History VideoGame / AceCombat04ShatteredSkies

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* AntiAir: In addition to the usual assortment of flak guns and [=SAMs=], there's also Stonehenge, the mother of all anti-aircraft weapons (see "BFG" below).

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusean military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Note that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note]] Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of conventional gunpowder assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a shell initially propelled by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. This incredible effectiveness against aircraft ensures Erusean air superiority for most of the war and Stonehenge forms the lynchpin of their defensive strategy. The only weakness of the cannons is that their rounds are only dangerous to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler:they can't be used on targets that are too close as they are slow to turn, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

The fourth game in the ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' series and the first on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation2. Released in 2001.

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusean military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Note that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note]] Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of conventional gunpowder assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a shell initially propelled by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. This incredible effectiveness against aircraft ensures Erusean air superiority for most of the war and Stonehenge forms the lynchpin of their defensive strategy. The only weakness of the cannons is that their rounds are only dangerous to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close as they are slow to turn, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].
* ABirthdayNotABreak: Averted. AWACS Sky Eye tells the pilots it's his birthday in the BackFromTheBrink mission, asking them to give him victory for a present, and he gets it. Happens again exactly one InUniverse year later, during the decisive battle for Farbanti...[[spoiler: And he gets it again.]]

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.
* GoldfishPoopGang: The Yellows have lost levels in badass by the last time they get fought. Justified as, in order to bolster morale, they had to accept less skilled pilots in the unit as the more experienced pilots rotated out, not to mention the player getting more skilled by that point. Then comes [[spoiler: the Megalith mission and the defending squadron using the Yellows' plane and livery but none of their skill]].
* GreenEyedMonster: The barkeep's daughter has a crush on Yellow 13, but Yellow 4 staunchly protects him. 13 is oblivious to all of this. [[spoiler: How much of this influenced the younger girl's decision to bomb the runway, notably a mistake that severely affected 4, is up for debate.]]

* LogicalWeakness: Stonehenge [[spoiler: and Megalith]] were created to shoot down giant meteors at long-range. Thus, close-range attacks at low altitude, especially with erratic and unpredictable fighters that don't have predictable flight paths, are rather effective against it. Stonehenge itself actually doesn't do anything at all except fire random shots that only hit you if you happen to be right in the way of one of those large and slow-turning cannons. All of its defenses are Erusean military anti-air and SAM units on the ground [[spoiler:as well as the Yellow Squadron, who show up after you've destroyed all the working cannons]].

* PyrrhicVictory: The mission result screen for the penultimate mission "Siege of Farbanti" notes that the victory over the Eruseans came at a high cost. In an earlier mission (specifically, the assault on Stonehenge), the briefing notes that HQ is predicting a 40% casualty rate for the mission. The last mission even has the characters wondering if they actually won the war. ''VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown'', released 15 years later, reveals that the Usean continent was utterly devastated by the war, and the various countries were unable to recover on their own, requiring Osean intervention. Erusea was implied to be hit incredibly hard as well, given that they launched a war of conquest out of desperation that they then ''lost'', setting the stage for [[spoiler: their new Usean war.]]

* WorthyOpponent: Yellow 13 sees Mobius One as this. After the Comona mission[[note]]where you can send the Yellow squadron running away if you manage to hit one[[/note]], he'll state in the cutscene that he saw a pilot who showed potential and could be a great opponent if he lives long enough to hone his skills. [[spoiler:After destroying Stonehenge and shooting down Yellow 4]], he'll flat out state that he is impressed to find such a skilled pilot and that you're worthy of praise. [[spoiler: The narrator also states at the end of the game that he died happily knowing you were the one to do it.]]
* YouAreNumberSix: Mobius One doesn't even have a callsign because his "Squadron" consists of his AWACS Sky Eye and... [[OneManArmy him]] (at the beginning of the game, you ''are'' part of a squadron, but all the others are shot down by the Aquila squadron, leaving you the only survivor). Even when [[spoiler: he finally gets a squadron in the last mission]], nobody dares to call him anything else other than Mobius One... Or [[RedBaron the Ribbon Fighter]].

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusean military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Not that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note]] Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of conventional gunpowder assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a shell initially propelled by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. This incredible effectiveness against aircraft ensures Erusean air superiority for most of the war and Stonehenge forms the lynchpin of their defensive strategy. The only weakness of the cannons is that their rounds are only dangerous to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close as they are slow to turn, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

** Played straight with Yellow 13, as he believes in fair fights and hates cowards. He would rather be angry about [[spoiler:the resistance blowing up his squadron's runway, indirectly killing Yellow Four]] than at [[spoiler:you for directly shooting her down; in fact, he actually praises you for single-handedly destroying Stonehenge on top of it.]] That said, when he finds out [[spoiler:that the barkeep's daughter was responsible for the runway bomb, he lets her go, as she's just barely a teenager]]. Setting up AA guns on top of hospitals (preventing them from being targeted as shooting a hospital is a war crime) will also make him hate you, even if you're on his side.

** Played straight with Yellow 13, as he believes in fair fights and hates cowards. He would rather be angry about [[spoiler:the resistance blowing up his squadron's runway, indirectly killing Yellow Four]] than at [[spoiler:you for directly shooting her down; in fact, he actually praises you for single-handedly destroying Stonehenge on top of it.]] That said, when he finds out [[spoiler:that the barkeep's daughter was responsible for the runway bomb, he lets her go, as she's just barely a teenager]]. Setting up AA guns on top of hospitals (preventing them to be shot as shooting a hospital is against war laws) will also make him hate you, even if you're on his side.

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusian military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Not that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note]] Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of conventional gunpowder assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a shell initially propelled by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. This incredible effectiveness against aircraft ensures Erusean air superiority for most of the war and Stonehenge forms the lynchpin of their defensive strategy. The only weakness of the cannons is that their rounds are only dangerous to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close as they are slow to turn, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

* BittersweetEnding: On one hand, [[spoiler:the ISAF defeat the Erusians, and Mobius One survives to be acknowledged as the war's greatest pilot.]] On the other hand, [[spoiler:the war takes many lives, including the narrator's family and the Yellow Squadron members he befriended (the latter thanks in large part to ''you''), though he seems to have found some peace by the time he starts writing to Mobius One.]]

** Mission 11: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin "Escort"]] features two passenger planes with defecting Erusians on board under attack by enemy fighter jets. To make matters worse, one plane is suffering engine problems and flying much lower than the other, forcing Mobius One to frequently switch between two different altitudes. Fortunately, the enemy AI starts to focus more on you than the planes once you destroy enough of them, turning the mission into a straight dogfight afterwards.
** Mission 13: "Safe Return" is divided into two segments. First, Mobius One is tasked with destroying enough radar-jamming blimps to allow an allied spy plane to navigate through the map via radar (since the fog is too heavy for them to fly visually). After that, a squadron of Erusian fighters pursue the plane, forcing the player to destroy them in a fairly short dogfight.

* LogicalWeakness: Stonehenge [[spoiler: and Megalith]] were created to shoot down giant meteors at long-range. Thus, close-range attacks at low altitude, especially with erratic and unpredictable fighters that don't have predictable flight paths, are rather effective against it. Stonehenge itself actually doesn't do anything at all except fire random shots that only hit you if you happen to be right in the way of one of those large and slow-turning cannons. All of its defenses are Erusian military anti-air and SAM units on the ground [[spoiler:as well as the Yellow Squadron, who show up after you've destroyed all the working cannons]].

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Yellow 13 bears more than coincidental resemblance to real-life WWII ace pilot [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Hartmann Erich Hartmann]]. Both Yellow 13 and Hartmann were astonishingly lethal combat pilots who were noted for being more proud of the fact they never lost a wingman than for the number of kills they made (Hartman's total, at 352, is the ''highest confirmed kill count in history''). Both were also seen as generally honorable men despite fighting for the "bad guys" (Yellow 13 as a Erusian, Hartmann in the Luftwaffe). Unlike Yellow 13, however, Hartmann [[spoiler:survived the war, eventually returned home (though not before he spent more than 10 years in Soviet POW camps), and survived to the age of 71]].

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusian military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Not that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note]] Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of a semi-automatic gunpowder propelled system assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a conventional shell accelerated by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone. [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. Their only weakness is that that only applies to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

* ColorfulThemeNaming: Most of Erusia's squadrons are nicknamed after colors (IE Red, White and of course the infamous [[TheRival Yellow Squadron]]).

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusian military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Not that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] electromagnetically assisted projectile [[note: Despite appearances, the Stonehenge cannons are not true railguns; they are instead a hybrid of a semi-automatic gunpowder propelled system assisted with electromagnetic propulsion. In essence, a Stonehenge cannon fires a conventional shell accelerated by gunpowder that is then assisted by electromagnetic propulsion, accelerating the round to much higher speeds than conventional gunpowder alone. [[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. Their only weakness is that that only applies to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

* {{BFG}}: The centerpiece of the Erusian military, ''an entire array'' of eight 120cm[[note]]Not that that is ''centimeters'', not the standard ''millimeter'' designation seen on tank cannons. Stonehenge fires rounds that are more than ''four feet wide''[[/note]] cannons called the Spaceguard Turret Network and commonly referred to as Stonehenge, due to the arrangement of the giant cannons in a ring a few thousand feet in diameter. These guns are capable of decimating entire battalions of aircraft as long as they're within their range, which covers the better part of the Usean continent, a landmass approximately the size of Australia. Their only weakness is that that only applies to anything above 2000 feet, and [[spoiler: they can't be used on targets that are too close, forcing them to rely on fixed defenses and an Air Defense squadron when they're attacked directly]].

* {{Deconstruction}}: Of modern combat. No longer are your enemies [[VideoGame/AirCombat terrorists]], [[VideoGame/AceCombat2 rebels]] or a [[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere greedy corporation]] like the previous games. No, they are part of a standing, professional military simply [[MyCountryRightOrWrong fighting for their country]], which is usually the case in war, especially when fighter jets have to be involved. Also, it show much war negatively impacts civilians. While the cutscenes show little to no violence, it still shows that living under the occupation of a foreign army is no joke. Furthermore, in levels featuring ground battles, you'll hear the desperation and fear in the voices of soldiers from both sides on the radio with gunfire and explosion in the background. All this starts to bring the series into the [[DarkerAndEdgier darker and edgier tone.]][[note]][[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere at least for non-Japanese players]][[/note]] How this game got away with an ''E for Everyone'' rating is anyone's guess.

* DarkerAndEdgier: A first for non-Japanese players. No longer are your enemies part of a terrorist group or a greedy corporation like the previous games. No, they are part of a standing, professional military simply [[MyCountryRightOrWrong fighting for their country]]. And while the cutscenes show little to no violence, it still shows that living under the occupation of a foreign army is no joke. Furthermore, in levels featuring ground battles, you'll hear the desperation and fear in the voices of soldiers from both sides on the radio with gunfire and explosion in the background. How this game got away with an ''E for Everyone'' rating is anyone's guess.

* PyrrhicVictory: The mission result screen for the penultimate mission "Siege of Farbanti" notes that the victory over the Eruseans came at a high cost. In an earlier mission (specifically, the assault on Stonehenge), the briefing notes that HQ is predicting a 40% casualty rate for the mission. The last mission even has the characters wondering if they actually won the war. ''VideoGame/AceCombat7'', released 15 years later, reveals that the Usean continent was utterly devastated by the war, and the various countries were unable to recover on their own, requiring Osean intervention. Erusea was implied to be hit incredibly hard as well, given that they launched a war of conquest out of desperation that they then ''lost'', setting the stage for [[spoiler: their new Usean war.]]

The fourth game in the ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' series and the first on the Playstation 2. Released in 2001.

''Shattered Skies'' was one of [[FranchiseCodifier the groundbreaking games of the series]]. It was instrumental in laying the foundations of Strangereal along with ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere Electrosphere]]'' and all the previous games were retconned to take place in the same universe. It also completed the refinements to the controls begun in ''Electrosphere'' and which have formed the basis for all games since. Even today it remains one of the more highly regarded ''Ace Combat'' titles, and without question it's the most successful, being responsible for over a quarter of every Ace Combat game sold.

* NonstandardGameOver: If, in the final mission, you choose [[EpicFail to not shoot down the missile coming out of Megalith before you escape]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHirZ_ag8Sg the game shows you]] [[PlayerPunch the effects of your actions]].

* WeaponOfChoice: The F-22A for Mobius One [[spoiler:and Mobius Squadron in the final mission]]. The Su-37 Terminator for Yellow Squadron.

* AntiVillain: Yellow 13. He despises the dirtier tactics that his own people use (for example, placing AA Guns over hospitals) and views the war as meaningless. His only desire is fighting [[WorthyOpponent you]].

** Played straight with Yellow 13, as he believes in fair fights and hates cowards. He would rather be angry about [[spoiler:the resistance blowing up his squadron's runway, indirectly killing Yellow Four]] than at [[spoiler:you for directly shooting her down; in fact, he actually praises you for single-handedly destroying Stonehenge on top of it.]] That said, when he finds out [[spoiler:that the barkeep's daughter was responsible for the runway bomb, he lets her go, as she's just barely a teenager]]. Setting up AA guns on top of hospitals will also make him hate you, even if you're on his side.

* KickTheDog: Some Eruseans set up an AA gun on a hospital in the narrator's hometown, prompting Yellow 13's displeasure. [[spoiler:[[TheDogBitesBack They get rounded up at gunpoint by the locals after the city is liberated.]] ]]

''Shattered Skies'' was one of the groundbreaking games of the series. It was instrumental in laying the foundations of Strangereal along with ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere Electrosphere]]'' and all the previous games were retconned to take place in the same universe. It also completed the refinements to the controls begun in ''Electrosphere'' and which have formed the basis for all games since. Even today it remains one of the more highly regarded ''Ace Combat'' titles, and without question it's the most successful, being responsible for over a quarter of every Ace Combat game sold.

* FluffyTheTerrible: The most prominent nickname for Mobius One (a one-man airforce) is "ribbon".[[note]]Of course, this is because of his plane's insignia, which happens to be a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%B6bius_strip Möbius strip]].[[/note]]