Ace Combat Zero’s “ZERO” music video celebrates the series

Bandai Namco has released an official music video for “ZERO”, the theme song from Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War, as part of the post-launch celebration for Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve. The remastered track is also available through streaming services including Spotify and Apple Music. ¹

A song from Ace Combat’s past

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War originally launched on PlayStation 2 and remains one of the series’ most recognisable older entries. Its “ZERO” theme is tied to the game’s fictional conflict in Strangereal, the setting shared by the wider Ace Combat series. The new video gives the track a fresh promotional push while Bandai Namco continues to build attention around the latest game.

The music video arrives during the wider Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve release celebration. The new game launched on October 2 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC through Steam, and the publisher has been using its surrounding campaign to reconnect the current release with the franchise’s history. ¹

The remastered classic is still available

Players who received Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War as a pre-order bonus with Ace Combat 8 can install the classic separately on Steam. The standalone version includes Steam achievements, including automatic unlocks for some players who had already played it through their existing Ace Combat 8 installation.

That makes the “ZERO” video more than a random soundtrack upload. It links a piece of the series’ PlayStation 2 history to the current release, while also giving players a reason to revisit the older game. The remastered version of the song is available through a collection of streaming platforms, so listeners do not need to own either game to hear it.

The current Ace Combat 8 Steam release provides the story’s hero artwork: an official in-game image showing fighter aircraft lined up in a hangar. It depicts the present-day franchise context rather than the music video itself, so readers should not mistake the image for a frame from the new promotional release. ²

Our opinion

This is a smart bit of post-launch connective tissue. “ZERO” is one of the tracks most strongly associated with the older Ace Combat era, and putting it back in front of players alongside Ace Combat 8 gives the celebration more personality than another generic gameplay clip. It also treats the back catalogue as an asset rather than disposable history: a new release can make an older game, song or story feel relevant again without pretending it was just made.

There is no indication that the video announces a new Ace Combat Zero remake or remaster beyond the existing standalone release. For now, it is best read as a music and franchise celebration, with the remastered track available to stream and the classic game accessible to eligible owners.