46 minutes ago, Zangoose said:

Here’s the first preview

They've put too many wheels on the 737MAX's MLG. 0/10, try again... 🙃

Seriously though, the hype train has been set in motion.

28 minutes ago, Stearmandriver said:

I'd be thrilled if instead of a 777, it was a clip of a 737 flying an RF leg perfectly stable, with no wing rocking and dead centered flight guidance.  😁

I purchased the 737-600 last night, and I had my first quick test flight this morning. I noticed that it is not quite as precise with speeds when changing them on approach using the autothrottle as it is in P3D. I reduced speed from 200 to 190 knots, and it dropped down to 184 before increasing to 190 (in P3D, the speed would drop to about 188 in that scenario), and it also slowed down to final approach speed a LOT quicker. It is also a lot more sensitive with respect to ground handling, although I am coming directly from the NGX (with the default handling) as opposed to the NGXu.

The VC looks really beautiful, and the framerates are super smooth on my very modest PC (although I have not tested it in heavily built up areas yet, or with lots of AI planes).

Edited December 9, 20232 yr by Christopher Low

1 hour ago, Zangoose said:

Here’s the first preview

 

If PMDG is releasing teaser pictures of the 777, I think beta can't be far away.  Unless there is some weird show stopping issue, I would guess that beta will take 3 to 4 months for the 777, just like it did for the 737.

please, I'm begging, just allow them to spend some time getting the T7 out the door before time is spent on yet another 737....

i think it's looking like the T7 is ready for previews at Christmas and hopefully beta the same time, early 2024 release fingers crossed

From the PMDG forums: (https://forum.pmdg.com/forum/main-forum/general-discussion-news-and-announcements/272774-17nov23-updates-on-pending-updates-and-some-other-updates-for-your-weekend)

Quote

[17NOV23] Updates on Pending Updates and some other updates for your weekend...

[...]  I suspect we will begin the preview process in close proximity to when the ship goes into beta testing.

With the first preview image released today, this means the 777 has entered beta testing now or will begin very soon. 

I guess with all their hiring new staff, PMDG might end the beta a bit earlier than the typical 3 months, but I don't think a Christmas release is in the books. But who knows, I'd love to be proven wrong... 

 

Interesting insight into how RSR/PMDG feels about the MSFS marketplace, and costs vs benefits for 3PDs, MS/Asobo, users:

https://forum.pmdg.com/forum/main-forum/general-discussion-news-and-announcements/274949-08dec23-friday-tablet-and-737-news?p=275054#post275054
You know, ultimately- I think the community benefits no matter where you purchase. Microsoft has done a very good job of containing the fees charged to 3rd party devs- and I don't feel that they are unfair for the exposure Microsoft provides to a tiny company like ours. I don't mind the fact that they keep part of the purchase price because that is going toward underwriting their development effort for the sim- and that is something I can support emotionally because it benefits all of us. If we tally up all of our technology costs to run distribution from our own location- the difference in cost to us is very small compared to the cost of having Microsoft do all of that on our behalf. From the user standpoint- there is tremendous simplicity in having Marketplace manage all of it for you- but the down side is that the update process is slower. So at the end of the day- it doesn't matter to us where you make your purchase- so long as you DO make one. 🙂 -RSR

Released by April-July timeframe, if I had to put money on it and knowing Randazzo’s promotional antics.

Come on, ain't two weeks enough for a beta?!

On 12/9/2023 at 9:44 AM, Stearmandriver said:

I'd be thrilled if instead of a 777, it was a clip of a 737 flying an RF leg perfectly stable, with no wing rocking and dead centered flight guidance.  😁

Indeed.
 

I really hope a new improved LNAV logic actually appears on the 777 with RF legs and RNPar  capabilities instead of the same old LNAV version.

Edited December 10, 20232 yr by g-liner
Spelling

I assume release could be around March, April 2024, if we lucky..

cheers 😉

I'll wager that they've already started beta and that release is imminent. I suspect that 80% of any remaining beta is testing the UFT.

My bet is that we see it either on the 15th or the 18th to give folks a few days to order as Christmas presents.

How else would Robert, a hanger, and egg nog all end up at the same place at the same time? Egg nog season ends on 1/2/2024...

Edited December 10, 20232 yr by MDFlier

1 hour ago, MDFlier said:

I'll wager that they've already started beta and that release is imminent. I suspect that 80% of any remaining beta is testing the UFT.

My bet is that we see it either on the 15th or the 18th to give folks a few days to order as Christmas presents.

How else would Robert, a hanger, and egg nog all end up at the same place at the same time? Egg nog season ends on 1/2/2024...

Even if there’s any truth to this, I doubt this will be a Christmas release. Just for the support factor alone. This is a time of the year when everyone wants to spend time with their families and check out, not being glued to the forums or ticketing systems to support user issues of the product that just released. 

Edited December 10, 20232 yr by Drumcode

2 hours ago, MDFlier said:

I'll wager that they've already started beta and that release is imminent. I suspect that 80% of any remaining beta is testing the UFT.

My bet is that we see it either on the 15th or the 18th to give folks a few days to order as Christmas presents.

How else would Robert, a hanger, and egg nog all end up at the same place at the same time? Egg nog season ends on 1/2/2024...

Rob's exact wording was "Previews are being prepared- and I'm looking forward to welcoming you into the hangar with a glass of egg-nog in hand."

While I'd love to see a release before Christmas, the invitation to the hangar with an egg-nog might only refer to showing some more previews.

Then again, Rob hinted at a shorter beta phase this time, from his PMDG forum update on 17 Nov:

"Entering beta always leads to quite a bit of discussion surrounding "how long will that take?" This dev cycle is a bit unusual in that the code team got way out ahead of the modeling team, so we have been engaged in a tremendous amount of testing and cleanup that we normally don't get to do until after beta testing begins. I think this will bear fruit in the beta cycle and hopefully that will lead to a shorter beta engagement."

We'll see... Reading tea leaves can be fun, but notoriously inaccurate... 

April 1st jokes in December. Wait for a buggy  PMDG 777 in your Christmas stockings for MSFS. They have no competition to release it anytime soon.

Edited December 10, 20232 yr by JBDB-MD80

The 777 won't be released this year because:

1) Just like the DC6 and 737 for MSFS, Randazzo will typically announce when it enters beta testing. Randazzo did not do a surprise "drop" of the DC6 or 737, the public knew when beta testing started and the progress of beta testing, based on updates from Randazzo.

2) Releasing the 777 so close to Christmas holidays is a horrible idea, because if there are some issues with it and some key PMDG staff are on Christmas holidays, Randazzo can't call the team back into the office to do hotfixes (even asking staff to work remotely during the Christmas holidays to fix problems is very annoying and hurts staff morale). Thus, the release of the PMDG 777 will happen when the staff are back from holidays.  If PMDG had released the 777 in the first week of December, I think that's okay because the staff probably haven't gone on vacation yet, and there would be time to do some hotfixes before the staff leave for vacation.  But it's already two weeks from Christmas so it's too late to release the 777.

Just wait for Randazzo to announce beta testing of the 777. When he announces it has entered beta testing, the release will probably come 3 to 4 months after.

Edited December 10, 20232 yr by abrams_tank