Hey, 2021, it's great to see you!

[toprob]

Thanks for the support, Harry!
Life in 2021 keeps throwing up surprises, so I'm not going to give a release estimate for the first MSFS project, there are pros and cons for getting it out quickly. However it is starting to show signs of being a complete project....

At the moment I'm not certain about much, not even where I'll be living this year. I've always been a Christchurch lad, apart from my early 20s working in Auckland. Four years ago I shifted to South Canterbury just to save money on rent, but I always intended to return to Christchurch this year, preferably back to Banks Peninsula. There's a lot going on there now, and I was always keen to get back there to see how it was working after the earthquakes. But some family plans have meant that I am very likely to shift to Wellington in a few weeks. I have a son and daughter living there, and my son and his wife are expecting their first baby. He has this plan to finance a new house build through some sort of family group living. I'd contribute through helping with the mortgage payment, while his grand-mother -- my ex-mother-in-law -- will contribute part of the deposit after selling some land recently. She has just been evicted from her place in Lyttelton, so she's decided that she may as well move to Wellington now. As the rents are so high there, my son has convinced me to share a place with her.

There are some positives to this, I hope, but every decision is complicated for some reason. We have very different ideas on where to live, she wants to be in the city whereas I'm freaked by the way Wellington is built, so I'd rather live in the Wairarapa where people are not just crammed on top of each other. She says that she is happy to keep my rent contribution to what I pay now, and make up the difference, but I hate the fact that the equivalent place in central Wellington is more that twice what I pay here. And that probably won't include a garage.

Considering my wife and I divorced 25 years ago, my life is still complicated by the mother-in-law. But I am looking at it as an adventure, in an otherwise dreary time defined by pandemics and other catastrophes. I've always wanted to get back to a few North Island projects, starting with Hood Aerodrome, hopefully close-by if I have any say in things. And once the building project is complete, I may be a part of raising a grand-child, which is something I've always wanted to do. My daughter-in-law was raised in Colombia, so it is normal for them to live with extended families.

I'm very much aware that if I hadn't quit employment to give scenery development a go 15 years ago I'd be a lot more stable financially, but that's life.

[Intrance]

I have not posted here in nearly 5 years. I've logged in every now and then but have been flying enough in real life to not really have time or interest in sim flying. But I just wanted to drop in and echo some of the previous statements. I've been a happy user of all your P3D sceneries, subscription and store bought.

I'd happily buy your sceneries for MSFS, and I don't think you'd need to drop prices to ~NZ$10. Perhaps the same amount in EUR, I think most simmers would spend that on a nice detailed, smaller airport. And double it for something like NZCH. I think it is not unrealistic to mirror Orbx prices (normal ones, not the current sale). At least, I would pay those amounts.

The main thing for me though, is that if it is possible, I'd like to have it through the in-game Marketplace. It is just so much more convenient for me as end user, though I do not know what size of cut they'd take out of your pocket. But even if it is not an option, you'll have my purchase on anything that comes out.

Regards from a Dutch guy in the Baltics,
Jasper

[toprob]

Thanks for the thoughts, Jasper. The matter of price is still undecided, as there is a lot to consider -- one thing is the amount of work which goes into a project, I've always aimed for at least a reasonable 'hourly' rate based on the time to develop and the expected number of sales, so I do need to think long and hard about what would still work. The last three years have put this hourly rate at way under the minimum wage, but that's more than made up for by doing something which I love.

The new price structure is based on a bigger sales reach, maybe even including the Xbox users, who may be more inclined to consider the lower price scale. This bigger reach does require selling through the Marketplace, so this is one of the unknowns at the moment -- I signed up a while ago, but haven't yet had any answer. If I get into the Marketplace, then I may go for a lower price scale, otherwise I'll remain as a little island holdout, hopefully at least retaining my current customer base, who would be happy to pay Orbx-level prices (or even current Godzone prices).

Initially, though, there's a lot to sort out. Even the way I develop, which isn't really fully-PBR, as I still rely almost completely on my photos for textures. I need to find out if that is going to be viable long-term, or if people want fully-PBR stuff like NZA do, including their upcoming NZ projects. While I love what they do, I really have no interest in working this way myself -- ultimately this method gives beautiful computer graphics, but my goal is always going to be creating as close to the real thing as possible. I suspect that I'm pretty much alone with this, though, as 99% of potential customers would probably be very happy with a highly crafted airport without the 'real' textures. My own methods are based on my obsession with building a copy of the real world, rather than what the customer wants:)

Here's some shots of 'real' photo textures:







The MSFS Taieri does have a lot more 3D detail than the Prepar3d version, and the textures are bigger, with hand-made PBR effects. Sure, I could 'paint' this with PBR textures, but things like this old hangar with years of wear would lose part of their charm. Sure, you can choose a nice wooden plank texture for the walls, and paint wear on, but it won't be unique. For these old gems I want a photo which comes to life.

I did mention my change of location to Wellington -- things are progressing, my son began his new job this week (at Weta Workshop, which is pretty much his dream) so they are now ready to make a serious offer on a place. Currently looking at Silverstream, so it is entirely possible that I could be making the move in a month. And only 91 days until the pension.... I was hoping to release Taieri in another month, but I'm prepared to wait for Marketplace access. There are always some things which could benefit from a more complete SDK, anyway, so waiting is a good option.

[deaneb]

Looks stunning Rob. Fabulous work as usual !!

[cowpatz]

[toprob]

I'll just have two open hangars at Taieri, but this has meant a change of method for MSFS -- to compete with PBR sceneries, they need a lot more detail than the old Prepar3d method. So at some point I'll need a BK-117, or a 206, or at the very least a wind-up wooden chopper. I have no clue how to model any aircraft, so I'll be giving this some serious thought over the coming weeks. I could buy a 3D model online, but at min NZ$300 for something suitable it probably won't be happening.

But I really wanna see something reflected in that shiny floor.

[Naki]

Very nice Rob. Looking forward to it.

[toprob]

Well, the BK-117 winch trainer is chopper-shaped, so I'm on my way! Still lots to do on this hangar.

[NZ255]

Very nice!