Ground of Aces’ Scramble!! Update Turns A Pretty Diorama Into A Real War Machine

Scramble!! Makes Ground of Aces Feel Like a Real Operational Sim

Ground of Aces has been on my radar since it hit Early Access this summer, mostly because it scratches a weirdly specific itch: city-builder brain with WWII aviation heart. The new Scramble!! update is the first time it truly feels like you’re running an airfield under pressure, not just decorating a handsome RAF diorama. Plane scrambling, ammo consumption, and crew training might sound like minor knobs, but together they change the rhythm of the whole game.

• Real-time scramble decisions finally give air raids teeth.
• Ammo consumption and storage push logistics to center stage.
• Crew stats and training add long-term progression-and risk.
• Concrete bunkers promise fewer reset-your-save moments during heavy raids.

Breaking Down the Scramble!! Update

The headline feature is plane scrambling. When the alarm hits, you choose which birds leave the runway-fighters to intercept or bombers to evacuate. It’s the first time Ground of Aces really captures the “Battle of Britain” knot in your stomach: commit your best aces now or hold them for the next wave? The update also flips a switch on ammo consumption. Both aircraft and your defensive structures chew through ammunition, which makes storage and resupply a strategic layer rather than a background resource pile you never think about.

The other big shift is on the human side. Every crew member now has six skill stats that improve through missions, and you can build training facilities to level them up outside combat. That moves the game closer to RimWorld’s “these people matter” vibe-where losing someone with a unique skill profile stings for more than just a time cost. Add in concrete bunkers, and you get a clearer defensive meta: invest in hardened shelters to keep your people and munitions alive when the bombs start to fall.

Blindflug calls this their biggest step since launch, and I believe it. As Executive Producer Moritz Zumbühl puts it, “The Scramble!! update introduces entirely new layers of decision-making… more depth, more authenticity, and more ways to tell their own stories.” That last part matters. The systems don’t just add grind; they create moments: the clutch scramble that saves your hangars, the rookie you trained into a dependable navigator, the bunker that turns a disaster into a close call.

Why This Matters Now

Early Access games live or die on whether their mid-game gets interesting. Ground of Aces launched with a strong aesthetic—clean “ligne claire” comic style straight out of Tintin and Buck Danny—and a promising base-builder foundation. But the loop risked becoming comfy rather than compelling. Scramble!! tackles that head-on. Logistics and sortie decisions naturally scale with your base size, which should keep tension alive past the cozy starter phase.

It also puts Ground of Aces in a nice space between inspirations. You get the freeform building fans love from RimWorld and Going Medieval, but now with the operational choices that historical strategy folks (think Hearts of Iron IV enjoyers) crave. Crucially, these aren’t bolt-ons; ammo, training, and scrambling are interconnected. If one part falters—like your ammo stores—everything else feels it.

Hype Check: Depth vs. Micromanagement

This all sounds great, but I’ve got a few watchpoints as someone who’s seen “logistics” updates turn into micro hell. Ammo management can become busywork fast if the UI doesn’t make stock levels and flow obvious. A good logistics layer is about decisions, not clicking a dozen little boxes to refill AA guns. The same goes for crew training: progression is satisfying when it’s meaningful, not when it turns into an academy grind just to keep up with enemy difficulty curves.

There’s also the usual Early Access caution. Big systems like this often mean weeks of rebalance patches. Expect some wild swings while the community stress tests scramble timings, bunker durability, and ammo burn rates. If you’re starting fresh, this is a perfect on-ramp. If you’ve got a long-running save, check how the new systems impact your existing layouts—especially storage placement and approach paths to shelters.

On the bright side, Blindflug has a track record with aviation (Airheart) and systems-driven strategy (First Strike, Stellar Commanders). They’ve shown they can iterate toward clarity. And the art style pays dividends here: when the UI gets busy during raids, Ground of Aces’ crisp visuals keep unit states readable in a way grittier sims struggle with.

What I Want Next

If Scramble!! is the “make it operational” patch, the next step should be surfacing information effortlessly. More granular overlays for ammo reserves and training progress, smarter alerting before you hit zero stock, and tools to plan scramble presets would help the new systems sing. I’d also love to see events that tie training to narrative beats—graduation ceremonies that unlock perks, or high-stakes assignments for elite crews that genuinely tempt you to risk them.

For now, though, this is the right kind of Early Access update: it changes how you play, not just how your base looks. And if you’ve been fence-sitting, Ground of Aces is currently 20% off to celebrate the release—the biggest discount since launch.

TL;DR

Scramble!! transforms Ground of Aces from a stylish airbase builder into a genuinely tense operational sim. Plane scrambling, ammo logistics, crew progression, and bunkers add meaningful decisions—with a few Early Access balance bumps likely along the way.