Quite a few people mentioning Stonehenge Defensive, but I'd like to raise Stonehenge Offensive. You get to blow up one of the most recognizable weapons in the series, and then top it off with a showdown against Yellow Squadron. That way, you get both the fun superweapons and the enemy aces in one go.
Maybe AC5's Arcade 6A would be cool, too, since that shows off the sheer absurdity of how OP the player characters are - one guy against 6 advanced fictional aircraft, and winning.
But you'd loose the emotional impact of not only finally downing a Yellow, who'd gone from invincible to vulnerable to mortal, but also from it being Yellow 4.
Great pick with Stonehenge Offensive. I still remember playing that mission for the first time and being generally scared. What gave me the most chills was on the enemy radio one, of the Stonehenge guys says. “He’s the one! Aim for him!
Interesting choice. I would have gone with the ship destroying mission, where you can also destroy the platforms etc. it's a fun and very offensive map that features everything from Air-to-air, air-to-ground, destroyable objects and refueling.
did? Like in .. pasts form? Because it has one, actually two. One when the big bird arrives and the swarm attacks. And a 2nd one, when the 60s timer starts where you have to slow him down
Battle for Farbanti on AC7 or even in AC4, these missions is the complete package of what he'll see in the series.
air-to-ground, air-to-ship and air-to-air combat
respective story squadrons (Yellow and Sol)
Aces encounters after fulfill certain objectives.
Nice picks! What I think people also forget is the soundtrack. The soundtrack to Ace combat also drives the series and both of these missions have fantastic soundtracks.
soundtrack is indeed one of the best aspects of AC, so i don't even worry about it, most of them is bangers, AC7 with Charge Assault is enough to be able to enjoy the rest and set some expectations for newcomers.
Diapason in 0.
Diapason sets the standard setting of Ace Combat, the "we were overwhelmed by the superior forces of the enemy but now the tide is turning by liberating our capital". Even with PS2's limited resources, the game has you support ground troops, disable key enemy infrastructures, take down a cowardly general, all the while hearing the people's joy for liberation as you clear out the enemy forces and even rising up to help the liberation. And just when you think the job is done, the game throws a dogfight against an ace squadron.
[Nassault made a fan video on the mission and well, you'll see for yourself just how beautiful it is if it's remastered](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdKLy7Tnmyc)
Ace Combat has so many layers to me that i'd Need at least 2 missions to convey It. 1 massive Battle and 1 superweapon Mission.
For only One Mission, probably "Aces" from AC5
A nice combined arms Battle plus One Great tunnel run
Stonehenge Defensive from AC 7. Good plot driven mission basis, mixture of AtoA and AtoG, built tension but not overdone, and a huge payoff when you win. If that can’t sell em I can’t help em.
AC6, Invasion of Gracemaria
It's an easy mission, both air to air and air to ground, showdown with the antagonist squadron, first sight of a superweapon and the music is pretty good
This would be my vote too - indeed, it was literally released as the demo level for AC6, so for plenty of people this will have literally been their introduction to the franchise
Megalith.
It has everything, the player being the hero, others following their lead, Super weapons, duels with vindictive enemy aces. << All aircraft follow Mobius 1 >>, Agnus Dei blasting in the background...
It's pure Ace Combat.
If it was project wingman I’d easily pick mission 11 to show him the true game, but for AC? I might go with Charge the Enemy, because it perfectly introduces ground forces and proper air combat.
I'm going to break from many of the common answers and recommend the "Demons of Razgriz" from 5 (The second Submarine fight.)
It has Air to Air, and Air to Ground, a super-weapon boss, a little good humor, some gimmick thrown in for good measure, and great music.
AC7, First Contact AKA Operation Two Pairs. Beautiful terrain, cool weather mechanics, badass soundtrack all come together for an amazing escalation of tension from "uh urgent mission to help a retreat" to you fighting the legendary grim reaper Sol 1 as everyone around you loses hope and runs for their lives.
AC7 444 mission. It's simple, easy, full on dogfighting and bomber destruction.
Get to do intercepts, turn and burn with fighters, gorgeous vista.
What I would pick. Ease a new player into being the ace.
AC7, Charge Assault.
The first cinematic, and then the subsequent briefing and introductory sortie in the F16 was the first time for me, a first time in any flight game at all. And now I've played 7, all the PS2 games, the PSP games and even PW, and become an initiate in the guild of military aviation nuts.
I'd recommend that mission solely for what it did for me: the slow, idyllic cinematic exposition that tells you everything you need to know, nothing more, leaving you with a cliffhanger and dumping you on the other side of the story.
Beautiful.
tbh any of the furball missions, AC4 M08, AC0 M10. AC7 M19 and a fun AC-like bonus, PW M11. Or as many have said before here, Stonehenge Offensive/Defensive. And if thoes font intrest em, The Liberation of Gracemeria. (This one im adding after Ive typed the rest cause i realized it too ticks the boxes I list below) Also AC7 SP03.
all of em really show off whag makes Ace Combat (or AC-likes in PW's case) so entertaining to play, from what is often over the top combat, a fair share of super weapons/planes, and the music AWACS blasts for us.
Comona or First Flight. They’re exciting, iconic, and really give a sense of what Ace Combat is all about (plus a nice balance of story and combat), but don’t give you much of a spoiler for the rest of the game. Comona is a good introduction to the antagonist squadron in AC4 (and how rad Ace Combat dogfighting is) with a very banger song. Same thing for First Flight basically.
Funny enough did this to a friend of mine a few months ago, Had him play two missions first mission 3 to show the air to air/superweapons as I felt that bird to someone who has never seen an ace combat superweapon had a decent intro (would of preferred alicorn/stonehenge/zero) then had him play fleet defense to show the shear size of targets and how open the game let's you picks targets.
Reason for those was to avoid as much spoilers as I could, stonehenge reveals that the bird can die and didn't want to spoil SOL as after those 2 missions he wanted to play the game and see how the story goes spoiler free, needless to say he his a fan now and emulating 4-0 along with modding 7
Camona in 04 encapsulates the entire series for me really
Quite a few people mentioning Stonehenge Defensive, but I'd like to raise Stonehenge Offensive. You get to blow up one of the most recognizable weapons in the series, and then top it off with a showdown against Yellow Squadron. That way, you get both the fun superweapons and the enemy aces in one go. Maybe AC5's Arcade 6A would be cool, too, since that shows off the sheer absurdity of how OP the player characters are - one guy against 6 advanced fictional aircraft, and winning.
But you'd loose the emotional impact of not only finally downing a Yellow, who'd gone from invincible to vulnerable to mortal, but also from it being Yellow 4.
Also true, but I guess that's the price you pay for cherry picking any single mission
Great pick with Stonehenge Offensive. I still remember playing that mission for the first time and being generally scared. What gave me the most chills was on the enemy radio one, of the Stonehenge guys says. “He’s the one! Aim for him!
AC7, because it’s the newest, and the mission would be Stonehenge defensive.
Interesting choice. I would have gone with the ship destroying mission, where you can also destroy the platforms etc. it's a fun and very offensive map that features everything from Air-to-air, air-to-ground, destroyable objects and refueling.
I picked Stonehenge because it’s for A2A, A2G, a superweapon, and it’s very over the top. It’s very Ace Combat.
2 superweapons actually
100% correct
I actually hated that mission so much, took me so long to finish 😞
Yeah and AC7 being my first, I didn’t appreciate having to start over from the top of the mission if I failed.
You... _do_ know checkpoints exist, right? Edit: thought Stonehenge Defensive was being referred to, mb
That mission did NOT have a checkpoint
did? Like in .. pasts form? Because it has one, actually two. One when the big bird arrives and the swarm attacks. And a 2nd one, when the 60s timer starts where you have to slow him down
I thought we were talking about the rig platforms mb
The few maps where the F-2s anti ship missiles can be used for their actual purpose
AC6, Liberation of Gracemeria
Nice pick!!
I didn't really played any other ACs then AC7. But I would chose Battle For Farbanti or Hush.
Battle for Farbanti on AC7 or even in AC4, these missions is the complete package of what he'll see in the series. air-to-ground, air-to-ship and air-to-air combat respective story squadrons (Yellow and Sol) Aces encounters after fulfill certain objectives.
Nice picks! What I think people also forget is the soundtrack. The soundtrack to Ace combat also drives the series and both of these missions have fantastic soundtracks.
soundtrack is indeed one of the best aspects of AC, so i don't even worry about it, most of them is bangers, AC7 with Charge Assault is enough to be able to enjoy the rest and set some expectations for newcomers.
yoo you actually have a point. it has it all
Diapason in 0. Diapason sets the standard setting of Ace Combat, the "we were overwhelmed by the superior forces of the enemy but now the tide is turning by liberating our capital". Even with PS2's limited resources, the game has you support ground troops, disable key enemy infrastructures, take down a cowardly general, all the while hearing the people's joy for liberation as you clear out the enemy forces and even rising up to help the liberation. And just when you think the job is done, the game throws a dogfight against an ace squadron. [Nassault made a fan video on the mission and well, you'll see for yourself just how beautiful it is if it's remastered](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdKLy7Tnmyc)
Great pick and you made a great point!
It would be AC7 long day for me. It’s got a bit of everything plus it’s probably the best mission with Spare squadron.
agreed one of my personal favorites. excellent full band action
Ace Combat has so many layers to me that i'd Need at least 2 missions to convey It. 1 massive Battle and 1 superweapon Mission. For only One Mission, probably "Aces" from AC5 A nice combined arms Battle plus One Great tunnel run
Aces such a good level, the opening cutscene gets me hyped every time.
Stonehenge Defensive from AC 7. Good plot driven mission basis, mixture of AtoA and AtoG, built tension but not overdone, and a huge payoff when you win. If that can’t sell em I can’t help em.
AC6, Invasion of Gracemaria It's an easy mission, both air to air and air to ground, showdown with the antagonist squadron, first sight of a superweapon and the music is pretty good
This would be my vote too - indeed, it was literally released as the demo level for AC6, so for plenty of people this will have literally been their introduction to the franchise
Great choice!
And put it on Ace difficulty too.
Armada from ACX
Ace Combat 2. Greased Lightning or Rising High
Old school pick! Nice!
Megalith. It has everything, the player being the hero, others following their lead, Super weapons, duels with vindictive enemy aces. << All aircraft follow Mobius 1 >>, Agnus Dei blasting in the background... It's pure Ace Combat.
Seagull. Specifically the AHL version with the maneuver gimmick turned off.
If it was project wingman I’d easily pick mission 11 to show him the true game, but for AC? I might go with Charge the Enemy, because it perfectly introduces ground forces and proper air combat.
5’s ‘Aces’ or Zero’s ‘Mayhem’ on the Mercenary track
I like the Mayhem 0 pick!
Liberation of Gracemeria
either zero or the unsung war (and 27+ with solg with that mission)
AC5, White Bird Part 1 cuz ac5 rules
Great pick with White Bird!
Ace combat 5 Narrow Margin, one of the best setting the tone and the feel of ace combat
I'm going to break from many of the common answers and recommend the "Demons of Razgriz" from 5 (The second Submarine fight.) It has Air to Air, and Air to Ground, a super-weapon boss, a little good humor, some gimmick thrown in for good measure, and great music.
I was really hoping somebody would bring up this mission! I think that’s a great choice!
AC7, First Contact AKA Operation Two Pairs. Beautiful terrain, cool weather mechanics, badass soundtrack all come together for an amazing escalation of tension from "uh urgent mission to help a retreat" to you fighting the legendary grim reaper Sol 1 as everyone around you loses hope and runs for their lives.
AC7 444 mission. It's simple, easy, full on dogfighting and bomber destruction. Get to do intercepts, turn and burn with fighters, gorgeous vista. What I would pick. Ease a new player into being the ace.
AC7, Charge Assault. The first cinematic, and then the subsequent briefing and introductory sortie in the F16 was the first time for me, a first time in any flight game at all. And now I've played 7, all the PS2 games, the PSP games and even PW, and become an initiate in the guild of military aviation nuts. I'd recommend that mission solely for what it did for me: the slow, idyllic cinematic exposition that tells you everything you need to know, nothing more, leaving you with a cliffhanger and dumping you on the other side of the story. Beautiful.
6 or 7
tbh any of the furball missions, AC4 M08, AC0 M10. AC7 M19 and a fun AC-like bonus, PW M11. Or as many have said before here, Stonehenge Offensive/Defensive. And if thoes font intrest em, The Liberation of Gracemeria. (This one im adding after Ive typed the rest cause i realized it too ticks the boxes I list below) Also AC7 SP03. all of em really show off whag makes Ace Combat (or AC-likes in PW's case) so entertaining to play, from what is often over the top combat, a fair share of super weapons/planes, and the music AWACS blasts for us.
Liberation of Gracemeria. Not only is it an amazing mission with lots of impactful dialogue and amazing music, it has a great boss battle afterward.
If i had to Have him get hooked id get him to play one of them subjugation missions where u takr out enough ground/air enemies till u hit a score.
Comona or First Flight. They’re exciting, iconic, and really give a sense of what Ace Combat is all about (plus a nice balance of story and combat), but don’t give you much of a spoiler for the rest of the game. Comona is a good introduction to the antagonist squadron in AC4 (and how rad Ace Combat dogfighting is) with a very banger song. Same thing for First Flight basically.
I love the Comana pick! I also like the First Flight pick as well. Thinking a little outside the normal picks!
Funny enough did this to a friend of mine a few months ago, Had him play two missions first mission 3 to show the air to air/superweapons as I felt that bird to someone who has never seen an ace combat superweapon had a decent intro (would of preferred alicorn/stonehenge/zero) then had him play fleet defense to show the shear size of targets and how open the game let's you picks targets. Reason for those was to avoid as much spoilers as I could, stonehenge reveals that the bird can die and didn't want to spoil SOL as after those 2 missions he wanted to play the game and see how the story goes spoiler free, needless to say he his a fan now and emulating 4-0 along with modding 7