As a seasoned aviator with countless hours spent navigating the friendly skies, I must say that Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 has truly taken my breath away. The level of detail and realism in this game is nothing short of astounding, making every flight feel like a genuine adventure.
In 2020, many video game titles battled for the title of best visuals, but none dared to accomplish what Microsoft Flight Simulator did. As a sequel to the seemingly overlooked Flight Simulator franchise, it provided the most authentic aircraft simulation, encompassing everything from commercial flights to helicopters, all set in an intricately detailed replica of our planet Earth. With the help of technology like Microsoft Azure and photogrammetry, you could fly virtually anywhere with astonishing realism.
The outcomes were nothing short of remarkable, and they continued to enhance as additional updates rolled out. With Microsoft Simulator 2024, Asobo Studio and Xbox Game Studios have taken things to a whole new level. They’ve meticulously crafted over 100,000 square kilometers of the countryside, featuring more than 150 airports, 2000 points of interest, and much more. Furthermore, about three trillion trees, 40,000 airports, and 1.5 billion buildings are generated procedurally. For the first time in this series, you can now leave your plane and traverse the world on foot, with 27 distinct biomes to explore.
Speaking in a more conversational tone, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, often called Asobo Studio’s digital replica of Earth, has been jaw-dropping so far with its gameplay. However, on its release day, technical problems like server issues and prolonged loading times put a damper on the excitement. Fortunately, these issues were mostly addressed by the development team. Now, the big question is: How does Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 stack up visually? We’re curious about its performance on PC and Xbox Series X, and how they compare.
What’s New
Prior to delving deeper, let’s first discuss the enhancements in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 and how it surpasses its predecessor. Key improvements involve a more awe-inspiring simulation of our planet through machine learning. In an interview with Windows Central, studio co-founder and CEO Sebastian Wloch revealed that AI is trained using real photographs, aerial images, altitude data, and other information to predict the type of terrain beneath – for example, whether it’s rocks, pebbles, sand or land.
In a conversation with RockPaperShotgun, Flight Sim lead Jorg Neumann explained how the team chose 28,000 digital tiles to represent various Earth features for their machine learning system. These tiles encompassed landscapes such as forests, deserts, and more. They would input this data into a machine learning system, teaching it that specific color patterns correspond to certain types of environments. The results were then reviewed, with human intervention correcting any mistakes. This process was repeated in four distinct stages. In real-time, the refined information is delivered to players. Although tools like Blackshark.ai, Microsoft Azure, and Bing Maps continue to influence the sequel, a significantly larger volume of data (approximately 5 GB per hour, as stated by Neumann) is now being transmitted compared to the original game.
Absolutely, there are numerous significant enhancements to the game’s intricacies. For instance, it boasts over 10,000 rigid-body surfaces for realistic aircraft simulations, soft body physics for balloons and textiles, advanced aircraft systems, a comprehensive pre-flight planner with IFR charts, ETOPS planning, and NOTAMS. Additionally, there are new features in the weather system such as auroras, an innovative photometric lighting system, and added details like maritime traffic, air traffic, and wildlife populating the landscapes and seas. It’s a rich and immersive experience, but keep in mind you’ll need some high-performance hardware to fully enjoy it.
PC Settings and Test Bench
We chose the PC as our preferred platform to try out “Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024”, equipped with an AMD Ryzen 5950x CPU, a GeForce RTX 3080 Ti graphics card, and 32 GB of RAM for our testing. While this setup exceeds the suggested GPU (RTX 2080) and CPU (AMD Ryzen 7 2700X), it falls short of the optimal requirements, which call for an RTX 4080 graphics card, a Ryzen 9 7900X processor, and 64 GB of RAM. Furthermore, remember that you’ll need a reliable internet connection to stream its massive assets effectively; a minimum of 10 Mbps is necessary, with 50 Mbps recommended, and 100 Mbps for optimal performance, so keep that in mind.
In simpler terms, we ran the game at a high-quality resolution (4K) and activated Nvidia’s Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) in Quality Mode. For smoother visuals, we selected Nvidia DLSS Super Resolution. We also maxed out most of the settings like off-screen terrain caching, texture resolution, ambient occlusion, raymarched reflections, and so on, keeping them at their highest (Ultra) setting. The detail level for the terrain and objects was set to a high standard (200). We adjusted windshield effects to Medium but kept the glass cockpit refresh rate High for aircraft that supported it.
PC Performance
In various game scenes for the PC version, the frame rate fluctuated between 30 and 45 frames per second. However, the choppy performance is problematic due to unexpected stutters that cause rapid drops in frame rate. These sudden interruptions feel jarring and unnatural. Additionally, there’s a noticeable drop in frame rate when transitioning between maps, which gives the sensation of a sudden slowdown followed by gradual stabilization. The team has addressed login issues for many users, suggesting that hardware limitations could be the culprit. Despite this, some performance optimization would greatly improve the experience on PC, though given the circumstances, the current frame rates are acceptable considering our game settings.
Xbox Series X Performance
On the Xbox Series X, the storyline varies significantly. It’s designed to deliver 4K resolution and 30 frames per second without offering different modes for selection. Despite having less playtime with the console version compared to the PC version, the frame rate appeared quite steady at 30 FPS, with only occasional minor dips, less stuttering, and fewer of the earlier mentioned map problems. The visual quality is generally high, so if you’re unsure about your PC’s ability to manage the game, the Xbox Series X could be a reliable choice as an alternative.
PC vs. Xbox Series X
Though the PC version is superior in draw distance, it’s incredible how well the Xbox Series X measures up. Both versions show some pop-in, as seen in the reflections of the Golden Gate Bridge in the water as the player draws closer, which looks even odder as you get closer. You can also clearly see some minor details, from buildings and a bit of their shadows to definitions on hill ranges, loading in at close range. It’s all noticeable if you look hard enough, though, at times, it can get even more egregious, with entire mountains worth of textures suddenly popping in. Whether this is a hardware or streaming issue is unknown.
Undeniably, the richness of detail in the landscape textures, coupled with realistic traffic, water quality, and reflections, not to mention the aesthetically pleasing planes with their lifelike shadows, is a sight to behold. However, you might notice that finer shadows from smaller parts flicker annoyingly clearly on Xbox Series X. Fortunately, performance on this console seems more steady, with fewer frame drops. Intriguingly, transitioning from bustling cityscapes filled with buildings, traffic, water, reflections, and diverse vegetation to less crowded landscapes and flatter terrains, the PC version’s performance improves dramatically, offering a smoother experience.
When comparing cockpits, both versions look very good, capturing the sheer detail of the instruments and their performance with stunning realism. When looking outside the windows, the PC version slightly wins out. Both feature accurate lens flares against the glass and little bits of dust and snow, which can even smudge. The latter looks slightly better on PC alongside the reflections of the dashboard, but both versions still offer an insane amount of detail from the cockpit.
Aside from that, the character designs could use some improvement. They’re not particularly prominent elements in the game, but given that you’ll frequently encounter your player character in post-mission displays and Career Mode interactions with non-player characters, it’s worth noting.
Conclusion
2024’s version of Microsoft Flight Simulator promises an impressive gaming experience, representing a noticeable improvement over its 2020 forerunner. Despite using hardware that doesn’t quite meet the optimal requirements, it manages to offer respectable performance at 4K resolution with Ultra settings and DLSS Quality activated. There is room for further optimization, particularly in terms of map loading speed, which currently feels sluggish. However, this is just the start, and given its solid foundation, we can anticipate a continually enhancing experience as time passes.
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2024-11-24 21:11