Future of p3d ?

[Sethos]

I'm wondering if Microsoft would once again be interested in licensing out their new platform? Given that P3D is built on ESP, maybe down the road we'll see Microsoft selling off a license to allow companies like LM to build their own branch once again.

[G-RFRY]

4 hours ago, Sethos said:

I'm wondering if Microsoft would once again be interested in licensing out their new platform? Given that P3D is built on ESP, maybe down the road we'll see Microsoft selling off a license to allow companies like LM to build their own branch once again.

Unlikely MS tried to sell off the MSFS to any takers back in 2009-2100 no takers, Phil Spencer would have had nothing to come back to. 

Edited November 10, 2021 by G-RFRY

[kevinfirth]

2 hours ago, Rogen said:

if a user base drops too low

And with even stalwarts such as Marcus @mpo910 dropping P3D I think sadly we're approaching, if not already reached that point.

[neilhewitt]

Everyone has their own threshold where they might consider jumping ship. For me, P3D is the only platform that properly supports my use case. X-Plane probably could but would require a lot of work converting over hardware and cost buying equivalent software. That said, right now I'm flying MSFS on a temporary sim setup just to see how the other half live, while I dismantle and eventually rebuild my proper sim bigger and better. When I do, it'll be back to P3D because even if I wanted to go MSFS with that setup, I couldn't. The more time I spend in that community the less likely I think it is that MSFS will ever support all of the advanced options (multi-view etc) that Classic MSFS used to support years ago. The vast majority of people are flying single-screen with joystick, mouse and keyboard. If that's 90% of your audience there's little money in catering for the other 10%. LM has to cater for it, because that is most of their 'real' audience.

The bigger concern from my POV is 3rd parties dropping support for P3D. As highlighted up-thread, new versions of P3D will inevitably be incompatible with some existing products and without updates we'll be stuck with either accepting a dwindling list of compatible add-ons, or sticking with an old version of P3D. Neither is particularly appetising and I don't think anything LM is planning or not planning will change that. Fine for the big boys building their own add-ons for their own sims, but bad for us stuck between a consumer platform and a pro platform in a space that used to be wide enough but is rapidly narrowing to an either/or choice.

[netshadoe]

3 minutes ago, neilhewitt said:

The more time I spend in that community the less likely I think it is that MSFS will ever support all of the advanced options (multi-view etc) that Classic MSFS used to support years ago. The vast majority of people are flying single-screen with joystick, mouse and keyboard. If that's 90% of your audience there's little money in catering for the other 10%. LM has to cater for it, because that is most of their 'real' audience.

This...

I think you hit the nail on the head here, and I'm willing to be wrong about this.  I think MSFS is more about the 'video game', and less about 'true' simulation.  Don't get me wrong, they have a great platform with new innovations...but I feel they are unfortunately catering more to the casual gamer more than the hardcore simmer.

[NZ255]

3 hours ago, netshadoe said:

I think MSFS is more about the 'video game', and less about 'true' simulation. 

We’ve been here before, we know how it turned out 🙂

That thread is very interesting as has all the same comments. 

[netshadoe]

9 minutes ago, NZ255 said:

We’ve been here before, we know how it turned out 🙂

Lol...you forgot Microsoft Flight in 2012...dropped within the year of release.

[z06z33]

4 hours ago, netshadoe said:

This...

I think you hit the nail on the head here, and I'm willing to be wrong about this.  I think MSFS is more about the 'video game', and less about 'true' simulation.  Don't get me wrong, they have a great platform with new innovations...but I feel they are unfortunately catering more to the casual gamer more than the hardcore simmer.

I've been a serious simmer for 25 years and have never had the desire to use multiple displays as the gaps between them break immersion. In today's age of 50+inch screens and VR there are very few purposes for multiple monitors.

Edited November 10, 2021 by z06z33

[netshadoe]

1 hour ago, z06z33 said:

I've been a serious simmer for 25 years and have never had the desire to use multiple displays as the gaps between them break immersion. In today's age of 50+inch screens and VR there are very few purposes for multiple monitors.

That wasn't my point.

I've been using Flightsims since Sublogic put out its first simulator before Microsoft bought it out over 40 years ago...heck, my 1st plane simulator pre-dated that - a P51 Mustang simulator on a Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer, written in BASIC and stored on a cassette tape, so I've seen the evolution of many flightsims over the years.  I still think MSFS isn't being catered to the flightsim crowd, as much as they are paying lip service to us...it's just that....fluff. I have yet to see an update that has blown my socks off. Yes, performance has gotten better, and the eye candy has become prettier....but there has been no substance that has made me want to change.  To be fair, even P3Dv5 is a half-baked rush job too that LM pushed out to grab a few bucks before MSFS was released...so it's not just MSFS I'm picking on.

My point is that MSFS is catering to the XBox casual gamer.

What serious simmer would use an XBox to fly a simulator? Does an XBox player care if the weather is accurate? Do they care if they can access historical weather? Do they care if FSUIPC works since they will never use it? Do they care if the AI use real schedules? Probably not...and MS and ASOBO know that and focus on the money makers like placing pretty things here and there to juice people up and make them think things are moving along, and creating a few challenges or tours, and then offering up better challenges and tours in the store to sell....meanwhile, nothing of substance comes out or works.

Again, I'm happy if I'm wrong and MSFS turns out to be the end all and be all of simulators...but as a serious simming platform, it isn't even close.  There is more to simulating than pretty clouds and great scenery and silly challenges setup to interest the casual flyer.

The serious simmer isn't what the bean counters at MS or ASOBO are looking for...It's about glitzing up a video game enough to attract those who will spend on DLCs (a fancy term we call 'addons' using simmer parlance). We have already seen how the money is everything...look how fast P3D was dropped by DLC...sorry...addon developers.  It's not about the hardcore simmer...it's about the almighty buck...bitcoin,..ruble...etc.

Again...I'd be very happy to be wrong.

Edited November 10, 2021 by netshadoe
Spelling and Grammar

[micstatic]

I get that msfs still has significant limitations. Especially to the serious simmer.  Sometimes I wonder if the serious simmer will migrate to xp. I haven’t. But am exporting. One thing xp has right now is developer interest and support. We are far behind that here. 

[TurboKen]

13 hours ago, Rogen said:

Before I flew to a location I'd not been at previously I do a few sim flights to get the lay of the land and airport so to speak.

I do the same thing. 🙂

 

[kand]

1 hour ago, z06z33 said:

I've been a serious simmer for 25 years and have never had the desire to use multiple displays as the gaps between them break immersion. In today's age of 50+inch screens and VR there are very few purposes for multiple monitors.

hey I am a serious simmer also! Have a home cockpit with 3 HDTVs running the visuals with bezel management filling the gaps, yes VR maybe the future for some but not for everyone! 

The reality is that the platform needs to cater for all, P3d does that job nicely but looks ugly to me now that MSFS has hit the street, but MSFS does not deliver against my needs either- the market has been split the last 18months and it has ruined my sim experience really as I play a game on my home cockpit or fly numbers using my hardware!

I hope that all platforms advance, that can only be good for everyone, usually the market dictates but because P3D is propped up by the US military I am sure we will see a v6 at least and it will be a darn sight better than V5 so far.... we can hope ! 

[Ray Proudfoot]

2 hours ago, z06z33 said:

In today's age of 50+inch screens and VR there are very few purposes for multiple monitors.

Second monitors are very useful for moving maps like Aivlasoft’s EFB. That can’t be displayed on the primary display without ruining the immersion factor.

[remcosol]

I am not sure that vr is the future for everyone, it is very impressive and immersive , hardware is catching up, but i stil prefer real switches etc......

[W2DR]

5 hours ago, z06z33 said:

In today's age of 50+inch screens and VR there are very few purposes for multiple monitors.

How do you watch the in-flight movies?