Microsoft CEO describes the marketplace as "vibrant"

[in2tech 588]

18 minutes ago, Ricardo41 said:

There is so much good and excellent freeware out there (a lot of it at payware level) that I haven't felt the need at all to buy addon scenery. I bought Zinertek's airport graphics and LatinVFR's Arex Europe addons because they cover a wide area. It's extremely unlikely I'll be buying individual airports in the future. 

I would rather see Freeware on sites like flightsim.to, or freeware developers websites. Why do all that again! To me it's just gonna confuse people. Never mind, forgot about X-Box. I don't know how that will work? Someone that knows about X-Box will have to explain that.

[abrams_tank 7,397]

11 minutes ago, in2tech said:

I would rather see Freeware on sites like flightsim.to, or freeware developers websites. Why do all that again! To me it's just gonna confuse people. Never mind, forgot about X-Box. I don't know how that will work? Someone that knows about X-Box will have to explain that.

I don't know how any of the stuff on flightsim.to will work with X-Box.  If you don't have control over your folders in X-Box, the flightsim.to stuff might not even work for X-Box.  But maybe Asobo will have some solution for that.

Regardless, stuff like VATSIM may not work for X-Box.  And probably a lot of other add ons that work for PC won't work for X-Box.  You are getting an inferior version of MSFS for X-Box if you are a flight sim enthusiast.  But if you are a casual gamer, you probably don't care about things like VATSIM, etc.

[hansb57 493]

The term "vibrant" is totally meaningless management BS to me.

What did you expect him to say??   It's a so-so product"  or were making 637589,42 avarage profit each month??

Meaningless!

 

 

[GSalden 4,656]

7 hours ago, bean_sprout said:

I totally agree.  There are just way too many scenery addons for this sim.  I'm going back to P3D.

Cheers

bs

The point is to find good addons. Many new developers appeared on the scene and not all of them deliver good quality products...

Still some of them are using Google Earth objects in their scenery addons which have a extra impact on performance. Mainly because of all those many small textures instead of less larger ones.

Or nightlighting products with all kind of unusual colors like lots of red, blue or green lights.

 

[Glenn Fitzpatrick 3,798]

44 minutes ago, abrams_tank said:

I don't know how any of the stuff on flightsim.to will work with X-Box.  If you don't have control over your folders in X-Box, the flightsim.to stuff might not even work for X-Box.  

 

The fact that with the latest update everything in your community folder now shows up in the Content Manager has, to me at least,. got "XBox is coming" writ large all over it .

Edited April 28, 2021 by Glenn Fitzpatrick

[Dominique_K 10,138]

8 hours ago, ChaoticBeauty said:

  This gives hope that Microsoft will continue to invest into development of the simulator for several years to come.

I found it amusing. It very much sounds like an answer to some investors worries more than a victory cry :

"Hey Nadela, why have you spent a hundred mil for a nerd  game and barely reached  break-even ?"

"Yeah sure but look at the money we make on the derivatives. Expected income goals are growing beyond expectations."

Now, you say "Invest to develop of the simulator "? Maybe. But if they do their money on distribution after the big waves of sales are in, why should they do that  beyond a minimum ? Distribution profit will always be much more than the return on development after the Xbox version is released.

But that also depends what you mean by development of the simulator.  As any sim in the past, MFS is half game/half sim. Will it be to enhance the simulation side or the gamey side ?  I wouldn't bet my house on the first.  

 

 

 

[Moria15 950]

Not sure I understand some of the percieved Angst here.

We know that it is now possible to make add-ons suitable for both the PC and the XBox (either, or both or one or the other)  so that to me says that it will be possible to use add-ons with the Xbox providing they are compiled for it.

We know that MS have always said that starting 2022 they will start doing Paid for DLC add-ons...  they mentioned things like Helicopters and who knows whether their new aircraft that they are delivering will be paid for.  ( this potentially will be a much larger income than the sales of the base product.)

We know that lots of people currently use Marketplace to buy add-ons..  even to the extent that some suppliers are Marketplace only.

We understand that "Vibrant" is CEO speak, but frankly There are bigger and better brains at MS that already KNOW how to monetise products.

To my mind..   if the marketplace is vibrant.. that means that potentially add-on DLC's from Microsoft may be cheaper than they would have been 🙂

Obviously, they have to satisfy the demands of investors and senior company officials, but that is no different from any company, no matter how small or how large.

I think the only thing we are unsure of yet is how the freeware market will be applied to Xbox, but looking at the notes.. this is something MS and Asobo are working on.

I would much rather be hearing at this stage that the Marketplace is Vibrant  than to have a CEO come in and say.. well frankly it's been a disaster so far.

Graham

[abrams_tank 7,397]

19 minutes ago, Dominique_K said:

I found it amusing. It very much sounds like an answer to some investors worries more than a victory cry :

"Hey Nadela, why have you spent a hundred mil for a nerd  game and barely reached  break-even ?"

"Yeah sure but look at the money we make on the derivatives. Expected income goals are growing beyond expectations."

Now, you say "Invest to develop of the simulator "? Maybe. But if they do their money on distribution after the big waves of sales are in, why should they do that  beyond a minimum ? Distribution profit will always be much more than the return on development after the Xbox version is released.

But that also depends what you mean by development of the simulator.  As any sim in the past, MFS is half game/half sim. Will it be to enhance the simulation side or the gamey side ?  I wouldn't bet my house on the first.  

There was interest from the commercial side in MSFS upon its release.  I wish I remember the exact thread, but I think it was a P3D thread here in Avsim about people concerned that 3rd parties would stop developing for P3D once MSFS came out.  In that thread, some people, who may have been industry insiders, said there was some commercial interest in MSFS.

In any case, if Asobo keeps working on MSFS and refining it, I can see that commercial interest in MSFS will pick up.  That is an additional market that Microsoft can generate revenue from.

Edited April 28, 2021 by abrams_tank

[Christopher Low 5,352]

"Vibrant" is almost normal compared to "deliverables".

[Dominique_K 10,138]

3 minutes ago, abrams_tank said:

 That is an additional market that Microsoft can generate revenue from.

MS may have in mind other commercial applications for their "Twin Earth" project (3D maps+streaming) but that would not necessarily mean further developments for the sim. 

At that point, the only motivation I see to significantly enhance the simulation side of MFS would be a goal to reach the more profitable pro market (schools and military).

 

[Dominique_K 10,138]

26 minutes ago, Moria15 said:

Not sure I understand some of the percieved Angst here.

I would much rather be hearing at this stage that the Marketplace is Vibrant  than to have a CEO come in and say.. well frankly it's been a disaster so far.

Graham

I have no angst just resignation 🤣.

Vibrant is not only CEO speak because apparently Nadela never singles out products in his communications with analysts (except Minecraft, gotta justify a 2.5 billion purchase). He wanted (or rather, I think, needed) to specifically mention that. He didn’t mention the main product but its derivatives. It speaks volume where the money (profit) comes from.

 

[Wildblue 245]

"Apparently, games are not specifically referenced by their names in these conference calls except for outstanding cases, with the only other game getting mentioned this time being Minecraft. This gives hope that Microsoft will continue to invest into development of the simulator for several years to come. "

Didn't they pledge from the start to keep developing MSFS for the next ten years? I seem to remember this.
If so, i don't get the fishing for vague clues as "vibrant" etc., or am a naive believer of their pledge?

[G-RFRY 1,710]

So COD did not get a mention only 100 million users AH!!! it`s not a MS game but it is on XBOX and PC.

Edited April 28, 2021 by G-RFRY

[Bobsk8 12,680]

I avoid buying anything at Marketplace. So far I have purchased one scenery, Key West, two aircraft, and that's it. Best aircraft I purchased was from the developers website, the JF Arrow. I like the fact that it is updated without waiting for the Market Place to update something. 

[Denwagg 191]

How can any game franchise last for 10 years. With constant free server support  for weather and Navdata.  I think not!  Don't kid yourselves after Xbox sales dry up so will MSFS. Flight simulators have always been a fringe industry. Nothing has changed. We simmers that will buy hardware and PC's and support MSFS for the foreseeable future are only in the tens of thousands world wide. What is the average life span on any XBOX game. The grand experiment of "You can fly over your house" will only support XBOX Sales for so long. Add to that the many little things that add to the immersion like, ATC, Traffic, Ground Traffic. Melted buildings. Coastlines, Water mask, Icing, on and on. At this rate many will never be fixed.

Enjoy MSFS for what it is right now. These are the best times for this software.