Ace Combat Assault Horizon PlayStation 3
User Score
6.8 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 51 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 51
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 51
  3. Negative: 13 out of 51

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  1. LittleMeow
    Oct 14, 2011
    9
    A fantastic addition to the series, and way better than Ace Combat 6. Highly recommended for anyone a fan of flight games. A very fast paced, action oriented game, but this time, set in the real world! The "Dogfight Mode" is definitely fun, and a nice new addition, and for those you don't like it, it isn't even necessary to use it. Highly recommend picking it up!
  2. TotalBiscuit
    Oct 15, 2011
    5
    The helicopter missions are a disaster and completely ruin the game as far as I'm concerned. The last thing you want to be doing in an Ace Combat game is trying to control a clunky helicopter against tiny ground targets in missions that completely outstay their welcome. Worst still, there are turret sections where you are a door gunner. What place does that have in an Ace Combat title?

    Th    e actual air-to-air combat is as great as ever, arguably better, the DFM system is excellent and keeps the adrenaline going but I'm sorry, I can't play another one of those awful helicopter missions and don't want to proceed any further in the campaign as a result.… Expand
  3. USG
    Nov 18, 2011
    5
    Overall, this game is just bearable and nothing more. The developers ruined the series' foundations while making its inspiration too obvious. A mediocre inspiration does not result in an outstanding rebirth. Some nice features are preserved from older Ace Combat games, but most other features that resemble a horribly average first-person shooter to ruin its value and are extremely illogical and unrealistic. Whenever the "Mission Completed" screen pops up, a great amount of disappointment is felt in retrospect to Namco's previous titles. Ace Combat: Assault Horizon has many flaws that has been introduced in the new title.

    The story is extremely forgettable, with stereotypical characters that are given a little thought and lack any depth. Missions are just slammed together in order with no pause. This is complemented by some of the worst songs ever composed for an Ace Combat title which feel unfitting at times whose only goal is to resemble, possibly, the culture of the area the player is flying over but adds nothing to the battle. Some music is just noise. Even Namco has dropped the ball on such staples as radio chatter, with nothing interesting going on and voices are often drowned out on default settings throughout the story.

    The gameplay itself is also broken. The CRA mode and physics are painfully unrealistic. Anything that is airworthy can backflip, go figure. Forget about taking damage too, feel free to crash into the ground and let the plane's regenerative health do the job. The player does not need to worry about purchasing aircraft, they're presented with a selection with unlocked aircraft. Nobody can enjoy the more rewarding system of purchasing aircraft and using any type of aircraft the player desires for any mission. Not even briefings are present anymore, and the only scripted two scripted briefings or so are horribly uninteresting. Only a few times is the player allowed to land, which are during heavily-scripted sequences under stupid circumstances.

    Helicopter missions are completely mediocre and unrealistic and there's nothing special at all with the gunner missions that do not separate Assault Horizon from the rest of the crowd.

    In Assault Horizon, the player is bombarded with constant visual effects. They become irritating, distracting, and disorientating very quickly and also break the pace of the game worse than CRA mode. Once the animation ends, the player must re-orientate and wonder the point of the bells and whistles of the game.

    One very major negative aspect of the game is the inconsistencies in difficulty during story mode. Many sections are are breeze, but then the player smacks a section that is nearly impossible to complete, let alone achieve a high rank on. The missions do not become progressively harder, either.

    About all that has been an improvement are the graphics which is expected. The multiplayer does not stand out in particular itself, although it has been improved from Ace Combat 6. Overall, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon is not an enjoyable game and a failure in retrospect to many previous titles. Namco has also failed at marketing it towards western audiences.    … Expand
  4. Ginnungagap
    Nov 19, 2011
    8
    Air Force porn for modern war fans. Crazy fun shooter that play like a good military thriller reads. There's a demo out (I haven't played it but I just finished the full game) if you like that, you'll love the game. Definitely worth buying.
  5. iFox
    Oct 14, 2011
    10
    Great game and worth the $60 price tag. The battle action is insane and keeps you blowing crap up the entire time and I'm surprised I haven't had a seisure yet. The Good. The combat is awesome and the first 5 minutes into the game I knew I was playing an Ace Combat game. The different combat situations are nice battling in a helicopter and using bombers for bombing runs changes the pace. The dog fighting system is one of the best that Ace Combat has come up with, I love watching the jets rip to pieces as I dodge towers, just awesome. The bad. Story is not the best from Ace Combat. It works but is not like the old Ace Combat. My opinion is Ace Combat 4 is still the best of all the series, and the story is what made it the best. Even sky crawlers story was better then this one. However is done well and worth the time. The battles are awesome and long, but I want more levels. The Helicopter battles could have been its own game, and I want more. I hope Ace Combat will make some downloadable levels and additional story lines. It just needs more battles, cities, and more crap to blow up. Like big flying ships, massive missile launchers you have to fly in, and low flying battles to avoid cannons in the sky (Ace Combat 4). Still great and worth the buy for intense combat flight sim lovers. Completely blows HAWX and HAWX 2 out of the water. I hope Ace Combat creators will create another game based on the physics of this game and just focus on a more engaging story the focus on me the Unstoppable Ace blowing everything up in the sky while I listen on the enemies radios screaming in fear as they run tail from me coming. See all past Ace Combat games to understand my point.… Expand
  6. awdrifter
    May 23, 2012
    10
    This game is not Ace Combat, it's a freaking COD clone with planes. Regenerating health on a plane? Seriously?! Everything has been dumbed down to a mini-game, and yet it's incredibly frustrating to play. I hated the rail shooting section, I hated the bomber section, I hate they force you to go into the godamn ASM mode for ground bombings. There are no fictional planes, no memorable aces, no enemy radio chatter, no mid-air refueling. If you liked the previous AC games, you'll hate this one. If you like COD or BF3, then you'll love this.… Expand
  7. SG-17
    Oct 12, 2011
    10
    While it can take some time for veterans of the series to adapt to the new "Dogfight Mode" the game overall has the stuff to take a place with the other great Ace Combats like Shattered Skies, The Unsung War, and The Belkan War. Now, yes the switch from the fictional universe of Strangereal to our very own Earth is a bit disappointing the story that is told is as wild and imaginative as any told in Strangereal. Mechanically the game is solid as a rock. The flight mechanics on planes are smooth and responsive and Dogfight Mode is surprisingly fun and useful. Things can get sticky when using an attack helicopter, but you don't use one often enough to get angry with it. The graphics are amazing. The planes look sleek and realistic and jaggies are far and few in between. Surprisingly the ground doesn't look like a low resolution composite image anymore, it actually looks realistic. The game has large amounts of replayability when it comes to 3 player co-op and 8v8 competitive multiplayer. Capital Conquest is a base defense game that requires a large amount of teamwork to win at. Overall while the game may have a few quirks, it is still the best Ace Combat game since The Belkan War… Expand
  8. Excedion
    Nov 4, 2011
    2
    First of all this is not an Ace Combat game. This should be immediately inherent if you even look at the box never mind play the game. Everything that made the Ace Combat games great, ridiculous plot lines, over the top characters, and best of all giant enemy super-weapons that looked as if they were designed by a sci-fi writer on LSD, all of it is absent from this game. Namco Bandai have apparently observed that "Oh stories about the american army killing terrorists and rebels are doing well, lets get rid of our whole fictional world and just plant this game in a Modern Warfare setting because maybe people who buy those games will buy ours then even though dedicated fans will probably hate what we've turned the series into. Oh well." Ok maybe assault horizon isn't the first Ace Combat game to do it but lets be honest not that many people played joint assault.
    Ending the rant this game is nothing but a quick-time event version of H.A.W.X. with slightly more realism (slightly). The gunship missions are ok but the door gunner missions are just a standard vehicle section from any FPS and there is only one bomber mission and one AC-130 mission in the whole game though undoubtedly if youve ever played a Modern Warfare game you've seen all the depth AC-130 mission has to offer.
    Online play is alright but its pretty obvious that this game was tailored more towards the multi-player side than anything else leaving the campaign pretty stale and boring. The new "Dogfight Mode" takes all the challenge out of the game as it offers to fly the plane for you while you chase and enemy with a little circle for a few minutes and activating DFM at all can result in your plane regularly defying the laws of physics.

    To sum it up this game was built for people who've never played ace combat before and believe gaming began with Call of Duty. Baby's First Flying game would be the best phrase to describe it. This piece of cash-in garbage doesn't deserve to have Ace Combat in its title. Feel free to buy it if you are quite happy to pay £40 to watch shiny explosions and pretty landscapes with no game play or coherent story.    … Expand
  9. decoyrhino
    Nov 10, 2011
    10
    An excellent reboot for the series with a really satisfying new mechanic in the dogfight mode and the ground assault mode. The only caveat is the other types of game play, while fun are just not really as re playable and the campaign is a little short. The game really needs some kind of customizable skirmish mode for offline players. Also the DLC is obnoxious and exorbitant but this game did not invent that system, it's just an unfortunate trend in the games industry as a whole.… Expand
  10. Bellicose
    Nov 16, 2011
    2
    I would hesitate to call this an Ace Combat game. Not just because it's bad and I would prefer to divorce its identity from the franchise, but because it really is nothing like any of the other Ace Combat games.

    Do you enjoy flight games? Well, this isn't one of those. Oh sure, it has airplanes, but you don't actually do much direct controlling of them. The majority of the game is pl    ayed in "Dogfight Mode" which is not as exciting as it sounds. In "DFM", the system takes over most of the flying for you, leaving you to -- well, marketing would say "focus on the fight", but in reality it's "focus on just holding down the guns and pressing the missile button when prompted to". Oh, didn't we mention? The game features quicktime events prominently.

    Nevermind the bland gameplay, the story is terrible. It leaves the wonderful Strangereal world behind in favour of...this subpar, generic, straight-up-meh experience.

    There is NOTHING of Ace Combat here. But even if it didn't share the name, even if it were a game striking out on its own for the first time, there's just nothing to like here. The highpoint of Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War truly is behind us.

    This game is an ungodly morass of incompetence.    … Expand
  11. Xeero
    Dec 14, 2011
    4
    A total departure from the other games. Where before the player had complete freedom to choose their aircraft and play style, now they're relegated to mandatory aircraft for certain missions. Likewise with the addition of Dogfight Mode, most of the game occurs in a sort of rail shooter game that is generally incredibly easy and only ever becomes difficult when the game introduces silly mechanics like boss enemies being able to essentially fire backwards, or enemies that continue flying even after being killed so they can crash spectacularly into a pre-planned area all seems to be done with the intent of wrenching control from the player.

    This isn't even to begin talking about the sad sordid affair that are the gunner missions where the player isn't even flying an aircraft but instead is parked in the gunner seat for an unpleasantly long period of time. The helicopter missions are essentially just an FPS section with how they control with no real interaction with obstacles. These might be salvageable, but only with a fair deal more polish and resigning them to their own game.

    The bomber missions were actually enjoyable for the most part, at the very least the player was in control of the aircraft for it.

    In terms of story the game just plain falls flat. We've traded up amazing weapons like Stonehenge where you're dodging railgun shots and airburst detonations for instead tracking down the (not)nuclear bomb known as "Trinity". The characters are wooden with little personality between them and the rivalry is pointless.

    For PS3 owners it's probably the best option for a flight game currently, but considering the only other options are HAWX and the upcoming Janes game this isn't exactly a high bar.    … Expand
  12. Shika
    Jul 4, 2012
    4
    Where to begin? Overall, AH is a few good things amongst a cluster of horrid, great plane customization, damn good graphics and attention to detail in terms of plane design, decent online(though nobody plays it anymore), and that's about it for the pros. It's pathetic that they had to boost the maneuverability of every plane in this game, the simple change of how planes handle is a major hit to this game, everything but the MiG-21 and the attacker aircraft feels like a complete roller coaster. As for the helicopters, they suffer from seriously poor physics(aka none) and aren't even fun to compensate. Door-gunner and AC-130 missions are an embarrassment, and the bomber mission is basically tap circle as fast as possible. Story is uninspired and riddled with plot holes, forgettable characters, no enemy ace squadrons or named aces in each level, no wingman control, and briefings are done well but there are maybe 2 or 3 for the entire game. Every air-to-air mission(about 70% of the game) turns into an endless DFM-chain, and there are only 3 ground attack missions, I question why they even added in attacker aircraft to this game if you can't use them for anything other than ONE level. Yes you read right, you can't even use whatever plane you wish, you're restricted to classes, this is such a stupid decision. The story is just embarrassingly bad, cliche, and riddled with plotholes. Missions really kill this game, too many air-air missions where DFM gets tedious paired with random side missions that seem like filler ruin this game. The best part of this game are the multirole and attacker missions, and that's it, everything else is too on-rails. Honorable mention of dodging radar cones at the beginning over the bomber mission though, felt like a throwback to dodging lazers in earlier Ace Combats. Horrible game though, only redeeming factors are the graphics, custom schemed planes. The online is buggy with DFM, you can engage people at crazy angles due to lag. I have an amazing connection and still experienced problems with the angles even when playing as host. I don't rate games in the red just because I don't like them, this game really is a 4… Expand
  13. FlyBoy8712
    Jan 2, 2012
    1
    Whee, a flight game where you don't even fly. On-rails "flight" game. Awesome. All it asks you to do ever is hold down the gun button and occasionally fire a missile. Absolute garbage.
  14. mongoman
    Apr 8, 2012
    9
    While fans of past Ace Combat games will likely turn their nose up at this unique title, it is for the most part fun to play. The controls are tight, the graphics are well done, the air battles are intense, and the story sucks. It is not Call of Duty bad, but it is close. I love the dogfight mode, it is a refreshing change of pace and adds variety to the battles. If you are looking for a fun aerial combat game, this one will fill the void quite well. The game is not perfect, but then again, few games are. There is a plethora of DLC and tons of plane customization. This one is highly recommended for fans of the genre.… Expand
  15. BAN_KAI
    May 10, 2012
    10
    this game is fantastic and worth my money LOVE IT .................................................
  16. shady965
    Jul 10, 2012
    8
    This game is for ACE COMBAT fan but they might get a little bit disappointed becuase of the new close range combat system , but it makes the game much more realistic and the soundtracks are fantastic , gives u the exciting u need , highly recommended for AC fans !
  17. Syriamn
    Mar 18, 2013
    5
    Read the reviews and still didn't care about them and bought it disregarding all of them. Why? I love dogfight games. Since the arcades that this was my favourite kind of game. It took me two missions to put this one aside. One word: Repetitive. I mean to exhaustion... The game looks a sounds good but...
  18. cricketlenny
    Oct 16, 2012
    8
    I love how cinematic and awesome the action can be in this game, so I want to give it a 10 out of 10. However, there are 2 flaws that are holding at an 8. The first is a generic story, of Russian conspiracies and superweapons. Dont get me wrong, its actually very well told, and does a good job of making the characters and situations have weight, but its hard to get invested when you know whats going to happen most of the time. The other flaw is that the gameplay can get repetitive or closed ended at points. The Dog Fight Mode, DFM, is the best way to take down enemies, but bosses can only be taken down in this way, and some enemies will never get hit with other methods. While DFM is extremely fun, its less fun once they force you to do it for stubborn enemies. If you like flying games, or even action movies like Top Gun, this is for you, but if your a flight sim fan, this game will most likely irritate, as it controls in a very simplified and arcade like style. Also, the helicopters can barrel roll in this game. So yeah, thats awesome… Expand
  19. KrazeeBob
    Dec 26, 2012
    3
    Fans of the franchise may be disappointed! While this game is mostly consistent with past installments of the series....it is VERY different in its limited controls. Even on the most difficult setting and having flight assist off, the game still controls a large part of the flying. On a banking turn you cannot pitch more then 90 degrees. If you find yourself upside down you can't turn over on your own, you have to release the analog stick and the game flips you over. While this franchise was never a true flight simulator, it at least gave you some arcade style control to allow you to roll and give chase however you saw fit.

    The new dogfight mode (DFM) is a little fun at first, but it gets old quick. It's also too easy to initiate dogfight mode, and considering it keeps you virtually glued to the tail of your target, makes it less challenging.    … Expand
  20. delriego
    Jan 11, 2013
    7
    Ace combat 6 was the first game of the series I played, and I loved it, the story, the pacing and the gameplay, the only thing I didn't like was the made up world "Gracemeria" I hated that.

    So this time around I was eager to play it because it was set in the real world, but it took one step forward and two steps back. The story is crap, you just don't care about the characters and the g    ameplay is super dumbed down, I was hoping for an OMG mission but there isn't,the chopper missions are pretty good but there are only two or three of them and they are too long.… Expand
  21. MShadows17
    Mar 17, 2013
    8
    I'll start by saying that my experience with the Ace Combat series involves Shattered Skies for PS2 and Skies of Deception for PSP. Both were awesome games in their own rights.

    I initially shied away from this game due to its mixed reviews and eventually picked it up when it was $20. To start off, I can understand why hardcore fans of the series might be disappointed. The fictional sett    ing of the previous games has been replaced by a real-world one. The plot doesn't offer much outside of a basic Air Force story that revolves around Russian nuclear threats. The helicopter missions are clunky and mediocre at best, and the bomber missions could've used some fine tuning. For me, the biggest problem was some unclear instructions on counter-maneuvering. If you don't get that down right away, you're probably going to die a lot and get frustrated very easily.

    Now that I've addressed that, I had a blast playing this game. The missions are still fast, frenetic and action-packed, and a lot of this is improved upon thanks to the newly introduced Dogfight Mode (or DFM). It makes the aerial combat more realistic and gets you closer to the action than previous games in the series, which made combat seem a lot more exhilarating in my opinion. While it is a great addition, the game often relies a bit too much on it. Unless enemy planes are flying straight ahead of you and in the same direction, you are rarely going to be able to use the conventional style of shooting missiles from a longer range to down enemy planes, so, basically, you are going to be using DFM to down most enemy planes. At the same time, a few of the lead target DFM sequences end up being a bit scripted and following a certain line of events before you can finally take the plane down. However, I didn't find this to be too much of a problem, though, because DFM was just that captivating and fun.

    The introduction of different flying vehicle missions was a bittersweet introduction. On one hand, I liked the variety that the helicopter, door gunner and bomber missions offered in the wartime atmosphere. The door gunner missions were pretty basic, but still fun. The bomber missions were good but ended up being a bit easy, as you could basically spam the fire button to wipe out enemy targets, for the most part. The helicopter missions were a mixed bag that could've used some fine tuning before release. While the variety is nice, it really isn't what Ace Combat is essentially about. It's about fast-paced jet action and it will probably leave you wanting more of the jet missions when it's all said and done. There are 16 missions in the game, and it's about half jet missions and the other half is other flying vehicle missions. I'd have probably preferred to just have the jet missions (akin to previous games in the series). It's not that the other missions are bad (they're not), it's just that it left me wanting more of what the previous games were based on, that being jet missions. The other missions are good and all, but they just aren't as fast-paced as the jet missions, and they just seem a bit out of place in an Ace Combat game. Again, they're not bad. They just seem out of place.

    In the end, though, your opinion of the game will likely depend on whether or not you like the newly introduced DFM. If you like the concept and thought it was executed well (I am in this group), there is a lot of fun to be had playing this game. If not, you are probably better off sticking to the older games in the series. Either way, I think it's definitely worth a try now that it's down to $20.    … Expand
  22. danibuttpirate
    Apr 27, 2013
    9
    I personally was (and still am) an ace combat fan. I love Ace Combat Assault horizon, and how it added a new mechanism to the game and it promised everything it advertised. Only main problem with the game is that it's set in real locations. Previous Ace Combat games were set in their own parallel universe and what not. But that is about it, I would recommend this game to anyone who is new to this type of genre or who has been a fan for years since the first ace combat (A.K.A Air combat) had been released.… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 28
  3. Negative: 2 out of 28
  1. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Mar 6, 2012
    80
    In real-life, dog fighting is an elite, Darwinian art form. Here it's often the digital equivalent of school kids running in circles with paper planes, screeching "Nuh uh! I shot you!" [Dec 2011, p72]
  2. Play UK
    Nov 18, 2011
    78
    For about an hour Ace Combat: Assault Horizon will feel like the most exciting game you've ever played. [Issue#211, p.90]
  3. PSM3 Magazine UK
    Nov 13, 2011
    79
    Genuinely exhilarating dogfights. [Dec 2011, p.97]
See all critic reviews »