Ace Combat 6: Kaihou e no Senka

• Use an aircraft that is XL or XMAA special weapons capable. When first approaching, do not fire. Four KC-10 tankers will take the missiles. Destroy the radars providing the enemy ESM. When Strigon is heard on the radio, maneuver into the back of the hanger in order to trap three to five enemies at their spawn point. Accelerate out the front and take out the flak cannons, followed by any surviving aces. Remember to return to repair often.
• Under the Expert difficulty setting, using allied air support is essential. This will help get Strigons off your back, and clear targets such as AA guns off the cruisers. Keep in mind that the targets on the cruisers are usually either on the bow or stern of the ships. You must face them directly to actually hit them with weapons.

When using the standard missiles, fire when the "Shoot" icon appears on the HUD. When used in dogfights, the missile will fly in a straight line to where it will make contact with the plane, rather than fly at its 6 o'clock and turn to stay behind them. If the targeted plane is flying right and you fire when the "Shoot" icon appears, the missile will fly off to the right, intercepting it along the target's flight path. The missile will also immediately adjust its flight path if the targeted plane veers off of their line. This works very well against evasive enemies, such as Strigon and Drones. You must aim the nose of your plane to where you can hit your target with your gun or lead the enemy (even if it is out of range) in order to get the "Shoot" icon. Even though it does not guarantee a hit every time, it will greatly increase the chances of making contact against mobile enemies.

The following can be unlocked by completing various tasks in the game.

To unlock Ace Difficulty, beat the game once through on Expert Difficulty.

Complete the following achievements to unlock Xbox Live Gamerscore points.

Complete the indicated task to unlock new aircraft colors. Note: To change aircraft colors, first purchase a color scheme from the hangar. Then, highlight a particular plane and press Left or Right to select the other color schemes.

• Successfully complete the game under the Normal difficulty setting to unlock the Estovokian color scheme.

• To unlock the Emmerian color scheme, complete "Liberation of Gracemeria" under the Expert difficulty setting with an "S" rank on all operations that you participated in.

• Every mission on a high enough difficulty, such as Hard or higher, has one named ace aircraft. Kill these named aircraft to unlock their SP color scheme. Note: Strigon and Pasternak do not count.
  

• To unlock the Estovokian color scheme for the CFA-44, purchase all other aircraft in all their different paint schemes (Estovakia, Emmeria, and SP). Once done, the Estovakian CFA-44 will be available for purchase in the hangar.

• To unlock the SP color scheme for the CFA-44, have all "S" ranks in all missions from the Easy through Ace difficulty settings, earn all Operation Medals, have at least 15 Service Medals, have all Enemy Records, and have all Friend Records.

Successfully complete the indicated task to unlock the corresponding aircraft

Beat the game on Hard difficulty. It will appear in your hangar, purchase it for $229,500.

Successfully complete the game to unlock the "Music Player", "Scene viewer", "New Game SP", and "Expert Difficulty" options. Additionally, by completing the game 100% and then finishing the newly available downloadable content, "Ace Of Aces" mode becomes unlocked.

If you are going for an "S" rank, take the time to use Allied Attack and Cover to take out some of the UAVs that Pasternak uses to attack you and your squadron. After you have killed about five of the UAVs, concentrate your fire on Pasternak. He is always visible with ESM. This should give you an advantage. Later his ESM will disappear. Pay attention to your radar and use the Right Analog-stick to look around for him.

If you are going without an "S" rank, use Allied Attack directly on Pasternak so that your squadron keeps him busy while you take the shots on him. He always stops to fire his ADMMs; use that as an advantage to your Allied Attacks and missile attacks.