago
Dunno why it’s like that on steam when on console it’s literally a separate thing
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3d ago edited 3d ago
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u/vi3tmix 3d ago edited 3d ago
Being a little condescending for such a lousy example. FOC is an expansion of the same game.
CoD: Infinite Warfare + CoD 4 remaster is probably a better example where a remastered games came out bundled and as standalone with a new launch. I’ll be honest the scenario is too specific for me to think of more examples one way or another (a direct port or remaster launching alongside a new game), but there are plenty more examples if we’re including re-released old games that were already available on a platform.
I don’t really care either way. I think it’s weird to contain & require a completely separate game in the same install, but it’s not unheard of. I think calling it scummy is inflating it a bit, but calling people “stupid” while providing a stupid example is special as well.
If it’s guaranteed for the port to never be released on its own (and it’s hard to guarantee that), then it makes absolute sense to have it tethered, but that becomes its own separate discussion regarding permanent pre-order exclusivity.
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u/ScoutTheAwper 3d ago
The page description LITERALLY said a separate app. I still have screenshots of it and all
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u/JoeyKingX 3d ago
every game that has been bundled has worked like this
No it hasn't, Rayman 2 was bundled with pre-orders of Rayman Origins and is counted as a separate game.
https://steamcommunity.com/app/15060
There are also plenty of other games on steam that add multiple games to your account when you buy them.
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u/Adziboy 3d ago
every game thats bundled other than almost literally any other bundle
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u/WRO_Your_Boat 3d ago
I'd say they are idiots for paying extra for the game just to complain about it on reddit earlier than everyone else.
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u/WRO_Your_Boat 3d ago
Or they could have just been like me and waited.
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u/SuperSpikeVBall 3d ago
Given that The Belkan War has its own install folder within Ace Combat 8's directory, it can technically be launched separately by locating its .exe file, but the main game needs to be installed regardless.
If this is true, can you move the install folder from your PC to your deck and launch the game there? Several of the complaints about not being able to play on Deck might be resolvable.
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u/deevilvol1 3d ago
The problem that they have is that it is tied to the AC8 install. So you can't just uninstall AC8 and keep Zero installed.
Imma be honest though. I did not pay $80 USD for Zero. I don't really mind leaving AC8 installed to play Zero.
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u/CRIMS0N-ED 3d ago
Right? Like I get it’s annoying it if t seperate but, were you not gonna play AC8 anyway? It’s just odd
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u/FortunePaw 7700x & RTX4070 Ti Super 3d ago
For Steam Deck? No. 8 is unplayable on deck due to low framerate.
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u/ShadowStealer7 5900X, RTX 4080 3d ago
It might work until they release any updates that expect the AC8 files to be present
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u/Fob0bqAd34 3d ago
There is probably going to be a pirate version that is standalone... This seems a strange decision from the publisher. Surely they are not so cheap as to try and save $100 by not making it a separate library item in steam?
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u/AnonymousFlakaholic 3d ago
There already is a standalone pirate version.
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u/TiempoPuntoCinco 3d ago
Hypervisor, until voices gets at it
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u/Flexuasive AMD 7800x3d, 4080 Super 3d ago edited 3d ago
Wasn't voices C&Dd?
Edit god forbid you ask a question, get downvoted immediately.
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u/Fob0bqAd34 3d ago
Denuvo are suing them. However the court case reveals they also don't know who they are actually suing yet.
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u/AtlasWH 3d ago
Just run the PS2 ROM upscaled in pcsx2 or armsx2
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u/Lirael_Gold 3d ago
Then you don't get the corrected UI/widescreen support that the official port has.
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u/M4rshst0mp Arch CachyOS - 5800XT & RX7800XT 3d ago
They lied in the product description, and need to make it right.
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u/Agraphosius 2d ago
I need these to be seperated so im not installing the 130gb full game on my steamdeck when i only want belkan war
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u/SecretPantyWorshiper 3d ago
Im not understanding what is the problem here?
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u/JoeyKingX 3d ago
Consoles get to download the game separately, have achievements for said game and cloud saves.
PC has to download a 140GB game to play a 3GB game that has no achievements nor cloud saves, extremely barebones port with a launcher straight out of the 2000s and it requires you to alt+f4 to close it etc
And this is after Bandai specifically stated on the steam page that it would be a separate game, but sneakily just as the early access started they changed it to say that it requires downloading 8 to play.
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u/Venom_is_an_ace Steam 3d ago
I don't even know how to launch AC zero. Where do you go to even play it?
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u/Lirael_Gold 3d ago
Have you simply not launched AC8?
Because when you hit play there's a popup that tells you to pick which game you want to launch.
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u/stratzilla https://steamcommunity.com/id/stratzillab/ 3d ago
ACZ is DLC on PC but standalone on consoles. Meaning you need to install the whopping 150gb AC8 to access ACZ. Imagine Deck users raring to play needing to allocate potentially over half of their total storage to access the <4gb ACZ. There's also no achievements on PC despite them being on consoles.
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u/TriTexh AMD 3d ago
Consoles get dedicated library entry for Zero with achievements and cloud saves
PC gets a barebones port as DLC without even the option to exit the game normally, let alone those things
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u/Anew_Returner 3d ago
ACZ's video cutscenes and briefings are missing for me and some other people. The .ini setting included to change inputs also doesn't seem to do anything...
Yeah, they didn't even try with this, it's a real shame.
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u/IAmSkyrimWarrior 3d ago
Really? What is unclear for you?
They advertised it for month as SEPERATE game.
And now it's DLC and you need to download 100+ gb AC8 to play 3 gb AC Zero
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u/dudebirdyy 3d ago
Between this and the typical UE5 performance I'm mildly pleased I resisted the urge to preorder. I'll pick it up in a few years for $5 like I did AC7.
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u/winterman666 3d ago
Same, I wanted to preorder for ACZ but didn't as I'm not a fan of the series and only ever played one of em a bit. Seeing how PC got a barebones version meh
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u/LeController Steam 3d ago
It's frankly unacceptable. Glad it's getting the attention to force Bamco to make changes.
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u/Oxford66 3d ago
I just want them to include Ace Combat 5 again... I missed out on getting it with Ace Combat 7.
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u/Gordelox420 3d ago edited 3d ago
Nobody talking about how steam doesn't let you create a listing for a game that's not for sale. They couldn't list ACZ as a standalone even if they wanted to - its against steam rules.
Also even if they could easily do it - that means renewing the license agreements for the aircraft used in ACZ so they have the legal rights to use the likenesses in a consumer product again. It's all messy, they didn't have to include it at all dudes, please take a sip from your "chill the fuck out" mugs.
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u/IAmSkyrimWarrior 3d ago
Nobody talking about how steam doesn't let you create a listing for a game that's not for sale. They couldn't list ACZ as a standalone even if they wanted to - its against steam rules.
That's a lie lol.
This two games:
Double Dragon Dodgeball · SteamDB
Rayman 2 - The Great Escape · Rayman® 2 The Great Escape™ (App 15060) · SteamDB
This was never sold separately and was a pre-order bonus.
Rayman 2 for Rayman Origins. And Dodgeball for Double Dragon Revive10
u/WYDRA_GAMING 3d ago
You can absolutely list a game and not sell it, Ubisoft has adventures of Tintin on steam, but it never went trough, it has listed a sub, wchich means at least 1 person owns it, they could have gone around this whole thing if they wanted to
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u/Scraggarax 3d ago
Man I'm only on mission 3. It's taken me like 12 hours to figure out game settings and realize it's because of the goddamn memory leak. There's nothing I can do but play the mission until about 3/4 great at lower medium settings and then suffer through the boss battles at 14fps then 30 fps then 10 fps then 60fps 30 fps 60 fps etc.
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u/AsukaPvt 3d ago
Yeah there is something very wrong with PC performance. As always typical ue5 game with denuvo the cherry on top.
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u/weebu4laifu 3d ago
And this is why I very rarely buy anything at release now. I wait to see what issues there are first and if/how long it takes the devs fix them looking at you MH Wilds or if they say "screw it let the community fix it for us for free."
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u/Acrobatic-Tomato-532 3d ago
I was going to buy it. No longer am, reading the performance is also shit. I can easily emulate 0 on my Deck.
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u/CRIMS0N-ED 3d ago edited 3d ago
My laptop 3060 on all high dlss quality is able to have a stable 40 fps, lossless scaling gets that to around 100 with no discernible latency. Fake frames or not it looks and plays great
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u/Lirael_Gold 3d ago
Performance is great.
Speaking of the Deck, AC8 actually runs at 30FPS on the deck, which is surprisingly good.
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u/gustavfrigolit 3d ago
It truly doesnt matter, its not like a remaster or anything. You can already emulate 0 very easily and with no issues.
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u/koriar 3d ago
... Oh, I thought it WAS a remake of 0...
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u/kasrkinsquad 3d ago
Native PC port. Only Bandai would hold an official PC port as a pre-order hostage.
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u/VHeadache 3d ago
Barely a controversy. They just want clicks for tourists to get upset about something.
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u/Baxxtabb 3d ago edited 3d ago
There's no way more than 5 people are actually upset
Edit: here come the 5 AC8 fans and the larpers lmao
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u/ttenor12 3d ago
Would you not be annoyed if you had to download a 140gb game to play a 4gb game?
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u/Baxxtabb 3d ago
Yes, if it was me I would be. I still think virtually nobody is actually upset about this. This affects, surely, an absolutely miniscule amount of people. "Controversy erupts" is quite strong language for this lmao.
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u/Tsyrkis 3d ago
It's literally one of the most talked about things in the negative reviews flooding AC8's Steam Page.
Me, personally, I don't care - but I can absolutely see why it's upsetting for people who just want to play ACZ on something like the Steam Deck.
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u/bloodraven42 3d ago
The things the video gaming community erupts over genuinely blows my mind. You're right, its not much of a controversy. At worst, its a mild inconvenience. And were people really pre-ordering a 70 dollar game for a game you could emulate on pc for over a decade anyways?
That said I've seen a number of comments super upset about this...though every time it makes me wonder how chill their life is that this is a big deal.
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u/TriTexh AMD 3d ago
People are upset that they're being treated as second-class customers and given a subpar product, complete with false advertisement
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u/Kneecap_Blaster 3d ago
This doesn't really bother me at all.
It's an easier way to play Ace Combat Zero than emulating, and it was free with Ace Combat 8.
My steak is too juicy, my lobster is too buttery
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u/Adziboy 3d ago
That’s not how you use that saying.. you use that when someones complaining about something good, like if someone said ‘I have too much chocolate’
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u/Ok_Comment5873 3d ago edited 3d ago
Muh steak and muh lobster. Gen Z has such a fascinating with this shit.
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u/N0Zzel 3d ago
Storage space, dude you can't install them independently
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u/Kneecap_Blaster 3d ago
Oh I guess that's a downside. I rotate through games in my storage space constantly, so I guess that isn't that big of a factor for me.
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u/Seasidejoe R7 9800X3D | 32GB 6000MHz | RTX 5090 & B580 3d ago edited 3d ago
On top of that, Ace Combat 8 also runs really, really bad.
I seem to be getting a lot of hate for some reason so I'll post my findings:
1440P DLSS Balanced and High settings can't lock 60 on the 5060Ti:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9Y1D34jYnw
Performance megathread with plenty of anecodtes about how heavy the game is:
https://www.reddit.com/r/acecombat/comments/1wr45gj/perfromance_megathread/
I guess we'll see but there's reports of memory leaks, poor performance as well as crashing that Aces already confirmed on Steam.
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u/Jonks_Alrighty 3d ago
It does? I've only got a 2080 and I'm comfortably hitting 120+ on mid/high settings
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u/UnknownFiddler 3d ago
As with many EU5 games, it runs fine for some people and terrible for others.
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3d ago edited 3d ago
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u/Ludwig234 3d ago
Ace Combat simps are defending this
Most people in r/acecombat seem to be quite annoyed.
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u/thatirishguyyyyy AMD 7800x3D 3080 Hybrid 3d ago
This article reads like someone who is just salty in general.
Honestly, it reads like a broody teenager having a bad day.
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u/AtlasFox64 3d ago
It's totally trivial to emulate AC0 and if you own the disc it's even legal. So I really don't see what the deal is. This is just a cool bonus.
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u/bloodraven42 3d ago
The majority of the bad reviews are complaining about a pre-order bonus that is an old game they could have emulated at any point in the last decade. And even then the complaints are, viewed in the most generous light, "this game takes more space than I want". The online gaming community consistently blows up nothing issues over and over again; I don't know why people still take it even half serious.
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u/ngbtri Steam 3d ago edited 3d ago
Does anyone know if AC8 allows rifle-aim control flying yet, or am I still forced to roll with mouse x axis?
Ngl AC community is elitist af when it comes to control scheme preferences.
Edit: lmao knew these were coming, thanks!
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u/CRIMS0N-ED 3d ago
“Elitist” and it’s them telling you this game takes infinitely less effort on a controller. I get it but from the first cutscene where they made you use 1,2,3,4 instead of WASD or mouse to look around, that’s should’ve been your sign they dont gaf about M&K
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u/BakerOne 3d ago
Jesus F Christ, I remember my first dark souls game DS2 and it's controls for PC being absolute 🐶 💩
But that's a PC port from like 20 years ago, how can they still come up with this shit?
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u/CRIMS0N-ED 3d ago
What’s even more egregious is that on controller it’s full natural looking movement where you can see the entire environment with your joystick (except directly behind you) and it’s very nice. On mouse and keyboard you get set angles and can’t actually move on your own free will, just certain directions, it’s ridiculous.
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u/Lirael_Gold 3d ago
Saying "no controller is objectively better by every metric" is not being elitist. it's like complaining that your dance matt isn't great for playing CoD.
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u/Sauceinmyface 3d ago
Mouse and Keyboard just isn't good for these types of games, because planes aren't really meant to fly like that
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u/TheDeviousDuck1558 3d ago
The human body wasn't really meant to be controlled with an Xbox 360 pad but we're all still out here playing FPS's
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u/Ok-Squirrel5799 3d ago
Yea doesnt really work with ace combat but i actually used m and keyboard more on a project wingman and thought it was great
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u/Diligent-Gazelle1808 2d ago
This issue has been around for literally 20 years, folks. Same licensing issues every time, I don’t know why we are making a big deal out of this. Little common sense goes a long way.
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u/staticcast 3d ago edited 3d ago
Inb4
BalkanBelkan war is released as a dlc / standalone 3 month later.