I know Sérgio since quite a few years, and visit his Helisimmer site anytime I need feedback on a rotary wing product for any of the platforms he covers.

During more than a decade Sérgio has been a reference in rotary wing simulation, and since FS 2020 also a very enthusiastic user and supporter of the platform, so I read his comments with attention and agree with him in most of what he has to say, even though I am watching FS 2024 with pink shades and somehow fell "in Love" with remarkable flight simulation platform already 🙂

My initial impressions on MSFS2024 – I am not pleased • HeliSimmer.com

Edited November 25, 20241 yr by jcomm

Read this the other day, good to see him speak his mind and not play happy families with MS/Asobo just because he got a ride at the Tech Alpha Grand Canyon Event.

His point about PPL-H is spot on as well.

Sérgio shows in his article that "biased" is surely not an adjective that can be applied to what he wrote !

I fully agree with his points too !

 

Excellent write up. I have the same experience with the H125.

Aside from the bugs and loading issues—which I completely agree with, by the way—I find the complaint about being "forced" to fly fixed-wing aircraft in an optional career mode a bit silly. Especially when you can specialize in the helicopter skill tree fairly early on. It's like complaining in a racing simulator that you have to do car missions before unlocking motorcycle missions. While there's nothing wrong with preferring helicopters, he's acting as if fixed-wing aircraft are the bane of his existence.

9 minutes ago, megasus said:

Aside from the bugs and loading issues—which I completely agree with, by the way—I find the complaint about being "forced" to fly fixed-wing aircraft in an optional career mode a bit silly. Especially when you can specialize in the helicopter skill tree fairly early on. It's like complaining in a racing simulator that you have to do car missions before unlocking motorcycle missions. While there's nothing wrong with preferring helicopters, he's acting as if fixed-wing aircraft are the bane of his existence.

I believe Sérgio's oppinion is based in the Real World and how obtaining a RW helicopter pilot license works.

I think the simulator where a -> New! <- Career Mode is introduced, meant, I believe, to translate into the Virtual World of Flight Simulation the various aspects of a pilot career, should do it as close to how it works IRL as possible, and, indeed, IRL I know many non-military helicopter pilots who got their commercial pilot licenses without EVER having flown a fxed wing aircraft !

I know some prefer activites/missions to be tied to the career mode and checkrides/etc, but I'd much prefer they allowed free-form activities outside of the career path. i.e. just pick an aircraft compatible with the activity and then go do it. In any case, something that can easily be unlocked in a future update hopefully.
 

Edited November 25, 20241 yr by lwt1971

12 minutes ago, jcomm said:

I believe Sérgio's oppinion is based in the Real World and how obtaining a RW helicopter pilot license works.

I see what you're getting at, but I think Asobo may have done this intentionally to steer new players to fixed-wing aircraft first, to prevent frustration. Helicopters are objectively harder to fly than fixed-wing aircraft.

If you want to fly helicopters in the career (which I'm doing, and loving), all it takes is a single lap around the pattern in a fixed-wing aircraft before you can move on to the commercial helicopter license. That doesn't seem so bad?

Edit: Having read Sergio's article, I realize I'm wrong about the above. As he points out, you need to complete a number of fixed-wing missions before you can get your helicopter license.

Edited November 25, 20241 yr by martinboehme

I've now read the whole article.

I had hoped he would talk more about the helicopter flight dynamics, which I would love to hear his opinion on, but he really only says that the H125 flies better than in MSFS 2020, and he talks about a bug that can throw the helicopter off violently when approaching helipads on buildings (which I've also experienced).

I does sound as if for some reason the sim is not yet running well for him - he says it takes 15 minutes to load - so I hope once that is sorted out, he will get more into how the helicopters actually fly.

Hey guys. Thank you very much for reading the article and for your kind words. And a shout out to @jcomm and my thanks for sharing it here.

38 minutes ago, lwt1971 said:

I'd much prefer they allowed free-form activities outside of the career path. i.e. just pick an aircraft compatible with the activity and then go do it

This is my point of view. While I welcome a structured way of doing things, which onboards new simmers and provides a sense of progress, I personally have no interest in that.

  

54 minutes ago, megasus said:

Especially when you can specialize in the helicopter skill tree fairly early on

"Early on" still forces me to fly a fixed wing aircraft, which I have no interest on doing, at least 4 times, which translates to a couple of hours or more. I do not enjoy doing that. I used to a long time ago, but I haven't flown fixed-wing aircraft in years. I just don't find it fun anymore.

Being forced to fly missions to earn credits to get the next certification is also not fun to me. I have seen people saying that "that's what you do in real life", to justify it. Well, this is not real life. Flight simulators have always been somewhat of a sandbox for us to enjoy aviation freely. By forcing me to grind to be able to do the things I want to do, both that freedom and fun are removed from the equation to me.

I am not saying the current system should be removed. I am perfectly fine with people enjoying themselves the way they want to. I would like for us to have the option to not do it that way, so that I too could enjoy myself the way I want to.

We all like different things. When we force people to follow a path, we will be preventing people from following other paths.

Edited November 25, 20241 yr by SergioCosta
Misquoted a user.

I guess this is the bit you didn't agree with

Quote

I tried to fly the H125 around for a bit and the flight dynamics feel nicer than in MSFS2020.

 

4 minutes ago, martinboehme said:

I've now read the whole article.

I had hoped he would talk more about the helicopter flight dynamics, which I would love to hear his opinion on, but he really only says that the H125 flies better than in MSFS 2020, and he talks about a bug that can throw the helicopter off violently when approaching helipads on buildings (which I've also experienced).

I does sound as if for some reason the sim is not yet running well for him - he says it takes 15 minutes to load - so I hope once that is sorted out, he will get more into how the helicopters actually fly.

I've decided not to use the sim until at least the load times improve to me. 15 minutes at a time, plus the eventual CTD makes the whole experience excrutiating.

@SergioCosta thanks for your feedback and reports as always, will be looking out for your more thorough review when the sim gets usable enough for you, especially around all the helicopter flight dynamics changes and also the other physics they implemented around the activities (i.e. rotor downwash, flight dynamics impacted by carried loads in winds, etc)
 

@lwt1971 thank you very much. Both for reading, your feedback and your always amazing support to everyone here in the forums.

I do want to write a review on the sim. I wouldn't be doing anyone any favors by reviewing it now. That article will have to be enough for the time being.

@MarcG I was invited back in 2019 for the MSFS2020 event. I was invited to the 40th anniversary edition and I was invited to this event in September. So, this wasn't the first event they invited me to and I have a good relationship with them.

I am very proud to be have a good relationship with most developers, not just MS and Asobo. Nonetheless, they all know that I will always be open and honest with them and the community. Don't expect me to bash people and companies but don't expect me to sugar coat it either. We don't gain anything from either stances. I try to be as neutral, open and honest as I can. That doesn't mean I will always be able to, but I try. So, I appreciate your comment and your feedback.

Fully agree with Sergio. I was looking forward trying the missions. Specially the helicopter and waterbomber ones. But I was utterly disappointed to learn that the "cool" missions are blocked behind several sim-hours and multiple examinations, making it a chore rather than something fun.

 

To be clear, I am not against having a career mode, but about making it mandatory in order to fly any missions. 

 

Even worse, for some missions or aircraft you also need to get some credits by "farming" them in missions you may not like at all to do. 

 

Here in the official forum it is discussed (apparently with some proof, but I cant confirm) that the goal is to sell "credits" in the marketplace. 100 simcoins will cost 28 euros.

https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/the-career-mode-is-server-side-for-one-reason-only/671348

 

If that is confirmed, the decission to make missions exclusive for the careers mode, not being able to use 3rd party addons, the need to accumulate flight hours... becomes no more a bad design but a greedy approach to make the sim a pay per play platform! 

 

If this is confirmed I will be very disappointed with Microsobo. Not just for the bad direction they want to take with the sim, but by being shaddy and unclear with all this story

Edited November 25, 20241 yr by kkbelos