Less than four weeks before launch, Bandai Namco has pulled back the curtain on the biggest multiplayer system in Ace Combat series history. The “Online 101” trailer — released on 1 September 2026 — finally answers the question every Wings of Theve fan had since the game was confirmed for October 2: what exactly does online play look like?
The Air Base: A 100-Player Hub in the Sky
Before you even sortie, you land in the Air Base — an interactive virtual lobby hosting up to 100 pilots from around the world simultaneously. It is more social hub than mere menu: players walk around as their customised mercenary avatar, matchmake for missions, chat with other pilots, visit an in-game arcade, browse the jukebox, or hit the shops to spend currency earned in combat. It is the kind of persistent online space the series has never attempted at this scale, and it doubles as the beating heart of every online session.
Four Online Modes — Co-Op, PvPvE and Boss Raids
Bandai Namco has detailed four distinct multiplayer modes, each with a different feel:
- Co-Op Assault — Two teams of four players go head-to-head in a PvE score-attack format, taking on waves of enemies across varied missions. It is competitive co-op: same battlefield, same enemies, two squads racing for the highest score.
- Co-Op Warfare — The flagship PvPvE mode puts two four-player teams against each other and against NPC units at the same time. A “Threat Level” system and named AI Aces add mid-mission variables that shake up every encounter.
- Scramble — A limited-time emergency mode: four pilots scrambled against a fearsome NPC rival air squad in a pure dogfight scenario. Expect these to rotate as live events.
- Emergency Sortie — Eight pilots united against iconic colossal superweapons and legendary boss encounters drawn from the series’ history. The largest-scale mode in the game, and the one likely to dominate social media when it goes live.
On top of these, limited-time PvP events round out the calendar: 4v4 team matches and a full eight-player deathmatch for those who want pure pilot-vs-pilot competition.
Cross-Play, Separate Progression and Early Access
Online mode ships with full cross-play across PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam — Singapore players on any platform can squad up together without friction. Multiplayer runs on its own progression track and save file, separate from the campaign, so there is no carryover bloat either way. Cosmetics, aircraft and currency are earned through online missions and spent in the Air Base shop, keeping the economy self-contained.
For the Singapore players who went Deluxe Edition, Early Access opens on 28 September — that is four days before the 2 October full launch. Online mode is available from day one of Early Access, so if you want to be among the first to land in the Air Base lobby, the upgrade window is closing fast. The Deluxe Edition is available on the Steam store and through the PlayStation and Xbox stores.
The full game — campaign plus all online modes — releases globally on 2 October 2026 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC. It is a simultaneous worldwide drop, so Singapore gets it the same moment as everywhere else. Check out more game news for coverage leading into launch week.