While it's not the same as traditional Ace Combat game, it has some decent new concepts.
While this game takes everything that made previous Ace Combat games so great, and throws them in the garbage, this incarnation does have some neat ideas that just need some adjusting.
First off is that this game is no longer purely jet fighting. You now have access to helicopters, bombers, an AC-130 gunship, and you play a door gunner in two missions. Needless to say this game does have variety. Unfortunately some of this "variety" is wasted effort.
The helicopter missions are long, boring, and frustrating on the harder difficulties. For one thing, they handle like a turd in the air. Any view other than the HUD dsplay take up 90% of the screen and the controls are sloppy. Instead of having chaff or flare like actual helicopters, when you are being attacked by a missile you use L1+R1 to do a barrel roll and evade them. The sloppy part is that R1 launches your secondary weapons so somtimes instead of evading you shoot rockets or missiles and then die.
The bomber mission (sadly there is only 1, and it's way too short) is just plain fun. I thoroughly enjoy watching the payload of bombs i just dropped completely decimate the ground targets they were seeking. Unfortunately this fun is short lived and the mission is over before you know it.
The AC-130 mission is abyssmal. trying to target white on a blue background is annoying, as is the constant "missile warning" from invisible ground units that are shooting at you. you can shoot the missiles down with your 25mm but they frequently hit you before you can see where they are comming from. On the harder difficulties this is one of the most frustrating missions and it fits in more with COD than in an AC game.
The door gunner mission is boring, annoying, and just plain dumb. i didnt enjoy this part at all and you have to do it twice. More wasted space when other things could have been added / improved.
Now that that's out of the way on to the actual gameplay.
This game introduces whats called Dog Fight Mode (or DFM) and Air Strike Mode (ASM). Most people either love it or hate it, but i am somewhere inbetween.
DFM can be activated when you are really close to an enemy aircraft. a circle will appear around it signifying that you can activate it. Upon doing so your aircraft goes into a SEMI-on rails section. I say semi because it is not fully on rails. The computer will attempt to follow the plane you are targeting but you still have to control the pitch, roll, and speed of your aircraft. While in this mode you attempt to keep the bandit in the center of your "assualt circle." You can attempt to shoot the bandit down with your guns while you wait for the assault circle to charge. Once charged the circle turns red which allows your missiles to fire more accurately. I dont particularly like this concept but it's not the worst thing ever.
Additionally, there is a counter to DFM but only other fighters and multi-role aircaft are capable of doing this. When DFM is used against you a red circle appears on your screen, This shows the relation of the enemies assualt circle to your aircraft. You must attempt to avoid this circle while aligning a red and green arrow. This is done by slowing the speed of your aircraft and closing the gap between you and your attacker. once the arrows are aligned you level the aircraft (either manually or by using the R2+L2 autolevel) and the arrows turn into a rotating green arrow. By pressing R2+L2 again you execute the counter, which is a brief scene (scene depends on aircraft being flown) and now you are behind them in DFM.
But wait, there's more. You can counter the counter to DFM. when they are about to execute the maneuver to get behind you a rotating red arrow wll appear on your screen. If you press R2+L2 it will basically slow time down, and while they are in the middle of their manuever you decimate them with your guns.
overall DFM is a really cool idea, it is just inconsistent. Sometimes the counter doesnt work because the rotating green arrow doesnt show. Also, the counter-counter icon varies. Sometimes its right there waiting for you, and other times it happens so fast that you have no time to react.
ASM is similar to DFM but for bombing runs. Basically you target the ASM entry point, and when close enough press R2+L2 to enter it. While in ASM you lose manueverability but i believe your weapons are stronger, and they have a significantly reduced cooldown time. You are extremely vulnerable to DFM in this mode though as well as other forms of attack.
Ok so lets get into the campaign. At first it is really fun, but sadly each mission has specific aircraft for you to choose from which is really lame. Also, you can only carry one secondary weapon so if the mission is air to air and air to ground you will have to decide what type of secondary you want. The good news is that the standard gun is very effective against ground targets so its not such a big deal, but still not something that should have been changed from AC6.
As i said, it starts out fun but then the frustration sets in. The friendly AI in this game is atrocious. Not only are they completely useless, you cannot issue commands to them. They enemy AI also focuses entirely on you so they cant even act as a "meat shield" of sorts. This is extremely frustrating in later missions where you have to focus on certain targets (usually ground units) and you have a half dozen bandits that want you dead.
The story in the campaign is forgettable, and without a mission briefing before some missions you rarely know why you are even in a certain area. They also (mostly) removed take-off and landing sequences, as well as completely removed mid air refueling. There are a few missions that require you to take off or land, but compared to previous installments, these sequences are a shell of their former selves.
The multiplayer in this game is great fun. You have deathmatch, capital conquest and domination modes to choose from in competitive matchmaking, as well as a co-op mode with up to 2 other players online. Deathmatch is pretty much a joke, with 16 people flying in a congested circle in the middle of the map. This mode is more luck than anything (thank you lag) and i avoid it like the plague.
Capital Conquest is an awesome mode where two teams of 4 or 8 compete to destroy each others HQ. You can use any type of aircraf you want, including helicopters, and each type serves a different purpose. If a specific condition is met (your HQ has low HP) you can choose to fly a bomber and attempt to inflict heavy damage on the enemy HQ.
I havent been able to play a domination match yet but from what ive seen and read it is basically a king of the hill setup with multiple hills at the same time.
Co-Op is awesome. You play through a select few missions from the single player campaign with up to 2 other people. Sadly there is not much else to it, though it is still a blast.
Lastly i want to mention skills. You unlock skills in 1 of 2 ways. either by purchasing them with the points you earn playing free mission, or online. Or by attaining an A rank on Co-Op missions. These skills grant various abilities such as stronger missiles, enhance gun cooldown, a higher weapons payload, improved armor, acceleration, turning, etc. These add a certain dynamic to multiplayer because you can set a skill to your FAS (friendly air support) and the members of your flight will also gain that skill. the other 5 slots you have for skills will only benefit you however.
Overall this is an enjoyable game. Obviously it has its faults bu as long as you go in with an open mind, and try not to compare it to previous Ace Combat games i promise you will not be dissapointed.
TL:DR
good concepts but could use improvements
DFM is cool but inconsistent
Campaign is forgettable and frustrating at times
Multiplayer is awesome
Skills add a neat dynamic to multiplayer
Overall a game worth checking out.