

Completing missions awards money that can be used to purchase aircraft, while certain missions unlock side games like midair refueling. Wingmen can be assigned specific aircraft before beginning a mission.

With this, players can have fighters team up to take down a single target or spread out to cover more ground. In the Campaign mode, the player can issue orders to computer-controlled ally fighters, a method known as wingman interaction. The majority of these aircraft are unlocked by progressing through the Campaign mode, while others are unlocked while destroying a certain amount of enemies with a particular craft. The game features over fifty playable aircraft, including military and experimental aircraft licensed from the United States and Europe, in addition to original designs created specifically for the game. Missions feature a wide array of objectives, ranging from destroying all enemy aircraft in a level to protecting a specific target from enemy fire. The gameplay in these three modes is largely consistent players pilot an aircraft and must complete a series of missions that must be completed in the allotted amount of time. Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War is divided into three gamemodes: Campaign, where players progress through story-driven levels Arcade, which removes most of the story from Campaign mode in favor of gameplay and Tutorial, which teaches the player the base mechanics.
