For his new work, the flight simulation game aims for hyperrealism.

TO “digital twin of the Earth”. The ambition of Jorg Neumann, head of video games Microsoft Flight SimulatorIt is important for the new work of the famous flight simulation license, launched on Tuesday, November 19. Four years after the success of the 2020 version – purchased by fifteen million players (of the 45 million claimed by the franchise since its creation in 1982) –, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 It is presented as one more step towards a simulation with surprising realism.

The fundamentals remain the same: the player can take control of a Cessna 150, a very common training aircraft, at the end of a grass runway, with the engines running. All you have to do is press the accelerator, let it roll and slowly pull the joystick to take off, before admiring your surroundings. Or board an Airbus A330, with all systems turned off and parked at the gate of an international airport. The “flight cook” must start the device respecting the different procedures, develop its flight plan, communicate with the control tower to obtain the necessary authorizations, etc.

The modifiable parameters do not change either: the weather, the density of air traffic (but also land or sea), piloting aids or even breakdown programming. So what real changes compared to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020successor of an aging flight simulator released in 2006? you should know that MSFS 2020 It is still considered, today, a very successful transportation simulation, whose content continues to expand thanks to periodic updates and thanks to paid third-party software (new planes, air traffic control generated by artificial intelligence, etc.).

500 cities reproduced in great detail

Paradoxically, for a simulator where the sky is the main playing field, it is on the ground where the improvements promise to be spectacular: “Compared to MSFS 2020, we are 4,000 times more precise in the level of soil detail”welcomed Sebastian Wloch, co-founder and CEO of Asobo, the Bordeaux studio developing the game, during a press presentation in mid-October. It will now be possible to leave the cabin and walk around your plane, like a open world. In addition, the developers promise textures (grass, rock, sand, etc.) and lights that are more faithful to reality, whether in airports, cities or natural spaces.

To achieve this result, Asobo undertook photogrammetry work, a technique that consists of obtaining a 3D model from satellite photographs. This method allowed 500 cities and 100,000 square kilometers (the equivalent of South Korea) of rural landscapes to be reproduced in great detail, located mainly in North America and Europe. The rest of the world was generated by procedural generation, that is, the landscapes were created algorithmically.

If the content will be more detailed, will it be heavier? Developers promise shorter loading times and fluidity in the game storing a large portion of the content in the cloud and uploading only what the player sees. Where it was recommended to reserve 150 GB of storage for MSFSAccording to Microsoft, 50 GB could now be enough. In addition, the game consumes a lot of resources, especially when it comes to the processor, which worries fans, fearing a lack of fluidity (lag).

A “race” mode to break the monotony

Flight simulator 2024 It will impress with its contemplative appearance. But it is still a game focused on the driving experience. Its most complete version, also the most expensive, offers 125 aircraft (passenger aircraft, helicopters, military aircraft, jets, gliders, water bombers, etc.), including the flight model (all the characteristics of the plane), which promises to be finer. than before.

Side gameplay“career” mode is the big news: virtual pilots must obtain qualifications, starting with the PPL (private pilot license, private pilot license), to discover new planes and unlock missions. Tourist aviation, medical assistance, firefighting, fumigation or even advertising will allow you to earn virtual money that you can spend on exams or building a fleet of airplanes. So, MSFS 2024 It aims to make up for the lack of objectives that its predecessor lacked and extend its useful life.

The truth is that, in four years, millions of players have invested in additional content, not counting the game and hardware (PC, joysticks, etc.). And it could be that some of them remain faithful to the 2020 version, due to lack of resources. But the promise of an improved game, built on an excellent foundation, with features popular with both mainstream gamers and aeronautical enthusiasts, seems to portend inevitable success.