Ace Combat 8 Mythic Achievement Guide: ACE S-Ranks, Rival Aces and 100% Difficulty

What Mythic Achievements are, and where they stand today​

Xbox's own announcement is the key reference here. Xbox Insiders can get an early look at Mythic Achievements starting from the announcement date. Achievements added later through DLC or updates are not required, and Mythic status stays permanent once earned. Xbox also says Mythic Achievements have already been added to eligible games players completed in the past, including Xbox 360 titles.

Availability matters for anyone planning around this. The feature is currently available to Xbox Insiders and will reach the general public at a later date. One outlet notes that a wider release date is unconfirmed. TrueAchievements says the game's Mythic will still be credited if you finish the list before the feature goes live for everyone. Xbox's statement doesn't mention Ace Combat 8 specifically. It only confirms retroactive credit for eligible completed games in general.

The tracking tools are useful for a list like this one. A progress bar at the top of each game's achievement list shows how close you are to Mythic, with an option to show only the original achievements still needed. Later additions are labeled "add-on."

The Ace Combat 8 list at a glance​

TrueAchievements reports 55 achievements worth 1,000 Gamerscore. The game launched on October 2, 2026 on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and Steam, according to Bandai Namco's official site, which now reads "Available Now."

Reviewer Lee Brady's breakdown of the campaign path:

• Campaign missions: There are 31, counting the prologue, and each one has its own achievement. A further achievement covers clearing the campaign on any difficulty. Together these take you past the halfway point, and the story says they cover all but one of the secret achievements.
• Early progress: Brady had 46 of 55 unlocked after a first pass through the campaign, without special effort. He puts roughly 80% of the list in "comes easily" territory. That is his own experience, not a measured completion rate.
• Secret achievements: Many entries are hidden. The source doesn't reveal what they require, so don't assume anything about them.

Where the Mythic gets difficult​

Two campaign runs, minimum​

ACE difficulty isn't available at the start. You must beat the campaign at least once on Elite to unlock it. Two achievements then sit on ACE:

• The Ace: complete the campaign on ACE difficulty (60 Gamerscore).
• Ace of Aces: beat every mission on ACE with an S-rank.

Ace of Aces is the real obstacle​

An S-rank needs two things at once. You have to destroy as many targets as possible in each mission, and you have to finish it quickly. Brady says he found it hard to get any S-ranks on Elite.

He compares it with the equivalent Ace Combat 7 achievement, which he says had been unlocked by 0.14% of all Xbox players and 0.54% of the TrueAchievements community. He notes that game's campaign had ten fewer missions. Treat those figures as a snapshot from the day of publication. They aren't a forecast for Ace Combat 8's rate.

The grind and collection tasks​

Even without the S-rank problem, some entries take time:

Brady expects the MRP and aircraft goals to take more than one extra playthrough.

Rival aces​

"A Record of Rivalry" requires you to obtain all assault records. Brady says that means shooting down all 83 named rival aces. Some only appear under specific circumstances. If you miss any, he suggests checking the Campaign Assault Records section of the menu for clues on where to find them.

Smaller tasks to watch for​

These are easy to miss if you aren't hunting for them:

• By the Book: complete the campaign while successfully finishing all takeoffs and aerial refuelings.
• Like the Wind: perform a post-stall maneuver.
• All Weapons Free: allow special weapon use and have a wingman down an enemy with one.
• Yes, Sir!: have a wingman destroy an enemy after you use the Forward Atk, Dispersed Atk and Cover commands.
• Birds of a Feather: buy the same aircraft for your wingmen in the Aircraft Tree.
• Anti-Ground Ace and Air-to-Air Ace: 100 kills each with the matching special weapons.
• Cosmetic and menu tasks: preview an aircraft in the viewer, watch a replay, customize a skin or emblem, and clear one training mission.

No multiplayer required​

Brady reports that none of the achievements are directly tied to multiplayer modes. That fits Bandai Namco's FAQ, which says ACE COMBAT ONLINE is multiplayer-only and keeps its own progression and save data apart from Campaign Mode. In practice, achievement hunters can skip Team Deathmatch and the other online modes. Aircraft acquired online also don't count toward Campaign unlocks, since the FAQ says online aircraft come from rewards earned inside that mode.

Analysis: what this says about Mythic​

This is an early example of how Mythic will feel in practice. It will be a more visible, tracked version of the "complete every original achievement" goal that completionists already chase. Because Xbox counts only original achievements, the standard for a game like this is fixed at launch, and later DLC can't move it.

Some caveats:

• Difficulty is subjective. "Brutal" is one reviewer's call, and an experienced Ace Combat player may find S-ranks more approachable.
• The Ace Combat 7 percentages are a single-day figure and mix different games and player populations.
• The Insider-only status means most players won't see the Mythic frame or progress bar yet.

Bottom line​

Finishing Ace Combat 8's list is mostly a matter of playing the campaign and its side content. The Mythic hinges on two things: unlocking ACE through an Elite clear, then S-ranking every mission on ACE. Plan on at least two runs, with extra time for the MRP and collection goals. If you're an Xbox Insider, the new progress bar will show how far along you are.

Update: New guide details replay options and hidden unlock conditions (October 4, 2026)​

According to Games.gg’s October 4 guide, Ace Combat 8’s S-rank cleanup can reportedly be completed through Free Mission after the first campaign clear, rather than requiring another uninterrupted campaign run. The outlet says this mode removes most campaign aircraft restrictions, letting players bring stronger loadouts to difficult sorties; Mission 14 reportedly retains its fixed aircraft.

Games.gg also reports two important conditions for collecting Assault Records: named enemy aces only spawn on Veteran difficulty or higher, and their kills register only after the mission is completed. Quitting or restarting immediately after shooting one down reportedly loses that progress, making difficulty selection and finishing the sortie essential checks before hunting missing records.

The guide adds that By the Book reportedly requires players not to skip landings, as well as takeoffs and refueling sequences, and unlocks at the start of the final mission. According to Games.gg, Like the Wind also requires a post-stall-capable aircraft and must be performed in Campaign, not Free Flight. These are single-outlet findings rather than vendor-confirmed corrections, but they provide more specific troubleshooting steps for players whose unlocks appear stalled.