Warning to Newcomers RE Microsoft Marketplace

[BIGSKY 316]

First a Thank you to NYX 1819 for this,

Before you purchase add-ons from MS Marketplace!!!!

• Find independent reviews (you shouldn’t have too, but you can’t trust MS to do the right thing)

• Don’t buy products after a sim update or world update until you see they’ve been updated. When updates are release they are posted in #community:news-and-announcements

• Consider buying from a first-party or external third-party store - it pains me to recommend this for so many reasons, but at least the updates can flow quickly

[Steve Dra 7,588]

Some of the best advice I've seen on the forum so far.

I'm not against the concept of the marketplace, In fact I'm all for the things that CAN be.... However in it's current state, You can't rely on it for timely updates.

And with the of all the MSFS updates that have come down the pipe thus far, you can be assured that the plane that you just bought is going to be broken in someway and will require an update from the vendor.   When you get that update in the marketplace is a complete KRAP shoot.  If you buy it from the vendor or third party site you'll know that the update will be yours as soon as they have it ready.

Just reference the Carenado Mooney as a classic example.  Been broken since SU5....even if they fix it today....you won't see it in the marketplace for at least a week.

 

Edited September 10, 2021 by Steve Dra
Stupid word not allowed rule at avsim

[Jetman67 517]

Great advise the marketplace is a pain regarding updates

[BIGSKY 316]

I have 49 purchased airports stupidly acquired,that don't work,and it is cranking my blood pressure up........

[Scimiter 179]

  Always check out the prices from different sellers they do vary, and can be a lot cheaper than the marketplace.

[GSalden 4,657]

There should be a message “compatible with the latest MSFS version” added to each addon in the Marketplace if that has been updated.

So a buyer would know if it is safe or not to buy the addon.

And if a product has not been updated within 2-3 months : remove it from the Markerplace to avoid a lot non-compatible addons…

[CJ1045 469]

Another point:

If you use or intend to use an XBOX for MSFS then ONLY buy from the Marketplace as you cannot use addons from elsewhere. Further your PC Marketplace purchases will be available for XBOX install at no extra cost.

CJ

[rayharris108 259]

2 hours ago, BIGSKY said:

I have 49 purchased airports stupidly acquired,that don't work,and it is cranking my blood pressure up........

Totally agree, I have only 15 that don’t work, v poor show. I am v disappointed they have not yet been updated. Will not be buying via Marketplace again.

[rka 916]

The marketplace may be slower regarding updates, but not having to regularly run dozens of different updaters from all the different payware vendors is a huge advantage for a lot of people.

[rayharris108 259]

Agreed - if there were any updates! But there isn’t. At least publishers normally communicate updates fairly quickly. Marketplace? Nothing.

[Glenn Fitzpatrick 3,798]

Summary of marketplace pros and cons:

PROS

• one stop shop so you do not need an entire spreadsheet dedicated to listing where you bought everything and where to check for updates
• some product lines like Asobo and Carenado are marketplace only
• marketplace items can also be used on your XBox X

CONS

• it is not curated, they just check that the product fits MS rules like no weapons, no install options, the correct sized thumbnail - but do not check for quality or even if it works correctly in game - stores like JF and Orbx have some level of quality control, maybe not enough in some cases but at least it is there, whereas MS has none
• marketplace items are often cut back versions, for example the G91 from the Orbx Store has a configuration tool to load up all sorts of different historical ordinance and the Orbx G91 can even drop bombs that leave temporary craters in the terrain. The marketplace G91 has this feature removed 
• some developers simply refuse to use the marketplace at all, or take months to get around to submitting stuff due to the hoops MS make them jump through
• they do not give an itemised receipt detailing what addon you actually bought, you just get a generic receipt for some amount of flight points
• the product attaches to your gamer tag and MSFS version (MS vs Steam)  if for some reason your MSFS gets messed up and you decide to repurchase in Steam or MS or just change gamer tags an outside store will probably allow you to transfer your product across to your new install.  MS refuses even if it is the same gamer tag and you simply bought a Steam copy instead of your faulty MS one or visa versa .
• updates can be slow compared to elsewhere, once a dev submits an update it needs to be rechecked for compliance which apparently can take almost a week and then has to wait for the next "patch Tuesday" to be made available, if MS have issues they send it back to the dev missing the next patch Tuesday and potentially delaying it by another week or more

 

Edited September 10, 2021 by Glenn Fitzpatrick

[Christopher Low 5,354]

Is it really all that difficult to run a separate updater if you purchase products from individual developers? What did everyone do before the MS marketplace appeared?

Edited September 10, 2021 by Christopher Low

[Shack95 2,658]

The marketplace is a bit of a mystery to me. It‘s supposed to be one of their main sources of revenue yet it appears like they don‘t really bother making it attractive. The idea that you can buy and update everything easily in-game is intriguing, but the way things stand at the moment I see little reason to buy from the marketplace (unless there‘s a sale). 

[sal9000 210]

And another point, the files in the Marketplace are copyprotected by DRM.

That means, if something happend to your account, the files are gone.

Costs me more then 300 bucks at the past, by hacking my account..

[JBDB-MD80 1,473]

4 hours ago, BIGSKY said:

I have 49 purchased airports stupidly acquired,that don't work,and it is cranking my blood pressure up........

Not good, not good at all

Edited September 10, 2021 by jbdbow1970