MegaScenery USA vs. VFR Photographic Scenery USA?

[RobertRent 17]

Has anyone done a comparison of PC Aviator

[JimmiG 244]

I don't have VFR Photographic, only Megascenery. I did post a comparison shot some time ago (using one of the VFR screenshots as reference). VFR Photographic looks quite a bit sharper at lower altitudes because they use much better source data. However Megascenery has other advantages like autogen, better night scenery and bigger coverage area.

[mtan002 0]

I have all the MegaScenery volumes and 1 volume of VFR Photographic Scenery - one of the UK series. One thing I dont like about the VFR is the view is warp on the left hand lower corner. The ground on the left lower corner seems to have come down quite a bit while the rest of the picture seems normal view of a horizon. In addition, I find the colour to be too rich - more like a colour painting rather than real.That's my personal views.Michael TanYSCB

[Guest R5D4]

VFR uses better images -period. Megascenery comes with more features (and hype!). My personal preference is VFR as satellite imagery looks worse than default with accurate roads/water and there is no "3D" effect from shadows as you get with VFR.

[JimmiG 244]

Never seen this "warping" of textures with the England and Wales scenery. It's true that the colours are quite bright. Not unrealistically so (the UK countryside is very colourful) but maybe a little too saturated. It depends on where you fly as well, some areas of the scenery look better than others.This has nothing to do with the VFR USA scenery however because they use completely different source data from different providers (Getmapping for the UK, Airphoto USA for VFR USA).I agree that PC Aviator sure are hyping up each Megascenery release more and more. It's the "most stunning", "most realistic" scenery ever, and the flightsim world will "never look the same again"...Obviously there are a number of sceneries that look better and I fail to see how a 30,000 sq mile scenery area would change the entire flightsim world...Still the sceneries are decent, certainly better than default (default textures and autogen are repetetive and look too super mario-ish for me). Megascenery PNW will feature better city textures but the same 5m textures will be used everywhere else (from the horse's mouth: "5 meter satellite imagery is more than you'll ever need for a realistic cross country experience" - I don't agree).

[Guest nutmeat]

I have had both on my system for the No. California area. I have since removed the Megascenery in preference for the VFR. I found that the VFR scenery is more detailed and "crisp"; one can see cars parked in shopping centers, vehicles on the freeways, rail cars in the railyards, etc. The terrain matches very well with my FS Genesis (although the colors may not match all that well...small nit for me). Airports merging into the scenery is excellant, even to the areas between runways! I find flying this scenery at 2500-3000 in slow aircraft works extremely well. About the only real negative I can see with the VFR scenery is in the bay area, the San Rafael and Bay bridges do not appear; this may be an interaction with my USA Roads package. By the way, at the edges of the scenery areas, USA Roads and VFR line up perfectly. All in all, while pricey, I like the VFR offerings from Horizon better and hope to see more areas covered in the future.Larry S.

[Guest av84fun]

I would agree with Larry. This is the best "photoreal" scenery I have ever bought. I plan to buy all of their future offerings.Jim

[RobertRent 17]

Thank you all for your replies; you made some good points, and you provided me with an understanding of the differences between the products.One significant difference between products that I have noticed is, that the products made from satellite photographs tend to be fairly out of date. i.e. 5-year old housing developments shown as empty land, 10-year old highways either hand drawn or non-existent, and so on.My decision? I am going to buy all three products (MegaScenery plus MegaCity, and VFR Photographic Scenery), compare them, and then use the one that suits me best. And, I consider myself very lucky to have two such quality products available for the area in which I fly.Cheers,Robert

[crvm 0]

I have both and have to say VFR scenery although the night lighting is very "basic" but the detail is day is much more clear IMO..[h4]Randy J. Smith[/h4]

[RobertRent 17]

I purchased Horizon

[RobertRent 17]

There are comparison screenshots at the following URL: http://www.pcaviator.com/megascenery/forum...p?showtopic=623Robert