!The Strange Charm of Strangereal

When ''VideoGame/AceCombatAssaultHorizon'' was first announced, long-time ''Ace Combat'' fans complained just about everything in it. One of the biggest complaints (just as it was with ''VideoGame/AceCombatJointAssault'') was the decision to move the setting from the ConstructedWorld of the previous console releases, Strangereal, ([[OlderThanTheyThink back]]) to our familiar Earth. The devs have certainly had good reasons: one, they were running out of new scenery to host another major armed conflict ([[VideoGame/AceCombat6FiresOfLiberation Anea]] was the last unvisited continent); two, the time frame of the series slowly approached ''[[VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere Electrosphere]]''--and thus, the point where the series had to abandon its main gimmick, RealLife fighter jet models. And yet the fans cling to the good ol' Strangereal. What exactly makes it feel right when our Earth doesn't?

Quite simply put, '''Strangereal is a world where UsefulNotes/WorldWarI never happened'''. Sure, [[AllThereInTheManual the lore]] mentions wars involving [[FantasyCounterpartCulture Belka]] in the same time frame as Earth's World Wars but they have never had the same impact as WWI (presumably because the wars did not drag on for extended periods of time). The implications of this are immense, if you think about it:

* Strangereal managed to transition to the age of [[CoolPlane modern aviation]] without discrediting the [[WarIsGlorious valor in battle]] with the [[WarIsHell horrors of trench warfare]]. Its aerial combat is still a matter of {{ace pilot}}s, straight from the era of the gallant RedBaron von Richthoffen, not one of [[DeathFromAbove remotely-controlled drones and faceless stratospheric bombers blasting countries back into the Stone Age]]. Then again, one could assume that the various governments had very sensible people at the top prior to the major continental wars. Minor wars still happened, with a considerable lack of details concerning warfare on the ground.
* Strangereal is a world [[NuclearWeaponsTaboo without nuclear weapons]]. Where every major post-[[TheFifties 1950]] conflict on Earth ran a high risk of TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt, Strangereal's superpowers are free to [[VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar duke it out with impunity]]--though whether that is for the best is up to the players to decide. There also exists no interventionist policies among the world's superpowers; conflicts can break out on their borders, and no evidence can be found that said superpowers intervene to bring the conflict to a peaceful close. There must be plenty of self-restraint on the part of the more sensible countries (unless one counts ultranationalist maniacs willing to use chemical weapons on civilians).
* The [[CataclysmBackstory Ulysses asteroid]] brought the colossal, larger-than-life superweapons back into vogue in Strangereal, whereas IRL, WWI pretty much [[DiscreditedTrope killed off the whole idea]]. The superweapons are a clear, palpable, and--most importantly--destructible antagonist, whose downfall often spells an [[DecapitatedArmy immediate and finite end of a war]], a luxury rarely found in RL warfare. The rare instances of destroyed super weapons spelling doom for any antagonist in RL tended to stem from people deserting the cause after they stopped believing in the power of said weapons.

Strangereal has [[FantasyCounterpartCulture just enough connections to Earth]] for players of any cultural background to identify with their side without UsefulNotes/MisplacedNationalism mixing up the picture, and, in the end, fulfills the ultimate Analysis/{{escapis|m}}t fantasy of a military airplane geek to soar majestically above the battlefield without having to face war's nasty underside down on the ground[[note]]This is even lampshaded by Count in the end of Mission 17 of ''VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown'' when talking about civilian casualties: "This is why I like the sky. You don't have to see those types of things"[[/note]]. One however must note that if belligerent countries do not use long range missiles first, they will almost always send the planes to do initial combat, which almost always precedes any eye contact between surface forces (navies and armies).
* At least at first glance. Since ''VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere'', Project Aces has not shied away from exploring political themes that are unique from the gung-ho attitude of most games in the flight sim genre. You can [[HiddenDepths tell a lot of stories]] with the blank canvas that is Strangereal.
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