3rd Party Developer Views of what's next with FS

[siggy 154]

Here's a perhaps interesting article at The Register on the view of 3rd party developers on what's next for FS and some quite interesting 'insider' info on what FS11 could have been:http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/03/mi...lator_partners/

[rojantrojan 17]

Very interesting read. Thanks for posting it. I am guessing that the person writing the article for the register maybe a bit of a fan of FS himself, and he makes some very valid points about the closure of ACES and what it means for the hobby. I think what Steve Halpern of Flight One says in the article is correct. What the hobby and 3rd party developers needs now is some clear direction and particularly an answer from Microsoft on what it is going to do with the franchise (if anything). Microsoft at least owes it to these developers as sales of third party software was what made FS so special to many of us. It certainly wouldn't have been quite as successful without all of the additional software that you could buy. It's funny because just the other day I was looking at Simkits's website with their announcment as an ESP partner - I use their instruments myself. I couldn't help but think how much money Simkits would have ploughed into what they were developing, only for Microsoft to pull the plug. It all sounds very unprofessional and "un-business like" to me!We may see FSX as a great platform for the short term - I certainly do - just because there isn't a new FS on the way doesn't mean it will stop me buying from any comapny, but surely within 3 - 4 years (if there is still no answer from MS) hobbyists and developers alike will be craving some new technology to get their teeth into. A big part of this hobby is future development and it would be a crying shame if that were to stop. If (and that is avery BIG if,) another company (or maybe a group of 3rd party developers?) manages to take the lead with a new piece of software (it's a longshot I know, given the costs and complexity of a piece of software like Flight Simualtor) then maybe it will shake things up within the hobby. It could be a whole new lease of life for us, even a fresh start. If the their inside ACES source is real - you never know! - then voice recognition for ATC would have sounded great! Shame. Very thought provoking article though. CheersRojanTrojan

[siggy 154]

Here's a perhaps interesting article at The Register on the view of 3rd party developers on what's next for FS and some quite interesting 'insider' info on what FS11 could have been:http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/03/mi...lator_partners/

For those not having read this yet, make sure you also read the article's 2nd page. It mentions what they seemed to have planned for FS11.Siggy(P.S.: Should I have posted this to the FSX forum instead ?)

[MatthewS 761]

If (and that is avery BIG if,) another company (or maybe a group of 3rd party developers?) manages to take the lead with a new piece of software (it's a longshot I know, given the costs and complexity of a piece of software like Flight Simualtor) then maybe it will shake things up within the hobby. It could be a whole new lease of life for us, even a fresh start.

X-Plane would seem most likely successor, IMHO.

[gman! 1]

X-Plane would seem most likely successor, IMHO.

Please Matthew... Don't start.

[MatthewS 761]

Please Matthew... Don't start.

:( Don't start what? What do you think will be the most likely successor if not X-plane? Do you think Flightgear? That's open source and the devs do not work on it full time.

[Guest N6722c]

If the their inside ACES source is real - you never know! - then voice recognition for ATC would have sounded great! Shame. Very thought provoking article though. CheersRojanTrojan

Sorry ROFL -- "Voice Recognition" for ATC --- someone has to be joking, or in need of rehab.Even professional Controllers cannot understand most of the "babble" that comes from 90% of simmers "playing" Flight Sim -- what chance does "voice recognition" have.And for those that could be understood -- given the choice between talking to a computer with limited programed responses, and a real human (even if they are not good at ATC) --- give me the human every time.Once again, a clear example of MSFS "gameply developers" not having a clue about the reality of the target purchaser !! B) On a brighter note -- after reading the article, -- if the described FS11 is what MSFS "was" destined to become, "Steve BALLMER" did us all a favour by killing MSFS. :( With MSFS "out of the running", at least there is now a possibility of a "realistic" replacement. :( :( B) ( Got to love those Icons !! )

[SlowFlyer 78]

Sorry ROFL -- "Voice Recognition" for ATC --- someone has to be joking, or in need of rehab.Even professional Controllers cannot understand most of the "babble" that comes from 90% of simmers "playing" Flight Sim -- what chance does "voice recognition" have.And for those that could be understood -- given the choice between talking to a computer with limited programed responses, and a real human (even if they are not good at ATC) --- give me the human every time.Once again, a clear example of MSFS "gameply developers" not having a clue about the reality of the target purchaser !! B) On a brighter note -- after reading the article, -- if the described FS11 is what MSFS "was" destined to become, "Steve BALLMER" did us all a favour by killing MSFS. :( With MSFS "out of the running", at least there is now a possibility of a "realistic" replacement. :( :( B) ( Got to love those Icons !! )

Unfortunately, I don't believe we will see the possibility of a "realistic" replacement for MSFS any time in the near or short term future. Maybe not even in the long term :-( X-plane seems to the only real option for us flight simmers after the next 5 years goes by (unless MS starts FXnext again). I think this because as PCs increase in power with new OS, there could be a compatibility issues with FSX. Plus the graphics will seem "outdated".I think a voice recogination program for atc would have been interesting. Voice recognition has progressed greatly over the last decade. And, to me, this would have made FS more realistic than clicking 1 or 3 on the keyboard. Plus with Win 7's touch screen feature, imagine the possibilities of clicking switches in the VC by way of touching the screen. Talk about more realism.Whatever the reason for MS shutting down ACEs (I hope and pray it's only until the economy improves; and it improves hopefully soon), the lost time will affect MSFS progress.Remember when MS shut down MS Combat Flight Sim after the third one? Did any company step up and replace MS Combat Flight SIm 3? Nope, and it's been more than a few years now. Granted I still play Combat 3, but I wish for a newer replacement that can take advantage of the faster PS and video cards out today. And although I start it up, I don't play much at all any more. I love the graphics of FSX much better. This also applies to FS9. Athough I still have FS9 on my pc, I rarely play it, in favor of FSX.IHMO, "killing" MSFS won't be doing any favors for a lot of flight simmers. Again, I believe for the next 5 years FSX will have a place for all of us simmers, but even with 3rd parties making great addons, there will come a time, for most people, it will be past it's prime, and deleted from our PCs. An example, my favorite helicopter game was jane's longbow, but there's no way I am playing it thses days, the grahics are just not fun to look at. John

[n4gix 4,947]

Unfortunately, I don't believe we will see the possibility of a "realistic" replacement for MSFS any time in the near or short term future. Maybe not even in the long term :-( X-plane seems to the only real option for us flight simmers after the next 5 years goes by (unless MS starts FXnext again).

Please read the thread "Is the Dream Really Dead?" for some badly needed hope for the future... :(

[SlowFlyer 78]

Please read the thread "Is the Dream Really Dead?" for some badly needed hope for the future... :(

Wow, B) thanks for that thread...now allow me to get back to praying! :( :( B)