NZFF

Just saw this...

https://www.thurrott.com/xbox/208245/mi ... or-in-2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReDDgFfWlS4

I have played the 'what if' game before, what if Microsoft got back into FS development? I played this as recently as Dovetail quitting development, 'what if Microsoft took back ownership?. Always seemed too far-fetched, but there you go. In June 2021 I'll be eligible to retire, and I suspect that this might be how I spend my retirement.

The negativity over at AVSIM is pretty much as expected, as if some people sit quietly waiting for an announcement and then go into destructive mode. It would be funny if I wasn't so emotionally invested in this. The thought of going through the pre-release phase again is kind of creepy, so I'm quitting the internet and going bush for a year.

I will simply ignore, for the most part, until release. I long since learned not to get excited, either way, for something that might happen at some future time!

Just when you think Microsoft has left the FS game, it returns with vengeance. The must have rewritten the engine from ground up because you don't just pop out of the woodwork and have a new Flight Sim on offer for a release in a years time. They must now see that the genre has many more fans than they could imagine.

Yes, there has been disappointment in the past for new Flight Sims. All i'm hoping for is that they provide an SDK and let 3rd party developers into the engine, simple as that. Oh, and they use a better flight dynamics engine. The weather visuals look spot on. All in all, that looks absolutely stunning either way.

EDIT:... oh, one other thing, I hope it's the entire globe, not just selected areas and download content from M$$ store. We wait with baited breath.

Kelvinr wrote::... oh, one other thing, I hope it's the entire globe

This is it for me -- if I can fly over Banks Peninsula and recognise the landscape, I'll be happy. Having third party development/SDK would be a bonus. If not, there are still plenty of other sims available. I'd probably still buy it even if it was a locked money-pit, Microsoft have always done the best simulators:)

If it doesn't have a reasonable NZ, or the ability to build one, though, it won't have much appeal for me. I'll probably still buy it, but that's more to do with my affection for Microsoft!

[quote="toprob"][quote="Kelvinr"]:... oh, one other thing, I hope it's the entire globe[/quote]

This is it for me -- if I can fly over Banks Peninsula and recognise the landscape, I'll be happy. Having third party development/SDK would be a bonus. If not, there are still plenty of other sims available. I'd probably still buy it even if it was a locked money-pit, Microsoft have always done the best simulators:)

If it doesn't have a reasonable NZ, or the ability to build one, though, it won't have much appeal for me. I'll probably still buy it, but that's more to do with my affection for Microsoft![/quote]

Indeed we wait in hope...

toprob wrote:If it doesn't have a reasonable NZ, or the ability to build one, though, it won't have much appeal for me.

...this.
Except I wouldn't buy it if there is no decent NZ or the expectation of a third-party one to come.

Looks great but so did MS flight in the previews.

There is a discussion over in the ORBX forums. What I noticed, but no-one has so far mentioned, was the wildlife in some flypasts. Pretty cool. More interactive I guess. I wonder if we get simulated bird-strike. A pink flamingo piling through the screen in VR would make you twitch!

...although I was mainly being mesmerised by the 'real' grass on the grasslands. It does strike me (not a pun..) that Microsoft are not quite brave enough to let us murder a bunch of flamingos, though.

Some interesting discussions going on out there, one of the big questions on AVSIM is 'why!!??' To many it looks like pouring money down the drain, based on their history.

Maybe it's as simple as showcasing Microsoft's AI and Cloud capabilities, with a built-in use/community which isn't afraid to make a lot of noise. With FS 11 (I can hear Ian talking about this still...) before its demise the talk was all about a world simulator, aimed at flight simmers initially but open to anything. (Their new train sim was built on this as well.) Now they could build this world without the flight component, but they can now say to potential AI/Cloud customers, hey, we can supply the whole world which real people already live in! (Assuming that simmers are, you know, real people.) Town planners, governments, engineers, architects, even real estate folk could try before they buy.

Fifteen years in the wilderness... this time I'M IN!!!!

[quote="Charl"]Fifteen years in the wilderness... this time [b][size=200][glow=red]I'M IN!!!![/glow][/size][/b][/quote]

So many questions to answer. M$$ should have a feedback line for this and with a year out should be able to answer questions we have.

Well I never

"I will simply ignore, for the most part, until release. I long since learned not to get excited, either way, for something that might happen at some future time!"
Wise words ...I'm recalling the ...how many years? release of the CS C-130.
But I must say, it's looking good so far

What will happen with the folks over at P3D? It must have an effect on them.

They might have a drop off in Academic licences

The fact that it was announced at E3 and not the Flight sim expo suggests to me the intended market....similar to flight and probably not hard core simmers.
But we shall see.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 analysis of the new launch trailer has began on you tube with various channels commentaries

Starting with a frame by frame look at the teaser video.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 VLOG

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 - Why I'm excited for this new Flight Simulator !

New Microsoft Flight Simulator (First Thoughts)

And with a humorous Irish GripperSim Reaction Review look.

Do you know about the new flight simulator for 2020?

If M$$ really want to get it right, they need to not do what they did with Flight!

They missed the ball so surely they will not repeat that mistake. They should know flight simulation since they produced the product for years with the same business model that worked. So here's hoping they'll get it right again for us passionate simmers. I would suspect that the XBOX version could be a cut down version, otherwise it would need to be highly optimized, but we'll see. It would be good to see intricate details of the more complex workings within the sim because as we all know it's not just about the eye candy.

Nevertheless, I've joined the insider signup.

[quote="Jeffref"]What will happen with the folks over at P3D? It must have an effect on them.[/quote]

In my own view, this type of product competition generally means change on both sides, two companies wanting to beat the other, this entices better production of a product and exponential changes in quality. If one falls behind, the market consumer goes to the other side, and if this happens long enough, the winner stays the winner. My small two cents.