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Microsoft FlightSim 2020


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On 2/8/2022 at 10:28 AM, BluBear said:

Should I go for Standard, Deluxe or Premium; through their store or Steam?

I presume all is okay with VR now? I believe on launch it wasn't quite right was it?

Hi Chris:salute:

VR works quite nicely in MSFS.  I'm still dithering about whether to upgrade my VR to a Quest 2 or buy a decent screen to make the most of the eye candy.  

I've got the all singing, all dancing, deluxe everything-you-can-eat version from the MS store.  However, if I had the knowledge then that I have now I would buy the bog standard cheapo version from Steam....and I hate Steam too:huh:.

The store version's installation and update process can only be described as Machiavellian.  Basically Microsoft wants to clasp us to it's ample bosom and never let go.  I'm sure they'll sort it out one day but for the moment I would honestly recommend Steam for the simplification it lends to the whole process.

The deluxe versions of the game give you extra planes you won't miss and extra airports you won't notice.  Better to save your cash for planes you actually want.  There are quite a few now on the market ranging from terrible to wonderful.  Be aware that the stock planes that come with the sim are beautiful but some of the add-on stuff available often falls short of these standards. Due diligence is required before purchase and - with a few exceptions - avoid buying anything from within the ingame 'store'! 

As for add-on scenery or airports;  don't be in a hurry to buy any. There is a truly vast amount of free stuff available from here

 https://flightsim.to/

Again, quality varies but at least it's easy to download and install and equally easy to get rid of if you don't like it.  A lot of it is really good. For instance the freeware version of Gatwick airport available to download from Flightsim to is a labour of love by someone and universally acknowledged to be superior to the two payware versions available.  Also, the sim is being regularly updated and these updates have a habit of breaking the functionality of add-ons on a regular basis and yes, this is becoming trying for add-on developers!  Also, the regular world updates made to the sim mean things bought and paid for months ago can become redundant.  

As an example;

There are three payware elements here. The city centre, the airport and the aircraft.  I bought them all around eight months ago.  Two weeks ago Microsoft released World Update 8: Australia which has rendered my city centre and airport add-on superfluous.  The airplane is a Piper Seminole by Carenado. Carenado make beautiful, value for money aircraft which set the visual standard for other add on developers.  Not surprising really as they're also responsible for many of the stock aircraft which come with the sim.  

If you've used any previous versions of Flight Simulator or XPlane with 28fps being the norm,  performance of MSFS2020 is going to be a rather delightful surprise. It runs beautifully on my eleven year old cpu. Paris at daybreak;

Visiting the BT tower;

 Flight modelling as mentioned by FruitBat?  Well...it's not quite up to DCS or GBS yet but like them it is based on blade element theory and being only eighteen months old it can only improve. Apart from a Spitfire I've avoided any other WW2 birds as I know I'll only be disappointed by the FM.  As you correctly observed; if you're flying GA or an airliner then as long as they hit the numbers (they do) then fidelity of flight model is really not that important.  As a matter of interest, this is the closest you can get to flying a WW2 era four-engined bomber in a modern flight sim;  here we are departing Oslo for Heathrow:D

There are around four hundred and fifty various switches, levers, dials, circuit breakers, etc. and they are all animated and work correctly!

I spend a lot of my time generally flying around Devon, Dorset, Somerset and Cornwall.  It's where I live, it's an area I'm very familiar with - especially from the air.  It's this kind of flying where MSFS really shines for me. 

Getting a bit lost in low cloud on the approach to St. Mawgan a couple of weeks ago.  Live weather! 

 

Good luck and hope this helps.:rocker:

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Agreed Arthur, Steam over the Microsoft store every time. I bought Forza Horizons 4 through the store and with all the addons that's about 150GB of disk space. Problem is that if you (for example) upgrade to Windows 11, the store loses the link to the software so you have to download it all again - oh, and you can't remove the original install cos it's protected so you have to have that game on it's own partition and format that partition ready for the new download. Downgrading back to windows 10, reinstallation of operating systems all cause the same error. Microsoft's official position on this is 'meh - we have your money'.

Steam on the other hand, while it's a bit janky, has no problem with any of this. A quick check of the game data files, download any updates and you're set. MS should take note.

 

 

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  • 1. DDz Quorum

Sidley in Sydney....

Unfortunately I haven't got the hang of vids yet. Anyway, I took off from Sydney International (Runway 16L) and went for a scenic tour in the Twin Otter, in real time. Landed on water north of Sydney and made my way back. Interestingly ATC was very busy, I could see air traffic and ground traffic, and I had to wait my turn for contacting ATC. Got a landing approach back on 16L. Landed and got taxiing instructions to general parking , made my way across and parked where I was told. Great fun, busy on the ground and in the air :)

As an aside, as I was flying around the Opera House on my galivanting tour two aircraft flew towards and then went under the Harbour Bridge...one a twin engined airliner, the other a single engined jobbie....who says you can't have fun here!!

Sidley in Sydney.jpg

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So, I have a bit of a bonus coming in this month, so I'm thinking about buying this - question is, which version to go for - is it better to buy the top-tier version or to buy the base version and put the difference into buying some add-ons (planes, scenery etc). Thoughts?

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On 2/13/2022 at 9:37 PM, DD_Arthur said:

The deluxe versions of the game give you extra planes you won't miss and extra airports you won't notice.  Better to save your cash for planes you actually want.  There are quite a few now on the market ranging from terrible to wonderful.  Be aware that the stock planes that come with the sim are beautiful but some of the add-on stuff available often falls short of these standards. Due diligence is required before purchase and - with a few exceptions - avoid buying anything from within the ingame 'store'! 

These were Arthur's thoughts, think I'll just go for the standard steam version and go from there.

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  • 1. DDz Quorum
4 hours ago, Jabo said:

So, I have a bit of a bonus coming in this month, so I'm thinking about buying this - question is, which version to go for - is it better to buy the top-tier version or to buy the base version and put the difference into buying some add-ons (planes, scenery etc). Thoughts?

You bank the cash and use the time you would have committed to MSFS and come back to GBS!

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5 hours ago, DD_Arthur said:

An example of the kind of standards reached by some of this freeware...

 

What a coincidence! I finally went ahead and treated myself yesterday with the standard Steam version of MSFS and promptly downloaded this along with the airshow add on. 

Started up and took off in an Extra for a 5 minute jolly and by jove it looks incredible. Almost like being there. Just need to get VR working now, map and tweak some more controls and get exploring. 

On a side note, with everything that's going on at the moment, I'm not feeling much like blowing sh*t up, so this will do just fine I think. 

Who's up for a Dogzford virtual meet up soon?

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  • 1. DDz Quorum

Weather at Duxford was not very good.....

Parked my P40 on the end of the Spittie and Hurricane flight line.

This is the full Dux mod with people....ran well considering the amount of stuff the guy has put into it :)

Duxford msfs style.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...

hey chaps, just caught up with all this,

 

i unfortuntly went for the store download, only because i currently have an xbox which i pay gamepass for, that means that i technically get microsoft flight sim for free, well £10 but its a subscription to any other games that they have, and for me its worth it.

I haven't put many add on on, apart from the paid jersey airfield and also buying the BN2 islander, the freeware stuff I have done is mainly for the Garmin nav systems, because they are clunky. That and the uprated Xcub. Mt theory is trying to keep it as plain as i can till the bugs and upgrades slow down a tad. Too many overides and re installing is happening after every world update.

 

Again I cant praise NEOFLY enough, it has literally opened the game up to me. Making a career of flying, and giving you meaning. Although its not nice when those whiskey bottles in the back break and you have just spent £100,000 on them to sell.

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