History TearJerker / AceCombat

-->''"Heh. I’m gonna miss that voice"''
-->-- '''Alvin H. “Chopper” Davenport''', [[spoiler: saying his FamousLastWords]]

!VideoGame/AceCombat3Electrosphere
* '''The OmegaEnding'''. Turns out, the PlayerCharacter, Nemo, was an ArtificialIntelligence, and the whole game was a simulation by Simon to see if Nemo can kill Dision. All five ending show that yes, Nemo will kill Dision. And now that the simulation has served its purpose, Simon purges the program, and goes on to instigate the corporate war between Neucom and General Resource.
** The simulation showed that Nemo was an intelligent being capable of forming bonds with its fellow pilots. But that meant nothing to Simon, as all that he cared about was that Nemo would kill Dision. And Simon, whether it was out of fear that [[HeKnowsTooMuch Nemo would warn the others of his treachery]], or [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness because he no longer needed it]], purges the Nemo in the simulation, and creates a fresh copy that he intends to release out into the world to carry out his plan.
* Just about all of Nemo’s companions have tragic fates, no matter what route it takes.
** Out of all of Nemo’s companions, Fiona has the worst fate of them all. In four of the five endings, she dies, but the ending in which she lives is not a happy one. Her sister, Cynthia, is shot down and killed, and as she’s looking at a holographic projection of herself with her sister, an [=AI=] version of Cynthia tries to contact her, but Fiona rejects the [=AI=] as being her sister, and throws the projector to the ground and cries.
** Cynthia doesn’t have it any better. In her ending, her sister is killed during an Ouroborus attack, and when she finds out that the man she admired does not in fact support his ideology of BrainUploading, and is only out for revenge, she defects from the Ouroborus to bring it down.
** While Rena Hiorse has at least one happy ending, the rest are tragic, and she still has to go through hell to get to it. In all of the five routes, Rena is subjugated to MindRape by Dision, to get her to fly the Night Raven. Its eventually discovered that she was only a child when she test piloted the Night Raven, and when she inadvertently revealed its existence in an interview, it lead to General Resource to cut their losses, which included killing Yoko Martha Inoue, leading to Dision on his mad quest for revenge.
** In the UPEO-General Resource route, when Dision betrays the company and reveals that he’s the leader of the Ouroboros organization, Keith Bryan laments to Nemo that he’s not the Dision that he knows. What Keith doesn’t realize is that [[DeadAllAlong he’s right]] about Dision [[BrainUpload not being the man he knows]], but [[RightForTheWrongReasons not for the reasons he thinks.]]
*** In the UPEO-General Resource-Ouroboros route, Keith Bryan pulls a TakingYouWithMe on Rena flying the Night Raven, and Nemo is forced to shoot him off the plane, killing them both.
*** The worse part about the UPEO-General Reosurce-Ouroboros route is that ''[[KillEmAll everyone dies]]''. Rena? Dead. Fiona? Dead. Keith? Dead. Erich and Cynthia? Maybe. But worse of all, Dision [[SanitySlippage completely loses it]] on this route, and Nemo is forced to shoot him down.
*** Erich’s [[UncertainDoom possible death]] in the UPEO-General Reosurce-Ouroboros route is a PlayerPunch to those who have played ''VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown'' given that he is also Jaeger’s son.
** Abyssal Dision may be the BigBad of the game, but that doesn’t make his life any less tragic. The real Dision has been DeadAllAlong, and the Dision that Nemo encounters is a BrainUpload of him that survived General Resource’s terrorists attack. No matter what route Nemo takes, he dies, with one ending even having him call out for Yoko to save him.
*** To make matters worse for Dision, this is ''exactly'' what Simon Orestes Cohen was hoping for. He wanted to see if Nemo could indeed kill Dision, and the simulation showed that Dision will die no matter what Nemo does.

!VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies
* "...the same cape where my family lived."
* Plus the constant "oh by the way you're a monster" that is ''VideoGame/AceCombat04ShatteredSkies''. The game frequently informs you that you're killing an orphan's best friends (the hardest enemies in the game as well, which means they'll make you start getting more desperate, then you realize you're getting desperate for a chance to kill said orphan's friends). However, the biggest PlayerPunch is when [[spoiler: you shoot down Yellow 13, who manages to chuck the late Yellow 4's handkerchief out his window before he dies]]. Then, [[spoiler: the kid writes you a letter asking about him.]]
** Also, earlier in the same game:[[spoiler: "Yellow 13 here. Did anyone see 4 get out?"]]
* The final cutscene with the now-grown kid writing the letter, and the shot of the photograph of him, the barkeep's daughter, 13, 4, and puppy, all together and looking happy, gets you right the feels.

!VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar
* The death of [[spoiler:Chopper, aka Captain Davenport]] in ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'' made quite a few players cry after they'd grown to like the character. The exact details in the mission that lead to it don't help any, but seeing the rest of the squadron collectively ''[[BerserkButton snap]]'' and cut a path of destruction through the invading enemies does make the player feel a bit better.
** It probably helps that he gets a rather tear-jerking moment in the previous mission, where you're providing ground support for a unit that include the brother of Grimm (one of your squadron's pilots).
--->'''Chopper''': Hey, Grimm, do you know where your brother is down there?
--->'''Grimm''': Sir, you can't play favorites during war!
--->'''Chopper''': '''Fine! Then ''everyone'' down there is your brother!'''
** And in a later mission (18, "Fortress"), you provide air support for ground troops (and bail them out from a bad situation):
--->'''Friendly Soldier 1:''' They're called the "Four Wings of Sand Island", but I only see three of them.
--->'''Friendly Soldier 2:''' Don't you know? Only good little kids get to see the fourth one.
** The fate of the Yuktobanian frigate ''Pitomnik'' during the mission "Sea of Chaos." Despite Nikanor's declaration of his intentions of peace between Osea and Yuktobania, the Yuke fleet commander is unmoved and orders his ships to attack. ''Pitomnik'''s crew ''pleads'' with the commander to reconsider, even going so far as trying to pull their ship in front of the fleet. The fleet commander orders ''Pitomnik'' sunk without a hint of regret or hesitation, and we're treated to the scene of Yuke ships firing on their former comrade and not even slowing to assist the foundering vessel. It's probably one of the most iconic examples in the game of how [[WarISHell war and hatred turns men into absolute monsters.]] [[spoiler: Thankfully the scene becomes a moment of heartwarming and awesome not a minute later when several ships in the Yuke fleet, disgusted by the commander's actions, immediately switch sides and put on full steam to join the Kestrel Fleet.]] Still, ''Pitomnik's'' pleading voice as they turn to try and stop the madness of war can break a few hearts, especially when it is almost immediately silenced by the guns of their former comrades.
-->'''''Pitomnik''''': Please, stand down, we don't know what we're fighting for anymore. [[FamousLastWords Sir,]] ''[[FamousLastWords please,]]'' [[FamousLastWords cancel engagement...]]
** The Kestrel's demise in the penultimate mission. Nowhere near the level of Chopper, especially since everyone escapes, but still, seeing everyone saluting it, the sad music and the fact it was [[KilledOffForReal sunk off for real by a random attack after lasting at least 15 years]] was quite a blow.
** In the mission "Aces." You and your squadron head off to fight the BigBad, and [[spoiler: [[YouAreNotAlone squadrons from both Osea and Yuktobania help you do it.]] [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight Some of them directly against orders.]]]]
* In mission 15 "White Noise", if you failed to find Nagase in time, you'll hear her saying in a resigned voice that the enemies are closing in on her position, before announcing that this will be her last message as she readies her gun and prepared to go down fighting...[[DrivenToSuicide or worse]]...


![[{{VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar}} Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War]]
* [[WatchingTroyBurn The indiscriminate Allied bombing of Hoffnung]]. ''All of it.'' Plus Pixy's [[WhatTheHellHero disgusted response]] at the end of the mission.
-->'''Pixy''': ''Damn them all.''
* In the beginning of "Stage of the Apocalypse", the mission directly after Hoffnung. [[spoiler: After the events of this mission and the one previous, his defection to [[WellIntentionedExtremist A World With No Boundaries]] might not be all that surprising.]]
-->'''PJ''': This is PJ from Crow Team. Galm 2, is there something wrong with your craft?
-->'''Pixy''': Nah.. [[HeroicBSOD I'm just]] ''[[WarIsHell sad.]]''
** Freaking smartcrack Pixy is ''sad''. You know the war hit the low point then.
* Fighting the FinalBoss, depending on your point of view. [[spoiler:Two of you could have been ''friends''.]]
* The final interview.
-->'''Pixy''': "Trust is vital in a peaceful world, but that will never happen."

!VideoGame/AceCombat6FiresOfLiberation
* Estovakia is a normal upstanding country like many others; it's just that in 1998 -- i.e. three years after the disclosure of the Ulysses asteroid's impending collision with Strangereal Earth and only 1 year before its estimated date of said collision -- newly acquired data revealed that rather than Usea being the only continent to suffer the brunt of the disaster, the asteroid will split in two and one half would strike the continent of Anea (where Estovakia is located). Since the continent has nothing like Stonehenge railgun network, Estovakia was forced to begin building [[spoiler:Chandelier]], but it ''failed'' to be completed in time due to constant revisions, ''necessitating'' one of the most pointless wars in Strangereal history. Cheesy? Maybe. But the game shows the end result of meteor fragments landing ''right on top'' of an Estovakian city, within the vicinity of [[spoiler:Chandelier]] to further rub salt in the wound, the horror no one wanted to be on receiving end. Good thing Emmerians weren't hell bent on revenge.
* [[spoiler:Pasternak's sacrifice.]] Either EvenEvilHasStandards, or [[SpannerInTheWorks he is sending his own country into (from a point of view) years-long uncertainty it may never recover from.]] Think of him whether you wish. ''But no one should've been forced into making that kind of decision''.
* The cutscenes for the game, rather than following the PlayerCharacter, follow a woman and her daughter. The first scene in the game is the woman watching her daughter board a school bus for a field trip...and then watching the bridge her daughter's bus is supposed to be crossing be destroyed by Estovakian aircraft. From that point on, her life becomes, in her own words, "pure hell." As if to drive home [[AdultFear her worst fears,]] she passes the ''twisted wreckage'' of her daughter's school bus while evacuating the city, and then, just to twist the knife even further, she encounters the wreckage of ''her husband's'' fighter. By the time she gets to the refugee camp, she's barely a shell of he former self and acting like a complete automaton. [[spoiler: It is only when she hears her daughter's voice that she snaps out of it, and you can even see her [[SayMyName mouthing her daughter's name]] when she hears her, and spurs her to return to Gracemeria.]]
** Your wingman, Shamrock, makes it clear he has something--or someone--waiting for him in Gracemeria, and at every victory he makes it clear how much closer he comes to seeing them again, until revealing that it is his [[spoiler: wife and daughter who are waiting for him in Gracemeria. After taking back Gracemeria, he was so thrilled to finally be reunited with his family...You're initially led to believe that the wife and daughter in question is the woman and daughter the game's story follows, so happy reunion, right? Nope. Turns out that ''Shamrock's'' wife and daughter were killed in the fighting. The happy reunion you thought would be happening is now ruined forever, and he blames himself for not being able to protect them.[[note]]As tragic as it is, you have to give the writers credit for how well they played it out. The significance of his family is mostly downplayed for most of the game; for a while, the only thing you know is that ''someone'' is waiting for him in Gracemeria, and he remains hopeful to being reunited with them, but the game doesn't shove it in your face and make the end result all that predictable to see coming, but rather keeps it subtle; it even goes so far to imply it may be Matilda and Melissa he is waiting for, until TheReveal pulls the rug out from under you. It's hard to keep your composure after such a build-up leading to that.[[/note]] Shamrock's anguished cry over the radio, in the midst of the city celebrating below, just drives it in deeper:]]
-->''"HOW COULD I LET THIS HAPPEN?!"''

! VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown
* (Has [[Tearjerker/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown its own page]])

----

** Your wingman, Shamrock, makes it clear he has something--or someone--waiting for him in Gracemeria, and at every victory he makes it clear how much closer he comes to seeing them again, until revealing that it is his [[spoiler: wife and daughter who are waiting for him in Gracemeria. After taking back Gracemeria, he was so thrilled to finally be reunited with his family...You're initially led to believe that the wife and daughter in question is the woman and daughter the game's story follows, so happy reunion, right? Nope. Turns out that ''Shamrock's'' wife and daughter were killed in the fighting. The happy reunion you thought would be happening is now ruined forever, and he blames himself for not being able to protect them.[[note]]As tragic as it is, you have to give the writer's credit for how well they played it out. The significance of his family is mostly downplayed for most of the game; for a while, the only thing you know is that ''someone'' is waiting for him in Gracemeria, and he remains hopeful to being reunited with them, but the game doesn't shove it in your face and make the end result all that predictable to see coming, but rather keeps it subtle; it even goes so far to imply it may be Matilda and Melissa he is waiting for, until TheReveal pulls the rug out from under you. It's hard to keep your composure after such a build-up leading to that.[[/note]] Shamrock's anguished cry over the radio, in the midst of the city celebrating below, just drives it in deeper:]]

** Your wingman, Shamrock, makes it clear he has something--or someone--waiting for him in Gracemeria, and at every victory he makes it clear how much closer he comes to seeing them again, until revealing that it is his [[spoiler: wife and daughter who are waiting for him in Gracemeria. After taking back Gracemeria, he was so thrilled to finally be reunited with his family...You're initially led to believe that the wife and daughter in question is the woman and daughter the game's story follows, so happy reunion, right? Nope. Turns out that ''Shamrock's'' wife and daughter were killed in the fighting. The happy reunion you thought would be happening is now ruined forever, and he blames himself for not being able to protect them.[[note]]As tragic as it is, you have to give the writer's credit for how well they played it out. The significance of his family is mostly downplayed for most of the game; for a while, the only thing you know is that ''someone'' is waiting for him in Gracemeria, and he remains hopeful to being reunited with them, but the game doesn't shove it in your face and make the end result all that predictable to see coming, but rather keeps it subtle; it even goes so far to imply it may be Matilda and Melissa he is waiting for, until TheReveal pulls the rug out from under you. It's hard to keep your composure after such a build-up leading to that.[[/note]] Shamrock's anguished cry over the radio, in the midst of the city celebrating below, just drives it in deeper:

* The cutscenes for the game, rather than following the PlayerCharacter, follow a woman and her daughter. At first, the dialogue leads the player into thinking that the woman's husband was your co-pilot, Shamrock. The truth is that [[spoiler: she walked past the wreckage of her actual husband's plane while she was evacuating the city during the invasion of Gracemeria and didn't even realize it was him]]. Your wingman, Shamrock, also has his own tearjerker moment. [[spoiler: After taking back Gracemeria, he was so thrilled to finally be reunited with his family, only to find that his wife and daughter had been killed during the operation. The happy reunion you thought would be happening is now ruined forever, and he blames himself for not being able to protect them.]] The game mostly downplays the significance of his family. He remains hopeful to being reunited with them, but the game doesn't shove it in your face and make the end result all that predictable to see coming, but rather keeps it subtle. It's hard to keep your composure after such a build-up leading to that.