Introduction Flight Scenery came onto the scene with an awesome freeware rendition of LFRD. It sported photo real texturing, lush scenery and overall stood out as something special. Since then, they have published the first in a series of sceneries covering various parts of the United States. The one thing that struck me with the work Flight Scenery does, is the maintained level of quality that you can find anywhere through out the area covered. It literally is top quality scenery everywhere. They say that this particular one boasts 18m resolution mesh, photo real textures which not only cover the airport portion of the package, but literally the whole area and amazingly this all available for just $30. It really is first class stuff. There is no doubt about it.
Installation and Documentation Whether it is the documentation/support that accompanies the package or from the developer’s website – It certainly does not lack. On the website, there are charts available for download for those who like to have a reference for approach and so on. The documentation that accompanies the product is also very well written and most importantly, useful. Overall, this box would get a tick. Very nicely done and certainly written to a quality expected in a package such as this. Product Overview A quote from the website: “Along with 3 highly detailed photorealistic airports and broad photo scenery coverage, this product includes a high resolution 18m. Mesh, reworked coastlines and a custom landclass/waterclass. Flight Zone 01: Rhode Island is an integrated approach, recreating a complete flying environment in which both GA and commercial pilots can enjoy flying. The scenery is built in concentric areas, each one adjusted to a level of detail that is in relation with the flying experience.” Reading the included features, this is one heck of a package. The preview screenshots at their website, as well as mine, shows this. It really is a well thought through product.
The designers clearly knew what they wanted to do and how to go about it. The overall composition of package is very nice. Everything from the textures to the modelling (custom structures), land class and so on, point towards this being a professional scenery, which it is. The one thing that stood out is how the quality is maintained throughout. It really does amaze me how the high quality and finish just carry on and on and on! An excellent value for your $30.
The coastlines (landclass/waterclass) are quite clearly very accurate and detailed. It gives me the impression this wasn’t made in a rush, which is reassuring. The coast line doesn’t curve or just look simple; every part of it is detailed and intricately engineered at any given point. Something which is nice to see, as many developers tend to concentrate on the actual airfields more so than the surrounding areas. It is nice to see they have put as much effort in here as they did in other parts. This is not something you see in your big standard payware scenery. Not only has this one covered the airports in question, but also the surrounding area, photo real terrain, seasonal textures/effects and water class.
Each individual airfield has its own personal feel, which to me, is really unique. Whether it be RI20, which is a sloped grass stripe with surrounding trees, to the urban based KPVD. Additionally, once on the ground, the taxiways, terminals and the overall airport environment prove to be very detailed and somewhat immersive. It 's nice to see taxiways that aren’t basic in terms of detail, it is very clear that every part of the scenery is as detailed as can be within the limitations of Flight Simulator.
They clearly have tried to treat everything to at least one custom texture to give it that extra bit of realism. For example, the taxiways look real; they are lined with grass and ground which often intrude slightly onto the taxiway itself, making the edges not totally straight.
Conclusion Every part of this scenery seems to be finished to a tee. It’s amazing that given all this detailed and accurate scenery that it is still only $30. Which, when you take into account the sum of money the developer invested into this project, to offer the product for such a reasonable price, is excellent. They have engineered a lot of elements you would only hope to get in sceneries, like photo real terrain, luscious green scenery, accurate airfields, tempting textures and lots more. Take my advice: Get this
as soon as you can! It’s an awesome
package. Reviewers Note: I’d like to give you an insight into the 1 person that made this! His name is Stéphane Lepage and is currently based in Montreal. In his previous line of work, Stéphane was a 3D Designer for a varying array of companies – In this time he designed many items from mobile phones to sporting goods – However after dabbling with scenery design and gaining the support from his early works, he decided to go full time into scenery design and later formed Flight Scenery. Stéphane gained his PPL in 1992 and has always had an interest in aviation. The main reason he went into scenery design, was the lack of quality sceneries around and on that basis, he decided to go into this type of design and has created some of the most detailed and indulging sceneries around. This includes a freeware rendition of LFRD which to date has had more than 50,000 downloads. Just goes to show, if you want to do it, you can! Stéphane has been running Flight Scenery since November 2004 and
has already published the first in a series of sceneries which covers a
range of
American states including Rhode Island, Washington, Portland and Jacksonville.
Currently, he is working in collaboration with his brother, Patrice on
the second American ‘FlightSeries’ - Portland. |
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