Aces of Thunder First Impressions: An Ace In The Making

We were recently given early access to an in-progress build of Aces of Thunder, the upcoming flight simulation game by Gaijin Entertainment, the developers of the ever-popular War Thunder. Although we were unable to test out the game's multiplayer, we had the opportunity to check out the current state of the game, and how it's shaping up on a high-end PC VR setup.

Right from the get-go, there's a lot that Gaijin has managed correctly - but we must stress that this is an in-dev version of the game. For one, there were no in-game graphical options for us to tweak; I can't tell you whether the game defaulted to the maximum graphical preset, the lowest, or something in between. What I can say is that on the same 5090 setup I tested Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on, I managed a locked 90FPS at Godlike Virtual Desktop resolution settings (150% resolution scale to my Quest 3 headset).

This might have introduced some problems, however; Aces of Thunder will eventually have hand-tracking controls, but even using my Touch Plus controllers, I was unable to access any of the menus once I was in a mission. The only way I was able to start a new mission was to restart the game, or deliberately finish the current one - whether that be by failing it, or completing it.

This could just be a controller mapping issue with Virtual Desktop; we can't say for sure. I tried to use the same flight stick I use in Flight Sim, though for whatever reason I couldn't get it working with the current build. That's fine - part of the charm of VR flight simulation is being able to simulate the analog experience of piloting an aircraft itself, and that mostly works with the current keybindings on VR controllers.

I will note, however, that I would recommend instantly turning off the throttle being tied to the left controller's analog stick. The rudder is also tied to the left analog stick, so it can be straightforward to adjust your thrust while attempting to use the rudders. You can control the thruster manually in the cockpit, and having an additional option for it - while I appreciate the thought behind it - causes more problems than it solves in my opinion.

Beyond that, the controls feel like exactly what I'd expect from a more vintage, WW2 flight simulation game. I'm a big fan of how when the game can tell you're focusing in on a specific dial in the cockpit, it'll give an annotation for its current value so it's easier to read. That's not something I feel like I might need on my own setup, yet I can anticipate it being useful for players on headsets running a lower resolution, and without any supersampling added to the picture.

While PvP inevitably feels like the main attraction for the game, we did have access to several single-player missions - which is where I have to level with you all. I love a leisurely flight sim, but I am absolutely terrible at actual combat. Not to mention, the more vintage aircraft represented in Aces of Thunder are a touch more challenging to handle compared to my preferred, more modern fare. I'm sure, given enough time, these missions would be a ton of fun - they're certainly great practice before unleashing yourself against the online masses. Still, they're not exactly a tutorial, which I certainly hope the final game might include for those of us not already versed in Gaijin's brand of flight sim.

Which is to say, Aces of Thunder leaves a very strong first impression - yet at the same time, quite a few questions remain about how things will feel when the game finally releases later this year. How will it perform on more modest setups, and how will graphics scale in fidelity? In what manner will the controls evolve; we know the team is working on hand tracking options, but how will that work out in the end? How about the PlayStation VR2 release? For now, we're told it's aiming to maintain a stable 90fps on PS5.

We'll be sure to report the answers to these questions in full as we get closer to launch, slated for later this year on Steam and PS VR2. Until then, you can watch our recent Aces of Thunder livestream to learn more.