What's your Sim?

[Charl]

Cool to see screenshots appearing here from Xplane, AFS4 and MSFS20.

Without getting into the usual bunfight, what motivates you to use one over another?
I occasionally jump into AFS2 just for fun, but that's only because it exists in my Steam install, and I'm too lazy to remove it.

[cowpatz]

I'm on MS2020 exclusively now having moved sometime ago from P3D5.4. Infact I'm about to remove it from my drive. To fly more than one sim would most likely require a sizeable investment in add on packages or having to put up with all defaults. Having to learn new UIs and key binds would be a right PITA. I'm retired; I just don't have the time.

[deeknow]

What's motivating me to stay in P3D for the meantime is my latest obsession, creating photoreal for airports in P3D where there was no love given.

Been using Ortho4XP which has a P3D output mode, it grabs tiles from Bing or Google, can generate autogen if available, ripped out a bunch of mainly tiny regional airports in the USA, Mexico and Europe. It's fun to see them come to life .. and for free.. Gonna be using P3D for awhile longer by the looks as with the payware I've bought over the years combined w the photoreal it all makes for an acceptable experience for me for the foreseeable.

[Charl]

Erps... forgot about that Other ole sim!
I mean, I hung onto FS2004: ACOF for a decade past its use-by, due to that vested interest thing.
Ultimately though, the newer sims will do all that and more, and better, which is when you have to give up.
Still, there will be features that make one stick to "Other than MSFS" which is what prompted the thought.

Having to learn new UIs and key binds would be a right PITA. I'm retired; I just don't have the time

Heh that most of all, kept me with FS9

[chopper_nut]

I have MSFS 2020 and 2024 but the one I use the most (not that there's much simming going on here right now) is XP12. I find that the flight dynamics are more fluid, the sim runs much smoother, the camera controls are easy, default airports are 100x better than Asobo's AI, I love the lighting and it's much friendlier to create airports. The big problem with XP is the fact that there are very few developers supporting it.

[Aharon]

I am sill with FSX SP1 and SP2 because MS2020/MS2024 although unquestionably most superior and most amazing of all flight sims do not have ALL planes that FSX has. I am NOT NOT giving up all historic jets. History of commercial aviation is importnt to me. The moment MS2024 has all planes that FSX has is the moment I will join MS2024 unless Microsoft rolls out MS2026 or MS2027.

Smiling

Regards,

Aharon

[cowpatz]

Aharon, you do realise that you can run both sims!

[Charl]

I... XP12. I find that the flight dynamics are more fluid, the sim runs much smoother, the camera controls are easy

In theory, the first two can be partly fixed by a computer upgrade, but the camera cannot.
Chaseplane purports to replace the entire MSFS camera with something that does work.
So far splashing 50% of a new sim's price on a feature that should work properly, has eluded me.
Same for the Replay function.
I suppose there is a big chunk of userbase to whom all this does not matter.

[toprob]

I have FSX, X-plane 11, X-plane 12, P3D v6, MSFS 2020 and MSFS2024 installed. My last flight was in 2020 (the sim, not the year!), but that was a couple of weeks ago.
My lack of interest at the moment comes down to wanting MSFS 2024 to be the one great sim, but it isn't close yet. I could just about delete them all and it wouldn't make much difference to my life. I have this forlorn hope that SU16 for 2020 will revive me a bit, but I suspect that it'll just inherit some of 2024's issues.
EDIT: forgot Aerofly FS2.

[cowpatz]

I have FSX, X-plane 11, X-plane 12, P3D v6, MSFS 2020 and MSFS2024 installed. My last flight was in 2020 (the sim, not the year!), but that was a couple of weeks ago.
My lack of interest at the moment comes down to wanting MSFS 2024 to be the one great sim, but it isn't close yet. I could just about delete them all and it wouldn't make much difference to my life. I have this forlorn hope that SU16 for 2020 will revive me a bit, but I suspect that it'll just inherit some of 2024's issues.
EDIT: forgot Aerofly FS2.

Are you running the SU3 Beta for 2024? Hearsay seems to suggest a big improvement but still using heaps of VRAM. Also, the talk of lowering texture resolution is not doing it any favours at all. SU4 is heralded as bringing big changes but given the time 2024 has been in SU3 beta, don't hold your breath.

[emfrat]

I have AFS4, AFS2, and WOFF active, with my old FS10 and FS9.1 Classic in storage. In the hiatus between FSX being dropped and the P3D mutations appearing, I made a policy decision to get away from Microsoft and all its works and pomps. This came from a growing dislike of how MS goes about things. I looked around the 'Net and found AFS2 which can run under Linux, as well as a Windows environment. It proved very satisfactory, so I installed AFS4 when it came along. Updates are released when they are ready, and they just work. I now have three machines in a back room, awaiting conversion from Windows to Linux. AFS runs happily on a modest spec of PC. So that's the future here.
AFS is also quite easy for amateur developers like me to tamper with, which is another plus.
ATB

[Splitpin]

I have FSX still sitting on steam, Xplane 11 and 12, AFS4 and MSFS(2020)
I've just updated War Thunder today....4 Gb ! as I haven't been there for sometime.
My main go to sims are MSFS. XPlane 12 and AFS4. They all have their good points.

I do wish for a good DC-8 in MSFS, the old Just Flight model for FSX and P3D was great.
I also miss all the HJC stuff.

[FlyingKiwi]

I'm only running MSFS2024 currently. Pretty much the only flying I do is GA exploration, and a little bit of warbird/aerobatic stuff, and FS2024 is perfect for that.

[toprob]

Are you running the SU3 Beta for 2024? Hearsay seems to suggest a big improvement but still using heaps of VRAM. Also, the talk of lowering texture resolution is not doing it any favours at all. SU4 is heralded as bringing big changes but given the time 2024 has been in SU3 beta, don't hold your breath.

I was on the beta, but ended up with CTDs starting any flight. I'm not sure that SU3 will allow me to continue using 2024, unless I upgrade my PC at some point -- not on the cards at the moment.

And yes, all that talk is making 2020 a much more attractive proposition, provided they don't stuff it up with SU16.

[Charl]

And yes, all that talk is making 2020 a much more attractive proposition, provided they don't stuff it up with SU16.

I made a policy decision to get away from Microsoft and all its works and pomps.

My MSFS 2020 ain't what it used to be.
I know, I know, Sim Addon Bloat can play havoc over time, but this is not the case here.

I detest the notion of the "Sim Update" - it is such an admission that you didn't spend enough time to get it right in the first place.
Often the "mandatory Updates" will cripple addons, too.
Then the Devs update their product which leaves you out on a limb with everything predating the update.
Repainters - jankees notably excepted - tend not to want to rework all their old stuff to suit.

And if you are into conspiracies: making the Old Product behave more and more poorly is a good way to coax the faithful into the new sim, despite its shortcomings.
Too rich for you? Ask Apple how it's done...
Wow what a rant...

Mike I seem to recall you are on Steam?
Does that run under Linux?

[emfrat]

Mike I seem to recall you are on Steam? Does that run under Linux?

A good question Charl, and one I had not even looked at - but I am quietly confident
https://store.steampowered.com/steamos

[Charl]

Interesting... wonder how MSFS Steam Edition would fare??

[cowpatz]

That is very interesting. I run the steam MS2020 edition and I have no complaints at all. I haven't used it yet, but there is a right of return on downloaded content. Buying on MS Marketplace goes via Steam so there is a financial record of the transaction. Oddly it doesn't seem as locked up as the Store version. I can highly recommend it.

[FlyingKiwi]

I switched to Steam for FS2024 after just using the Store for 2020 and it's been pretty easy to work with, although I was already using Steam for various other sims and games so it made sense anyway.

[jpreou]

I'm a bit late to this conversation.
I currently run MS 2020 but haven't really touched it for months.

BUT...
I have just placed my order for the new PC from PB Tech (a few parts still to come in), and I've purchased MS 2024 (on Steam) and I also have the Pro Flight Puma X heli controls still in the box awaiting assembly with the new PC. So my plan is 2024 and I sure hope after all this expenditure I'm not disappointed with it and feel compelled to return to 2020.

I also plan VR and will hire the Quest 3 and a Pimax Crystal to check each of those out. Of course, if I go the VR path, that would leave all this Saitek gear redundant. I've already removed the pedals and the Logitech joystick from the Obutto >> the 'assembly' challenge I haven't quite worked out yet is where on earth the keyboard will go. It is currently on a 'swing arm' from the left side, but that is where the collective will be. And on the right side I have a wall, so... I guess I'll work something out.

EDIT: although the new PC will be Windows 11 Pro, I'm interested to see whether anyone gets MS 2024 (or 2020) to work on SteamOS as mentioned in another post.