39 minutes ago, urthgental said:

Nothing is perfect, and it will never be.

Of course everybody can point out things that could have been improved.

But criticism a QC or ‚poor management decisions‘ is something completely different.

first, you have no clue how much QA effort can be spend to such a WU nor what needs to be considered for any management decision.

Microsofts commitment and investment into this franchise is just mind blowing.

It sounds like little children sitting at mom‘s lunch dish, nagging around whatever is being served. 

The evidence of poor QC from launch is there for all to see, countless updates with issues, regressions etc. I totally agree nothing is perfect, but this title could be soooo much better if they paid more attention to what they are doing with each update and had a better QC approach.

1 minute ago, MarcG said:

The evidence of poor QC from launch is there for all to see, countless updates with issues, regressions etc. I totally agree nothing is perfect, but this title could be soooo much better if they paid more attention to what they are doing with each update and had a better QC approach.

I know absolutely zip about Asobo's QC, but what I do know is that almost nothing I purchase from any FS company, be it Inibuilds, Orbx, or whoever comes without flaws, the proof being that pretty much every addon I own is on a version number other than the original, as updates corrections and etc. are released.

I don't expect flawless perfection from Asobo any more than I expect it from any other FS company. These are often extremely complex products, and in Asobo's case they are literally developing and employing experimental AI techniques that are almost guaranteed to have teething pains.

Problem reports?

Yes!

Pretty much labeling them incompetent at the drop of a hat?

Eh. Not so much.

Again no one I can see is asking for "flawless", it really is quite simple to understand; They can do better. 🙂

16 minutes ago, MarcG said:

Again no one I can see is asking for "flawless", it really is quite simple to understand; They can do better. 🙂

Perhaps I'm doing the Asobo team a disservice, though since focus shifted to developing MSFS2024 this time last year, it's felt as if QC on MSFS2020 has plummeted.

I'm expecting MSFS2024 to have a much stronger foundation at release than MSFS2020 did and with far more resource thrown at it, the new sim should see less problematic SU, WU and CU. 🤞

1 hour ago, F737MAX said:

since focus shifted to developing MSFS2024

Has the focus shifted?

Asobos actual narrative is that they are not only continuing as normal with MSFS 2020 development, they are actually intending to back-port compatible MSFS 2024 features/technologies into the original sim.

Is there some concrete (as in objectively confirmable) reason to doubt them?

14 hours ago, Krakin said:

.... and will revert to the old method for the northern regions in the coming days.

If that's the case, happy days!

I flew St Maarten > Anguilla > British Virgin Islands yesterday (south Caribbean) and was delighted to see the water masks were mostly looking great.   So if we get the north Caribbean masks 'back' then I'll be very happy with this update.

Nice heli flight with the  Cabri along the string of the Virgin Islands TUPW-TIST 😃 ! The mesh is good, the vegetation looks good, the  WM I saw were kinda nice. Good makeover of the towns in St Thomas. Only thing it took half the trip for MSFS to download the clouds...

1 hour ago, HiFlyer said:

Has the focus shifted?

IMO, I think it has.

Given the high amount of MS marketing spiel, there's hardly going to be a flat-out admission that there has been resource prioritisation towards the new sim over the current one.

My sense that there's been a shift is based on the reducing amount of new features revealed in subsequent Sim Updates.

 

Spoiler

Sim Update 10:

Quote

New Features

•     Various improvements have been worked on for DX12 around stability, performance and memory usage while we keep working on the feature.
•     DirectX 12 support is currently in development and can show performance and GPU memory utilization regressions compared to DirectX 11. Due to higher GPU memory consumption, the simulator may be oversubscribing memory, which negatively impacts performance. Lowering graphics settings can help avoid this situation in DX12.
•     You can now add secondary windows on the left and right sides of your main window, to enlarge your field of view, especially when you use several monitors. This option can be triggered via the Experimental option menu in game.
•     Nvidia DLSS is now available as an anti-aliasing and upscaling option on PC.
•     We implemented a new cloud layer system that will provide more vertical precision at low altitudes to better reflect the various cloud altitudes and thickness close to the ground.
•     We fixed several systems related to the bush trip activities including save system improvements (cross platform/cloud save + autosave from last waypoint/poi), overall progression system improvements and making sure we refuel after each leg completion.
•     The VFR map has been updated to include a number of new quality-of-life features thanks to Working title, as well as add compatibility for the G1000 NXi external flight plan system.
•     The G1000 NXi is now the default G1000 in the simulator! This brings a number of features to the G1000, taking it close to the real NXi unit, including: VNAV, procedure turns, holds, arc legs, visual approaches, accurate autopilot/modes, full RNAV, and much, much more.
•     New key mapping options are now available for the taxi and navigation ribbon visual assistances and the display of multiplayer nameplates.
•     All in game moving boats now have a wake effect on PC. Note that not all boats are moving in the world.
•     Low power mode is now available for PC users via the Experimental option menu in game. While in the menu, this option now displays a blurred image instead of the hangar in the background. Other options and behaviors are available to reduce the sim’s power consumption: you can enable VSync, framerate is limited to 20FPS when you minimize the window, and it’s divided by 2 when you launch a download.
•     The encryption of cfg files for premium and deluxe planes as been removed so the behavior of those aircraft can be modded.
•     A new package ordering system is also available on PC via the Experimental option menu in game. The way the content.xml file used to work has changed and it may impact the behavior of your add-ons, if they were writing directly in this file. Details about the changes can be found on DevSupport’s homepage here.
•     A new Spotlight Event landing challenge is available for you to fly, featuring the Cessna Citation CJ4 landing at Entebbe International Airport in Uganda. Due to the low cloud cover, this challenge requires the use of ILS in order to successfully land.

 

Sim Update 12:

Quote

New Content/Features

•     WASM on Xbox
•     Optimized the “Checking for updates” phase to reduce the booting time of the simulator; improved the download speed in the installation manager; improved loading time before booting to the main menu
•     Added a new assistance option to customize the intensity of turbulence experienced during flight (based on current altitude, environment, and weather conditions).
•     Turkish and Korean languages have been added into the sim
•     Added an input key to toggle Flight Assistant Panel
•     Spotlight Event Pack: a pack of activities is now available in the Marketplace, which contains a curated selection of 13 Spotlight Events from the past. Please note: completing these activities will not count towards Spotlight Event related achievements.

 

Sim Update 13:

No new content and/or features, only general bug fixes.

 

Sim Update 14:

Quote

New Content/Features

•     Added flight plan assistance setting for ATC in the user experience assistance settings so that users can request the ATC to favor their flight plan or world map flight settings over the current conditions. This assistance is set to “Active” by default. Active: ATC will set the active runway and approach for the departure and arrival airport based on the users flight plan or settings in the world map. Deactivated: ATC will set the active runway and approach based on current conditions only.
•     ATC now clears a step to the next altitude some time before arriving at the previously cleared altitude, rather than once arrived at the previously cleared altitude. (Next step is issued when at 2000FT from cleared altitude rather than 250FT from cleared altitude).
•     ATC Vectoring bug fixes:
•         Now assigning the correct clearance when the first two waypoints were one over the other,
•         Now assigning a new vector & clearance every time the user asks the ATC for a new vector.
•     Added completely new Cirrus SR22T G6 model with custom engine simulation, book-accurate performance, and extensive Perspective Plus NXi features.

 

Personally, I consider the ATC-related 'new content/features' in SU14 to be bug fixes.

But as you can see above, there has been a reducing number of new content appearing in sim updates for a while.
This is why I believe focus to have shifted. Just my 2 pennies...

If you insist on a quality of improvements that would require an amount of work that they are not currently staffed to handle, they may very well decide to go to a subscription based service ($10 or $20 per month?) to be able to provide provide the results demanded by users. I find it quite astonishing that I made one payment 4 years ago and have been getting constant updates and new aircraft ever since. It doesn't seem sustainable JMHO.

There is an old saying: 'be careful what you wish for' meaning there is often a cost associated to what you want that you may not want to pay.

38 minutes ago, rjquick said:

It doesn't seem sustainable JMHO.

In sim marketplace. They're not doing it because they love us, they're doing it because they know all the free stuff keeps us coming back to the sim, which then increases the chance of us buying something from the marketplace. Aside from that it also intices new customers to make the leap.

I am hoping that there will be a Valentine's Day sale at the MS Marketplace, because there are plenty of airports that I want to upgrade from WISH LIST to OWNED!

54 minutes ago, rjquick said:

If you insist on a quality of improvements that would require an amount of work that they are not currently staffed to handle, they may very well decide to go to a subscription based service ($10 or $20 per month?)

 

 find it quite astonishing that I made one payment 4 years ago and have been getting constant updates and new aircraft ever since. It doesn't seem sustainable JMHO.

 

 Why, what  a subscription has anything to do with that ? They sell their "legendary" aircraft, or whatever they call them, on a one shot basis for a trifle. They could do the same for the sceneries  I obviously don't ask for it everything being equal  but if it means better WU, why not ? 

About your astonishment . They are not a charity, as far as I know 😁, somebody pays  somewhere. I'd say that they have a smart business model in this regard. Adding to what Krak' said, a significant part part of the market is the Game Pass . They need to feed the beast so to speak.

Anyway,a clarification seems needed at that point : I see a consensus to say that it is a nice WU with some of us adding that there are some flaws which could have maybe been remedied to before release. Thats all.

Edited February 4, 20242 yr by Dominique_K

Free content & updates is nothing new, game developers with far far less players than MSFS have been doing this for over a decade!

Edited February 4, 20242 yr by MarcG

3 minutes ago, MarcG said:

Free content & updates is nothing new, game developers with far far less players than MSFS have been doing this for over a decade!

Absolutely - IMO there is no greater example of this than Euro Truck Simulator 2 by SCS Software.   Released in 2013 and with no further core upgrade costs, the present day sim is unrecognisable from that 2013 release.   Entirely different graphics engine, lighting, features, etc.    In their case, I believe the generous upgrades have been funded by payware coverage packs; expanding the 'driveable world'.

I've paid practically peanuts for some of the car racing Sims (and ETS2/ATS2) and raced them for years, overall thousands of hours of enjoyment and they still give me free stuff!