release: 19 november 2024
genre: flight sim
dev: Asobo Studio
Met een sterkere focus op allerhande missies.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 takes the franchise further than ever before with groundbreaking new elements like worldwide Aviation Careers, a white-knuckle Challenge League system, and a brand-new World Photographer mode.
The representation of Earth, the “digital twin,” graphically takes a leap forward with a jaw-dropping enhancement of the ground detail, the inclusion of worldwide ship traffic, the first ever implementation of helipads, glider airports, oil rigs, and vertical obstructions around the world all the way to the addition of dozens of animal species worldwide.
The Career System introduces new elements to the simulation like pre-flight procedures, logging flight paths, and choosing from a vast amount of mission objectives. Advancement is tracked through a certification tree where you can learn the skills to fly various types of aircraft – each of which comes with a training session to help you master those skills. Later, specializations will unlock a variety of missions, such as Search and Rescue, Commercial Flights, Firefighting, and many more.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is also bringing massive enhancements to the simulated Earth by increasing the detail of its virtual environment by a factor of 4,000. For instance, the ground will no longer be a mere heightfield; it now features tiny stones, rocks, gravel and grass all modeled in 3D.
And it’s not just inanimate objects that are getting massive improvements. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is attempting to populate its digital Earth (the “digital twin”) as close to our real world as feasible by introducing a large cast of diverse human characters and locally-significant vehicles, all adding to the overall realism of the simulation. For instance, there’s real-time ship tracking so you can see cargo ships move throughout the world as you would in real life. You can see passengers inside airliners or moving from one location to the next in airports.
And because landing just about anywhere in the world is one of the key features, due to the much more detailed environments, the development team worked closely with partners like Frontier (creators of Zoo Tycoon and Planet Zoo) to introduce many species that bring the world to life. For wild animals, we are using a fantastic database (GBIF – the Global Biodiversity Information Facility) to place animals across the world both in their appropriate habitats and in roughly appropriate quantities to get close to realistic densities. For domesticated animals, we are using our field detection (which is also used for activities like Aerial Application) to place species like cows, sheep, goats and horses across the planet. We can essentially now go sheep herding or cow herding with helicopters
Another impressive addition to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 will be its “soft body simulation” for hot air balloons. These balloons will be simulated across 6,400 surfaces giving a realistic reaction to heat density — when you turn on the heater, the air will heat up, and it’s going to inflate the massive balloon. Also, we now have parachutes. For example, the Cirrus Vision Jet, which you can fly, has a parachute system that can be deployed when needed.





