FlyBaby

After 26 years, you earlier described XPs stock visuals as making your eyes bleed, and now they have been first class for the hardware available....You can certainly put a spin on things... With regard to clouds...hey I applaud any effort and supported X-Enviro through all of their versions. But they never really looked all that great, and the performance hit was too much to enjoy. I just don't see how LR let that slip regardless...there have been 3rd party cloud Devs trying to improve them for years, and LR was aware that the clouds didn't go to the horizon since XP10s release.

No, this doesn't work...XP has been in the market for how long??? It was a decision to ignore what the users were asking for. Austin himself talked about the clouds being not so good "years" ago. He simply did not make the visuals a priority. In a podcast he mentioned that he started looking at performance improvement when a large client requested it, but the general user base had been doing so for years. Lets stay away from any Asobo / MSFS reference. The unofficial gatekeepers start whining here in these threads blaming folk for comparison debates that get threads locked.. LR is now being more reactive as opposed to proactive. Making excuses now as to why LR chose to ignore the graphics side for so long does not sweep a half decade of cloud neglect under the rug. To me, Austin has always taken a rather arrogant position with regard to what the users were asking for vs. what "he" wanted in the sim that "he" was selling to those users. His comments in the 17 (I believe) sim conference show this. In the 19 flight "sim" conference he was showcasing his "plane" project. He just seemed generally disconnected from what users wanted. Now...if the new lighting is the start of more visual advancements, then that is a good thing. But again, to me, he is just reacting. As I have always said, I am not sure if there will be a substantial user base to support continued XP development after any official release. Sim development (flight, train, racing) is seemingly never done...that intitial release is just the start, and users are now looking for consistent development / updates / improvements after the release. And we are just at a teaser video here with XP...

I have always felt that XPs "night" lighting is awesome (even the traffic lighting), especially low level flying with Helis at night.

Continue deflecting etc, and placing the blame on others for your actions. Let me know when that teaser vid hits....lets make it 100k views.

Your explanations don't fly with me. Many aspects have simply been neglected, particularly on the visual side. LR depended too much on addons (even for airports by the community) without seriously investing in core features, like their clouds. Its 2021, why does "stock" XP look like it does now (making your eyes bleed...your words)?

You do a lot of ranting, personal attacks, name calling, and tough talk to someone on the forums simply for sharing their opinion.... It is time to take your own advice....you are the only one "heated" and arguing here. Just you.

Who are the ones "heated" on the thread? Folk can't agree to disagree without labeling and name calling...the so called XP gatekeepers get so much latitude with this in these threads (not to mention driving the comparisons themselves). To me this isn't an XP vs "whatever" issue. For years... LR did not do much to update their sim, and the user base has always wanted more engagement, more frequent updates, better graphics etc. Will there be a substantial user base left to support major development going forward? Not to mention the number of folk who may just stick with XP11, as every platform experiences when making a new version. XPs teaser vid doesn't even show more views than the number of subscribers for the channel. We will have to see what else LR brings to the table, but to me, they have sat back for too long.

Apparently you can't... You are the one with "long" rants about Elon Musk, Celebrities and baseless comparisons....and calling folk trolls because you do not agree with what they say. We are at about 25k views now...looking for that 1M.

I only see you trying to argue... Again, calm down. You can let me know, or let it go. But I won't argue with you.

Calm yourself down, stop mentioning MSFS to offer distractions. Like I said, let me know when that vid hits 1M views. I am patiently waiting.

It amazes me how the XP gatekeepers are the ones to mention "MSFS" or "Microsoft" in these threads that then start the debates, and then the closed threads. Nope. lets stick with XP's video (with less than 20k views), What is more to come? When will it come? Will LR engage more with users, develop a consistent update schedule after release (roadmap) etc, work more with 3PDevs etc? A teaser video is a start...

LOL....let me know when that "trending" video hits at least 1 million views.

Yep...it can prevail, but the flight sim landscape has changed (not like it has been for decades with respect to user engagement, updates, 3P Devs etc.). We will have to see what the next version ultimately brings to the table as well as the support...and when. If we are talking another year off..."new lighting" needs to be the least of the impressive advances.

And this is just the preview....at what point will it be available for full release? It may be another year off...and too late.

All of this speculation has nothing to do with the fact that MSFS has over 2M users and the funding, support to make an X-Box version. ALL of this development by Asobo and XP could barely get Vulkan out out the door over the last 2 years (and not even touch graphics). Well time will tell, but I wouldn't doubt Asobo abilities based on what others "can't" do. Asobo was talking DX12 at launch, and they kept MSFS under wraps for years... "it was never the highest priority for Laminar, and mostly left to the community." Yep, much like XPs airports...left to the community...because LR (with all of their passion) doesn't see that as a priority for a flight sim What you don't get is that flight immersion is not limited to the flight model (that many assume XP excels at). LR has not been able to keep pace with the growing demands of the flight sim community (like graphics), nor have they been able to capitalize on the market potential (2M+ users). An XP user will either spend more time chasing ways to make it look better, or just fly it "as is" for what it is. And apparently, the OP believes that it looks horrible out of the box.

Not so, people don't like chasing rainbows... They want a good foundation from the start, and something that the DEV will be dedicated to build upon. The idea of buying a sim, then going on freeware and payware sites to get addons to make it look halfway decent is not appealing. What XP can do....can be done elsewhere....but apparently XP can't keep up with modern graphics...which is something that the market is also looking for...stock.

In a way, I don't think that you needed to explain, but I understand why you did. Some people get it (the hard work behind the freeware, the move to payware), and some people won't. When i first saw the reaction to the Heli, the number of downloads, I thought to myself..."they should go payware as this develops". It is as simple as that. It's a good product, you should be compensated (how you see fit) like any other aircraft developer.

This is a stretch....an old lady isn't selling a product...LR is. And to that extent, some people find that XP looks horrible...dated. "I raise my children to be polite"....."don´t expect us X-Plane fans to just turn the other cheek" So then you admit that how you raise "your" children have nothing to do with how you (or anyone else) actually respond on a forum.... There is nothing wrong with harsh criticism. But there are folk in the XP forum who apparently don't want opinions shared that they don't agree with. It seems odd how the "same" people who don't want anything "bad" said about X-plane.....find a way criticize the one sim (as a comparison) that has over 2 million pilots. With respect to the DEV.... What Asobo has found out (through feedback channels / live chats etc), they look to address, put it on the roadmap, and then execute. They don't sit back for years doing nothing about the weaker aspects of their sim. Over 7 major updates (including VR) in less than a year. And here is a thread where the XP graphics have not advanced much...over several years... As a game... MSFS can appeal to more people (apparently over 2 million), have an X-Box expansion, and the "store" to fund further development. That further development will bring more features to the sim itself. FBW, WT etc will get there eventually, I just heard that PMDG made some official announcements regarding future releases, and a GTN750i addon recently released. The criticisms of today most likely won't be there 1 or 2 years from now because they are constantly developing / improving. It's like pointing at a newborn saying that he can't walk knowing that he will get there over the next year or so. I think that we are way beyond comparing sims at this point, there is a business strategy in place to ensure consistent and frequent development going forward, and that is what the community (for all platforms) have been wanting all along.

I would pay 43 for the released version. The DEV has been making frequent updates to the freeware version with over 220k downloads on Flightsim. So, to the extent they they are serious / sincere with following through, their approach to secure funding seems logical given the exposure / support. I think they did a good job of getting their project out there, getting the buzz going, and now looking to turn a profit.

Not sure about all of the ins and outs, but I like how the GTNXi can be used as a touch screen on the ipad.

Great point...this seems like a good buy considering what MSFS offers stock at the moment.

Forum complaints are one way to get the word out, but Zendesk tickets are more effective. I know, I know....Asobo partnered with WT just so they could ignore the needs of simmers, right??? This type of logic can't be the basis for a serious discussion. The never ending flight model drama...find me a sim that has a perfect flight model. And I will find you simmers who will find "something" wrong with it. I don't know man, I am just "rambling" on a forum board...just like "everyone" else.

"majority of freeware and payware offerings being scenery" Well, we don't need a clouds fix beccaue MSFS took care of that stock , we don't need lighting / color fixes because MSFS took care of that stock...etc. MSFS does not need basic "fixes" like XP and P3D, so Devs focus on "enhancements" An enhancement is like "icing" on top of a very good tasting "cake"....a fix is trying to make the cake taste good. "With a few toy airplanes thrown in here and there for the gamers to ‘fly’ around in. " Somehow, somewhere...users on Avsim began to believe that words like "gamers" and "VFR sim" is an insult....to the MSFS. But's its funny how 2M+ "gamers" bought this VFR sim with many Devs jumping on board producing content at a faster pace than any other flight "sim" in history. Its also funny how Asobo has a roadmap for continued development, livestreams and feedback channels for continued development to address the issues of "gamers" in their VFR sim. Be it an SU or a WU every other month, "U" won't get this type of dedication from any other flight "sim" developer.

@mSparks have you seen / tried this???

If MSFS doesn't work for you, there are other sim "flatforms" for you to choose. Have you seen the rate of freeware for MSFS??? Or the rate of Devs jumping on board??? MSFS has both the respect and the "backing" of Freeware and Payware Devs. This is why Devs have left the other "flatforms" behind and their users complaining about attention MSFS is getting. I don't know how you define serious flight simulator users, but 2M+ users have made a serious investment in the sim. You will have good addons and bad addons, you can easily decide not to buy. But MSFS is a good sim / platform...the user / Dev numbers don't lie.