Ace Combat Infinity: Hunting whales till the tanks run dry

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iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

We now have an IRC channel for all your sortie needs. #captainahab on synIRC :siren:

Find fellow goons to fly the friendly skies with HERE :siren:

Ace Combat Infinity is the newest title in the Ace Combat series, based around team-based competitive multiplayer with F2P mechanics included. It was released on the Playstation Network on May 20th in Japan, May 27th in North America and the 28th in Europe. As of now, it is a PS3-exclusive title.

Yes, it's a F2P game. Yes, it's a F2P game by Namco Bandai. However, it's a good F2P game from them, and has actual online multiplayer (Looking right at you, Tekken and Soul Calibur!)

Briefing

There are two main components to the game. Campaign functions much like in previous AC games, introducing gameplay concepts and giving you plenty of superweapons to shove your salvo down. The real meat of the game, though, is in Co-op Sorties. Here, two teams of four pilots blow up as many targets as possible. Each map also has a set of Emergency Missions that occur randomly and throw in more advanced enemies.

ACI uses a fuel system as its F2P mechanic, with each sortie using one fuel to participate in. Fuel comes in two flavors; Supplied Fuel replenishes by 1 every 4 hours, to a max of 3. Stocked Fuel has no limits on storage and is gained by purchasing it or through challenges or random drops. Further emphasizing the co-op aspect is the Datalink system, giving your plane improved abilities as long as you stay close enough to another player. Stay together, stay alive, get paid.

R&D

Gaining new planes/upgrades is done via the Aircraft Tree, similar to the more recent AC games. Every completed Co-op Sortie grants research progress towards unlocking new gear or leveling up planes (special weapons start getting research upon reaching 1st Lieutenant rank). Using Stocked Fuel and/or Additional Plant Investment Contracts also has a chance of granting additional research after a sortie.

Legend for the tree:

Fighters (blue): Planes that excel in dogfighting and engaging aerial targets. They have access to air-to-air special weapons and sport high speed/mobility ratings. Their weapons are less effective against ground targets.
Attackers (red): Planes suited to dealing with ground targets and fortified structures, using bomb-type special weapons that can cause high amounts of damage over pinpoint or wide areas. They are less effective at attacking aerial targets and their lower speed/mobility can make dogfights problematic.
Multirole (purple): Planes that can deal equally with both air and ground threats. They get access to the widest variety of special weapons, with some planes favoring one type over another.
Parts (yellow): Various upgrades for your planes.
Ranks (black): Certain parts of the tree are closed off until you obtain the required rank for them. Ranks go Warrant Officer → 2nd Lieutenant → 1st Lieutenant → Captain.

Every "branch" of the tree has certain parts it favors for research. The fighter branches get more parts that affect maneuverability and A2A weapon effectiveness, the multirole branch gets special equipment, and the attacker branches favor A2G weapons.

Here is a list of the upgrade paths for the planes (site is in Japanese but should be easy enough to get the relevant info. Look to left for attackers/multiroles): http://seesaawiki.jp/ace-infinity/d/FIGHTER%20-%20%c0%ef%c6%ae%b5%a1

Get Equipped

As you progress through the Airplane Tree, you'll get parts to bolster your plane's abilities. Each plane can equip up to 7 different parts. Each part also uses a number of slots in one of three categories:

Body: Parts that affect speed and maneuverability. Armor and stealth parts are included here too.
Arms: Parts that augment weapon effectiveness and quantity.
Misc: Parts that grant special abilities, such as reducing shock from taking damage.

Each plane starts with one special weapon and unlocks another at levels 4 and 7.

And what AC game wouldn't be complete without :krad:

skins to collect?

Tips

If you decide to start plunking down cash (you know it's going to happen!), the Campaign Pack should be your first purchase. Not only will it save you on using fuel for Campaign missions, it'll also save you hundreds of thousands of credits that can go into improving your planes instead. Make sure you do the Mission 5 challenge for 20 Stocked Fuel. The Rookie Pack is also a decent buy, giving 5 Stocked Fuel and a Merc/Plant Contract for a couple bucks. Mercenary/Plant Contracts are cheap and can help with the grind, though you'll also get them semi-frequently from various challenges and are best saved for when you're doing long sessions. Extra Fuel is at your own discretion.
The fuel system may seem strict at first, but early on you'll get plenty of challenges to earn additional Stocked Fuel from, and usually the daily challenges will award some bit of fuel too. You can take on 7 challenges at once so make sure you're taking as many as you can carry.
Just because you're using a fighter or attacker doesn't mean you should stick with your preferred targets. Even a low-tier fighter can take down AA Guns and SAMs with ease. Likewise, an attacker can strike MiGs and Helicopters too stupid to know how to bank.
While research on the Aircraft Tree is distributed randomly, research won't occur on any unpurchased upgrades or planes ready to be leveled up. Thus, by holding off on buying some things, you can semi-force research to focus on what you want.
Skwerl posted:
DELAY THE COCKPIT SHOT. OH FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DELAY THAT SHOT.

Screenshots

iastudent fucked around with this message at 13:21 on Jun 16, 2014

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:22

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# ? Apr 16, 2024 14:06

iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

Reserved for stuffs

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:22

Skwerl: Sep 3, 2006; damn kids...

in the op should be a big bolded phrase of:
DELAY THE COCKPIT SHOT. OH FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DELAY THAT SHOT.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:30

ACES CURE PLANES: Oct 21, 2010

Take note that there's still ranks after Captain, each with increasingly ridiculous requirements. Just with no plane/part unlocks past Captain, at least not yet.

Warrant Officer (10 levels)
Second Lieutenant (50 levels)
First Lieutenant (60 levels)
Captain (70 levels)
Major (80 levels)
-Something- (90 levels I assume)
Colonel

And, unsurprisingly, there's a gold trophy for reaching Colonel rank. Of course there is.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:38

Psion: Dec 13, 2002; eVeN I KnOw wHaT CoRnEr gAs iS

I would assume that something is Lt. Colonel, given the rest of the rank structure.

also, Skwerl, did they reuse your F-15C skin from AH in this game? Inquiring minds want to know.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:40

Skwerl: Sep 3, 2006; damn kids...

Psion posted:

I would assume that something is Lt. Colonel, given the rest of the rank structure.

also, Skwerl, did they reuse your F-15C skin from AH in this game? Inquiring minds want to know.

Not that I know of

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:43

iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

Skwerl posted:

in the op should be a big bolded phrase of:
DELAY THE COCKPIT SHOT. OH FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DELAY THAT SHOT.

I knew I was forgetting something. :v:

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:45

ninjahedgehog: Feb 17, 2011; It's time to kick the tires and light the fires, Big Bird.

I've started focusing 100% on enemy fighters when doing Moby Dick Pursuit, because it seems like everyone else tries to get big points by attacking Aigaion herself and it's fun flying cover. That said, even if I kill every one, people still need to delay the cockpit/core attack because the enemy fighters spawn in waves, including a flight of four that takes off right as the cockpit spawns.

:siren:

SHOOT THESE DOWN BEFORE YOU TAKE OUT THE COCKPIT, YOU'VE GOT PLENTY OF TIME. :siren:

edit: Also, thanks for putting me on the spreadsheet already! I wish it were easier to get an all-goon squadron going. The fuel system makes it annoying to switch rooms mid-session to accept an invite.

ninjahedgehog fucked around with this message at 16:58 on Jun 10, 2014

# ? Jun 10, 2014 16:55

Insane Totoro: Dec 5, 2005; Take cover!!!
That Totoro has an AR-15!

Just to clarify, there is a core INSIDE the Moby Dick in "Pursuit II" in addition to the cockpit. There is no core in "Pursuit I."

So you have plenty of time to kill the extra fighters, got it???

# ? Jun 10, 2014 18:48

Strong Mouse: Jun 11, 2012; You disrespect us. You drag corpses around. You steal, and you hurt feelings!

RRRRRRRAAAAARGH!

Prepare to die!

Can I get put on the PSN list. It'll be nice to play with goons. PSN: Strong-Mouse

# ? Jun 10, 2014 19:05

Gamwhiz1: Aug 15, 2012

I just literally learned about this game because of the other thread and I am so unbelievably psyced. Same controls as ps2, classic music, I cannot contain myself. Please for the love of god let me plop down 60bux to play this nonstop, I can never justify incremental purchases and won't do it otherwise.

Gamwhiz1 fucked around with this message at 20:07 on Jun 10, 2014

# ? Jun 10, 2014 19:57

Skwerl: Sep 3, 2006; damn kids...

can we have this gif on the op? this really sums up ACI. :911:

# ? Jun 10, 2014 19:59

ninjahedgehog: Feb 17, 2011; It's time to kick the tires and light the fires, Big Bird.

Skwerl posted:

can we have this gif on the op? this really sums up ACI.

How the hell do you finish a mission with all of your special weapons intact? I try to hold back before the emergency mission in case they come in handy there, but the post-emergency spawns usually have something for everybody and then I start pickling them off with childish glee. SAAMs for everyone!

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:07

Tequila: Apr 16, 2002; DRIVE BY RANDOM TITLING! YOU MAY BE NEXT!

So if you buy the campaign you can play single player without using your fuel, right? Do you get anything for completing the campaign more then once?

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:10

Levantine: Feb 14, 2005; GUNDAM!!!

ninjahedgehog posted:

How the hell do you finish a mission with all of your special weapons intact? I try to hold back before the emergency mission in case they come in handy there, but the post-emergency spawns usually have something for everybody and then I start pickling them off with childish glee. SAAMs for everyone!

Yeah I save everything (except bomb types weapons) for the emergency mission and whatever follows. If I'm flying the A-10 though, I use up half my FAEB stock getting some easy points up front by destroying the available clusters of enemies up front. It gets harder to find clusters as the mission goes on. I almost never fail to MVP the Alps mission in the A-10 now thanks to how ground target heavy it is.

EDIT: Use your special weapons, that's a good thing to do.

Levantine fucked around with this message at 20:12 on Jun 10, 2014

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:10

iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

Tequila posted:

So if you buy the campaign you can play single player without using your fuel, right? Do you get anything for completing the campaign more then once?

Correct on the first point. Repeating campaign missions just gives you some extra credits.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:11

Sindai: Jan 24, 2007; i want to achieve immortality through not dying

Tequila posted:

So if you buy the campaign you can play single player without using your fuel, right? Do you get anything for completing the campaign more then once?

Yes, but the first part of the campaign isn't even fully released yet. Only 5 missions of the first 8 (which the unlimited ticket covers) are actually available right now.

I seemed to get almost nothing for finishing campaign missions - like 1000 credits at most, while you start with 80k. Though it doesn't matter that much because each mission lets you select a free "rental" plane with a loadout suitable for the mission.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:14

Gamwhiz1: Aug 15, 2012

I'm getting an error on room search, it starts but gives me a "No room was found". I have to assume this isn't because there are literally no rooms, and rather because I have something going on with my network, but I've never had online trouble with my PS3 before. Anyone else experienced this?

E; after 5 minutes waiting in a quick match room a dude entered so IDK. What's the state of the community so far?

Gamwhiz1 fucked around with this message at 20:19 on Jun 10, 2014

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:14

Tequila: Apr 16, 2002; DRIVE BY RANDOM TITLING! YOU MAY BE NEXT!

iastudent posted:

Correct on the first point. Repeating campaign missions just gives you some extra credits.

Is it an appreciable amount or is it just something to do if you absolutely have to play the game when you're out of fuel?

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:16

Levantine: Feb 14, 2005; GUNDAM!!!

Tequila posted:

Is it an appreciable amount or is it just something to do if you absolutely have to play the game when you're out of fuel?

The latter. That's the one disappointing thing about the campaign; you make absolutely no aircraft progress by playing it. You get NO research at all and a sub-minimum of credits.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:20

iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

Gamwhiz1 posted:

E; after 5 minutes waiting in a quick match room a dude entered so IDK. What's the state of the community so far?

Some people were having trouble getting into rooms during the recent Mercenary King tournament. I'm guessing it's more people playing now and straining their servers a bit.

Fun game but Namco could stand to clean up the netcode.

Levantine posted:

The latter. That's the one disappointing thing about the campaign; you make absolutely no aircraft progress by playing it. You get NO research at all and a sub-minimum of credits.

Yeah, there's no point to grinding the campaign at all unless you're trying for higher ranks. The campaign pack is most useful for saving your credits on other stuff and for the 20 stocked fuel bonus.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:24

Aphrodite: Jun 27, 2006

Levantine posted:

The latter. That's the one disappointing thing about the campaign; you make absolutely no aircraft progress by playing it. You get NO research at all and a sub-minimum of credits.

So then infinite access to only 8 missions isn't really worth much.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:28

Levantine: Feb 14, 2005; GUNDAM!!!

Aphrodite posted:

So then infinite access to only 8 missions isn't really worth much.

Sometimes you just really want to play for the sake of itself, and in that case it's pretty good. Buying campaign missions is insultingly expensive too. Some days I run out of fuel and I just want to shoot some planes and campaign scratches the itch but it's of limited usefulness, yeah.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:40

Gamwhiz1: Aug 15, 2012

Just started playing missions; so they're retconning Strangereal into realworld post-ulysses? Dunno how I feel about that.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:53

Sindai: Jan 24, 2007; i want to achieve immortality through not dying

Eh, it's more like everyone in the real world just starts behaving like strangerealers and building ridiculous superweapons.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 20:56

tweet my meat: Oct 2, 2013; yospos

Been away from my ps3 for a while due to a graduation that I had to attend and didn't realize until a couple nights before and it looks like I missed out on the tourney. I'm really bummed that I missed my chance to get some of those sweet rewards, but at least I have all the fuel I bought so I could keep up in the rankings.

If anyone who doesn't have me added wants to play later tonight my id is sgtcrunch123

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:01

Volfogg: Dec 19, 2010; Some say she was raised by sentient birds, and that test subjects replicating her equipment were horribly broken.

All we know is she's called
The Hunter

Ah, a nice clean thread. Thought I'd just share two results of mine from some online missions real quick. The first one is the closest win that I've ever had. While I handily got MVP, look at those Alpha - Bravo Scores.

The second one though, it's actually from the game I just finished playing. While my team got rolled, this was an amazingly close race for overall 1st Place.

And I also just got the Splattered in Oil Nickname. :feelsgood:

Feel free to add me as well, PSN ID is ~~Bravo 3~~ MightyBP.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:01

ninjahedgehog: Feb 17, 2011; It's time to kick the tires and light the fires, Big Bird.

It would be kind of cool if they switched up the squadron names for different missions, instead of always being Alpha and Bravo. Think of the possibilities!

Mobius and Omega.
Galm and Crow.
Grabacr and Ofnir.
Wizard and Sorcerer.
Garuda and Something Else From AC6 (full disclosure, the last AC game I played before this one was Zero)

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:20

ACES CURE PLANES: Oct 21, 2010

Oh, hey, I didn't know you had an SA account BP. Sweet. :toot:

Gamwhiz1 posted:

Just started playing missions; so they're retconning Strangereal into realworld post-ulysses? Dunno how I feel about that.

I know exactly how to feel about it, and that feeling is that it's loving awesome. It looked like they were just gonna let the Strangereal stuff rot while they focused on making real-world games, but now they can work it into the real world. I'm excited to see what they do with the upcoming missions.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:24

Skwerl: Sep 3, 2006; damn kids...

Yeaaaaaa.....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtWh-YI7jrY

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:25

Pornographic Memory: Dec 17, 2008

Good OP and thanks for putting me in the spreadsheet

I'm coming to like QAAMs a lot in the last segment of missions. They're pretty worthless when it comes to hitting a highly maneuverable target like an F-22 or T-50 or really almost any plane marked SP or TGT that isn't a B-2 or other big huge damage sponge plane. What they're really great for, though, is helping you sweep up cannon fodder in that final orgy of killing since you can pop one off on a Tomcat or Hornet without really giving a gently caress and have a high probability of scoring a kill while you spend time lining up shots for your regular missiles on other targets. The way the lock on indicator on them moves it seems like you can even shoot QAAMs at targets that are slightly off-screen, so I'll have to test this in campaign.

Also, I edited the plane tree in the OP to include planes and the rank gates.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:30

AugmentedVision: Feb 17, 2011; by exmarx

I'm starting to run low on stocked fuel and the realization of just how slow the grind is going to be once I'm not able to run the 6- or 10-sortie challenges anymore is setting in

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:31

ninjahedgehog: Feb 17, 2011; It's time to kick the tires and light the fires, Big Bird.

Pornographic Memory posted:

I'm coming to like QAAMs a lot in the last segment of missions. They're pretty worthless when it comes to hitting a highly maneuverable target like an F-22 or T-50 or really almost any plane marked SP or TGT that isn't a B-2 or other big huge damage sponge plane. What they're really great for, though, is helping you sweep up cannon fodder in that final orgy of killing since you can pop one off on a Tomcat or Hornet without really giving a gently caress and have a high probability of scoring a kill while you spend time lining up shots for your regular missiles on other targets. The way the lock on indicator on them moves it seems like you can even shoot QAAMs at targets that are slightly off-screen, so I'll have to test this in campaign.

I miss the QAAAMs of AC04, where if they missed they would just circle around and try again.

# ? Jun 10, 2014 21:34