Blackhawk wrote: Thu Aug 25, 2022 10:44 pm
I don't see pricing yet, but no doubt that the basic upgrade will be $60 for one helicopter and two airports, $110 for half of the content, and $180 for all of it. And if you buy a lesser upgrade, you have don't get credit toward higher tiers.
To mark this important milestone in Flight Simulator's journey, Microsoft partnered with some of the best third-party developers to inject new life into the game. The 40th Anniversary Edition comes free of charge for those who already own the base title or play it via Xbox Game Pass.
Blackhawk wrote: Thu Aug 25, 2022 10:44 pm
I don't see pricing yet, but no doubt that the basic upgrade will be $60 for one helicopter and two airports, $110 for half of the content, and $180 for all of it. And if you buy a lesser upgrade, you have don't get credit toward higher tiers.
had a problem where the mandatory updates were crashing Steam partway through the download. running CHKSDK and removing one stick of RAM appeared to have fixed this problem. (still need to reinstall the RAM and run MemTest on them)
Just popped in to say, if you havent played the (free, yay) Dune download expansion for MS 2020 you are missing out on one of the great joys in life. THe ornithopter is an absolute blast to fly.
OR
cry in a corner that the world has come to a point where you have to pay for imaginary shit.
Brand new details about Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 are out, giving us some real detail about improvements we'd only guessed at after the trailer earlier this month. That includes the overhaul of the world modeling including the new 3D ground map, visual improvements to environments of all kinds, huge expansions to the scope of the world, and information about the new commercial aviation activities.
The biggest, immediate visual change is to the map of Earth itself. The landscape below your plane is now in full 3D, not just a texture on the ground. That includes procedurally generated vegetation on the world with 30 distinct biomes modelled. It's a huge visual difference, which was clear from comparisons of the same area in the 2020 and 2024 Flight Simulators.
There's also a level of detail coming to how the world itself is represented. AI-flown planes will be more detailed, complete with livery. There's also a bonanza of flight-related details incoming: Global ship traffic will be simulated, and every oil rig in the world has been added, all complete with helipads. In fact, they've also added every helipad in the world and every glider airport as well. That they know of, at least. There are also some 500,000 tall obstacles in MSFS 2024, including antennae, towers, turbines, masts, and cooling towers.
There'll also be new activities for commercial aviation, such as the ability to walk around your plane to accomplish pre-flight checklists. That'll go well with your airport models, since those will now include passengers moving around inside buildings, visible through windows, and embarking onto planes via jetways.
The physics simulation is also getting a boost. More points of contact on plane models will now exist, as well as better physics for things like cargo weight. That stuff will apparently be very simple for third parties and modders to upgrade on existing models.
None of this is to mention other visual improvements to clouds and shadows. Ray-traced ground shadows are all looking pretty impressive compared to the 2020 game. The new engine for clouds can also simulate cirrus clouds—the hair-like tufty stranded ones—with lighting and atmospheric scattering included.
Finally, at least for my summary, Flight Simulator 2024 will also have an in-game flight path planner and an in-game flight replay feature included.
My father said that anything is interesting if you bother to read about it - Michael C. Harrold
Just a reminder for those who might be considering it: Last time they put out several editions, each of which had more planes and locations than the lower tier editions. Once you bought in, there was no option to upgrade, and the only way to get the planes/etc you were missing was to buy the entire higher tier edition from scratch with no refund of the difference. So if you spent $60 for the base game and decided you wanted the extra planes from the $80 version, you had to spend the full $80 to get them.
Blackhawk wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2024 11:53 am
Just a reminder for those who might be considering it: Last time they put out several editions, each of which had more planes and locations than the lower tier editions. Once you bought in, there was no option to upgrade, and the only way to get the planes/etc you were missing was to buy the entire higher tier edition from scratch with no refund of the difference. So if you spent $60 for the base game and decided you wanted the extra planes from the $80 version, you had to spend the full $80 to get them.
I'm gonna go with whatever free for gamepass to start.
Definitely looking forward to the 3d ground effects. It was very odd and hard to try visual navigation with just textures. I always start in my local airport and try to find my way home.
Blackhawk wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2024 11:53 am
Just a reminder for those who might be considering it: Last time they put out several editions, each of which had more planes and locations than the lower tier editions. Once you bought in, there was no option to upgrade, and the only way to get the planes/etc you were missing was to buy the entire higher tier edition from scratch with no refund of the difference. So if you spent $60 for the base game and decided you wanted the extra planes from the $80 version, you had to spend the full $80 to get them.
I'm gonna go with whatever free for gamepass to start.
Definitely looking forward to the 3d ground effects. It was very odd and hard to try visual navigation with just textures. I always start in my local airport and try to find my way home.
Also looking forward to the 3D ground terrain. And it looks like they're putting more emphasis on the helicopters. This may actually get me to buy MSFS.
2020’s Microsoft Flight Simulator was by far the most successful entry in Microsoft’s longest supported franchise. It redefined what was possible from a flight simulator by utilizing a mix of cloud-based worldwide map data, cutting-edge photogrammetry, machine learning techniques, and a real-time worldwide weather simulation. These offerings, along with a complex physics system that allowed for highly sophisticated flight models, all made the famous franchise a household name again.
Now with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on fast approach for a November 19, 2024, release date, we got our first deep dive into the game, and discovered how much more impressive the entire flight simulator experience is about to become for fans. From the digital tourist to a novice flyer to the most advanced pilots, it’s shaping up to have something for everyone to enjoy.
My father said that anything is interesting if you bother to read about it - Michael C. Harrold
Isgrimnur wrote: Thu Sep 19, 2024 3:41 pm
A career system might be the hook I need.
This. It's a great simulation that I wish was a little more gamey.
Yeah, I'm there too.
When I was younger (I've owned every installment) - I could actually just use my imagination to sorta pretend my room was the aircraft, and we'd be on autopilot... maybe go back to the galley to make a drink while on autopilot, etc. But in the end, it was just a remarkable simulator I simply loved to experience - but always just to drink in the simulation. I'd love to have a world to live in on some level and belong to. That would be fun.
Yup, this might be a day one purchase for me. I had burned out long ago on flight sims, but I might be more inclined nowaways in my aged state to appreciate a game that doesn't require hours of concentration.
Thank goodness for my decision four years ago to have 32 GB RAM in my current rig .
My father said that anything is interesting if you bother to read about it - Michael C. Harrold
to appreciate a game that doesn't require hours of concentration.
.