Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020: Everything You Need to Know

The first Microsoft Flight Simulator 1.0 was released in 1982. For almost four decades the game has tried to recreate how it feels to fly. On 18 August 2020, the latest edition, Microsoft Flight 2020 was released. Here’s everything you be bled to know about the new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 along with its features, price, and other details.

What is Microsoft Flight Simulator?

Microsoft Flight Simulator is the title for Microsoft’s series of amateur flight simulator programs released for the Microsoft Windows operating systems. At launch, it supported other operating systems like MS-DOS and Classic Mac OS.

The new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 sticks with the newest Windows 10 OS. It will only work on computers running on Windows 10 May 2019 Update. It is one of the longest-running, most popular, and most complete entertainment flight simulator programs available. Microsoft Flight Simulator was an early product in the Microsoft application catalog. It differed a lot from Microsoft’s other software programs, which were largely business-oriented. In the past 37 years since the release, FS is the longest-running software product line for Microsoft. It even is older than the Windows operating system by three years. Microsoft Flight Simulator is arguably the longest-running computer game series of all time.

Game Development and Evolution

When the first Microsoft Flight Simulator was released, it was largely for enthusiasts only. This is not the same experience you will get from the new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020. The game was developed by French studio Asobo. They used accurate geographic data taken from Bing Maps, Microsoft’s global cloud computing system, and information on real-time weather conditions. Combined, this makes the game a visual spectacle fit for a simulator.

There are specific flight tests and missions you can try out. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 has also added a global scoreboard where you can rank yourself against other pilots. Available autopilot controls can take over almost all the difficulties of flying. This allows you to control the plane with only a joypad. Wherever you fly, this game fully captures the joy of flight. It also gives you an exhilarating rush of seeing the environment from a new view.

Can you play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox One?

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 game is available for Windows 10 OS. Microsoft also offers the Xbox Game pass in the subscription, but you will not be able to play the game on Xbox One.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 Features

FS 2020 will use real-time air traffic.

On top of seeing other players from the world, Flight Simulator will simulate real daily air traffic across the globe. This means you could be flying somewhere in the sky and spot a flight that is happening in real life. That’s a pretty cool feature. The developers also mentioned that Artificial Intelligence will be used to make new flight patterns in case the game loses connection to the real-time traffic information. We’ll have to wait and see how much air traffic is available due to current travel restrictions.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 Price

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 – Map

The statistics taken from the world are breath-taking. There are 37,000 registered airports in the game, close to 1.5bn buildings, 100 million lakes, and two trillion trees. Most of the cities are will be procedurally created by AI. Information for the AI is based on data from OpenStreetMap. It also uses an algorithm that sets architectural guidelines for the program to work from. The AI will know the types of structures that are found in a French city and how these are different from buildings in an Indian city. However, game artists went it and added famous landmarks that you might be familiar with. Also, another 400 key cities have been closely duplicated by hand, using comprehensive photogrammetry. If you fly over places like Seattle or New York for example, and you will be able to recognize the popular buildings.

MSFS 2020 will make use of real-time weather patterns

The weather system in the game runs deep. Clouds will cast realistic shadows over the scenery below, and each other. The clouds are built using the AI. This makes them look fluffier and smokey and they are a better visual experience than the typical skyboxes you will see when you look up in other games.

Cold and warm fronts will move around the globe, creating rain, storms, and other conditions as they go. If you find yourself in the middle of a storm, this will in turn affect your plane’s handling, as one would expect. Coupled with an aerodynamics simulation that will run simultaneously, you can expect a frighteningly precise depiction of how difficult it is to stay on course when the rain, wind, and thunder come in.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 will also use real-world weather data to simulate its weather systems. If you decide to fly over the Sahara Desert next Wednesday and there is a sandstorm there in real life, you will encounter the sandstorm in Microsoft Flight Simulator. This will even extend to more severe conditions such as snow. It’s not clear yet whether lakes and rivers will freeze aover accordingly.

Confirmed support for Flight Simulator mods

Almost immediately after being announced, Microsoft confirmed that Flight Simulator 2020 will support external community content. This has been a massive aspect of the previous Flight Simulators. However, it’s not clear how much third-party developers can create for the game. It’s also not known how this new information will be accessed and if there is a fee for it. The guess is much of the mods will be done to planes as they offer more room and flexibility for expansion.

VR support

For added immersion and real-life experience, Microsoft confirmed there is even VR support expected in the future. The support will firstly be for HP’s Reverb GT headset, with later additions for Oculus and other VR devices.

Through its unique and ambitious visualization of the world, the latest Microsoft Simulator promises to give something more than a hardcore simulator for flight fanatics: it promises to be a massive, gamified take on Google Earth from a different angle.

So these are some highlights of the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020. Now let’s take a look at Microsoft Flight Simulator Price.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 Price

On release, the pricing ranged from US$59.99 (approx. ₹3,999) for the Standard edition, to US$89.99 for the Deluxe edition, and US$119.99 for the Premium Deluxe edition. So far, the game is only available for PC. The Xbox release date is still to be announced.

Confirmation of the new game

On June 9, 2019, Microsoft revealed that they will be bringing back the Flight Simulator series with an updated release. The new game was going to called Microsoft Flight Simulator. The new Microsoft Flight Simulator version was going to have a tight integration between ground satellite data and Microsoft’s Azure AI built into the game’s engine to create near photo-realistic graphics.

Overall Impressions of MSFS 2020

The new Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 was definitely worth the wait. Everything about it was well thought out and it will be hard to see any other flight simulator – from Microsoft or any competitor – be this good. The AI element is a next-gen feature that will enhance the gameplay a lot. Microsoft went all out and they delivered a gaming masterpiece. The specs alone are enough to tell you the years that went into development.

This is all about the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020. We also cover “Can you play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox One?” in this guide. What do you think about this game, make sure to tell us by leaving a comment in the comment box?

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Mark Mukunga

Mark is a tech enthusiast, who loves to keep up do date with what's happening in the world of technology. He loves playing games and is keen on seeing all the various tech making its way to developing countries. He enjoys rooting phones in his spare time.

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