Flight action · PC · PlayStation · Xbox

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve controls & keybinds

Ace Combat 8 flies on the left stick — in Standard it turns the aircraft, in Expert it rolls it — with R2 to accelerate, L2 to decelerate and both held for a high-G turn. Circle locks on and fires missiles or the special weapon, Cross fires the machine gun, Triangle swaps targets, Square swaps weapons, and the directional buttons give orders to your squadron.

The keys people look up first

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve controls at a glance

Default bindings for the actions searched for most. The full lists, the settings that change how they feel and the printable layout are below.

Action	PlayStation	Xbox
Switch weapon	`Square`	`X`

The rest of this game, drawn

This is the reference you look a binding up in; the others measure the hand pressing it, the day it unlocks and the machine it has to run on. Every figure below is counted from what each page holds.

10 bindings keyboard0controller10settings2 Ace Combat 8 controls You are here 6 benches keyboardyescontrolleryestouchscreenyes Ace Combat 8 input lab Times you flying six intercepts in both control modes with your own stick and says which one your hand flies better; draws the turn circle at any speed; lays out the official buttons and squadron orders. 3 platforms milestones4questions13editions3 Ace Combat 8 launch When it came out, the editions and the platforms, dated from the publisher. 2 tiers ray tracingrequiredmemory16 GBgraphics cards4 Can you run Ace Combat 8? Reads your graphics card and places it against the publisher’s own tiers. 16 makers devices4axis roles5uploadsnone Flight stick bench Every axis your stick reports and what each one does, read in the browser.

Show

Action	PlayStation	Xbox	Switch
Flight
Fly — Standard modePush left or right and the aircraft turns that way; let go and the wings level.	`Left stick`	`Left stick`	`Left stick`
Fly — Expert modeLeft and right roll the aircraft; you turn by pitching the nose up or down.	`Left stick`	`Left stick`	`Left stick`
Speed
Accelerate	`R2`	`RT`	`ZR`
Decelerate	`L2`	`LT`	`ZL`
High-G turnEasing off the speed before you pull makes the turn tighter: half the speed, a quarter of the circle.	`L2 + R2 (hold both)`	`LT + RT (hold both)`	`ZL + ZR (hold both)`
Weapons
Lock on and fire missiles or special weapon	`Circle`	`B`	`A`
Machine gun	`Cross`	`A`	`B`
Swap lock-on target	`Triangle`	`Y`	`X`
Swap weapons	`Square`	`X`	`Y`
Squadron
Squadron ordersFour orders: attack a specific target, scatter and engage at will, come back and cover you, switch to special weapons.	`D-pad`	`D-pad`	`D-pad`

Switch labels are derived from the PlayStation and Xbox layouts where the game uses the standard mapping; games without a Switch release show the equivalent position only.

Settings that change how the bindings feel

Recommended starting settings

Two choices matter before the first sortie, and both can be changed later. The control mode is picked when you load into the cockpit; difficulty is in the settings menu. The other buttons — L1 and R1, the right stick, the countermeasures — have not been published yet and are not guessed here.

Flight control mode Standard or Expert StandardExpert

Standard turns where you push the stick; Expert rolls with it and turns by pitching, for a wider range of manoeuvres. Which suits you is a question about your hand.

Fly both modes and compare

Difficulty Rookie, Pilot, Veteran or Elite RookiePilotVeteranElite

Named by Bandai Namco; what each level changes has not been published.

One line per question

How to do the things people search for in Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve

Generated from the default bindings above, so an action and its key can never disagree.

How to switch weapons in Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve on controller?

To switch weapons in Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, press Square on PlayStation and X on Xbox.

Quick answers

How do you fire missiles in Ace Combat 8?

Circle on PlayStation, B on Xbox. The same button locks on and fires your special weapon when it is selected; Square swaps between them.

How do you switch targets in Ace Combat 8?

Triangle on PlayStation, Y on Xbox, swaps the lock-on to the next target.

How do you do a high-G turn in Ace Combat 8?

Hold both triggers — L2 and R2, or LT and RT. On their own, R2 accelerates and L2 decelerates; slowing down first makes the high-G turn tighter.

What does the left stick do in Standard and Expert mode?

In Standard it turns the aircraft toward where you push and levels the wings when you let go. In Expert it rolls the aircraft, and you turn by pitching the nose — more to do, and more manoeuvres.

What are the Ace Combat 8 keyboard controls?

The PC keyboard and mouse layout has not been published yet. The game lists full controller support on Steam, and the controller layout above is the official one.

Next steps for Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve

Gamepad tester See every button, trigger and stick of your controller live, before blaming the game. Controller deadzone tuner Find the smallest deadzone that hides drift without swallowing slow aim in Ace Combat 8. Stick drift test Five-second resting sample, so a wandering camera is not blamed on the game.

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