Benefits of Steam, Windows purchase stores

[March Hare 720]

On 8/10/2020 at 4:29 PM, G-RFRY said:

So we will not see addon install problem on the MSFS:SE like the ones on FSX:SE. 

I think the key here is that FSX on Steam was titled "Steam Edition", indicating that it was changed in some way. MSFS isn't subtitled as such, meaning it's exactly the same software, just sold via a different store.

[Julian Roschlau 15]

Have we heard anything about Steam Workshop integration? Could be cool especially for freeware

[revporl 19]

1 hour ago, Der Zeitgeist said:

Yep, that's why I'm leaning towards buying on Steam too. Because Steam possibly wouldn't allow VR games on its platform that will restrict the choice of devices.

Yes and SteamVR might be able to bridge between the early WMR implementation and devices that aren't supported at launch. I'm assuming a bit here, I know!

[Kopteeni 819]

I just signed up for the game pass yesterday. My first experience with the MS Store app wasn't very positive.

First I was surprised that there was no list of game pass titles anywhere. The games included in the game pass are all listed together with the 100 or so amateur asset flip games that you need to browse in order to find some of the game pass games.

When I finally found an interesting game I clicked on the install several times only for the app to hang and freeze.

After killing the app from the task manager I finally got the download working but at this point was left puzzled since it didn't prompt me for the install location.

After googling how to change the install location (since I couldn't find it from the app) I found you have to do it outside the app and you can only select a hard drive for all of your future games. No specific folder or anything like that either. Just the hard drive.

I find MS leaves me often puzzled like this. They make massive marketing pushes for these services that are lacking in basic things.

If I end up buying the game I'll be sure to do this from Steam.

[Stoopy 1,570]

On 8/10/2020 at 11:29 AM, G-RFRY said:

So we will not see addon install problem on the MSFS:SE like the ones on FSX:SE. 

I'm curious what problems those were?  I had both regular FSX on original install media and later reinstalled with the Steam version, FSX:SE, and never had any issues with the tons of payware I had - Orbx, A2A, REX, any many others.  Even mods like ReShade installed and worked just the same.  It was just a different path to the install folder under \Program Files\Steam\Steamapps\common. 

[Kopteeni 819]

4 hours ago, Kopteeni said:

I just signed up for the game pass yesterday. My first experience with the MS Store app wasn't very positive.

First I was surprised that there was no list of game pass titles anywhere. The games included in the game pass are all listed together with the 100 or so amateur asset flip games that you need to browse in order to find some of the game pass games.

When I finally found an interesting game I clicked on the install several times only for the app to hang and freeze.

After killing the app from the task manager I finally got the download working but at this point was left puzzled since it didn't prompt me for the install location.

After googling how to change the install location (since I couldn't find it from the app) I found you have to do it outside the app and you can only select a hard drive for all of your future games. No specific folder or anything like that either. Just the hard drive.

I find MS leaves me often puzzled like this. They make massive marketing pushes for these services that are lacking in basic things.

If I end up buying the game I'll be sure to do this from Steam.

Continuing this story: I just ran into an error in the middle of the download. Had to continue the download manually. If you're going to let MSFS download overnight for it to be ready in the morning you might want to set your alarm to wake you up once an hour to clear the errors lmao...

Edited August 12, 2020 by Kopteeni

[Aaron555 52]

1 hour ago, Kopteeni said:

Continuing this story: I just ran into an error in the middle of the download. Had to continue the download manually. If you're going to let MSFS download overnight for it to be ready in the morning you might want to set your alarm to wake you up once an hour to clear the errors lmao...

Steam and the Microsoft Store only install the 1 GB Launcher, all the rest (installation, updates, etc.) is done by it regardless where you bought the game. 

Once available, the FS2020 launcher will ask you where you want to install the 130/150 remaining GB... This process will be the same for every platform. 

Edited August 12, 2020 by Aaron555

[hangar 658]

Can someone elaborate as to what the initial hard drive install space will be (before you go flying over scenery), and then how much it might need as extra space once you start flying and downloading some scenery in your own home area (i.e.eastern NY, NJ, CT, RI)?

Not sure how to tell if I'll need 100GB, 150, 200 for my basic areas?

... and then here's the other question...if we buy on Steam, will steam allow us to specify a different drive for on-the-fly scenery cache/downloads/installs? I know I read thet MFSF will allow that but I dunno if STEAM will?

Edited August 12, 2020 by hangar

[Kopteeni 819]

18 minutes ago, Aaron555 said:

Steam and the Microsoft Store only install the 1 GB Launcher, all the rest (installation, updates, etc.) is done by it regardless where you bought the game. 

Once available, the FS2020 launcher will ask you where you want to install the 130/150 remaining GB... This process will be the same for every platform. 

Good to know, thanks. Hopefully the launcher does better job than MS Store. High hopes that it does assuming it's developed by Asobo and not MS 😛

Edited August 12, 2020 by Kopteeni

[petepawn 38]

Kopteeni from Finland,

I did very first time a transaction in Microsoft Store and purchased a Game Pass subscription. All of it  went seamlessly and I even had dozens ( maybe hundreds of titles available). I am waiting for my new rig to arrive and decided to give GP a go on my old computer. I am planning to buy the Premium Deluxe Edition, but then decided to go and test the new sim this way for only 1€ for the first month. After I bought  the Game Pass I loaded one game to my old rig and all the nearly 12Gb of downloaded with speed of some 150Mb/s ( my connection is 200). So I'm not very sceptical to MS despite having read here about bad experiences.

 

Petteri

[simon747 185]

1 hour ago, Aaron555 said:

Steam and the Microsoft Store only install the 1 GB Launcher, all the rest (installation, updates, etc.) is done by it regardless where you bought the game. 

Once available, the FS2020 launcher will ask you where you want to install the 130/150 remaining GB... This process will be the same for every platform. 

So no wired 'encryption or hidden files' with the MS games route that has been the talk of these forums?

[Aaron555 52]

1 hour ago, simon747 said:

So no wired 'encryption or hidden files' with the MS games route that has been the talk of these forums?

I believe only the "core" 1 GB of the launcher are locked (not encrypted), you can still acces them if you edit the Windows ACLs. 

The rest of the game (that you can download through this launcher) is just a normal folder. The launcher even asks you where you want to install it.

Also there is an executable "FlightSimulator.exe" in the launcher folder. Doesn't look like an UWP app.  

Edited August 12, 2020 by Aaron555

[simon747 185]

1 hour ago, Aaron555 said:

I believe only the "core" 1 GB of the launcher are locked (not encrypted), you can still acces them if you edit the Windows ACLs. 

The rest of the game (that you can download through this launcher) is just a normal folder. The launcher even asks you where you want to install it.

Also there is an executable "FlightSimulator.exe" in the launcher folder. Doesn't look like an UWP app.  

Thank-you.  

[Kopteeni 819]

3 hours ago, petepawn said:

Kopteeni from Finland,

I did very first time a transaction in Microsoft Store and purchased a Game Pass subscription. All of it  went seamlessly and I even had dozens ( maybe hundreds of titles available). I am waiting for my new rig to arrive and decided to give GP a go on my old computer. I am planning to buy the Premium Deluxe Edition, but then decided to go and test the new sim this way for only 1€ for the first month. After I bought  the Game Pass I loaded one game to my old rig and all the nearly 12Gb of downloaded with speed of some 150Mb/s ( my connection is 200). So I'm not very sceptical to MS despite having read here about bad experiences.

 

Petteri

I'm happy you had a better experience. My first impressions were quite not that good and they say you only have one chance to make that. To me the MS Store experience sort of reflected on the same poor quality that's been everywhere else in this project except for what's been the doings of Asobo themselves.

The MSFS web site was a bad amateur experience for a long time and it still seems to be suffering from several issues with the login and unresponsive ui elements. Just today I had to dig into the raw html source code to get a link to the sign in page since the menu button didn't do anything.

I really wish MS would support Asobo by matching their quality of work in the things surrounding Asobo's stellar work but I'm seeing example after another where things are lacking quite a bit. On the other hand Steam has always "just worked". I've never had to do google searches in order to accomplish basic stuff. So Steam all the way for me if I decide to purchase.

Edited August 12, 2020 by Kopteeni

[MikeT707 1,181]

In order to use the Steam Workshop to create mods, is this only available if you purchase the game in Steam? Also, if you want to download Steam Workshop mods into MSFS, would you have to have purchased MSFS via Steam or could you have purchased the sim via the MS Store?