Seasons no longer 'started'

[Pilot53 544]

1 hour ago, edpatino said:

Regarding "Seasons", are people talking about the changing vegetation and terrain according to the time of the year?. Aren't they already covered in MSFS2020 by external programs like REX AccuSeasons or Bijan?. To me, any of those two make really a good work.

Sorry for the question, but maybe I'm confused.

Accuseason does a good job changing the vegetation at low altitude, but once you climb out it doesn't work anymore.  Good for GA flying and landings but that's about it.  They also need to add a color correction to the sat imagery to show seasonal changes in the ground textures so its not bright green summer all the time.  

[Alvega 2,126]

7 hours ago, 767lover said:

Under wishlist, seasons has been 'started' for a while now. Not anymore. The FS2024 trailer showed seasons, so this is a strong suggestion that seasons won't make it to 2020. 

It could also be they are not "started" anymore because they are finished and are "planned" to be announced as the July surprise. 😊 There's always hope.

[z06z33 781]

4 hours ago, AnkH said:

Seriously, I still wonder how many resources were "wasted" in the development of MSFS 2024 that could have been used in bug fixing in MSFS 2020 as such that many bugs would have already been fixed in the last 2 years... We will never know...

Fixing bugs doesn't bring in revenue a new release does.... Companies are in business to make money.

[vgbaron 3,726]

So they pool all their resources into just fixing what's wrong with 2020 and they finally get it perfect. Then they sit back for a few years and create a new version. Any company that follows that model will be shortly out of business. 

Product maintenance and updates are extremely important but so is future product development. Any company needs product development to continue to grow so I am perfectly happy with Asobo's allocation of resources. 

To me, it implies they are thinking ahead and are in this for the long haul.

 

[hanhamreds 592]

The way I see it is this, MS approach Asobo and say hey we want to create a new flight sim - Asobo turn around and say ok - can we have the FSX source code please.

Asobo then build a new SIM based around the proven but now dated and somewhat limited FSX source code, they implement new tech like machine learning, cloud based streaming etc - it's essentially an experiment.

Things move along - they improve various aspects of the SIM, they listen to the customer base and iron out some of the teething issues - Asobo are learning the genre - it becomes apparent that the old code needs a re-write, both to improve performance with new hardware and to allow those cool new features like seasons, re-write the ATC etc that everyone wants.

the Answer a new product - call it 2024 so it sounds new also and increases sells - job done.

[abrams_tank 7,484]

2 hours ago, vgbaron said:

So they pool all their resources into just fixing what's wrong with 2020 and they finally get it perfect. Then they sit back for a few years and create a new version. Any company that follows that model will be shortly out of business. 

Product maintenance and updates are extremely important but so is future product development. Any company needs product development to continue to grow so I am perfectly happy with Asobo's allocation of resources. 

To me, it implies they are thinking ahead and are in this for the long haul.

 

I agree. Unless a subscription model is used, no company is going to just sit there and fix bugs, without adding new features to attract new users. A company that does that will be out of business sooner or later.

Somebody has to pay for Asobo, pay for Working Title, pay Blackshark AI, pay Meteoblue, etc.

As a consumer, I don't like paying more. As a flight sim enthusiast though, I don't mind paying something that is reasonable, to help fund what is the most advanced flight simulator of the 2020s. In fact, MSFS is so advanced compared to the competition, it's barely a competition these days, IMO. Now what I don't want is for the MSFS team to stall or slow their progress. So far, the MSFS team has not slowed their progress.  Just look at Working Title - from the G1000, to AAU1, to AAU2, that's tremendous progress that Working Title have made. If MSFS can keep up the progress, I don't mind buying a new copy of MSFS every 4 years, provided the price is reasonable.

Edited June 16, 2023 by abrams_tank

[Romeo_Tango 143]

7 hours ago, GSalden said:

When FS2020 was released I remember that they stated that we would not only receive free updates but also paid updates.

No one is that naive to think that we would pay 1 time and then receive continues updates and improvements for 10 year ….

At least most of us here are not …. 🤠

I agree with you 100%. 

My big fear is that MSFS 2024, might require more powerful hardware to run it with all the eye candy we see in the trailers.

For people like me, this would be quite disappointing. I have only just been able to afford some upgrades that allows me to get decent performance in VR........................And so it would go on. This has always been the case with every new version of MSFS.

Started simming with MSFS 98, and for me every new version called for some upgraded hardware.

I can only hope I am making a wrong assumption this time.

[Mace 1,964]

6 hours ago, hanhamreds said:

The way I see it is this, MS approach Asobo and say hey we want to create a new flight sim - Asobo turn around and say ok - can we have the FSX source code please.

Asobo then build a new SIM based around the proven but now dated and somewhat limited FSX source code, they implement new tech like machine learning, cloud based streaming etc - it's essentially an experiment.

Things move along - they improve various aspects of the SIM, they listen to the customer base and iron out some of the teething issues - Asobo are learning the genre - it becomes apparent that the old code needs a re-write, both to improve performance with new hardware and to allow those cool new features like seasons, re-write the ATC etc that everyone wants.

the Answer a new product - call it 2024 so it sounds new also and increases sells - job done.

^^Exactly this ... my thoughts were similar when MSFS2024 was announced.

I too think that the changes needed (flight model, seasons, ATC etc.) required such a deep code re-write that they could not incorporate these things into MSFS (2020) without major headaches and drawbacks.

[Pilot53 544]

2 hours ago, Romeo_Tango said:

I agree with you 100%. 

My big fear is that MSFS 2024, might require more powerful hardware to run it with all the eye candy we see in the trailers.

Yeah I hear that, I finally got to what feels like a no compromise vr system in msfs with the 4090 and 7950x3d.  That system cost as much as an instrument rating!

[jeansy 344]

People arent going to like this,

but gaming isn't directed at boomers and Gen Xers, its targeted at the millennials and younger gens

There is limited money in the older generations due to family and general financial constraints like mortgages 

The younger generations have the burnable income that games target.

Look at steam and the xbox store, all the popular games have addon packs that require users to upgrade to be on the level playing ground., mobile games do the same thing

the loss of reasons why MS isnt doing things "logical" is targeted around their businesses and marketing plans

if you want a once off with all the available  features stick to things like xplane or p3d

gaming is a multi billion industry which is continuing to evolve both for the entertainment and income of everyone 

[rjquick 234]

If you want seasons, you need to go back to FSX. It's an outdated concept just like properly working PAPI lights and ILS approaches. Today is about getting 10 points for rescuing little Johnny from the cliff in a simple to fly helicopter. Coming soon to XBOX! Stay tuned for pre-order information.

[Ricardo41 5,959]

I'm hoping that MSFA and Asobo really throw all their expertise and resources behind MSFS 2024. I see no need to support legacy software. "As is" the sim offers plenty, so folks who want to stick with a legacy sim can continue to enjoy it. 

Some addons will survive the move to MSFS 2024, some won't; some developers will provide free upgrades, other will make a cash dive for your pockets. 

At any rate, MSFS 2020 already feels like "yesterday's game".

[Ricardo41 5,959]

2 hours ago, rjquick said:

If you want seasons, you need to go back to FSX. It's an outdated concept just like properly working PAPI lights and ILS approaches. Today is about getting 10 points for rescuing little Johnny from the cliff in a simple to fly helicopter. Coming soon to XBOX! Stay tuned for pre-order information.

99.999999999% of folks who are interested in buying MSFS probably think that "PAPI lights" is a Reggaeton band, and when they hear "ILS" a puzzled look crosses their face: wait, what? MSFS can do my taxes?

If the franchise is to survive, it needs those "mass market $$$" - some of the acquired cash might then trickle down to the hardcore crowd (an extremely small filter bubble); and in order for this to happen, a lot of cash will go to developing free stuff like the Dune or Top Gun Maverick expansions. 

[MikeyOnTheFlightDeck 209]

Is MS2020 already becoming the poor relation?

[MarcG 3,035]

Going back to the actual topic of Seasons, I don't mind if it comes in MSFS24 and not in MSFS2020, would I would mind if it's a half baked attempt that clearly needs "more work". They've spent long enough on it, so it should be a fully functional feature from Day One with the potential of micro improvements/fixes thereafter.