Ace Fights Zero: The Belkan War

Ace Fights Zero: The Belkan War is a video game of air simulation on PlayStation 2, left on March 23rd 2006 with the Japan, on April 25th, 2006 in North America, on September 15th, 2006 in Europe and on September 21st, 2006 in Australia. It is developed and published by Namco.

Gameplay

Taking again the principle of the preceding episodes, Ace Fights Zero: The Belkan War is the seventh of the series Ace Combat. The scenario takes the form of a Préquelle of Ace Combat 5: Squadron Leader . The planes present date from years 70-80, like the A-18 and F-15, some are older, like the Saab 35 Draken. At the end of the fourteenth mission, the player sees himself granting a title, “mercenary” if it eliminated target with its range very, “knight” if on the contrary it saved all the neutral targets. The player between the two is called “soldier”. This title influences sometimes the type of enemies met. A mode two players is available, the screen is then divided into two equal parts. No mode In line is available.

Scenario

Ace Fights Zero: The Belkan War tells the events which proceeded before Ace Combat 5: Squadron Leader . The history tells the actions of a pilot mercenary legendary, called Cipher, and its effects on the end of the war, as well as the enemy pilots whom it killed with the combat. The narrator starts with the year 1995, when Belka invades its neighbors and launches a war which becomes world.

Belligerents

Fascistic federation of Belka

The federation of Belka is on the continent oséen, more precisely in the North-East of Osea. Belka is regarded as a major power, from its warlike past and its resources (industry, armed,…), but of a lower level compared to the oséenne federation and in Yuktobania. The country is drawn by dense and splendid landscapes, like the forest of Tauberg or the coasts of Anfang. Country in divided into 2 areas: north and South. The South is regarded as a basin dynamic and rich in term of industry and state-of-the-art technology, while North is regarded as the historical cradle of the nation belkanne. The capital of Belka is Dinsmark.

Belka however first of all seemed a prosperous area, which did not seek any more to militarily conquer neighbouring territories compared to the decades last. If it is mentioned in the play that Belkans were pushed back on several occasions, Belka in itself invaded forever.

Thus, during this period, the government belkan initiates the law of revision of the federation, which envisages in fact the scission and the independence of certain territories, like that of Ustio in example. But these reforms show a fiasco, with the very heavy consequences. The economy disaggregated and the decline amorça within the federation. December 12th, 1991, the “Belkan Home Worker' S Party”, a formation of extreme right-hand side, gains the elections and is made main of the country.

The upheaval is general. The old democracy makes place from now on with a fascistic order and consequently, Belka started an intensive development hyper of its military arsenal and manages to find an economic equilibrium.

The investments in the military potential are enormous. Belkans manage to develop nonconventional weapons with the extraordinary scale, such Hresvelgr, an air prototype multirôle, or even Excalibur, a platform of tactical laser striking. The army corps air, ground, sea were them also reinforced. The air force belkanne, whose pilots are famous for their excellence with the combat, was equipped with sophisticated ultra means, allowing it to gain a war with it only suspicions would indicate also the existence of bombs dissimulated and ready to be deployed.

Persuaded to finally be able to conquer the world, Belkans express their thirst for war more and more. The discovery of a layer of natural resources abundant provides the favourable moment for the starter of the gears. So at the beginning of spring 1995, Belka invades its neighbors and sets ablaze the situation on a worldwide scale.

If the first weeks of combat are bright for the army belkanne, the situation enlise and little by little, Belkans loses ground and ends up being cut off from the motherland. The coalition combined, composed by the super powers of Osea and Yuktobania And of the attacked countries, enormous resources mobilized to destroy Belka. Having crossed the 2 principal lines of defense and put out of state to harm Excalibur, the Allies are with the doors of Sudentor. With the foot of the wall, the ultranationalists belkans make explode 7 nuclear bombs, in order to create an impenetrable radioactive barrier. Consequently, one counts more than 12.000 dead and the major part of the south Belka became No man' S icy and uninhabitable Land. This ultimate act of despair signs the end of the fascistic mode and on June 20th, 1995, an peace agreement is signed in Lumen, putting a term at the conflict. This agreement envisages a resource sharing natural and annexation of the South Belka by the oséenne federation

In spite of that, several sections of the army of Belka refuse the change to be able and continue the fight clandestinely. A great part of them will form the frightening organization of the “World Without Borders”. The latter could put the hand on the weapons not used of Belka, in particular the immense Hresvelgr bomber and V2, a warhead of massive destruction. They will be put in failure by the Galm flotilla, at the time of the offensive on the dam Avalon.

Another group of Belkans renegades, “Grey Men” (Gray Men literally), prepares in the shade a plan of conspiracy aiming at starting a new world war.

Republic of Ustio

Ustio is a small state, located on the continent oséen, which was integrated in the federation of Belka. Its climate and its relief are diversified enough, that goes from cold and snow-covered mountains in the south to the arid areas to north, while passing from moderated zones, in particular the capital, Directus. It should be noted also that this tiny country, with the eyes of its neighbors, however has many natural resources, which will be sources of conflict, in particular towards Belka.

The republic of Ustio was born towards end of the year 80, following the ratification of law of revision of federal the belkanne, which envisages the secession of certain territories. Thus and thanks to the abundance of its raw materials on its ground, Ustio could quickly develop. However, private of its old resources, the economy of Belka plunged in chaos and caused a major political upheaval for the ex-federation.

The advent of a fascistic capacity in Belka worried the government of Ustio and decided to develop a sufficiently strong army to protect the country. Nevertheless all the same, Ustio places their hopes of peace at the hands of Osea, believer whom the super power oséenne will dissuade inclinations belkannes. Well in spite of that, the efforts of defense of Ustio remain weak, in spite of the acquisition of the technology AWACS (which will appear very useful during the war for the player), and will be confirmed during the release of the conflict.

Thus, in March 1995, an important layer of natural resources is discovered, which overflows on Belka and Ustio. For the Belkans fanatics, the hour of the reconquest sounds and a lightning war is launched in direction of Ustio, Fir tree and Osea. As of the first weeks of the war, the near total of the air forces of Ustio are destroyed, not making it possible more the terrestrial troops to be supported. It was thus decided to give up the country, except for the snow-covered mountains of the back-country, which constitutes a true natural rampart. It is besides in this area there, that is the air base of Were worth, last bastion of the resistance of Ustio. It will be besides the starting point of the Galm flotilla, only made up of experienced mercenaries, who will contribute to the release of the country and the end of the war.

It should be noted as, as certain soldiers of Ustio, will desert their rows to join the criminal organization “Le Monde Without Frontières”, after cease to it “official” fire of the engagements.

Thereafter, Ustio remained a peaceful nation, having only one minor role in the geopolitics of the fictitious world of Ace Combat.

For anecdotes, Ustio approaches much Switzerland in the real-world:

Its capital, Directus, is more or less similar to Bern, in particular for its turns out of clock.
Valais comes from a Swiss canton of the same name, and counts a great number of alpine tops of which the the Valaisan Alps.

Kingdom of Fir tree

Fir tree is a small country like Ustio and in is also its neighbor. One knows only very few things about the kingdom of Fir tree, if it is not that its capital is Gran Rugido and its armed forces are relatively weak compared to those of Osea or Belka.

Just like Ustio and Osea, the kingdom of Fir tree will be attacked by Belkans. But it would seem that the latter could not penetrate also far compared to Ustio. Fir tree belongs to the allied coalition against Belka, and played a big role during the war.

However, several units of the army of Fir tree joined “Le Monde Without Frontières” after the war, and took part in terrorist acts, in particular the bombardment of Lumen, to which the 11th tactical squadron of combat, the flotilla of ace Espada.

For anecdotes, Sapin enormously approaches Spain in the real-world:

Sapin is an anagram of Spain.
the code name of the 2 escadrilles of Fir tree in the play, Espada and Suerte, means sword and chance in Spanish.
the accent of the pilots of Fir tree is Hispanic like their names.

Le Monde Without Borders

Le Monde without Frontières (has World With No Boundaries in English) is an international terrorist organization made up of soldiers having deserted the rows from the countries taking part in the conflict from Belka. Soldiers of the allied coalition are thus found (Osea, Yuktobania, Sapin and Ustio) that those of Belka.

Their motivations are relatively fuzzy and strange. Their goal is in fact to change the world or rather to reorganize it by eliminating the borders from the nations, which they consider responsible for the wars, and to establish a single world order.

They are very powerful and dangerous all the same. Their elements are aces of the airs of the various armies and they succeeded in putting the hand on highly sophisticated weaponry, like the XB-0 Hresvelgr and V2 MIRV, a warhead with the multiple nuclear warheads, much more devastator that the 7 nuclear bombs belkannes used at the time of the war, being able to start an apocalypse on Earth.

Their HQ is being the fortress of Avalon, in the valley of Mund in Belka. It is completely impossible to locate, because it is immersed under water, which makes it possible to the terrorists to prepare their plan without being discovered. All the more, that its ground-to-air defense system, is described as insuperable by the allied information. It will not be fortunately enough able to stop the Galm flotilla, which will manage to infiltrate the stopping at the time of a daring operation and to put in failure the attempt at launching of the MIRV, destroying also and definitively the threat of the World Without Borders.

According to the secret services oséens, today the majority of the investigators of the organization are died, imprisoned or in escape, but out of state to harm.

Planes

Playable models

Models present

Fighters:

AV-8B Harrier II

Airfreighters:

C-5B Galaxy
C-17A Globemaster III
C-130H Hercules

Bombers:

B-2A Spirit
B-52H Stratofortress
BM-335 (unknown model?)

AWACS :

Supply:

Other apparatuses:

SR-71 Blackbird
XB-70 Valkyrie

Anecdotes

During the play, Cipher will be called " Lord" demon; or " Demon off the Table" Round;. If one looks at well the number of membership of the Galm flotilla (6th Air Division, 66th Air Force Links), one discovers the number 666 which is, according to the Bible the figure of the Devil.
Galm comes from a variation or a phonetic error of translation of the word Garm (makes the sound " of It; L" and the sound " R" are expressed same manner in Japanese). Garm is a démoniaque dog connected which keeps the doors of the world of deaths, in Scandinavian mythology. It is thus represented like such in the play.
Avalon is in the legend arthurienne, the place where king Arthur would have withdrawn itself after his battle against Mordred. It is known as also that the king is deadened but that it could awake one day and return. Moreover, this history is retranscribed in the play by the leader of the flotilla Gault (Anton Kupchenko). It should be also noted that the fortress at the beginning is immersed under water and that it is difficult access, which confers a surrealist impression to him.
the line Hydrian, the first line of defense belkanne in the south of the country, probably refers to the Hadrian's Wall, who in mythology arthurienne, reports that king Arthur and his knights faced the Saxon warriors. It is rather similar owing to the fact that Hydrian is composed of stone fortifications, like the east the wall Hadrian in reality.
the name of Hresvelgr is resulting from the Scandinavian myth Hræsvelg, which is represented by a giant eagle.
the name of the ADFX-01, the " Morgan" , is a reference to the half-sister supposed of King Arthur.
the “XB-0” is inspired, at least for designation, of the prototype apparatuses of the U.S Air Force. X indicates an experimental model, B for bomber. As for the “0”, it is perhaps about a reference under the play “Ace Combat Zero”.
the XB-0 is inspired rather largely by the final boss of Ace Combat 1 (aka Air Fights).
the name Belka comes from the Russian word squirrel (Белка in syrillic writing).
the excessive bombardment of Hoffnung recalls that of Dresden during the Second world war.
the valley of Mund, where east establishes the dam Avalon, is inspired a fortiori by Peenemunde, the place where the German flying bombs V1 and V2 were manufactured.
Several characters of Ace Combat 5 appear in this opus and allow to learn some more on them:

Michael Heimeroth (Ofnir) appears in mission 10, in Soldier style, on board the F-15S/MTD
Ashley Bernitz (Grabacr) also appears in mission 10, but in Mercenary style, with the orders of one Known-47, pursueing Bartlett and Pops.
Lastly, Jack Bartlett (Heartbreak One) and Peter NR. Beagle known as " Pops" (its true name is Wolfgang Buchner, called Huckebein The Raven during the war of Belka), always appear in mission 10, controlling a F-14D and Mig-21.

the Chevalier color of Known-27 is inspired by the lifting patrol Russian Knights.
the Mercenaire color of the F/A-18C is a priori from the apparatuses of the squadron lifting American Blue Angels, which all are of Hornets.
In the kinematics of the testimony of the leader Belch, one notices that the name of the fast-food where he dines calls “Pop' S Diner”. Pops is a key character in Ace Combat 5.
the day of the dropping of the 7 nuclear bombs belkannes, on June 6th, 1995, coincides with that of the operation Overlord, more known under the name of D-Day. Moreover, the D-Day term indicates in the soldiers the launching of an operation of combat of great scale.
the unfolding of the war of Belka is inspired more or less by the war of the Gulf in 1990. Belka having a powerful army, invades its Ustio neighbor in order to plunder his resources to him. The naval operations in the Futuro channel points out that of the U.S Navy in Suez Canal, at the beginning of the conflict. In addition, the 2 wars use the same types of military aircrafts.
mission 9, baptized " Sword off Annihilation" , on mission 12 of Ace Combat 4 " quasi-is copied; Stonehenge Offensive". The goal of these 2 missions is to destroy super-arms it anti-aircraft with the play. One finds in these 2 missions, a allied air squadron made up of several fighter-bombers in addition to one tanker. In addition, the 2 super-arm are equipped with relay with jamming, to neutralize the attacks of weapons radio-controlled.

See too

Test of the play on Jeuxvideo.com
Official site
Fiche on the site of Namco
Metacritic raises an average note of 76/100 among the notes of 29 professionals
Soluces, easy ways and tips of Ace Combat Zero

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