Although I'm really looking forward to AS16, I can't say I'm overly impressed with the ACSA cloud textures in some of those pics.  The REX soft clouds have made clouds look much more realistic for me.  

 

Having said that, I'm looking forward to experimenting when this is eventually released.

 

thanks for posting Vic.

Again, there's a variety of cloud textures and texture sizes available with ASCA.

I like the stratus okay but, do those TCU look a little weird?

 

Have to agree with that.

That extreme .3 zoom usually does not help with cloud appearance though.

 

gb

I was thinking the same but you need ASCA if you want it AS16 to be able to load new texture sets on the fly, it's part of the integration. If you use the new REX product it will work but without the realtime texture changes.

 

I have to admit I am a bit disappointed in the shots Vic posted as the clouds don't look that good to me.

If I'm not mistaken REX Skyforce actually replaces the complete cloud system within both FSX and P3D, it also works with all 3rd party weather engines, realtime textures by REX will be applied whichever engine you use.

Again, there's a variety of cloud textures and texture sizes available with ASCA.

 

It would be interesting to see some other sets then. Not all REX sets are wonderful, with some messy ones I avoid, so it would be nice to see something with more subtlety. Apart from the messiness, the worst aspect of these shots is the number of repeating textures within each cloud structure.

Some more here. Unfortunatelly the pictures do not "render" the physical effects, and indeed flying near to convective clouds can become an even more challenging task in AS16.

 

Same applies to microburst, shear and other adverse weather events...

 

Please note that since my rig is an old i5, I run P3D and AS16 / ASCA with mid-low settings. Better results can be obtained - be sure of that... - and as others have stated, you can choose among a good range of themes. 

 

These shots were taken after searching in AS16 for an area with good activity. I then moved my PMDG 777 200 LR there, took off and made various flight tests ( with the aircraft ), and also to feel the effects of the more active cells.

 

In the first picture, the Cb is to starboard, and while there is another one ahead, the one I just passed near is really HUGE!!! You can see it's tops growing way above the 777 in the next shots...

 

 

 

 

 

I think anyone that has been using REX soft clouds (me included) will find the CB shots in the first post a little unnatural looking.  I have also found that I cannot even use the regular REX cloud textures any longer as I prefer the look of the soft clouds.  That being said, it's nice to actually see some CB!  I am unable to achieve this in P3D although I did use to get nice towering storms in FSX on occasion.  I am more curious about how the texture changes work and the performance.  I've used Active Sky since it first came out (2002??)....always look forward to their new products.

I Like it very much!  I'm looking forward to its release. I definitely see the improvement over the previous version of ASN!  

 

PS. Cant believe some of the comments in here, you ladies a difficult bunch to please  

PS. Cant believe some of the comments in here, you ladies a difficult bunch to please

Although I completely agree with the last part of your sentence, :smile: ... the key to a convincing screenshot is that it should resemble a photograph, not a painting.

 

The cloud textures depicted in some of the pics look like a bad good attempt at impressionism on the first day of art school.

 

 

Although I completely agree with the last part of your sentence, :smile: ... the key to a convincing screenshot is that it should resemble a photograph, not a painting.

 

The smaller clouds tightly grouped looks odd in these pictures.  It jumps out since they're pictures of cloud shadows instead of actual shadows.  Gonna take some tweaking.

Are these shots taken from a beta?  I haven't heard any word on a release of these yet, except for the announcements from the flightsimcon.

 

The clouds look like satin...in such a way satin looks when the light hits it just right.  The way the clouds look in the latest ASN with REX TD seem as close to accurate visual representations.  Maybe the clouds can be tweaked with themes?

ok - yes these are beta shots - the NDA has been lifted as far as some initial visuals - so no worries there.

 

I noticed a little less performance impact with ASCA.

 

I just took a flight and snapped some shots - the feedback is good and I am sure that some changes will be made as the product develops.

 

Visuals are tough because each person has an idea of what looks good to them - it may not be realistic to someone else.

 

And yes @A340-4 - this IS a tough crowd but that's why their feedback is so important.  Constructive criticism is what helps a product grow.

 

edit: just realized that, to be fair to ASCA, I am playing around with the PTA settings which have significant affect on cloud shading. If I get time, I'll disable it and post more shots.

 

Vic

I really like the capability of the dynamic texture insertion while you are flying. However, as others have stated, there appears to be a lack of sharpness to the cloud textures though. It looks like a lot of them are out of focus. We are in thunderstorm season here in Denver and the isolated cloud formations have very distinct edges against the blue sky. Maybe this is not the case in other parts of the world. Hopefully this was helpful constructive criticism.

 

Ted 

Personally, if I saw clouds like this in P3D, I'd throw my wallet at ASN

 

Jim, That perfectly illustrates my point in my post above yours.

 

Ted