Rumour: Ace Combat 8 Online Beta Test Inbound, Pre-Order May Include a Whole Other Game

Real ones will know that Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve is one of the most exciting games of 2026, and it seems fans of the franchise will be in for a treat.

Bandai Namco announced the latest entry in its arcadey fighter jet action series during The Game Awards 2025, and we've yet to hear much else about it.

However, eagle-eyed fans appear to have spotted some movements in the game's Steam page that hint at a couple of quite exciting things to come.

Via SteamDB, several mentions of a CNT (Closed Network Test) can be found in the update data for AC8's Steam page. There are also mentions of Ace Combat Online, which might be the name for the title's online multiplayer hub.

Perhaps even better news is there are also mentions of Ace Combat Zero. Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War, to give it its full name, is a PS2 classic and a fan favourite game in the series.

It's theorised that this game could be a pre-order bonus for AC8. There's precedent for this; Bandai Namco made a remastered Ace Combat 5: Squadron Leader a pre-order bonus for Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown.

So, it's looking like the next game in the series will receive some sort of online beta test prior to launch, and that you might get Ace Combat Zero as a bonus if you pre-order.

Both of these things seem pretty plausible to us, but of course we'll have to wait and see what Bandai Namco says. Hopefully an official update on AC8 isn't too far away — the game is due for release sometime this year, after all.

Would you like to see an online beta for AC8 in the near future? Would you pre-order if it included AC Zero? Tell us in the comments section below.