Microsoft just hosted another livestream dedicated to Microsoft Flight Simulator, showcasing upcoming content and even a tease about Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
As usual with this kind of livestream made on the official Twitch channel, the new details were provided by head of Microsoft Flight Simulator Jorg Neumann, Asobo chief executive officer Sebastian Wlock, and executive producer Martial Bossard.
We start with Sim Update 14 and 15, with an extensive look at changes made to atmosphere scattering, the ozone layer, and the sun presented by Wloch. A relevant change is that sunsets will be less pink.
More changes include ground handling and suspension changes that will ship with Sim Update 15. Airframes will be more flexible and bouncy, and control on the ground will be better.
Next, we hear at the Famous Flyer 8 aircraft, which will be the Cessna 207 Stationair. It'll be developed by Carenado and below you can catch a few pictures. It's scheduled to be released on December 12.
City Update 5 is also scheduled for December, precisely on December 19. It'll include Zagreb in Croatia, Košice in Slovakia, Cádiz in Spain, Brussels in Belgium, and The Hague in the Netherlands.
Stockholm requires more extensive editing and will come in a few months.
Moving on to World Update 16, we get the announcement that it's going to be the Caribbean. It's currently slated for late January.
It'll include new digital elevation maps (DEM), new aerial imagery, 104 points of interest, 7 bespoke airports, 3 landing challenges, 3 bush tris, and 3 discovery flights. The developers are also experimenting on a system to implement much better water masking in shallow water.
The bespoke airports are as follows:
- MUCL — Aeropuerto International Vilo Acuria
- MDPP — Puerto Plata International Airport (Dominican Republic)
- MTCA — Antoine-Simone Airport (Haiti)
- MKJS — Sangster International Airport (Jamaica)
- TTCP — Crown Point International Airport (Trinidad and Tobago)
- MYEH — North Eleuthera Airport (The Bahamas)
- TFFS — Les Saintes Airport (Guadeloupe)
You can find a few screenshots of the points of interest and airports below.
The World Hub is finally almost ready and a closed alpha will begin soon, either in December or January. This will let users fix scenery for implementation in the simulator. You can see two screenshots below.
Neumann then presented the roadmap for 2024 including 4 new World Updates, 4 City Updates, 8 Local Legends, 4 Famous Flyers, the Dune expansion (which has been delayed due to the movie being delayed to early next year), and 2 Sim Updates.
Of course, 2024 will also see the release of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, of which a spectacular new screenshot has been revealed, showing off the Grand Canyon.
This certainly looks like a massive improvement compared to the current simulator.
For the sake of comparison, below you can see a picture of the Grand Canyon as currently portrayed in Microsoft Flight Simulator. I will say that I've always been impressed by it, but after seeing the version in MSFS 2024, it'll be impossible to ever look at it the same way.
On top of the new information, a new beta build of Sim Update 14 has been released to the community. This includes a large overhaul of the Cirrus SR22T G6 including a new model and flight model.
Unfortunately, the new Airbus A320neo by iniBuilds was affected by too many crashes on Xbox and could not pass certification, so it has been removed. Neumann mentioned during the livestream that it'll be released in "a few months."
You can find the full patch notes on the official forums, with the usual cautionary word that this is a beta, so you shouldn't download it unless you intend to help with testing, as it could negatively affect your experience with the simulator.
Moving on to third-party developers, Just Flight released the much-awaited British vintage strategic bomber Avro Vulcan. It's available on the developer's shop for €29.95.
Below you can check out a launch trailer showing it off.
As usual, please keep in mind that here on TechRaptor we publish daily Microsoft Flight Simulator news to help you navigate all the information you need to enjoy its many add-ons.
