Flight Servers to be shut down, end of the road.

[Heimi 91]

They just posted the last words on the MSFlight Facebook page:

 

The End Of The Runway For Flight

Even though we knew this day was coming it doesn’t make the fact Flight is officially shutting down its servers any easier to accept. But the truth is there comes a point in the life of every game where it is no longer feasible to sustain the game and the decision is made to suspend operations. And it just so happens to be that time for Microsoft Flight.

The flight sim community is unique from other online gaming communities in that we enjoy the company of the very young and the really old from around the world united with a single passion – the love of flying. We’ve met virtual aviators along the way who dream of one day being real pilots and we’ve chatted with those who have actually experienced the marvel of flight, the second-greatest thrill on earth (landing is the first). We thank those of you who chose to fly with us.

There is a popular quote among aviators that says, “A mile of highway will take you a mile but a mile of runway will take you anywhere.” This might be the end of the runway for Flight, but just remember, the end of the runway can look very different depending on whether you are taking off or taxiing back to the hangar...and pilots routinely do both.

Clear skies.

Safe landings.

We hope you’ve enjoyed the flight.

This is your Flight crew signing off.

 

 

Maybe i misinterpret these words, but it looks to me as if there is hope for a successor in the far future.

This post has been promoted to an article

[188AHC 2,138]

The plug is finally pulled. Sad, sad day for one of the best simulators to come along. It had so much potential.

 

But wait! Due to the talent we have in this forum, new life is being injected into Flight as we speak.

 

Stay tuned for its' rapidly evolving future.

[HiFlyer 9,336]

[ohsirus 241]

*Sighs* What could have been 

[Bush lover 0]

Well maybe something better will come like a better successor to FSX?

 

I't had a lot of potential too bad they made is so arcade like. If it was more serious like fsx maybe it would of been more popular.  What a shame  :(

[Orion 2]

To quote a bit of dialogue from the similarly short lived and cancelled TV show Firefly:

 

Mal: We're still flying.

Simon: That's not much.

Mal: It's enough.

[Boomer 1,619]

Crash and burn, good riddence to a very bad idea and a slap in our faces.

[HughesMDflyer4 470]

A sad day, but it still has so much life in its future, especially considering what Steve (Stonelance) has been working on. Flight has always felt more immersive than FSX (in terms of the environment and flight handling abilities) and has amazing technology behind it.

 

I'll just throw in a random screenshot from near Kings Canyon National Park to lighten the mood:

 

[Air1 136]

Who ever said it was not popular? Was there ever a vote, I must have missed it. All I ever heard was whining. It just was never given the chance to develop. It would have had something for everyone eventually. Yes,too bad.

 

Steve

[Glynn 405]

 

 

Well maybe something better will come like a better successor to FSX?

 

It already has, P3D 2.4

[RichLP 32]

This thread makes it painfully clear why some of us enjoy the camaraderie of the Flight community, and don't miss those in other areas of flight simulation...

[Ted Striker 338]

It's too bad that Microsoft didn't give it a longer life. I think it would have gained in popularity once they added a few more regions and planes (real ones with cockpits). I was just about to start buying some DLC after Alaska was released and then they announced they were pulling the plug so I didn't bother. I actually liked the idea that all the third party addons would have to be approved by Microsoft as I assumed that this would provide a certain level of quality control and discipline that would prevent the third party addons from conflicting with each other. Unfortunately it sounds like Microsoft was greedy and wanted too much of a cut for this service.

 

Ted

[Jon 4]

But the truth is there comes a point in the life of every game where it is no longer feasible to sustain the game and the decision is made to suspend operations.

 

Regarding Microsoft's post:

 

Does there really? Plenty of games live and die by the decisions of users rather than the choice of the developer to sustain the game. Take FSX for example...

 

The difference is that with games that are tied to servers in such a way (and this isn't a criticism of licensing servers, but of game servers), there's nothing left when they decide to pull the plug. You paid for those planes? They're just gone.

 

The least they could do is offer an offline patch. It sounds like the community might come up with a workaround, but it shouldn't have to be that way.

[Orion 2]

The least they could do is offer an offline patch. It sounds like the community might come up with a workaround, but it shouldn't have to be that way.

The hypothetical "offline patch" that you speak of exists and is called the Flight Toolkit (not by Microsoft, but by a developer who worked on TS2 and Flight at ACES and MGS). It replaces GFWL and supports loading addons (existing DLC and third party), Aerocaches, and is soon to support converting the FSX world scenery.

[HiFlyer 9,336]

Crash and burn, good riddence to a very bad idea and a slap in our faces.

 

We'll check back in a year.  B)