11 hours ago, Fielder said:

We want trains! Because then they would have to fix the tracks.

Just like roads and car traffic are "fixed"? 😄

Trains were expected in 2023 and they did not make it to MSFS fortunately: they would be just another family of erratic ground objects randomly crossing rivers and airport areas.

Edited May 3, 20242 yr by MrFuzzy

MS2024 Mission: berserk runaway train!

 

10 hours ago, btacon said:

I think that’s the vision of MSFS 2024, that’s my take anyway. Making it a true World Simulator.  
-B

Well, Microsoft have form in this regard, haven't they .. a very old (although not too successful) MSTS. 

 

This from Wiki. 

Vehicle simulation games are a genre of video games which attempt to provide the player with a realistic interpretation of operating various kinds of vehicles. This includes automobiles, aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft, military vehicles, and a variety of other vehicles. The main challenge is to master driving and steering the vehicle from the perspective of the pilot or driver, with most games adding another challenge such as racing or fighting rival vehicles. Games are often divided based on realism, with some games including more realistic physics and challenges such as fuel management.

While I don't think MSFS will include anything like this in the 2024,( I mean it is still called MSFS) I believe we may eventually see an iteration of the software engine being used in a much wider sense. Space exploration seems almost too easy with so may planets and moons in our solar system already charted and let's not forget about underwater exploration for which many of the worlds oceans are already reasonably well mapped. Add in a range of subs, support vessels, a famous shipwreck or two, (please, no jokes about the Ocean Gate disaster) a missing aircraft, search and rescue and some intense activities and challenges to go with it all and gee..., there really are no limits! 

Perhaps a better question is why wouldn't MS exploit this world landscape and scenery engine for more than just one version of the vehicle simulation genre?  IMHO such an undertaking is unlikely to be presented as a one stop shop. The onboarding of specialist software houses (Asobo +) and the need to satisfy huge online server requirements, could mean that although the  same engine might be used, it would be in separate and different titles.  That's not to say some interfacing might not occur such as riding as a passenger on a train into Heathrow watching live air traffic coming and going ...Whoops, there goes my flight to Barbados?  Word not allowed!  

Cheers

Terry 

Edited May 3, 20242 yr by Lord Farringdon

I really believe one day it will be possible to use the flight simulator world at all levels. A really good ship simulator for the seas and lakes, a train simulator for the world rail network, and truck simulators/ car driving the roads.  Of course unlikely this will all happen at the same time as flight simulation, but could enter each mode separately but within the global data world recreated.   Would be an amazing accomplishment.   Todays open world games cant even come close in size to what MSFS has for earth in a realistic way.

Maybe MSFS/TS/SS/VS 2034?   

I want the Tour the France peloton on the roads in France so that I can follow them with a camera helicopter.

6 hours ago, Lord Farringdon said:

While I don't think MSFS will include anything like this in the 2024,( I mean it is still called MSFS) I believe we may eventually see an iteration of the software engine being used in a much wider sense. Space exploration seems almost too easy with so may planets and moons in our solar system already charted and let's not forget about underwater exploration for which many of the worlds oceans are already reasonably well mapped. Add in a range of subs, support vessels, a famous shipwreck or two, (please, no jokes about the Ocean Gate disaster) a missing aircraft, search and rescue and some intense activities and challenges to go with it all and gee..., there really are no limits! 

Hmmm.... maybe this explains the subtle brand naming change from "MS Flight Simulator" to "MSFS" (for MS Fleet or Freight Simulator). 🙂

 

2 hours ago, HighTowers said:

Of course unlikely this will all happen at the same time as flight simulation, but could enter each mode separately but within the global data world recreated.

The same base default twin Earth platform, yet load into a different module (and associated physics specialisms) depending on what you wanted to simulate, e.g. road vehicle sim, ship sim, train sim, etc.

I can absolutely see this happening in a few years from now.

 

2 hours ago, bvdboomen said:

I want the Tour the France peloton on the roads in France so that I can follow them with a camera helicopter.

If I can't follow Formula 1 or WRC races as and when they happen i.r.l. with the Bell 206 or a drone, is it even a simulator? 😁

Historical weather would be nice. But so would be historical scenery. 1927. Fly across the Atlantic and land in Paris in front of a multitude of people cheering. But get the date wrong and nobody is there 😞

This thread touches on the most revolutionary aspect of MSFS2020: its real-world scenery makes it more than a flight simulator; as others have said, it is a world simulator. With all the current agonizing over minutiae (shapes of raindrops on the windshield, etc.), the larger picture is that this sim is something that opens all kinds of doors, including trains and much more realistic auto traffic (it needs to slow down, for one thing!). The boat/ship traffic afforded by gaist is already amazing. Four years into this amazing simulator, I am still blown away by what I see, but even more excited by what is possible in the not too distant future. Virtual tourism has arrived!

3 hours ago, cobalt said:

Virtual tourism has arrived!

Let's say it's a mixed bag. Some place are good, but too many are still bad.

After watching the series Ripley' on Netflix I thought I'd pay a virtual visit to Atrani near Naples, Italy. In VR, in a Cessna 172

It was dissapointing.

Coast lines and cliffs can still be very much like in FSX with roads drawn directly on the ground, banking alongside instead of level. With a poor representaion of traffic that should fall off the roads and into the Tyrrhenian sea were it to commit to the laws of nature. 
 

We're not there yet. I am better off switching to google earth VR to take this virtual holiday when I have arrive at my virtual destination.

In some respect, X-plane does a better job at the moment in some of these areas. However, even with the aide of ortho and simheaven autogen it still does not feel like you have travelled to another part in the world like MSFS can make you believe albeit only from a certain distance. Closer to the ground and on the (default) airports X-plane does offer a more plausible world I think.

 When photogrammetry is good enough in MSFS I agree it offers great immersion when doing a city trip via drone camera or a road vehicle. But then again, so does Google Earth.

Edited May 4, 20242 yr by avhpilot

1 hour ago, avhpilot said:

 When photogrammetry is good enough in MSFS I agree it offers great immersion when doing a city trip via drone camera or a road vehicle. But then again, so does Google Earth.

You can't drive, fly, or sail in Google Earth.

1 hour ago, cobalt said:

You can't drive, fly, or sail in Google Earth.

You can fly like Superman or walk/drive in Google Earth VR using your controllers (I use Quest 3). It's like an improved version of MSFS's drone cam. It's in most cases an improved version of MSFS's photogrammetry as well and with street view available at your fingertips to toggle (180/360 degree photo's) to actually see how it really looks.

Driving a vehicle in MSFS photogrammetry is only partly fun. When there are many trees or parked cars on the roads you will crash or need to take those 'bumps' using slew mode to recover from or prevent a crash en reposition your road vehicle over and over again. Quite annoying. With normal autogen areas bridges can be obstacles causing the same trouble.

Sailing in MSFS is also only possible at open see or wide rivers. and with real weather the wind cannot be too strong or else you won't be able to steer as you wish. Then again slew mode is needed to adjust your position to continue etc.. You'd need to use a wind free weather preset or a custom one without wind.

 

 

Edited May 4, 20242 yr by avhpilot

Why cant somebody ask for trains without beeing rediculed, but lots of folks are cheering for boats?

I dont need trains, but then again I don need 150 useless fenix threads either.

 

I think trains would be super cool…giant project but maybe start small in a European country and build from there? I think it would be a fantastic edition to cities. Shinkansen in Japan would be waaaay cool!

All I want is better weather depiction - clouds, storms, turbulence etc and night lighting at stock airports and I'm happy. 

Edited May 5, 20242 yr by MikeH99