Sawyer from Lost is flying a Top Gun-style war drama - Bandai Namco's four-part Ace Combat prequel is already streaming
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Leve is getting a prequel series fronted by a familiar face — fancy finding out who’s at the helm?
Bandai Namco is taking a rather bold approach to hyping its next big gaming release, and frankly, I’m not sure anyone saw this coming. With Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve on the horizon, they’ve kicked off a live-action prequel series that looks like someone mashed up Top Gun with prestige TV. It’s called Hour Zero, and the first episode landed on 15 September, becoming available for everyone to watch online.
Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve launches on 2 October.
This isn’t Bandai Namco’s usual fare—far from it. Live-action tie-in dramas aren’t totally unprecedented in games, but a four-part miniseries led by big-name actors is pretty much a first in their catalogue. The goal: fill in the backstory for the Ace Combat 8 campaign, but do it with a bit of Hollywood polish before the game even hits shelves.
Who’s Who in the Sky
The cast isn’t your typical B-list gamer fodder, either. Josh Holloway (yes, Sawyer from Lost) takes the lead as a pilot having a rather miserable day—he “has nowhere to land” after enemy bombers ruin the fun. Brandon Routh (Superman Returns) is in as a battlefield doctor who winds up rescuing someone he’s meant to hate. Tamlyn Tomita (Lost’s rival, if you like trivia) plays a news anchor, muzzled for exposing uncomfortable truths. According to Bandai Namco, all three are shoved together as the Republic of Sotoa goes to war with the Federation of Central Usea, and ordinary life shatters beneath the roar of fighter jets.
- Josh Holloway: Disgraced pilot, main protagonist
- Brandon Routh: Frontline doctor with a conscience
- Tamlyn Tomita: Journalist struggling against propaganda
Holloway’s Dive into Gaming Drama
For Holloway, this is uncharted territory. His last game involvement was just a single voice role, buried back in 2007’s Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. He admitted to Variety he had to be convinced, but once the production values became clear, he was sold. Here’s how he described it:
‘When I got into it and found out how really well done and well-prepared they were to do this, I was like, OK, this sounds like fun, and I can have my fighter pilot moment. Once I saw the production value and how he was going about it, I was like, oh yeah, I’m in. Let’s do this.’
Bandai Namco clearly wanted this to look the part, so much so they actually hired a proper fighter pilot to help with authenticity. Holloway was surprisingly into the process, especially when it came to the more physical details:
‘It was amazing in our production that they had a real pilot there with me, and he’s telling me, “If you’re pulling that G, your body is actually gonna be grunting. You can’t even help it.” I’m like, oh s**t, really? So that was really amazing information to have on the layering of the look and the stakes that you’re bringing.’
We’ve got three more episodes of Hour Zero coming soon—Bandai Namco is staggering them out across YouTube on 17 September, 23 September, and 29 September, all leading up to the main event when Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve finally arrives on 2 October.