Staff – March 7, 2019 at 9:58 AM
Get the latest Intel® Graphics Driver for Ace Combat 7.
For the past two decades, the goal of Ace Combat, Bandai Namco’s long-running series of flight combat simulation games, has been to deliver the experience of flight to people from the comfort of their own homes. Each installment has capitalized on cutting-edge graphics technology to make these experiences not only more and more immersive but rewarding to play as well, using arcade-like elements to drive the player’s ambition to become one of the most daring fighter pilots the game has ever seen.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, the series’ first since 2014’s Ace Combat Infinity, is no exception. It’s the first in the series to use Unreal Engine 4, which brings sweeping, palpable improvements to the game as a whole, as well as a new multiplayer mode called “Battle Royal.” Furthermore, playing on a PC is the best way to appreciate these improvements; the game runs well on a wide range of PCs, including those that host Intel integrated graphics. If you want to learn more about how to optimize your settings and gameplay experience for Intel integrated graphics, check out our optimization hub here.
The upgrade to Unreal Engine 4 is a significant one. It makes for beautifully rendered clouds that are so convincing it’s hard to resist the urge to soar right through them. From day to night, Ace Combat 7’s skies are a joy to explore, even apart from the combat.
The sky isn’t the only site of Ace Combat 7’s graphical improvement, however. Sandstorm-ridden oil fields, dilapidated city skylines, and picturesque forests make up Ace Combat 7’s terrain, each offering awe-inspiring views as well as unique challenges to your mission. These environments are so detailed and varied that they truly make you feel as though Ace Combat’s fictional world is fully realized, replete with rich biomes.
Ace Combat 7 also features a host of new dynamic weather patterns that makes the game’s world feel even more lifelike. Rain dappled on the camera or cockpit window can obscure your sight, while lightning strikes might disable some of your flight equipment for a brief period of time.
These new weather effects serve more than just an aesthetic purpose, however. They provide a new strategic texture to combat situations, demanding that you retain the flexibility to think on your feet should Mother Nature decide to participate in a tense dogfight. Flying through dense storm clouds, for instance, might provide you cover from homing missiles, but they might also ice your wings and impede your maneuverability.
As a result, these weather effects force you to work hard to achieve the fantasy of flight. These graphics aren’t merely pretty; they create challenges that, when overcome, make you feel like an ace pilot. Every successful dodge and direct hit is given more weight when navigating a violent storm. The fact that you can have such a visceral experience even without a dedicated graphics card is a testament to how great of a graphical achievement Ace Combat 7 really is.
The game knows just how captivating its visuals are, too. Ace Combat 7 even lets you watch replays after missions, giving you control over camera angles and playback speeds. This thoughtful, cinematic feature allows you to cash in on the high of your proudest moments again and again.
Ace Combat 7 further brings your childhood fantasies of being a fighter pilot to fruition by supplying you with a vast arsenal of gorgeous planes. This is why many of us play a game like Ace Combat 7; it’s an opportunity to admire these elegant vehicles from the comfort of our own virtual hangars. Ace Combat 7’s planes are the series’ most visually stunning yet, and with a whopping 28 types of aircraft to choose from (as well as over 100 enhancements, parts, and weapons), it’s likely that you’ll feel compelled to spend a significant fraction of your time playing the game in the hangar alone.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a flight simulator series that so effectively captures the thrill of flying, and with current-gen graphics technology behind it, Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is quite an impressive installment. Play on PC to get the most out of your experience, and if you’re using Intel integrated graphics, don’t forget to make sure your settings are fit for the task by checking out the best optimizations here.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown was released on PC on February 1, 2019.
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