Part 20: Ace Combat 04 Post Mortem Extravaganza

Extras Post-Mortem Finale Extravaganza

PART 1 – Loose Ends, Multiplayer, Trial Missions, and Free Flight
PART 2 – Paint Schemes, Named Aces, and Cockpit Views
PART 3 – Special Weapons
PART 4 – Thread Requests and More


Overview: It’s time to finally wrap up Ace Combat 04 by taking a look at all the odds and sods extras that aren’t exactly pertinent to or requisite for a standard LP of Shattered Skies. This Bonus update will follow a similar track to the Ace Combat Zero bonus update, with four separate videos each tackling a different topic.

Video 1 is a grab-bag video focusing mainly on the Multiplayer and Trial Missions, with some Free Flight exploration of various interesting stages and some Menu Fu thrown in as well alongside some minor extras.

Video 2 will look at the game’s roster of planes and their paint schemes and will feature a combined look at each plane’s cockpit view and hunting down the Named Ace associated with each plane—this video will feature minimal solo commentary from me when relevant.

Video 3 looks at the roster of Special Weapons for the game, what they do and how they blow up, including rampant gun camera abuse.

And lastly Video 4 is the View’s Choice request special, where I take all the awful suggestions you all made for what you wanted to see done in Ace Combat 04 and try to think of the things in my life that are still worth living for...



Guest Commentators: I am joined across the various parts of this finale spectacular, as usual, by multiple guests.

Joining me in Part 1 are CJacobs and Jobbo_Fett

Part 2 has intermittent solo commentary by me only where necessary.

Jobbo returns in Part 3 where we drone on about the special weapons—no pun intended, because there’s no drones in Ace Combat 04

And finally for the wrap up in Part 4, I am joined again by CJacobs, and a very plane-famous newcomer to the Ace Combat LP continuum, SlyCooperFan1. For those that don’t know him, Sly is an administrator at Acepedia, the Ace Combat wiki from which I’ve been liberally pulling information, text, and imagery from since this project began way back with Ace Combat Zero. Sly very patiently accepted my veritable cold call for commentary and has also put up with me recording multiple videos with him and then just kind of pocketing them because I love falling into hiatus inertia. But that all changes today!

Suffice to say, without Sly’s hard work maintaining Acepedia, I would be pulling A LOT more stuff out of my ass than I already do, so I wanted to express my gratitude for helping make these LPs what they are… by dragging him through multiple videos and trolling the shit out of here and there. Hopefully he’ll still be speaking to me by the time we make it to Ace Combat 7, but we’ll see.





I can’t believe I’ve made it this far into this franchise without a “GAMEPLAY” title card yet. Huh.



TRIAL MISSIONS

This one can also be pinged as the Multiplayer topic too because there’s a LOT of overlap between the two game modes.

So Ace Combat 04 has a special option called Trials, which are a collection of five skill-testing missions set on a few unique map stages. The goal of each trial is to accumulate as many points as you can in a set amount of time. There are no difficulty settings to choose from, and they’re all ranked at pretty much Expert level so they’re not exactly for brand new Ace Combat babbies.

Each trial has a ranked point threshold that needs to be cleared, which scales with the difficulty of the task the game expects you to complete. You’re ranked on your performance in each trial with a C, B, A, S or Fail if you crash, get shot down, or whiff even getting a C rank before time expires. However, even getting a marginal C grade is still counted as a failure, as you need at least a B grade or better to unlock the next trial and proceed onward.

The five trials are, as follows. 1) Destroying stationary targets. This trial takes place above the Megafloat construction site, one of the few bones thrown at Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere by the rest of the franchise. All you’ll recall from Lunethex and frozentreasure’s side LPs of 3, Megafloat is the artificial island city and headquarters of Neucom Inc. Your goal for this trial is to destroy as many stationary blimps, dummy targets, and grounded planes, and container ships scattered around Megafloat as you can in the time alloted.

2) Dogfight. This trial is set over a unique desert coast map that also sees some action in Operation Katina in Ace Comabt 5. You’re thrown into action against a swarm of enemy planes and must shoot down enough in a short span of time to move on. Slower planes are more numerous and worth less points, while more maneuverable planes like the EF-2000 and F-22A are worth more, but are harder to hit and are there to goad you into chasing them instead of racking up quicker kills on the small fry.

3) Dogfight, guns only. This trial takes place over the ice flow map from Breaking Arrows, only during the daylight so you can see everything now. You’re not given any missiles and have to take out a certain number of planes with guns only. Again, the points totals are scaled down to compensate. As before, slower planes are more numerous and worth less, while Su-35s are mixed in to provide you with the chance of actually clearing the requirements with their higher point value. This one is a real mean bitch to clear because if you don’t take out at least 5 planes right at the start when they’re all grouped together in front of you, you’re not clearing the point requirement so just restart and try again.

4) The only non-combat one of the five tests. In this one you have to fly through a ring course through the Choppinburg mountains. Successfully completing this course means flying through all 24 rings, and doing so in under 1’40”00. Trying to do this in anything short of an F-22A or even the X-02 Wyvern is generally doomed to failure. Hell, even the Raptor barely squeaks by sometimes.

5) Vs. Yellow Squadron. It’s not seen in the video because there’s a multiplayer stage that’s this only it’s P1 vs. P2 vs. Yellow Squadron, so including it twice is belaboring the point. Like it says on the tin, it’s a rerun of the climax of Siege of Farbanti. It’s you in whatever plane you want to take into the match against five Su-37 Yellows, and you’re on the clock to down all five. However, since this is the final trial and you don’t have to worry about unlocking anything else after this the pressure’s off for this one. It’s just a bragging rights match.

And as it always goes with these LPs, the one time I did tackle this trial without recording it, I killed them all in 45 seconds. “I do my best work when it doesn’t count” should be my slogan or something...




Moving on from the Trials, let’s look at Shattered Skies’s roster of planes, shall we. 04 has a roster of 21 planes in total, including the series’ first true Superplane, the Erusean X-02 Wyvern. 18 of the planes have Named Aces attached to them, one for each mission in the game, and shooting them each down in New SP Game or Free Mission mode will unlock their paint scheme for purchase. The three planes without a Named Ace are the F-4E Phantom II, the Su-37 Terminator, and the X-02 Wyvern. The special paint jobs for those planes have unique unlock requirements.

The Biela skin for the F-4E is unlocked for purchase in the hangar at the start of a New SP Game. The Yellow 13 skin for the Su-37 is unlocked for purchase after all 18 standard Names Aces have been shot down. And the EASA prototype skin for the X-02 is unlocked after S-Ranking all 18 missions on Expert difficulty.

The Erusean colour skins for all planes are unlocked for purchase after completing the game once and beginning a New SP Game. The only plane this doesn’t apply to is the Wyvern, whose Erusean color skin unlocks after S-Ranking every mission on Hard difficulty. Though this requirement can be bypassed by S-Ranking all the Expert missions instead, thereby unlocking both the Erusean AND EASA skins at the same time.



F-4E Phantom II


"Large carrier-based jet designed to shoot down enemy aircraft and destroy ground targets."

How To Unlock
Available by default.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: C
Air-to-Air: C
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: C
Stability: C
Defense: B

Armaments
GUN: 620
MISSILE: 52
NPB: 6
UGBM: 8

F-5E Tiger II


"Low cost, lightweight fighter with respectable capability in all areas. Easy to fly and maintain."

How To Unlock
Available at the start of the game. Cost: 52,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: C
Air-to-Air: C
Air-to-Ground: D
Mobility: C
Stability: B
Defense: C

Armaments
GUN: 650
MISSILE: 48
UGBS: 12
RCL: 8

F-16C Fighting Falcon


"Small and lightweight, this aircraft is a well-balanced fighting machine for air-to-air and air-to-ground combat."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 3, The Northern Eye. Cost: 97,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: B
Air-to-Air: B
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: B
Stability: D
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 700
MISSILE: 52
UGBS: 14
XAGM: 12

A-10A Thunderbolt II


"This ground attack fighter is well equipped for its role with a large Vulcan cannon and air-to-ground weapons."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 5, Lifeline. Cost: 123,000 credits.

Stats
Attacker
Speed: D
Air-to-Air: D
Air-to-Ground: S
Mobility: C
Stability: A
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 850
MISSILE: 56
UGBL: 14
XAGM: 16
CLB: 12

Mirage 2000 (Mir-2000)


"Great multi-role fighter that incorporates the latest technology to compensate for delta-wing design."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 5, Lifeline. Cost: 111,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: B
Air-to-Air: B
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: A
Stability: B
Defense: D

Armaments
GUN: 700
MISSILE: 52
UGBS: 16
LASM: 10

F-14A Tomcat


"Carrier-based air superiority fighter. This jet can attack multiple targets simultaneously."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 6, Invincible Fleet. Cost: 188,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: B
Air-to-Air: A
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: B
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 750
MISSILE: 64
XLAA: 24
UGBM: 10

Tornado IDS (TND-IDS)


"Multi-role fighter that features both air-to-air and air-to-ground capability."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 6, Invincible Fleet. Cost: 172,000 credits.

Stats
Attacker
Speed: C
Air-to-Air: C
Air-to-Ground: A
Mobility: C
Stability: A
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 750
MISSILE: 58
BDSP: 12
PGB: 8
LASM: 12

F/A-18C Hornet


"Multi-role carrier-based fighter. Able to carry virtually every weapon ever made."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 6, Invincible Fleet. Cost: 170,000 credits.

Stats
Multi-role
Speed: B
Air-to-Air: B
Air-to-Ground: B
Mobility: B
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 700
MISSILE: 60
UGBM: 10
LASM: 14
XMAA: 14

F-15C Eagle


"With the perfect balance of power and maneuverability, this jet is the best air superiority fighter available."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 8, Shattered Skies. Cost: 272,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: B
Air-to-Air: A
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: A
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 800
MISSILE: 68
UGBM: 12
XMAA: 16

MiG-29A Fulcrum


"Highly maneuverable mid-sized fighter with a large payload. Performs well in both air-to-ground and air-to-air roles."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 8, Shattered Skies. Cost: 259,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: B
Air-to-Ground: B
Mobility: A
Stability: C
Defense: B

Armaments
GUN: 750
MISSILE: 64
UGBS: 18
RCL: 72

F-117A Nighthawk


"Although difficult to detect by radar, this Stealth attacker is limited by a small payload capacity."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 10, Tango Line. Cost: 368,000 credits.

Stats
Attacker
Speed: C
Air-to-Air: D
Air-to-Ground: S
Mobility: B
Stability: A
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 650
MISSILE: 54
UGBL: 14
PGB: 14
CLB: 14

Typhoon (EF-2000)


"Delta-wing air superiority fighter with high-tech canards that adjust for different altitudes."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 10, Tango Line. Cost: 351,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: A
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: A
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 800
MISSILE: 68
XLAA: 16
UGBM: 14

Rafale M (R-M01)


"Delta-wing carrier-based fighter with a large payload. Leading edge canards make it highly maneuverable."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 10, Tango Line. Cost: 370,000 credits.

Stats
Multi-role
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: B
Air-to-Ground: B
Mobility: A
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 800
MISSILE: 64
SOD: 14
XMAA: 18
LASM: 16

F-15E Strike Eagle


"Advanced air-to-ground avionics and weapons provide this air superiority F-15 with great anti-surface capability."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 12, Stonehenge Offensive. Cost: 505,000 credits.

Stats
Multi-role
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: A
Air-to-Ground: A
Mobility: A
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 850
MISSILE: 72
UGBL: 14
XMAA: 10
CLB: 14

F-2A Viper Zero


"A great support fighter, this F-16 boasts advanced avionics and an alloy body."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 12, Stonehenge Offensive. Cost: 505,000 credits.

Stats
Attacker
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: A
Air-to-Ground: S
Mobility: S
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 800
MISSILE: 68
UGBM: 16
LASM: 18
RCL: 80

Su-35 Flanker


"An exceptional multi-role fighter. High-tech canards provide superior maneuverability in air combat."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 15, Emancipation. Cost: 589,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: S
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: S
Stability: B
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 850
MISSILE: 72
XLAA: 18
UGBM: 16

F-22A Raptor


"An exceptional fighter with superior maneuverability, payload, Stealth, supersonic cruise, and thrust vectoring."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 16, Whiskey Corridor. Cost: 643,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: S
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: B
Mobility: S
Stability: A
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 850
MISSILE: 74
XMAA: 22
PGB: 8

Su-37 Terminator


"An improved version of the Su-35. Rear-radar and thrust vectoring provide unrivaled power in air combat."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 16, Whiskey Corridor. Cost: 618,00 credits.


Stats
Fighter
Speed: S
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: S
Stability: B
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 850
MISSILE: 78
QAAM: 8
UGBL: 16
LASM: 20

F-15 S/MTD (F-15 ACTIVE)


"The most maneuverable F-15 with thrust vectoring nozzles, ACTIVE, and forward-swept wings."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 16, Whiskey Corridor. Cost: 620,000 credits.

Stats
Fighter
Speed: A
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: B
Mobility: S
Stability: S
Defense: S

Armaments
GUN: 900
MISSILE: 78
XMAA: 22
FAEB: 8

Su-47 Berkut (S-37A)


"Unique forward-swept wings and canards provide unmatched turning ability. It also has some Stealth ability."

How To Unlock
Complete Mission 17, Siege of Farbanti. Cost: 889,000 credits.


Stats
Fighter
Speed: S
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: C
Mobility: S
Stability: A
Defense: A

Armaments
GUN: 900
MISSILE: 78
QAAM: 10
UGBM: 18

The Su-47 model in Ace Combat 04, unlike the other plane models in the game, has multiple inaccuracies when compared to its real world counterpart. This was a result of there being limited reference material available on the Berkut at the time, so Project ACES based its design off the version that appeared in Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere.

X-02 Wyvern


"A Stealth aircraft built with the latest technology. Boasts total air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capability."

How To Unlock
ISAF paint scheme: Clear the campaign mode twice AND earn an S-Rank on all Normal difficulty missions. Cost: 1,141,000 credits.

Erusea paint scheme: S-Rank all missions on Hard difficulty.

EASA paint scheme: S-Rank all missions on Expert difficulty. Cost: 1,838,000 credits.

Stats
Multi-role
Speed: S
Air-to-Air: S
Air-to-Ground: S
Mobility: S
Stability: A
Defense: B

Armaments
GUN: 950
MISSILE: 82
XLAA: 26
BDSP: 24
QAAM: 16




Sorry, folks, we’re plum out of Named Aces by now and 04 was just prior to the advent of even quasi-Achievements, so there’s no Medals to show off for the game either. So let’s move on to it’s Special Weapons roster.




And here now is the run through of all the special weapons in Ace Combat 04 and a rough summation of what they do, in case anyone doesn’t have time to actually watch any of the videos.

AIR-TO-AIR


XLAA / XMAA
Advanced Long (/Medium) Range Air-to-Air Missile


Locks on to four targets at a time, has the longest firing range of any air-to-air munitions in the game, and is a one-hit kill if it connects, but is highly inaccurate. Has the firing code "Fox 3".

QAAM
Quick Maneuver Air-to-Air Missile


Highly maneuverable missile, most accurate air-to-air ordinance in the game, offset by lower ammo count compared to the XLAA/XMAA.


AIR-TO-GROUND

UGB(S/M/L)
Unguided Bomb (Small / Medium / Large)


Impacts a large blast radius, destroying all targets in effective range. Comes in Small, Medium, and Large sizes, with its explosive power rising the larger the bomb gets. Has the firing code "Pickle" in certain games.

RCL
Rocket Launcher


Fires a series of rockets in a spread pattern in front of the plane. Difficult to aim due to each rocket's randomized trajectory and launch vector.

FAEB
Fuel-Air Explosion Bomb


Creates a massive devastating blast by dispersing an aerosol gas cloud and then igniting it to form a fuel-air explosion effect.

CLB
Cluster Bomb


Drops multiple bomblets for area-of-effect damage. Replaced in later games by the Self-Forging Fragment Submunition (SFFS) special weapon.

BDSP
Bomblet Dispenser Pod(s)


Dispenser remains fixed to aircraft pylon and drops bomblets along flight path with medium blast damage.

NPB
Napalm Bomb


Impacts on a small radius, straight line flame blast. Better at ground target route and crowd control than doing actual damage.

AIR-TO-GROUND, GUIDED

XAGM
Advanced Air-to-Ground Missile


A shorter ranged air-to-ground missile capable of striking up to four targets at once.

LASM
Long-Range Air-to-Surface Missile


Fire and forget missiles capable of attacking targets at long range. Their low flight trajectory makes them perfect anti-ship weapons.

SOD
Stand-Off Dispenser


Guided bomblet dispenser that causes massive damage through compounding explosions. Destroys all ground targets in a straight line depending on drop altitude and angle.

GPB
Ground Penetration Bomb


Aka a "bunker buster". Does massive damage against a single guided target and all other additional targets within its blast radius. Can lock on to ground targets within 2000ft distance.







And that’s about it. I said at the start of this LP that “this is the one that makes it all worth it,” and I meant it. Shattered Skies might not be the objectively best game in the franchise—and if there even is one is a matter for vigorous debate—but it’s always going to be #1 in my heart. It was my first experience with the Ace Combat series, and my first non-sci-fi based combat sim ever, so it was quite the eye-opener. I had never seen or experienced anything like it before in terms of gameplay, storytelling and worldbuilding, and was enthralled when I found out there were more games set in the same universe and that the world it was set it was so much bigger than I’d imagined.

It was also introduced to me by a close friend of mine who I don’t see very much anymore, so this whole project and 04 in particular has been a way for me to keep some old fond memories alive in a small way. It also helped me recover and recenter myself after 2016 almost literally killed me in several ways. It was nice to do something that made me happy after spending three months trying to get back to a place where I could do anything period.

But now, it’s finally time to move on and put all of that behind me, I guess. Adieu, Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies. We’ll always have Farbanti.


See you out there.