Microsoft Flight

Will be interesting to see how this all plays out.

http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/

Note that it says GAME STUDIOS under the main window.

It seems quite interesting to me.

By dropping the word Simulator in the title, showing a biplane, and the whole tone of the voiceover, it seems obvious where they're going with this. Unless it's a fake-out, and the next trailer is an Airbus!

More people love the sensation of simulated flight, than want to get too deep into the mechanics. So it's probably a smart move by MS, especially as a cross-platform X-Box/PC game. I could get interested if it included some good scripted missions. But it would have to be awfully good to get me to put up with the horror that is Windows Live on the PC.

If you have a problem opening this Microsoft page, here's a YouTube link with the same video:

This is what Kevin Ugangst (a senior director in Microsoft's game unit) said recently, "it is looking to appeal to flying enthusiasts with the realism, accuracy, and fidelity they expect, but also imagines including other types of gameplay that might appeal more to novices."

I`m still never leaving X-Plane.

I`m still never leaving X-Plane.

You can use more than one sim you know  :

Look I think there going into a bigger market and making it have less functionality and more like a game.

I`m still never leaving X-Plane.

You can use more than one sim you know  :

Makes more sense, than anything I've read today.... 

LA

I`m still never leaving X-Plane.

You can use more than one sim you know  :

Yeah, MSFS DVDs are very useful on my coffee table, while I'm on xplane

I remember back in the days of PS1, there was a game about planes. Well I liked its flight dynamics much better than FSX

I like FSX flight dynamics as a general rule. That doesn't mean everything in the relm of flight........but more than not. So what am I missing?  With 3rd party intervention, it has

Excellent cross-crontrol with slips

All three of the turning tendencies.... torque/p-factor/prop slip stream

ground effect

spins & secondary spins

capable of tail slides, snap rolls

sense of feel, when it comes to dampening, inertia, power to weight

I'm not here to slam X-Plane, but at the same time, I can respond on this forum when a slamfest for FSX occurs. This is something I can't do at the org., which is infamous for MSFS slamfests with little opposition. My post's go through moderation there.

Do keep in mind that I own and fly a Van's RV6 regularly. In fact, Ive flown nearly every type of single engine Cessnas, Pipers, Mauls, Pitts S2B, Super Stearman, Marchetti SF260, various ultra-lights, and gliders.

In the meantime, I'll use both X-Plane & FSX, while putting up with all the good points as well as the bad.

LA

I find the MSFS Flight model to be ok, but the slow frames really kills it. That and I feel the planes are far to stable/static/fixed-rail. It's subtle, but x-plane feels more fluid.

What x-plane really needs is the excellent camera that FSX has when you accelerate or experience other gs. I know there is an option for such an effect, but it has nothing on the FSX implementation, which is a shame.

I find the MSFS Flight model to be ok, but the slow frames really kills it. That and I feel the planes are far to stable/static/fixed-rail. It's subtle, but x-plane feels more fluid.

What x-plane really needs is the excellent camera that FSX has when you accelerate or experience other gs. I know there is an option for such an effect, but it has nothing on the FSX implementation, which is a shame.

In reality, flight in a GA plane can be anything from what seems like almost motionless stable, to severe chop. My wife has often remarked that we almost seem to be standing still, when actually we're doing close to 200 mph, and only about 4000' agl.

And honestly, I don't really like turbulence all that much. That's why early morning, evening, and winter flying on good days are preferable. Never the less, I've turned the factors that make X-Plane always on the move....down.

LA

I'm not talking about turbulence, which like waves is overdone in x-plane.

I used to think X-Plane's turbulence was very unrealistic until I recently had the chance to fly a Cessna 150 on a couple of occasions. Well, I'm still no expert, but I was surprised to find especially on the second occasion, a beautiful afternoon, how much more realistic X-Plane's turbulence is than I realized.

I'm sure this has been said before, but the main problem with clear air turbulence in X-Plane is that it's a static setting -- either on or off -- not variable as in reality. It should be more random. Or maybe separate settings for "off", "random", and "on", for those who want to practice flying in turbulence without waiting for it to randomly appear.

I find the MSFS Flight model to be ok, but the slow frames really kills it. That and I feel the planes are far to stable/static/fixed-rail. It's subtle, but x-plane feels more fluid.

Thats the best way to describe it. X-plane is more fluid.

I'm not talking about turbulence, which like waves is overdone in x-plane.

I've been thinking about this statement and I've come to an idea, that it could be tied to X-Plane's way of handling the aircraft inertia. We know, that the default radii of gyration is not good, most of the well developed aircraft (if not all of them) have custom values set in Plane Maker, in order to avoid the terrible "paper plane syndrome".

It is possible, that the turbulence and waves are well calculated - or at least not so bad as they seem to be - and they exaggerated effect on aircraft comes from the lack of sufficient inertia modelling. Try to blow the same airstream on a bowling ball and on a paper one - you get the idea.

As for the effects of turbulence, they can be truly annoying, but at the same time they provide an invaluable experience in handling the aircraft. Maintaining stable flight parameters during such weather is obviously much more harder, but when you get into calm air again, you'll be surprised by increase in flight control abilities and coordination.

If you like this topic, don't miss this week's FSBreak show:

http://www.fsbreak.net/podcast/2010/9/1/fsbreak-76-microsoft-flight-announced.html