51 minutes ago, s0cks said:

I don't think you remember correctly. Asobo did a project for HoloLens using Bing photogrammetry. It was a small area around the citadel of Machu Picchu. That then led to the idea for MSFS. I don't think there was ever the idea to create a "world sim". It was always to be a flight sim and consequently it shared a lot of FSX code.

I do think there is potential perhaps for boat/sub simulation, but I think we're a long way off from anything like a driving sim. The ground mesh just isn't high detailed enough, and the scenery at ground level is still a bit meh, even with the best photogrammetry. If that data improves then perhaps.

I think he means the Microsoft ESP, the ESP was a visual simulation that could simulate the World as a whole. It could be used as a truck simulator, train simulator, ship simulator etc. Lockheed Martin Licensed it and developed P3D on it. 

1 hour ago, ca_metal said:

I think he means the Microsoft ESP, the ESP was a visual simulation that could simulate the World as a whole. It could be used as a truck simulator, train simulator, ship simulator etc. Lockheed Martin Licensed it and developed P3D on it. 

Ah ok. Gotcha!

4 hours ago, ca_metal said:

They are actually open world. Open world doesn't mean the whole world is available. Open World actually means there's not linearity. You can do whatever you want, whenever you want. It doesn't even need to have a large scenery to be considered open world. The concept is simple: 

 

Appreciate the clarification 🤙

4 hours ago, ca_metal said:

I think he means the Microsoft ESP, the ESP was a visual simulation that could simulate the World as a whole. It could be used as a truck simulator, train simulator, ship simulator etc. Lockheed Martin Licensed it and developed P3D on it. 

Yes, here's Microsoft's early announcement of ESP 1.0, back in 2007. It gives a good insight into what they were planning at the time. I also think it gives a clue to what they've done since then, licensing ESP to Lockheed Martin, and shutting down the FSX team. It could simply be that they saw what this could become, but first needed to wait for technology to catch up, which involved building some of this technology themselves. Now, with tech such as Bing Imagery and Azure AI etc, they have a better framework to reach the goals outlined in that initial announcement. 

So it wouldn't surprise me if the future of MSFS followed a similar pattern -- using their experience in flight sim to build a world, then iron out a lot of bugs, to arrive at a platform which could be used as they outlined with ESP 1.0:

Quote

The initial version of the platform focuses on Microsoft’s established strength and expertise in aviation capabilities and is targeted to military and commercial aviation audiences. Future versions of Microsoft ESP will expand beyond aviation into ground and maritime operations, indoor and avatar-centric simulations for commercial, government and academic learning opportunities.

One day they might announce the new ESP platform, that will "help government, commercial and academic organizations apply immersive games-based technology and interactive learning experiences to improve work-force readiness and increase operational excellence."

In the meantime, flight simmers are reaping the benefits.