Ace Combat 8 Steam reviews: why the Zero bonus backfired

Ace Combat 8 Steam reviews dropped to "Mixed" within a day of early access opening on September 29, even as critics gave Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve some of the best scores in the series' history. The main reason players gave was the pre-order bonus: Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War arrives on Steam as DLC that only runs with the full Ace Combat 8 install, while console players get it as a separate game. Bandai Namco has since apologized, and as of midday October 1, 2026, the Steam score has climbed back to "Mostly Positive". The worldwide launch on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC is October 2.

Key takeaways

• Critics like it: as of October 1, the PS5 version holds an 88 on Metacritic from 58 reviews, and OpenCritic shows an 88 Top Critic Average with 98% of critics recommending it.
• Steam players were harsher: user reviews sat at "Mixed" in the first day. As of midday October 1, Steam shows 76% positive across 5,583 reviews ("Mostly Positive").
• The Zero bonus is the biggest complaint in those reviews: on Steam it is a DLC executable that needs Ace Combat 8 installed, with no achievement list of its own. On consoles it is a standalone game with its own trophies or achievements.
• Bandai Namco apologized for not explaining that in advance, blamed "licensing restrictions and platform-related considerations", and said it can't promise a change.
• The publisher also acknowledged crashes on Steam and weaker flight stick options than Ace Combat 7. Memory leak claims come from player reviews, not from Bandai Namco.

What changed with the Ace Combat Zero bonus

Ace Combat Zero is a 2006 PlayStation 2 game that had never been on PC. Bandai Namco offers a modern port of it, plus a playable F-14A, as a pre-order bonus for Ace Combat 8. The Steam store page now says the Steam version "is available as a DLC executable launched separately from the base game" and that Ace Combat 8 must be installed to use it.

Players say the page didn't always read that way. A Steam reviewer quoted by PC Gamer's Wes Fenlon cited earlier wording that called Zero "a standalone application". Fenlon measured the cost of that change on his own PC: Ace Combat 8 took 140.24 GB, and Zero was only 3.2 GB of it. Steam's listed requirement for Ace Combat 8 is 150 GB of free space on an SSD. He also notes that Zero on Steam has no achievement list or cloud saves of its own, while the console versions come with their own trophies or achievements.

Kotaku's Ash Parrish reported the user score at "Mixed" on September 29 and pointed to the Steam Deck: a small handheld drive has to hold the whole new game to run a roughly 4 GB one.

What Bandai Namco said

The Ace Combat team answered in a Steam announcement posted late on September 30 (early October 1 in UTC). It says that "due to licensing restrictions and platform-related considerations", Zero "cannot currently be released on Steam as a standalone application", so it is distributed through Ace Combat 8 instead. The team apologized "for any confusion or frustration caused by our failure to clearly communicate this distribution method in advance."

It also said it is "evaluating possible options, including discussions with our platform partners," but that it "cannot guarantee that any changes will be made."

The licensing part predates the backlash. Automaton reports that on a September 28 livestream, the developers at Project Aces said the agreements with the jet manufacturers whose planes appear in Zero allow it to be handed out as a pre-order bonus but not sold on its own. What Bandai Namco hasn't explained is the "platform-related" part: why consoles can ship Zero as its own app and Steam can't. PC Gamer's Fenlon is skeptical it is impossible, pointing to Hitman 3, which has an unlisted Steam page even though it can't be bought on its own.

Why the Ace Combat 8 Steam reviews and critic scores split

The two numbers measure different things. Critics review the game. Steam user reviews also capture the purchase, the install and the PC version's stability, and the Zero bonus touched all three for people who pre-ordered.

On the critic side, the scores are strong. Metacritic lists 88 for PS5 (58 reviews), 86 for PC (31) and 89 for Xbox Series X (6) as of October 1. OpenCritic rates it "Mighty", with an 88 average from 48 reviews. Forbes (9/10) calls it "immaculately crafted", DualShockers gave it 9.5/10, and the lower scores are still positive: TechRaptor (8/10) flags pacing and difficulty, and CGMagazine (8/10) faults the storytelling as incoherent.

The Steam complaints go beyond Zero. PC Gamer counted nearly 1,000 negative reviews at the time of writing, citing performance, multiplayer connectivity, heavier flight physics and limited HOTAS support. Kotaku lists memory leaks, frequent crashes and trouble with third-party flight sticks. Bandai Namco has confirmed part of that: a Steam product notice acknowledges "unexpected crashes" in the Steam version and suggests checking your graphics driver, keeping 16 GB or more free on the SSD and enabling Windows virtual memory, and a flight stick update admits some Ace Combat 7 configuration options are missing.

Where the Steam score stands now

As of midday October 1, 2026, the Ace Combat 8 Steam reviews on the store page count 4,269 positive and 1,314 negative across all languages, about 76%, which Steam labels "Mostly Positive". English-language reviews alone run higher: 2,437 of 3,032 positive, about 80% ("Very Positive"). Steam uses "Mixed" for 40% to 69% positive, so the score has climbed at least seven points since the first day.

PC Gamer expected this: as players who didn't pre-order start reviewing, the bonus complaint becomes a smaller share of the total.

What console buyers should know before October 2

• Launch date: Bandai Namco's announcement puts the worldwide launch on October 2 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. Steam lists October 1, likely because it shows the US Pacific date (early access there opened at 3 PM PDT on September 28, already September 29 in Europe); that is our inference.
• Zero is a separate game on console. PC Gamer and Kotaku both report that PS5 and Xbox players get it as a standalone app with its own trophies or achievements.
• The bonus window is closing. According to Automaton, digital pre-orders get Zero and the F-14A only until October 2, and among physical copies only the first print run includes the codes. Zero isn't sold separately.
• The PC problems may not apply. Bandai Namco's crash notice and flight stick update are about the Steam version. We haven't seen reports either way for consoles.
• Price, on Steam in the US: US$69.99 for the standard edition and US$89.99 for the Deluxe Edition, which adds 3-day early access, a cosmetic set and a Premium Ace Pass Plus voucher.

If you are tracking this week's other big launch, our Gears of War: E-Day review roundup covers how critics scored it, and our video games section has the rest.

Bottom line

Critics and Steam players aren't arguing about the same thing. Critics rate Ace Combat 8 highly, with an 88 on Metacritic for PS5 and an 88 on OpenCritic as of October 1. The Steam score fell to "Mixed" mostly over how the Zero bonus was packaged on PC, plus crashes and flight stick gaps that Bandai Namco has acknowledged, and it has since recovered to 76% "Mostly Positive". Bandai Namco apologized but promised no fix for Zero. If you play on PS5 or Xbox, the Zero complaint doesn't apply to you, but the bonus does end with the October 2 launch. On PC, plan for the full 150 GB if you want Zero, and watch the Steam news page for crash fixes and any change to how Zero is delivered. We haven't played the game; these are the critics' and players' verdicts.

FAQ

Is Ace Combat Zero a standalone game on Steam?

No. On Steam it is a DLC executable that launches separately but needs Ace Combat 8 installed. Bandai Namco says licensing restrictions and platform-related considerations prevent a standalone Steam release for now. On PS5 and Xbox Series X|S it is its own app.

Why did Ace Combat 8 get Mixed reviews on Steam?

The most common complaint was the Ace Combat Zero bonus needing the full Ace Combat 8 install, with no separate achievements. Reviews also cite crashes, performance, online connection errors and flight stick support. As of midday October 1, 2026, the score had recovered to 76%, "Mostly Positive".

What is Ace Combat 8's Metascore?

As of October 1, 2026, Metacritic lists 88 for PS5 from 58 critic reviews, 86 for PC from 31 and 89 for Xbox Series X from 6. Scores can still move as more reviews arrive.

Can you still get Ace Combat Zero?

Only as an Ace Combat 8 pre-order bonus, which Automaton reports ends for digital pre-orders on October 2. The developers have said licensing terms with the jet manufacturers don't allow Zero to be sold separately.

When does Ace Combat 8 come out?

Bandai Namco lists October 2, 2026 worldwide on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam). Deluxe Edition owners have had early access since September 29.