At “TGS 2026,” there was a certain shooting game on display. It was the new title *DELIVERY MUST COMPLETE*, developed by Yoyoyollie and published by Top Hat Studios.
The game’s official tagline is remarkably straightforward: “A fusion of the ‘Devil May Cry’ and ‘Ace Combat’ series.” It’s a high-speed dogfight roguelike with style ratings, rendered in a cel-shaded art style.
…That’s right—the abbreviation for this game is “DMC.” So, here’s our hands-on report and interview covering this title. DMC!
Show Off Your Style with Special Weapons
The game begins with selecting your aircraft and weapons.
Among the weapons, standard lock-on missiles and machine guns are equipped by default. Players choose two types of special weapons.
The ones I used this time were a missile that ricochets to another nearby enemy after hitting one target, a special gun-like weapon with a short range but capable of dealing damage to anything within its area of effect, and a weapon that fires blade-like beams of light. Based on this lineup alone, you can tell right away that “this isn’t a realistic flight sim.”
Full Throttle = “Boost”
Once you take off, fighter jets and drones are waiting for you. Since there are absolutely no allies, your only goal is to destroy every object in sight. It’s a simple rule. The controls are similar to the *Ace Combat* series, so anyone familiar with that series will get the hang of it right away. I, too, had almost no trouble getting used to them.
However, the throttle is a crucial difference. In this game, the throttle essentially functions as “boost,” causing you to accelerate instantly the moment you press it. It doesn’t give you the sensation of gradually building up speed.
On the other hand, you can’t use it for very long. If the boost gauge hits zero, you’ll stall.
What’s interesting is recovering from this stall. To restart the engine, you must press the boost button and release it at just the right moment. If you succeed in timing this three times, you’ll recover from the stall, and at the same time, you’ll enter a state where boost is automatically applied without consuming the boost gauge for a certain period.
In other words, boost is both a “resource you mustn’t use up completely” and something that “rewards you if you recover skillfully after running out.” This design, where a crisis can turn into a bonus, felt truly “authentic” to me.
Weapon ammo is infinite, but…
The weapon system also leans toward the arcade style. Machine guns, missiles, and special weapons all have infinite ammo. You don’t need to hold back on firing out of concern for running out of ammo.
However, with the exception of machine guns, firing any weapon triggers a cooldown. Special weapons, in particular, have a longer cooldown, so you can’t fire them continuously. This requires you to make strategic decisions about which weapon to use and when.
Take down enemies in style
And this is where the game really shines.
Defeating an enemy starts a combo. If you take down enemies in quick succession or fight in a stylish manner, your rank will rise rapidly, and your score will skyrocket. It’s as if the mechanics of the *Devil May Cry* series have been brought into the skies.
Once you earn a certain score, you level up and are presented with three upgrade parts; choose one to equip.
This is where it gets tricky. There are options to increase your health, ones that boost firepower but shorten your range, and others that improve lock-on performance but reduce the damage per shot—there are almost no straightforward “better-than-the-original” upgrades. You’ll have to decide on the spot which direction to take with your playstyle.
No two skies are ever the same
Once you clear a certain number of stages, you clear the area and move on to the next one.
Here, you can choose one of two paths to take. Both the difficulty and the weather change depending on where you go.
Since all maps in this game are procedurally generated—with changing weather, varying cloud cover, unusual terrain, and random map events—no two battles are ever the same.Sometimes you’ll chase enemies while using floating islands as terrain, while other times you’ll be thrown into a completely different environment. The combination of route selection and procedural generation ensures that a different sky unfolds every time.
The skies are no walk in the park
If your health eventually drops to 0, it’s game over. And to be honest, the difficulty is quite high. I was shot down in Area 2.
However, there’s a follow-up to this story. It turns out there’s time between stages to collect items, and apparently, I just needed to fly around and pick them up properly.
…And I didn’t even realize these items existed until I conducted an interview. When I asked the developer, “What’s the advantage of choosing a difficult route?” they replied, “You get better item drops,” and that’s when I first found out. I really should have flown around more carefully.
I want to fuse two things that have never been combined before
After the demo, I had the opportunity to speak with developer Andy. Here is a summary of our conversation, which took place through an interpreter.
――After playing it, I felt it was a title where you can enjoy dogfights at a very fast pace. What is the concept behind this game, and what audience is it aimed at?
Andy: We’re making this for fans of games like *Ace Combat*, *Project Wingman*, and *Devil May Cry*.
Since this demo is an early build, it hasn’t been widely publicized yet, but we plan to include a combo action system similar to *Devil May Cry*. You know, those ultra-stylish, cool combos.
Naturally, that also leads to earning points. That’s because the game features meta-progression, where the points you earn are converted into credits. Between play sessions, there’s a hub world where you’ll encounter various characters and can purchase upgrades and new aircraft from them.
One of our major sources of inspiration was combining the epic scale and sense of high-speed movement found in *Ace Combat* with the stylish combo system of *Devil May Cry*. Additionally, since it’s a roguelike, we’ve also drawn inspiration from games like *Slay the Spire*.
――The title’s abbreviation is “DMC”—is that also influenced by *Devil May Cry*?
Andy: That’s right (laughs). It’s a little joke.
――With features like boosting to instantly increase speed, it felt more like a shooter than a realistic flight sim. While there’s clearly a nod to *Ace Combat*, it gives the impression of being designed specifically for dogfights—would you agree?
Andy: We’re not aiming for the realism of a flight simulator; instead, we’re prioritizing giving players the excitement and adrenaline rush of an arcade game. On top of that, we’re adding ultra-stylish action like in *Devil May Cry*.
Since *Devil May Cry* is also a game that prioritizes style over realism, this title is heading in the same direction.
――After clearing a stage, you can choose your next route. Is there any benefit to selecting the higher difficulty option?
Andy: The zones are procedurally generated, and there are several different types. Some zones feature islands floating in the sky, where you have to use the terrain to hunt down enemies, while others have pillars stretching into space, requiring you to fly carefully to avoid colliding with them. The types of enemies that appear also vary.
As for rewards, since we’re still in the early stages of development, it will depend on the final balance adjustments, but currently, choosing a harder zone results in better item drops.
At the end of each zone, when you choose your next route, an inventory screen appears where you can check the items you’ve collected from defeated enemies. The system is designed so that the higher the difficulty, the more likely you are to obtain rare items.
――Finally, please share a message for the fans eagerly awaiting this game.
Andy: Thank you for your patience while we’ve been developing the game.
What we want to deliver is an incredibly smooth yet exhilarating flight experience. We’re aiming to fuse the best elements of what you love about *Ace Combat* with the *Devil May Cry*-style genre—two elements that have never been combined before.
Blast through the clouds with a boost, chain together combos, and if you stall, time it just right to rev the engine back to life. Even though it’s an airplane game, the actions required are pure stylish action. For all you combat fanatics who just want to enjoy dogfights with enemies, why not look forward to this?
Basic Information
Title: DELIVERY MUST COMPLETE
Developer: Yoyoyollie / Publisher: Top Hat Studios, Inc.
Supported Platforms: PC (Steam)
Release Date: TBD
