On 9/15/2026 at 11:04 AM, Peterwk said:

I still use MSFS2020, and I'm very happy with it - the graphics are excellent and all of my aircraft apart from the A220 fly very smoothly

Before installing MSFS2020 (and I was on the original Beta team), I was using FS9 and it was great - it ran very easily on my previous system and I had all the aircraft that I wanted to fly, had great AI traffic and virtual ATC (Radar Contact) . However, I was finding that more elements had stopped working and I was thinking about going to FSX. However, MSFS202 was about to be launched so I went for that instead.

Having said all that, I'm thinking about going to MSFS2024 because the Hawker 800XP is only available on it, and I want to fly it as I was part of the original BAe125-800 design team.

This was exactly where I was at. An old FS9 user who didn't really upgrade until FS2020 (FSX was a dumpster fire). I have to say hands down FS2024 is a marked improvement. Most 2020 (90%) scenery works without issue in 2024. Only a few payware sceneries will have to be upgraded. You won't be disappointed switching over at this point. It amazes me after all this time 2024 has been out 2020 is still king concerning third party software. You can tell a 2020 aircraft from a native 2024 bird. BlackSquare will need to upgrade their birds again for 2024. They had to kill the visible copilot but the birds fly decently in 20204. The models don't take advantage of 2024's advanced fight dynamics though. The jewel of switching over is FSReborn's Phenom. That bird is next level and many of its features should become standard for developers moving forward. From the flight model to the features, that mythology is where we should be going. Another note is FS2024 cators more to the GA/private jet experience. The smaller airports are packed with various GA birds parked and moving about whereby contrast airliner flying is a hot mess as ATC/AI aircraft have not been addressed at least to the level of where FS9/FSX was at. In the last dev stream Asobo has no plans to fix it. So at this point 2020 is great for VR so I'm keeping it around for that. I have a large enough drive to run both with add-ons. Last note if you can run 2020, 2024 runs better and smoother with no issues stutters. It's smooth as silk all the while streaming and my connection has a bit of buffer bloat. You can setup control options and use the 'Apply to all Aircraft' options so you're not setting up things for every aircraft.🙂

My bone of contention is Asobo's early gaming direction still leaves some default aircraft with stupid functionalities. Case in point the aircraft registration follows the user. Even if your considering career mode, the same aircraft registration doesn't follow you go through your career. It's like having the same aircraft registration of your training 172 sitting on the 777 you're flying as a captain. Who thought this was a good idea? Next is the CJ4 and Cirrus (others as well but not so noticeable as their GA) where the pilot door doesn't stay open. Once you open it your transported into the aircraft with the door shut right behind you. No option to have it open for passenger loading or anything. Clearly whoever put this on the table as a feature knows nothing about travel much less aviation in general. You can get away with that in a light sport aircraft but don't have something like that on a CJ4 that carries passengers. Luckly the Longitude doesn't suffer from this feature. Problem is I love the CJ4 but it's been a stepchild much like the Longitude since 2020 was released. In 2020 someone at Asobo had the bright idea of doors that don't open. Now in 2024 they open then close right behind you, go figure...☹️

4 hours ago, Nandengo12 said:

Same here. In the past on business trips, I have scheduled stops instead of nonstops when able, just to check out airports I haven't been to. Gave myself unnecessary 4-hour transfers in MAD, VIE, MCT, KUL, among others

Yeah the thought of a 5 or 6 hour layover doesn't bother me in the slightest.

I think the only airport I haven't enjoyed was KORD due to it being an absolute chaotic mess at the best of times! 😬

51 minutes ago, Dillon said:

This was exactly where I was at. An old FS9 user who didn't really upgrade until FS2020 (FSX was a dumpster fire). I have to say hands down FS2024 is a marked improvement. Most 2020 (90%) scenery works without issue in 2024. Only a few payware sceneries will have to be upgraded. You won't be disappointed switching over at this point. It amazes me after all this time 2024 has been out 2020 is still king concerning third party software. You can tell a 2020 aircraft from a native 2024 bird. BlackSquare will need to upgrade their birds again for 2024. They had to kill the visible copilot but the birds fly decently in 20204. The models don't take advantage of 2024's advanced fight dynamics though. The jewel of switching over is FSReborn's Phenom. That bird is next level and many of its features should become standard for developers moving forward. From the flight model to the features, that mythology is where we should be going. Another note is FS2024 cators more to the GA/private jet experience. The smaller airports are packed with various GA birds parked and moving about whereby contrast airliner flying is a hot mess as ATC/AI aircraft have not been addressed at least to the level of where FS9/FSX was at. In the last dev stream Asobo has no plans to fix it. So at this point 2020 is great for VR so I'm keeping it around for that. I have a large enough drive to run both with add-ons. Last note if you can run 2020, 2024 runs better and smoother with no issues stutters. It's smooth as silk all the while streaming and my connection has a bit of buffer bloat. You can setup control options and use the 'Apply to all Aircraft' options so you're not setting up things for every aircraft.🙂

My bone of contention is Asobo's early gaming direction still leaves some default aircraft with stupid functionalities. Case in point the aircraft registration follows the user. Even if your considering career mode, the same aircraft registration doesn't follow you go through your career. It's like having the same aircraft registration of your training 172 sitting on the 777 you're flying as a captain. Who thought this was a good idea? Next is the CJ4 and Cirrus (others as well but not so noticeable as their GA) where the pilot door doesn't stay open. Once you open it your transported into the aircraft with the door shut right behind you. No option to have it open for passenger loading or anything. Clearly whoever put this on the table as a feature knows nothing about travel much less aviation in general. You can get away with that in a light sport aircraft but don't have something like that on a CJ4 that carries passengers. Luckly the Longitude doesn't suffer from this feature. Problem is I love the CJ4 but it's been a stepchild much like the Longitude since 2020 was released. In 2020 someone at Asobo had the bright idea of doors that don't open. Now in 2024 they open then close right behind you, go figure...☹️

Not everyone has the same experience, as noted upthread. I get stutters and pop-ins with 24, but not 20.

Please delete. I posted in the wrong thread.

Edited Tuesday at 07:28 PM5 days by xsever

Still on 2020 and it's running great. I purchased 2024 on release day but had no luck with it. After the third try a few months ago I uninstalled it and decided to wait at least another year before trying again. Everyone keeps declaring that 2020's days are numbered which is true, but the number could be quite high. From the high price of everything in the 2020 marketplace there still must be heavy demand.

Edited Wednesday at 12:39 AM5 days by desbean

On 9/28/2026 at 9:52 PM, xsever said:

No harm no foul but you're going to need more RAM before upgrading to MSFS2024 anyway.

Yeah not updated my specs yet, i have 32 ram (well i have just updated them)

Edited Wednesday at 06:53 AM4 days by flightyjoe

On 9/28/2026 at 9:29 PM, cobalt said:

What has long intrigued me is the fascination some simmers have with airports per se, to the point of their being willing to spend money on detailed hand-crafted versions. I have to wonder how much time they actually spend in flight, as opposed to exploring those airports. And are they similarly fascinated with airports in real life?

One other question, out of idle curiosity: do train-simmers spend their money on add-on train stations (assuming they exist)?

Just asking, not criticizing.

Regards the train sim question, well havning picked up TSW 6 for 6 quid ive now added about 30 quids worth of DLC (in steam sale), so yes just like any game the base is the gateway drug. Obviously as a kid i loved train sets and loved seeing trains running if i was using them (not a train spotter). So yes like anything it touches something inside, and then the money pours out.

In its worst form in gaming context, yopu purchase new stuff to chase that high as over time the high goes.... so saying base game as gateway drug, isnt just being flipant...

Will be interesting next year to see if MS is announcing a FS2028. I'm not sure, since I can't see any groundbreaking new fidelity stuff, that would justify a new sim-number. On the other hand, 2024 wasn't that groundbreaking too. (ooohhh, I hear some people screaming behind their screens now 🙂)
Of course 2024 was a complete rework, but mainly behind the scenes / in the back-office. But at the front desk? If you fly high, airliners on 35.000 feet (which is what I do), 2024 isn't much of a revelation - compared to 2020. Even the ground textures of 2020 where better than 2024 for some time (until MS decided to use 2024 textures for 2020 too). I understand people switching to 2024. Especially VFR flyers, low and slow. I think this is the area, where 2024 gets its points. But regarding airliner flying? Most of the planes (as someone said already) don't benefit from the more sophisticated flight modeling in 2024, default and 3rd party. Live weather - reliability and depiction - is as 'good' as 2020. And with 2020, you have - after the first 4 years of fiddeling - a totally stable sim now. I would start thinking about 2024, if something like the weather would be improved significantly. But for now, I stay with 2020, at least for this and the next year.

Will there be a 2028? I guess the background rework leading to 2024 gave Asobo/MS much better options to 'upgrade' 2024 with new versions, without having to release a totally new sim again. On the other hand, MS wants to make (even more) money... So we'll see.

Edited Friday at 09:32 AM2 days by Watsi

My guess would be if they do make a new one, it will feature DLSS 5. I forsee most devs utilising it, which for me is fine as i love any new tech for the benefit of games.... obvioulsy some wont see it as a benefit but that ain't my problem.

I guess with DLSS 5 making games look better (to me at least) releasing new games which objectively look worse, wont shift copies.

And for clarity, DLSS 5 is experimental at present and also, a choice.... if you dont like it, dont use it, no one forces you, so wasting energy telling me im wrong is pointless, just dont turn it on..... i know that i will.

If they do make an MSFS 2028, they had better keep the ON/OFF button for photogrammetry.

Haven't been here for a while, but I thought I would add an opinion. My principle reason for running fs2020 is that fs2024 addon aircraft are in the main uneditable whereas many fs2020 aircraft are, especially if they are not purchased via marketplace. In particular I find I can easily fix the very poor ground physics in fs2020. That includes the excessive and twitchy ground yaw in and the inability to cut down the terrible pitch control in most smaller aircraft, but I cannot do that in fs2024.

The myth continues in some comments here that GA aircraft are "correctly" complex to fly in fs2024 because handling is twitchy, but I have never flown any real aircraft (quite a few) that have this characteristic at all. I can iron out this twitchiness with a few simple edits in fs2020 whereas fs2024 is a nightmare to edit in this regard.

I also find the controls menu in fs2024 a complete mess.

I get that fs2024 on balance sometimes looks a bit better, but not by much. I also cannot get nvidia filter effects to run in fs2024, and I have better control over visuals using reshade in fs2020. Lastly, for me FS2024 crashes more often, is more stuttery and often appears washed out. Fs2020 is so much more reliable for me, not having a top notch graphics card.

Until Asobo allows access to edit flight models in marketplace addon aircraft in fs2024, I will continue to run fs2020.

Edited yesterday at 02:52 AM1 day by robert young