ON the FSinsider website, there is more info and some more screenshots.  The screenshots are AMAZING!  Different from what weve seen, these screenshots alone seem to make the game worth buying!

LOOKY LOOKY!

Looks great,i know whats on the top of my christmas list

Hummmmmmmm...........

Maybe I was expecting a LOT out of a new version...............  but to me those official shots don't look all that different from what I already see in fs2004 with the addition of some payware landclass, textures, and roads and such.

Will this new version be a step up or a leap up?

The one shot there that is intriguing visually is the one with the seaplane... with the seeming water reflections of the plane.  But the background images like the ship don't seem to reflect...... just the plane.

If the flock of brids in the background are each flying independently....... that would be pretty interesting.    

Guess we'll see in about a year............


best,

....john

PS:  Wonder how many posts will be in this forum BEFORE the program is released?   ;D

:o :o NICE!!! But I wanna see some VC shots!

I have to aggree with JBaymore. The only thing that really caught my eye was the birds, just adds a nice bit of atmosphere. As for the rest, i've seen as good, if not better, in our own screenshot section.

wrote on Jan 5^th, 2006 at 5:25pm:

Hummmmmmmm........... Maybe I was expecting a LOT out of a new version...............  but to me those official shots don't look all that different from what I already see in fs2004 with the addition of some payware landclass, textures, and roads and such. Will this new version be a step up or a leap up? The one shot there that is intriguing visually is the one with the seaplane... with the seeming water reflections of the plane.  But the background images like the ship don't seem to reflect...... just the plane. If the flock of brids in the background are each flying independently....... that would be pretty interesting.     Guess we'll see in about a year............ best, ....john PS:  Wonder how many posts will be in this forum BEFORE the program is released?   ;D

IMO, the real improvement are the following added features:

1. Sun glare from the aircraft surfaces.
2. More accurate roads features [double lanes going uphill and downhill gently].
3. Bump Textures are now rendered [this makes things better for addon developers].
4. Reflections of the scenery are seen on the shores.

Am I the only one that noticed the roads? Those new roads can soon bring a whole new level of realism for those of us who are stuck to the ground every now and then. ;D


wrote on Jan 5^th, 2006 at 6:00pm:

I have to aggree with JBaymore. The only thing that really caught my eye was the birds, just adds a nice bit of atmosphere. As for the rest, i've seen as good, if not better, in our own screenshot section.

I doubt that. I doubt any of us were even capable of rendering bumped textures in addons made for FS9. FS9 doesn't support that. Neither does it support sun glares and wet runways.

thats... thats... thats AIRmazing!!! :o :o :o

From what I saw in the video, there's nothing really new in FS10 other than new Directx 10 features.  FS has been using the same engine since FS2002 (born from CFS 2) for almost 5 years now.  When I heard FS10 was coming out I was expecting they would of started on a new engine by then.

All I see in the screenshots is nothing that FS9 doesn't already have.  Think of FS10 as the best 3rd party programs on the market, mashed into one with new Directx 10 effects.  Traffic, moving jetways, birds, land mesh, you can all those right now and make it into FS10, just without the new Directx10 settings like reflections, sun glare, lighting, etc.

wrote on Jan 5^th, 2006 at 6:05pm:

From what I saw in the video, there's nothing really new in FS10 other than new Directx 10 features.  FS has been using the same engine since FS2002 (born from CFS 2) for almost 5 years now.  When I heard FS10 was coming out I was expecting they would of started on a new engine by then. All I see in the screenshots is nothing that FS9 doesn't already have.  Think of FS10 as the best 3rd party programs on the market, mashed into one with new Directx 10 effects.  Traffic, moving jetways, birds, land mesh, you can all those right now and make it into FS10, just without the new Directx10 settings like reflections, sun glare, lighting, etc.

You know, most of us prefer to keep the old engine. Especially us addon developers because we are familiar and confortable with it. If M$ ever did change it, then it would probably be about a year before a half-decent addon for FSX ever came out. Besides, most of us cherish the idea of backwards compatibility so that we don't have to wait for addons.

In conclusion, that old-style and traditional game engine is here to stay [M$ learned that lesson with CFS3].

Yes.  The engine is good, they dont need to change it.  If you saw the video preview, it seems like they have improved heli flight dynamics.  From what we see, its the same as always:MS gives us a base, we add on to it.  This time, the base has some great stuff.

And Katahu, I noticed the roads, they are AMAZING

#1  :o :o :o :o :o

Its Different engine I think, Mesh is different and Autogen, FS9 Doesnt come even close, even with payware..... So I wouldnt be complaining its the same old AND They have another year almost, QUIT WHINING AND WAIT FOR ITS RELEASE!!!!!!! its bound to be much better, from What I see I'd die to play it..... Now if you wanna complain about it not changing, go fly a kite and take a hike and never touch another MS Flightsim product, gets tiring to See people complaining about something only shown in like 20 screenshots a year before release!!! Rant over....... Now, I am going to marvel at this achievement! Cheers, Gunny

I'm very impressed with the level of detail found in the autogen+airports and aircraft, what more can you ask for. I just wanted to see a large improvement in Air Dynamcis, scenery, Multiplayer, etc, and in FSX that's what I'm seeing. I just hope my Stock nividia 5500FX will run it without any probs. ;) ;D ;D

I agree with with Gunny, everyone is comparing it to their modded out FS9, well your modded out fs9 will look like completley utter dog sh... when someone post their screens of their modded out fs10.

You need to compare Stock FS9 to an Unfinished FS10. If you still think it looks the same then I guess you don't have an eye for graphics. Anyway the textures I have seen in those screenshots look better then any payware I have seen.

This flightsim will be dx10 and 64bit compatible, these are two very powerfull platforms for this game to run on and you can not judge a game by 20 or so screenshots there is so much we can not see. We can't see flight dynamics, weather, Ai movement.

The major improvements I see over FS9 are:
Better Terrain mesh. if they redid this throughout the world that would have taken some time.

Real time reflections on water, aircraft, and asphalt.

Highly improved textures and autogen that will rival even the best of payware aircraft for fs9

Improved sky lighting and blending, no jagged color changes.

Seemingly dynamic clouds with whisp effects etc.

This has been  a lot to do in 2 years of development. They still have a year left to improve upon things rember that. So comparing improvements to other FS versions this will be a Giant Leap Up.

wrote on Jan 5^th, 2006 at 6:02pm:

Am I the only one that noticed the roads? Those new roads can soon bring a whole new level of realism for those of us who are stuck to the ground every now and then. .

The roads I have with a payware add on already look like that.  Better actually.

As to a fully "tricked out" version of fs9 compared to a fully "tricked out" version of fsx....... well... of course.... but I am hoping that I won't have to yet again spend all sorts of money above the cost of the new sim to get the most out if it.   ;)

Probably wishful thinking.   ;D

Microsoft is still in developemnt... so if everyone just simply "ohhs and ahhs" over the early release info........ there will be no incentive to address the stuff that matters while there is still time to address in the year they have.

best,

..............john

I know it's still early. But all the "breaking news" so far has been pure eye candy. While that is good and all, but this is a FLIGHT simulator, and to be honest with you sim pilots...you'd be amazed how poorly FS9 depicts flying characteristics, especially in turbulence, ground handling and rudder usage.

I want improvements in that departement.

wrote on Jan 5^th, 2006 at 11:54pm:

I know it's still early. But all the "breaking news" so far has been pure eye candy. While that is good and all, but this is a FLIGHT simulator, and to be honest with you sim pilots...you'd be amazed how poorly FS9 depicts flying characteristics, especially in turbulence, ground handling and rudder usage. I want improvements in that departement.

To me, that doesn't matter because I almost never use the defaults anyways. Today's addons have better dynamics than their default counterparts, so I use those a lot.

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 12:16am:

To me, that doesn't matter because I almost never use the defaults anyways. Today's addons have better dynamics than their default counterparts, so I use those a lot.

The problem itself lies in the physics engine of the sim.
It cannot think "logical", but the flight char's are programmed with text lines in in the cfg.  Whereas X-plane can depict actual turbulence and realistic ground handling etc.

MS will eventually get there with the flight simulator ;)

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 12:35am:

The problem itself lies in the physics engine of the sim. It cannot think "logical", but the flight char's are programmed with text lines in in the cfg.  Whereas X-plane can depict actual turbulence and realistic ground handling etc.

Don't forget that X-Plane's physics are patented by Laminar Research. Therefore, M$ can't copy the engine. Besides, changing the engine will still require all of us addon developers to learn all about any new engine just to even achieve a half-decent addon. And the last time I checked, learning about any new engine takes a lot of time. Why do you think CFS3 has so little addons compared to CFS2?

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 12:48am:

Don't forget that X-Plane's physics are patented by Laminar Research. Therefore, M$ can't copy the engine. Besides, changing the engine will still require all of us addon developers to learn all about any new engine just to even achieve a half-decent addon. And the last time I checked, learning about any new engine takes a lot of time. Why do you think CFS3 has so little addons compared to CFS2?

Just look at Halflife and Halflife 2.
Those are two different engines, but add-on developers quickly learned the new engine and managed to produce even better mods to the game.

Same scenario will apply to FS

Well, I have only used HL2 [first time I used a half life product] so I can't tell the difference.

We can argue all we want, but the decision ultimately rests with the entire FS community. And don't forget that majorities rule in any vote. If 40,000 members [out of 50,000] in a community support the old engine, then the remaining 10,000 are out of luck and they will have to get use to it because M$ will always follow the ideas of the majority due to popularity.

Just because a few member [out of 50,000] don't like the old-style engine doesn't mean that the rest of the members of the community have to comply.

Therefore, as of right now, this arguement about changing the game engine is over. If you like X-Plane better, then go use it and stop whining about FS.

From what Ive seen, it looks like they are working on flight models.  At CES, the speaker took the bell 206.  He took off, turned (like a helicopter SHOULD), then flew off just like a real heli.  All this on an Xbox controller.

And yes, it was a live display.

Remember, we still have 1 year, so I imagine that there will be ALOT  of improvements by the time it arrives

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 1:15am:

Well, I have only used HL2 [first time I used a half life product] so I can't tell the difference. We can argue all we want, but the decision ultimately rests with the entire FS community. And don't forget that majorities rule in any vote. If 40,000 members [out of 50,000] in a community support the old engine, then the remaining 10,000 are out of luck and they will have to get use to it because M$ will always follow the ideas of the majority due to popularity. Just because a few member [out of 50,000] don't like the old-style engine doesn't mean that the rest of the members of the community have to comply. Therefore, as of right now, this arguement about changing the game engine is over. If you like X-Plane better, then go use it and stop whining about FS.

Believe me almost ALL add on developers, especially payware aircrafts wants a MORE advanced engine. Because the teams of PMDG, LDS etc cannot push the limitations of the engines further, because they are already there.

So you may want to get out of this argument which is fine, but you are certainly not correct about your statement. The comminuty is craving for a new engine, and many will be very disappointed if it's justa  revamped FS2002 engine - yet again.

Well I'm not that impressed by the eye candy, it's nice but shouldn't be the main focus of the update. They missed the one bit of eye-candy I would have cared about and that is self-shadowing, proper mixing of shadows, soft shadowing and just the shadows in general need alot of work as this is a huge part of making something look real. This is why models in G-max or other modelling programs can often look miles better than they do in the sim.

Plus no mention of better flight dynamics, at the moment flightsim cannot model what happens when an aircraft essentially stops "flying" and falls on momentum and the physical properties of the airframe, like when a sukhoi does it's backflip or any of it's airshow tricks (something that required great lateral thinking to get over when making the AS sukhoi.) This in turn means it cannot model VTOL (this is also because vectored thrust is also not modelled. Plus the previous improvements to turbulence and rudder and ground handling are needed as mentioned by Nexus.

Plus I for one would like to see the ability to use runways that are not totally flat as the majority of runways on small fields are not, this would mean that the ground physic of the airplane would have to be updated as well.

On the good side the birds and dolphins make a nice change but I would like to bird strike and I doubt it will happen but it would be good to have an IL-2 like damage engine.

Come on MS pull your socks up you have alot to catch up to other sims. Use those resources you have.

One day what you say will come i'm sure. FS-12,13 maybe?

it can be my eyes, but is that water 3d? :o

It just boggles my mind.
FS biggest flaw is not the eye candy, it's the flight dynamics. And from what it seems, the major upgrade in this version seems to be just that, EYE CANDY. At least that's what MS devs have been raving about so far  :-/

Uhh... how many times do some of us have to say that M$ will never tell us everything we want to hear until the very last moment [most likely after the release]? To borrow from somebody's statement: People who truely know cannot tell [obviously they signed a non-disclosure agreement] while those who say what they think they know may not be true at all.

So, just because M$ didn't say anything about the dynamics doesn't mean that the dynamics will be crap.

And for crying out loud, if you think that FSX will be crap, then don't buy it and stop whining. Do you have any idea how much effort the M$ developers have put into creating this sim? I don't know either, but I can bet my butt that the effort was massive.

Just wait. several years from now, we will be going through this same dumb arguement for FSXI, FSXII, etc. It seems to me that this is a never-ending cycle. And yet, people still buy it after complaining. Sheesh!

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 12:32pm:

Just wait. several years from now, we will be going through this same dumb arguement for FSXI, FSXII, etc. It seems to me that this is a never-ending cycle. And yet, people still buy it after complaining. Sheesh!

It happens every time a new flight simulator is announced. It's a de ja vou all over again ::)

Stop being so sensitive.
I have every right to my opinion without you bursting out like a lawyer, thank you.

And I never said that FSX will be crap. If you can quote me saying that, be my guest.

But you really dont get it, do you?
What has been MS FS drawback for ages, has not been addressed. Instead we get feed screenshots of birds, boats and some other irrelevant mumbo-jumbo.
And if FS X had a new groundbreaking engine, wouldn't you think that MS would really talk about that? I would.

I don't know about you, but I'd rather see realistic ground effect than a flock of seagulls.

But I will buy FS X instead, simply because off the addons, that makes up for the drawbacks of the sim.

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 1:35pm:

What has been MS FS drawback for ages, has not been addressed. Instead we get feed screenshots of birds, boats and some other irrelevant mumbo-jumbo.

Don't forget, we will now have shaded rivets...  8)

Sorry, I couldn't help it ;D

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 1:47pm:

Don't forget, we will now have shaded rivets...  8) Sorry, I couldn't help it ;D

;D Well that's a feature that i like  :)

Well I'm bloody sorry but whenever I have put a massive effort into a plane or any of the teams I've worked with over the years all we get is people bitching so I feel I have a right to put my opinion across. Part of the reason I switched to payware was because if you are going to have someone complain about your work you may as well get paid for it.


Quote:

And for crying out loud, if you think that FSX will be crap, then don't buy it and stop whining. Do you have any idea how much effort the M$ developers have put into creating this sim? I don't know either, but I can bet my butt that the effort was massive

I will "whine" thankyou very much this sim forms a large part of my time and income so it would be nice if M$ would help us developers that help them to sell so many units of the product. The same goes more so for freeware developers they deserve a mountain of respect for M$ for making their sim so popular without wanting so much as to add a plane to the sim.

I may offend you with this and I may get in trouble but at the moment I don't care. I don't pretend to be on some sort of moral high-horse because much more talented people have contributed more to the sim for much less than I.

I am not a happy bunny.

(I may regret posting this tomorrow)

I understand your argument and you have total right to express your opinion. What the others are trying to say is dont put it down till you have used it. Maby phisics will be same as fs9 but oh well. We will love the new stuff added in and the developers will leran about a new engine if they have to. The default looks so good (to me) i am willing to wait a year for a quality add-on.

Now for you "the default looks like my fs9 now!" imagine now  you have spent money on fs9 payware to make it look like this right? I am quoting from someone on avsim or here i dont rember, "If $100 worth of addons for fs9 looks like FSx, imagine FSx with $100 worth of addons." so till the sim comes out, please just shhhh. and dont complane just yet, we have a year till it comes out.

There are many open issues on FSx and it will have to wait a year. Like "all there showing is eye candy!" well duh thats how you get something sold at first. Its not easy to show flight dynamics in a picture or in words. There has only been 1 video that i know of out and the chopper in it  looked like it had better dynamics to me so we will just have to wait for more reviews or untill it comes out.

So hold your arguments for awhile untill it comes out. Like the US government, a body in argument ceases to work corectly, so lets keep things friendly around here and stop your bickering!

I agree with you guys. Crumbso, don't worry. You haven't offended me. ;)

Now, how do I keep my mouth shut for a year? Duct tape maybe? ;D

I feel like a right tit now ::)

ah well I knew I would regret posting it.

wrote on Jan 6^th, 2006 at 9:55pm:

I feel like a right tit now ::)

Play with the left one you may feel better ;D ;D

Matt

HHmmm you may be onto something there ;D

What can I say...
:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o
I cant wait!!!!
It just looks amazing!  :)