Bandai Namco has announced a whole slew of information regarding Ace Combat 7. A lot of it is probably stuff you don’t want to hear, though. I’ll start with the good bit: the game is still on track for its January 18, 2019 console release date (February 1, 2019, on PC) and with VR on PS4. Now, for the rest of the news.
A season pass will be available for Ace Combat 7, which also means a digital deluxe edition. The standalone game will be going for $59.99 and the season pass can be bought for $24.99. This DLC bundle will include three planes, three stages, and a music player. The individual pieces of the season pass (i.e. one plane or one stage) can be had for $4.99 each.
If you’re intent on getting the full experience, the deluxe edition goes for $84.99 and includes all of the season pass content with some extra goodies in the form of emblems. I’m not sure what the emblems do, but they can be yours! Now we get onto the best part: platform exclusive pre-orders!
Firstly, anyone that pre-orders the game on their platform of choice will receive the FE-4 Phantom II plane and a couple of bonus skins. PS4 users will be granted the bonus of a digital copy of Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (likely a PS2 classic) while Xbox One gamers will get a digital copy of Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (likely backward compatible). Yes, you’ll get a bonus game based on your console of choice (or nothing if you opt for PC).
I think anyone can agree that the deluxe edition should have included both Ace Combat 5 and 6 on each platform instead of splitting them between different consoles. I understand that both 5 and 6 never left their respective platforms, but why not just throw up a quick remaster to incentivize people into buying the DLC? For that matter, why should anyone on PC even buy the game day one when they aren’t receiving anything extra? Whatever the reason, I guess you’ll have to decide which platform’s pre-order bonus suits you best before takeoff.
Source: Destructoid Ace Combat 7 gets a season pass, deluxe edition and platform exclusive pre-order bonuses