Every day almost, I pull the latest Dev mod from the brilliant folks at FBW for the A320 Neo.  This morning I was impressed enough half way through my flows, that I felt obliged to express my appreciation.

Almost each day, I read somewhere that MSFS isn't really a Flight Simulator.  That it is a fancy camera system to explore the world, yes- but a true flight simulator- absolutely not!  I'll grant those pedantic pundits that the Sim isn't where it can and will be....That said, take a look at this photo. 

First we have the ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT FBW mod for the A320.  This morning I was going through my flows and suddenly realized, that I was operating this aircraft in a mostly realistic and appropriate fashion.  No, I am not saying that this is currently at the representative level we have gotten used to in P3D, but the progress in mere months is just STAGGERING!  If this keeps up, at this rate, we are all going to be very lucky indeed!  From initial power up, with the clacks and displays coming on line, to me muttering about the pedestal lighting and tweaking the knobs just so, to get it right. From initial power up, through ATSU to ECAM Status NO BLUE, I was working as I ought to... and I was being provided a cocoon of sensory stimuli that was fantastically familiar, and in many cases even better than I had in the older sim. Starting LEAP engines has become something that fully exercises the capabilities of my Bose computer speakers, and has become a topic of raised eyebrow conversation whenever the Trolly Dolly passes by during light off.

Next, take a look at the atmospherics.  Yes, the weather has it's issues, but when it does work, it all comes together wonderfully.  Look at the fog bank, then look at the lighting and it's resultant glow.  Then look at the reflections on the belly and tail cone of the beautiful EZY ZHA Neo mod.  The wavy hot gas spewing from the blued exhaust cone, the moisture in the air which you can actually see gathering and dripping in rivulets, the under belly reflections and refractions and light scattering all present and scheduled to get better with Asobo's Particle Physics new hire- something never seen in Sim.  Then look at Rwy 23R and for the first time in Sim, realize that the Manchester Hump we all know so well from the real world, is actually present.  Macco Simulations has brought us Manchester like we wished we always had.

Today, at the other end, I will taxy under the Airbridge at LGW and look out and see the BA lounge where I have spent many an hour.  I'm sure I will still be smiling.

The next Sim update is only days away, and incrementally, the Sim gets better.  I fully realize the attraction of an XBox market, and know that it cannot be ignored.  I only hope Asobo (and especially MS who control the purse strings) realize that if they produce something authentic (with nuance and fidelity) they get to keep THAT crowd, and have something that will inherently be a better experience for all.  One of the most significant aspects of our new Sim is the time and talent being invested gratis.  It used to be mostly the SOH crowd, and an occasional tidbit here and there.  Now it seems to be a viable and thriving global community. That bit, was the only thing that I believe XPlane did better than us.  It is humbling and truly uplifting to see so many, give so much.  We, the beneficiaries, owe these pioneers in JS/TS and C++/WASM as they are truly on the bleeding edge. Additionally, the FREEWARE IS SO GOOD, that payware is going to have to step up their game AND reduce their pricing merely to survive.  I have often said, I would not want to be a payware developer at this moment in time.  Yes, there will always be a market for authentic and accurate simulation, and many including I are willing to pay for the privilege; however, the bar has undeniably been raised. Add to that the sheer market size of MSFSMP (NOT THE IN GAME rather the entire market) and dynamics WILL HAVE TO BE DIFFERENT. 

That said, I would ask Asobo to consider the plight of the professional developer, and facilitate a way for them to secure their IP.  When the goal is collective benefit and altruistic, there are no current barriers.  When the goal is profit, things are very different.  There is plenty of room for both- I read that MSFS recently reached 2M+ users and just wait until the XBox crowd get's their hands on it.

Ok- enough meandering- I started all this to say thanks to @IcemanFBW and the entire FBW team- so, "Thanks!"

C

 

PS- Please Asobo, remember that more is not always better, sometimes it's just more.  Aerodynamics is ALL about nuance, please listen to the community that is reaching out to you.

Edited December 18, 20205 yr by cavaricooper

13 minutes ago, cavaricooper said:

and has become a topic of raised eyebrow conversation whenever the Trolly Dolly passes by during light off.

I have 4 words: Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones. 🙂  The sound is phenomenal, and the only bad part about them is the shock when your Trolly Dolly taps you on the shoulder to ask for your lunch order, as you'll be completely immersed in the sim. 🙂 

Kidding aside, I echo your sentiments, and although I'm still in the GA world, yet to try this spectacular work from @ValKilmerFBW 🙂 and his crew, it is the last morsel of the best cheesecake to ever touch my lips (I sneaked a bite very early in the meal), purposely put behind the butter tray and out of reach, until I've finished the superb gourmet meal which is MSFS GA flying. 😄

13 minutes ago, cavaricooper said:

Next, take a look at the atmospherics.

I can only imagine (well...actually I can and have experienced it), the feeling of immersion when you broke thru that dim, dreary overcast into a blisteringly bright sunlit day above the puffies.  That to me is still one of the most compelling reasons to sit in front of this sim...breaking out on top. 🙂

EDIT: LOL.....you edited your post to display the EXACT thing I referred to above. 🙂 Great minds 🙂 

Edited December 18, 20205 yr by Steve Dra

.... and whadya know... I was smiling!

Very perspicacious of you Carl. 😀

Even in poor weather and a small GA this simulator is absolutely beautiful.

 

I would go as far as saying, in so much as any PC based game can ever be a "real" FLIGHT sim, this one is closer than most of the others which have all become retentive OCD head stuck in the cockpit,  button pushing simulations. A procedures and button mashing simulation is not a FLIGHT simulation.

Xplane arguable has better FMs - BUT does that really matter when you are afk on autopilot and flying IFR ? 😄

Edited December 18, 20205 yr by Glenn Fitzpatrick

<s>

To be a real simulator, a product has to meet the following criterion:

• FS2002 visual quality. FS9 is a bit much. If it remotely looks like FSX you've gone too far.
• 1024x 768 12fps tops. Better 800 x 600 7fps. The serious simmer would not have felt any differences compared to 4k60fps.
• Aerodynamics defined by simple look up tables in .air files. Anything built with "modern" FDE engine is arcade game.
• UI should look like Windows 3.1. Windows 95 is too much. Let alone Windows XP. Never update to Windows 10.
• Must have OOM feature. A flight is incomplete without multiple OOMs and random CTDs.

</s>

35 minutes ago, Cai Zicheng said:

<s>

To be a real simulator, a product has to meet the following criterion:

• FS2002 visual quality. FS9 is a bit much. If it remotely looks like FSX you've gone too far.
• 1024x 768 12fps tops. Better 800 x 600 7fps. The serious simmer would not have felt any differences compared to 4k60fps.
• Aerodynamics defined by simple look up tables in .air files. Anything built with "modern" FDE engine is arcade game.
• UI should look like Windows 3.1. Windows 95 is too much. Let alone Windows XP. Never update to Windows 10.
• Must have OOM feature. A flight is incomplete without multiple OOMs and random CTDs.

</s>

Talk about old school.  Geez Louise. Not even a bad joke.

Great collection of pictures. The runway slopes add so much to the sense of reality. 

 

 

The FBW mod with the custom fly by wire system is very very good!

Great job, and i do the same as you loading the dev version daily (i keep the previous working version backed up in case) . It might be just me but i have noticed in the past week the weather being more realistic, and far more folk flying again since it was down. Thanks to everyone involved from MS /Asobo to the FBW guys for the improvements.

7 hours ago, DJJose said:

Very perspicacious of you Carl. 😀

 

Holy Cow Jose.... I'm impressed 🙂

C

That's a wonderful paean, Carl, and I totally agree with you.   The sim's not a finished product, and everyone involved, even Asobo, will acknowledge that.  But that's a good thing, because it means we have an amazing platform for growth, in capable and dedicated hands, with a flourishing community around it, and I'm really excited about the coming years of flight simulation.

Someone here, I can't recall who and search is failing me, put it succinctly:

"When it shines, it shines like a supernova."

Let's keep polishing.

And all this without spending a single dollar after the original purchase...pretty cool huh? 🙂

Very well written - I agree wholeheartedly. For all its flaws, no sim has ever made me feel like I'm flying in the real world in the way this sim does. And this, surely, is what 99% of us want from a PC-based flight simulator.

1 minute ago, mrfilbert said:

Very well written - I agree wholeheartedly. For all its flaws, no sim has ever made me feel like I'm flying in the real world in the way this sim does. And this, surely, is what 99% of us want from a PC-based flight simulator.

Completely agree,

Yes there are some flaws, yes things break after each update but a few times I have been cloud surfing in the modded Longitude or the love of my MSFS life lol, the TBM and I have had to pinch myself. I think I know what it actually looks like in real life to cloud surf. I still love X-Plane 11 mainly for The FF B757, A320 & Zibo 737. I am actually enroute from LEIB to EGKK in the Zibo. After I am done I will be switching to MSFS 2020 for a glorious evening and sightseeing tour of Ontario in the TBM 🙂

Happy Days