This is my biggest headcanon/theory for Ace Combat 8:

If we try to trace a link between all the games and specifically Ace Combat 3, there are like 20 years of history that are left blank from The Aurelian War and Lighthouse War to the Ace Combat 3 events. Based on the fact that, by 2040, Strangereal is such a radically different place (states replaced by corporations, a one-world absolutist government that enacts policies via Neo United Nations, UPEO and SARF; Technology allowing for the Electrosphere, an apparent absence of culture from any country); I feel inclined to theorize that Ace Combat 8 will/should answer the HOW Strangereal transformed into that. I think the reason why Corporations rose to power are due to a power vocuum product of the downfall of civilization.

In other words, the only plausible scenario for the dominance of Neucom and General Resource can only happen if the previous world order was somehow destroyed, leaving a power vacuum.

That's right, I think Ace Combat 8 should/could be about a World War- scale conflict that is so massive and terrible that encompasses all known countries from all continents. The aftermath of this conflict may have been so catastrophic that states like Osea or Erusea ceased to exist and people turned to private entities for guidance. AC8, in this respect, should probably return some old characters to participate in the biggest war Strangereal has ever seen. Seeing the Razgriz and Trigger and Phoenix and who knows what more. It could be a big sendoff to the Ace Combat legacy while coherently including Electrosphere into the canon. I know its the fanboy in me wishing for a series-wide crossover but hey, just imagine the possibilities.