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  • New Microsoft FLIGHT

    Great news!!!

    The new Microsoft FLIGHT will bee available by the end of this month!!!
    There is a new marketing strategy:
    You can download the game FOR FREE!!!
    And it includes.....

    Hawaii, ok, just one island of Hawaii, and one airplane.

    But wait, for just 20 bucks you can buy....

    The rest of Hawaii and one additional plane.

    Of course, you first must become a member of "Games for Windows - LIVE".

    Great news???

    Experience the new generation of games and entertainment with Xbox. Play Xbox games and stream video on all your devices.

    --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
    --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

  • #2
    Any idea what kind of system will be needed to run this ?
    If it 'ain't broken........ Don't try to mend it !

    Comment


    • #3
      Oficially, with low settings (and "low" in FLIGHT standars is not bad compared to "good" in others), it will run in a pretty crappy PC that was available a few years ago.

      And with "high" settings it will run wel in good PCs available today.

      That's officially...

      Experience the new generation of games and entertainment with Xbox. Play Xbox games and stream video on all your devices.

      --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
      --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

      Comment


      • #4
        So it should run quite well on my Intel Core 2Quad Q6600 2.40Ghz 2.40Ghz with 3Gb RAM and nVIDIA GeForce 8500GT 512mb graphics ?

        This system runs FSX @ 25 fps in high/very high detail on the standard FSX scenery. High resolution scenery such as Gary Summons' London City Airport runs at a useable 12 - 14fps.
        Last edited by brianw999; 2012-02-26, 00:11.
        If it 'ain't broken........ Don't try to mend it !

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by brianw999 View Post
          So it should run quite well on my Intel Core 2Quad Q6600 2.40Ghz 2.40Ghz with 3Gb RAM and nVIDIA GeForce 8500GT 512mb graphics ?

          This system runs FSX @ 25 fps in high/very high detail on the standard FSX scenery. High resolution scenery such as Gary Summons' London City Airport runs at a useable 12 - 14fps.
          Check the link above. There you have two systems to compare.

          Additional read:
          Microsoft Flight, the game aimed at bringing PC flying to the masses, will be available for download beginning Feb. 29, its makers announced this week. The launch date comes after a successful beta testing period and news released by Microsoft Studios last month that the company will be giving away the basic game for free. … Continued

          --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
          --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

          Comment


          • #6
            I have to say I can't wait to try it out!

            However, I have a Macbook Pro...does anyone know if it will run on Mac? I also have Windows 7 on my Mac if that's of any help... :O

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by Kevin View Post
              I have to say I can't wait to try it out!

              However, I have a Macbook Pro...does anyone know if it will run on Mac? I also have Windows 7 on my Mac if that's of any help... :O
              I got the 2011 13 inch Pro, it runs fine...but you need windows, since you do your all set. Now I need windows for mine!

              Comment


              • #8
                Definately, another step forward in cloud appearance.

                Aside from that, I dunno.

                I just upgraded from "century" to X. Yeah, the world looks a tad cooler, but it seems like all the planes are easier to land...and sadly, I have also found that I like going back to the "old style" cockpit as the virtual cockpit lacks one or two important keys to exactly which way you are looking (like the cowling out the front window).

                You also have to look away from the windows too much to adjust stuff.

                Back to "Flight"...... Don't need a joystick/yoke?.....gosh, it's exactly what MS did to all computer programs.......you don't need a structured, plain language menu interface, instead it's a more free-thinking interface- where "exit" is under "file" and a knowledge of where all the secrets are hidden......

                Les règles de l'aviation de base découragent de longues périodes de dur tirer vers le haut.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Very rarely you'll see in the FLYING magazine an article devastating a product: they live from advertisement of such products (Microsoft did a lot of full page expensive advertisement of the FSX in FLYING) and from the companies that make such products giving them advanced info, early trials before the product is commercially available, and interviews.

                  The last time I remember, Richard Collins said that the Eclipse VLJ will never be able to meet the advertised price and performance at the same time. In the following many years, up to the recent sell of the Eclipse company, FLYING could only report on the plane based on other parties reports, and they could not test-fly it or make a pilot's report. Of course Richard, having been Editor in Chief for many years, knew the consequences, so he must have felt that it was really a too flagrant lie to say that the Eclipse was a god design.

                  That's why when you see their report on the Microsoft FLIGHT, you take them seriously.

                  Microsoft’s Flight a Disappointment

                  Microsoft made its highly anticipated, new-generation flight simulation game available for free download a day earlier than originally announced, but that only seemed to ensure the negative reaction to Flight, available for the PC, came early as well.
                  Pilots generally are giving the game a thumbs down for taking a big step backward from the Flight Simulator franchise, which Microsoft produced for more than 30 years before selling to Lockheed Martin a couple years ago. Microsoft developers promised that Flight would be a more “accessible gaming experience,” providing something for pilots and non-pilots alike.
                  I downloaded the game yesterday, and agree with others who came away disappointed. This is a game and not a flight simulation. In fact, playing it last night, I realized that, intentional or not, this is really little more than a clever marketing promotion for the Icon A5 amphibious LSA, which is the first airplane players can fly when they start up the software.
                  The first “mission” players are invited to try involves dropping your flight instructor off for a party on a yacht off the coast of Hawaii. The experience feels like you've been cast to star in an Icon advertisement. The default “realism” settings on the A5 are set so low that a three-year-old could probably fly the LSA and land it safely. If the A5 really flew like that, they wouldn't be able to build them fast enough.
                  Seeking a harder challenge, I went into the weather settings and chose “dense fog.” I took off into the murk at night in the A5 -- which, alarmingly, had no attitude indicator or turn coordinator -- and had no trouble flying by reference to … well, nothing. I let go of the controls and the airplane dutifully continued to climb wings level. I got up from my chair, went to the kitchen and poured myself a diet Coke, came back, and the Icon was still climbing as nicely as could be. I had to keep reminding myself that this game, released on Feb. 28, was free; if I’d paid $50 or whatever for it I would have felt hugely cheated.
                  Next I went into the realism settings and changed everything to full-on realistic. This slightly improved the handling and physics in the simulation, but it still wasn't right. In a 29-knot direct crosswind, I could land without having to crab or slip or do much of anything at all. On the takeoff roll, there was almost zero effect from torque or the propeller’s spiraling slipstream.
                  The one cool thing that was fun to play around with was the A5’s angle-of-attack indicator. I toyed with flying on the ragged edge of a stall, and it made me want an AOA indicator in the real airplane more than I already did. Still, something was amiss. I tried to fly on the back side of the power curve, but the game didn't seem to want to let me (although the A5, in the game anyway, is a good musher). I’ll reserve judgment until I fly a real A5, but something tells me the experience between the game and the airplane will be significantly different.
                  On a positive note, when I first fired up Microsoft Flight on my old Windows XP machine, I received a warning message that my PC's microprocessor might not be up to the task of running the game. But it ran very well with the scenery settings dialed back, and still provided smooth graphics with some settings turned way up. I had to hunt around to find the balance that provided the best visuals without sacrificing performance, and I think I've done it.
                  Alas, having fine-tuned the settings to my liking, I probably won’t play it very much. After all, it’s just a game, and not a very good one at that. Microsoft expects users to pay for add-on content, and maybe some would. My guess is few pilots will.
                  Lucky for us, the latest version of X-Plane just hit the streets.
                  And the readers' comments that follow the report are even worse.

                  http://www.flyingmag.com/flying-games/simulation-review-microsoft%E2%80%99s-flight-disappointment

                  It's pretty painful for me to learn these things, since I've been an "irrational" fan of the Flight Simulator since the subLOGIC Flight Simulator II in the Commodore 64, more than 25 years ago (Microsoft later bought the franchise from subLOGIC, a company created by Bruce Artwick, the inventor of the Flight Simulator in 1977)

                  --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
                  --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Gabriel View Post
                    ...typical lengthy Gabriel dissertation...
                    ALL THAT STUFF BUT NOTHING ABOUT THE REAL QUESTION:

                    DO FAIR WEATHER CUMULUS CLOUDS AT SUNSET LOOK EVEN MORE BEAUTIFUL AND REALISTIC THAN EVER?

                    (...hey they did put an AOA indicator on it for you)
                    Les règles de l'aviation de base découragent de longues périodes de dur tirer vers le haut.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Official release video. It shows the new philosopy.

                      The video shows:
                      Great clouds, nice seas, cities, shadows and reflections. And several airplanes from outside doing severe "DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME" things.
                      It doesn't show:
                      A navigation instrument (not that any of those several planes are IFR capable, though), a runway, a landing, hardly any view from inside the cockpit.

                      Finally, the software is in the right place under the Microsoft Games domain, where it should have never been (until now).
                      I wonder if you have a score, energy, lives and "game over".

                      Experience the new generation of games and entertainment with Xbox. Play Xbox games and stream video on all your devices.


                      I'm downloading it right now. At the very least I want to give it the opportunity to show me that it's still a flight simulator (even if not a Flight Simulator (R) )

                      --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
                      --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by 3WE View Post
                        (...hey they did put an AOA indicator on it for you)
                        No. The Icon A5 people did it (Microsoft just respected it). And I think it's a great decision.

                        --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
                        --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Gabriel View Post
                          ...I wonder if you have a score, energy, lives and "game over"...
                          Indeed

                          Or, as an alternative, they could have new adventures such as "Let's four one oh it dude", and "The pitot tube is iced up, lets pull up hard and not question the nose high, mushy-rolly, full power, rapid descent that develops and persists for 5 straight minutes"

                          MS Flight...as real as it gets.
                          Les règles de l'aviation de base découragent de longues périodes de dur tirer vers le haut.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Gabriel View Post
                            ...I wonder if you have a score, energy, liveries and "game over"...
                            Fixed
                            Les règles de l'aviation de base découragent de longues périodes de dur tirer vers le haut.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Ok, tried it. Not for too long so this is not a complete review, and some things that I complain about might be more my fault (not knowing yet all the options and controls) than the game's.
                              There are good and bad points.

                              Good: the graphics and sounds are just outstanding, much improved form FSX. And that with a very good frame-rate in a PC that was a "just below top" gamer PC two years ago.

                              Bad things:
                              Definitively gamer oriented. At least by now (more on this later). Two hints: To start a flight, instead of the usual "Fly" button, you have to click a "Play" one. And to make the nose go up when you pull and down when you push (as it is NORMAL in every airplane, real or simulated), you have to select the option "Reverse Joystick Y axis"
                              There is a information bar superimposed on every view that shows heading, speed, altitude, wind direction and speed and, when the AoA approaches the stall, an AoA indicator is shown. So far I could not find an option to hide that handy but otherwise very unrealistic bar.
                              The user interface is highly changed from all previous versions of MSFS. There are no drop-down menus, the functions and controls are assigned to different keys, etc... (for example, I could not find how to display the frame rate or how to play an instant replay, and it took me a while to find the elevator trim).
                              You start with two "mandatory" tutorials. No matter if you are Bob Hoover, you must start dodging balloons and taking your instructor to a wedding in a boat, both using the still nonexistent Icon A5 SLA amphibian with a setting of minimum realism in the flight model (it was so easy and unrealistic to fly).
                              You get awards and points for things like smuggling stuff of unknown nature ("Be the king of the pirates!") or running out of fuel and surviving ("do it 10 times and get extra points!"), together with a variety of insane, dangerous, and illegal things (if they were for real).
                              You get for free the game, just one very limited plane and one very little part of the World (just one island of Hawaii, albeit the Big one). With a "Games for Windows - LIVE" account you are entitled to activate the Stearman for free too. The rest comes in small installments that are pretty expensive for what they bring: for 20 buck you can by the other islands of Hawaii (no other scenery is available yet). You can also buy additional planes, all of them very limited by now (one of them only comes with exterior view, no cockpit, and the rest as AFAIK are just VFR).
                              And Microsoft wants all for them. There is no developers kit available, and no word that one will ever be available. And of course it's not open source. So developing add-ons like sceneries, planes, and extras will be a real pain for independent developers, who are whole produced very much of the Flight Simulator experience, both in quality as in quantity.

                              Neutral things (by now, let's see):
                              There is nearly now world available. And what is available lacks any instrument flight, both on airplanes and on ground (there is no VOR station or receiver, the GPS is just a moving map showing no aeronautical information).
                              The flight model is hard to tell. The Icon A5 that comes with the game doesn't even exist yet, and the prototype has suffered nothing less than a wing change since the version shown in FLIGHT, so nobody can tell the realism of the flight model. It looked somehow real, meaning that it behaved like a generic light plane, albeit one pretty easy to fly and with very good moods.
                              I've never flown a Stearman, but it too looked somehow real, except that I couldn't do a descent spin on it (but Ok, that's too far out of the envelope and no flight simulator, even big iron ones, can accurately reproduce flying in those regimes).
                              We'll have to wait to shoot an ILS approach down to minimums at O'Hare in a C-182 or B-737 (when all of these things become available) to learn a bit more of the real flight capabilities of this, ehm... game.

                              --- Judge what is said by the merits of what is said, not by the credentials of who said it. ---
                              --- Defend what you say with arguments, not by imposing your credentials ---

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