Majestic Dash-8 Q400 to be developed for MSFS

[crosswind 825]

Folks it's this simple. 

We will develop for the platform when all of the required parameters required make it feasible to do so make it possible, it could be a year or it could be more.  

Cheers

Edited September 5, 2020 by crosswind

[ms2 184]

13 hours ago, Kilo60 said:

MSFS is the perfect sim for the Dash-8

Actually a real commuter is missing in msfs2020, and flying on realistic landscapes of fs2020 with mjcq400 is our dream. Liners on fl300 don’t profit of the visual quality of fs2020.

[Scottoest 1,561]

49 minutes ago, GGLurch said:

Another thing - beside the streaming of the satellite data - the AI calculations for the building generation - is that done locally on my PC or is that calculated on a e.g. MS Azure server and part of the streaming data? 

The Blackshark.AI stuff is presumably baked into the world data being streamed to you, but it's not like it's calculating it in real-time, every time, for every user.

I would assume the AI stuff is done at either regular intervals, when the algorithm is updated, or when they get new/better map data to process with it - at which point the new AI-assisted autogen info is re-baked into the world data.

53 minutes ago, GGLurch said:

I think that MS/Asobo will jump into the DLC market for sure (they want to make money of it like everybody else) - but imho, there is a very limited market for high-level DLC in the Majestic/PMDG/ORBX price range, especially considering X-Box customers. So, I think the focus will be on lighter aircraft and scenery. But then again, each DLC will be a one-time sale, but the need to provided streaming-data persists. Furthermore, with a release of a full SDK, MS/Asobo will actively invite competition into the DLC market. So developers can release DLC and earn money, while MS has to provide a server infrastructure and the streaming capacity. For years to come... I cannot see this is an valid business model without some sort of a subscription model here, at least not for the next 14 years (like e.g. FSX). So I kind of question the whole "long-term" thing... but I am ready to be proven wrong!

Well for one, Microsoft are getting a percentage cut of any add-ons sold through the in-sim marketplace - so they will be welcoming those expensive study level aircraft with open arms.

For two, the Xbox division these days is less concerned with sales data of any particular software, than they are about engagement with their services like Game Pass.  Microsoft would be thrilled if, of the over 1 million people who played MSFS, literally ZERO of them actually bought a regular retail copy and instead all played it through a $15/mo Game Pass subscription.

Microsoft are very interested in making games that provide a strong incentive for ongoing engagement, and thus, an ongoing subscription to Game Pass.  A Flight Simulator is a prime candidate for that, because the genre is built around an always-expanding catalogue of add-on content.  And Asobo themselves could even start selling add-on content at some point.

Whether MSFS gets the hoped-for 10 years of support, will be down to how strong the engagement is with it.  If it's the preeminent flight sim platform in a couple of years, or if it recedes into the background and XP/P3D re-emerge as the dominant platforms.  My own money is very, very much on the former.

I get why people who have spent the last five years not caring about Microsoft's Xbox division, and the changing business dynamics within, would be concerned about the "bean counters" abandoning it after a while - but this fundamentally isn't the same company that put out Microsoft Flight any more.

[GGLurch 10]

16 minutes ago, Scottoest said:

Well for one, Microsoft are getting a percentage cut of any add-ons sold through the in-sim marketplace - so they will be welcoming those expensive study level aircraft with open arms.

For two, the Xbox division these days is less concerned with sales data of any particular software, than they are about engagement with their services like Game Pass.  Microsoft would be thrilled if, of the over 1 million people who played MSFS, literally ZERO of them actually bought a regular retail copy and instead all played it through a $15/mo Game Pass subscription.

Microsoft are very interested in making games that provide a strong incentive for ongoing engagement, and thus, an ongoing subscription to Game Pass.  A Flight Simulator is a prime candidate for that, because the genre is built around an always-expanding catalogue of add-on content.  And Asobo themselves could even start selling add-on content at some point.

Whether MSFS gets the hoped-for 10 years of support, will be down to how strong the engagement is with it.  If it's the preeminent flight sim platform in a couple of years, or if it recedes into the background and XP/P3D re-emerge as the dominant platforms.  My own money is very, very much on the former.

I get why people who have spent the last five years not caring about Microsoft's Xbox division, and the changing business dynamics within, would be concerned about the "bean counters" abandoning it after a while - but this fundamentally isn't the same company that put out Microsoft Flight any more.

Fair points! 👍

[Kilo60 660]

1 hour ago, ms2 said:

Actually a real commuter is missing in msfs2020, and flying on realistic landscapes of fs2020 with mjcq400 is our dream. Liners on fl300 don’t profit of the visual quality of fs2020.

Exactly!!!

[RaptyrOne 1,408]

9 hours ago, ahsmatt7 said:

I never said that. What you quoted.....I never said that.

LOL, Sorry Matt, no idea how that happened that it showed you as the one that quoted. It was UAL4life a few posts earlier. 😉

[ahsmatt7 1,199]

3 hours ago, RaptyrOne said:

LOL, Sorry Matt, no idea how that happened that it showed you as the one that quoted. It was UAL4life a few posts earlier. 😉

You're good lol. I was like wait a minute....that quote is exactly the same reason I came into this thread in the first place and I sure didn't say it hahaha

[hangar 661]

On 9/4/2020 at 6:11 PM, tweekz said:

Mathijs Kok from Aerosoft, who said that he hopes their CRJ will still be available this year

Umm...perhaps, but considering his previous track record with such comments... I would take this one with a huge grain of salt.

Actually there's no way in 90 days it would be ready...and if it were to be ready so fast I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole (unless it was free to owners of fsx version or something).

Edited September 6, 2020 by hangar

[airlinejets 709]

On 9/4/2020 at 6:11 PM, tweekz said:

an interview with Mathijs Kok from Aerosoft, who said that he hopes their CRJ will still be available this year

Actually, I believe he said he would be very disappointed if it was not released this year.

Here is the interview, he mentions the time frame at around the 3 minute mark.

 

Edited September 6, 2020 by airlinejets
added content

[tweekz 2,165]

4 hours ago, hangar said:

Umm...perhaps, but considering his previous track record with such comments... I would take this one with a huge grain of salt.

Actually there's no way in 90 days it would be ready...and if it were to be ready so fast I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole (unless it was free to owners of fsx version or something).

Sure he is a marketing guy, but they are involved in the creation of the SDK. So one can assume that they have been working on things in the background and just need ASOBO to provide the tools to implement it. This could go much faster than expected. But I don't think it will actually take a full year. The situation with PMDG is similar. They were talking about a release late this year / early next year.

  

4 hours ago, airlinejets said:

Actually, I believe he said he would be very disappointed if it was not released this year.

That's the video I'm refering to. He kind of uses "hardly" the wrong way here, but I think that's what he meant. Later on he mentions it again more clearly.

Edited September 6, 2020 by tweekz