The holiday season is now in full gear as Christmas is just around the corner, and the November 2024 games lineup is heating up. Many family-friendly games are about to hit the market with Lego Horizon Adventures as one of them.

Dragon Quest III: HD-2D Remake (Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC)

Publisher: Square Enix
Developer: Square Enix and ARTDINK
Price: $59.99
Release Date: November 14
Trailer

Dragon Quest III: HD-2D Remake is the first of the Erdrick trilogy to be remade with 2D sprites and wonderful 3D backgrounds. As the 16-year-old son of a mighty fallen hero, you take on the antagonist, Baramos, who threatens the world. To take him down, you'll find allies from around the world, change vocations, and triumph over evil through classic turn-based RPG battles. The remake has a new vocation as well, called a monster wrangler. You'll also be exploring castles, caves, and all manner of fantasy environments in this retelling of the game when the game launches on November 14.

LEGO Horizon Adventures (PS5, Switch, PC)

Publisher: PlayStation
Developer: Guerrilla and Studio Gobo
Price: $59.99
Release Date: November 14
Trailer

Another grand adventure launches on November 14, and that's LEGO Horizon Adventures. This is a retelling of Aloy's storyline in a more family-friendly LEGO-like version. The series' famous landmarks, like the Tallnecks and the Cauldrons, have been recreated into Lego and look absolutely stunning in a brighter art style. Unlike the original Horizon games, however, you can play this title in co-op with a friend online or offline. Together you can customize the village of Mother's Heart with all manner of Lego objects. You can also use outfits inspired by other PlayStation series like Ratchet & Clank and LittleBigPlanet.

Mario & Luigi: Brothership (Switch)

Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Acquire and Nintendo
Price: $59.99
Release Date: November 7
Trailer

The Mario & Luigi RPG series is back, thanks to the developer of the critically acclaimed Octopath Traveler franchise, Acquire. Both of these Italian plumbers are visiting the world of Con??cordia, exploring multiple islands and battling enemies in action-packed turn-based combat that has butto??n timing at the forefront. You'll come across many different biomes, including a jungle with endless rain and a hot desert, each with its own characters to meet along the way. Seeing how Acquire takes on the series after the original developer, AlphaDream, went out of business will be interesting. It's certainly one of the most anticipated November 2024 games.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 (PC, Xbox Series X|S)

Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Developer: Asobo Studio
Price: $69.99
Release Date: November 19
Trailer

Xbox and Asobo Studio are letting you explore the world again in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, which soars onto store shelves on November 19. The game has the biggest selection of vehicles in series history as it lets you get certifications to perform aviation activities like Medevac, Remote Cargo Ops, Aerial Firefighting, and Search & Rescue. You'll also be able to compete in the Red Bull Air Races and Reno Air Races. If you're more of an explorer, you can take pictures of legendary sights around the world with photo challenges ready and waiting for you. The game will launch on Xbox Game Pass soon �make sure you have the right PC specs, however, before jumping in.

Planet Coaster 2 (PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S)

Publisher: Frontier Developments
Developer: Frontier Developments
Price: $49.99
Release Date: November 6
Trailer

The popular Rollercoaster Tycoon spiritual successor, Planet Coaster, is getting a sequel on November 6. In addition to building your own theme par?k in this simulation game, you'll be able to build water parks, too. You'll be able to place flumes, water slides, and more ?in the water park of your dreams while creating mesmerizing rollercoasters in a theme park nearby.

Planet Coaster 2 will have a new event sequencer tool that lets you add effects to your attractions, such as animatronics and water fountains. The developer Frontier says this will let you "bring the dramatic fanfare of real-world theme parks to [your] guests." There are a bunch of pr??e-order bonuses?? and editions to consider if you decide to purchase the game.

Honorable mentions

November 2024 is packed with all manner of exciting video games, from small indies to impressive triple-A titles. Here's what to expe?ct from the ??rest of the month:

• Farmagia (PS5, Switch, PC) - November 1
• Death Note: Killer Within (PS4, PS5, PC) - November 5
• Metal Slug Tactics (PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC) - November 5
• Empire of the Ants (PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 7
• Goat Simulator: Remastered (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 7
• Magical Bakery (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, PC) - November 7
• Metro Awakening VR (Quest, PSVR2) - November 7
• Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 7
• Thrive: Heavy Lies the Crown (PC) - November 7
• Slitterhead (PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 8
• Everholm (PC) - November 11
• Farming Simulator 25 (PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 12
• Tetris Forever (PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch) - November 12
• TemTem Swarm (PC) - November 13
• Towers of Aghasba (PC, PS5) - November 19
• Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl (Xbox Series X|S, PC) - November 20
• Dokimon (PC) - November 22

The post Here are the most anticipated November 2024 games appeared first on Destructoid.

As Asobo ramps up the marketing machine for the upcoming release of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, so too does the project seem more and more impressive. The presence of exciting new technology and improvements means not all of our Flight Sim 2020 content is going to transition, however.

Specifically, Asobo Studios higher-ups Jorg Neumann (Head of Flight Sim), Sebastian Wloch (Asobo CEO, co-founder), and Martial Bossard (Executive Producer) spent some time discussing the way the 2020 and 2024 builds of Flight Sim will interact. The topic comes up at about one and a half hours into the recent official Flight Sim developer stream, with the team clarifying some burning topics. We now know, for example, that the Steam and Microsoft Store versions of the 2020 and 2024 builds of Flight Simulator will be effectively interchangeable when it comes to official content licensing. Further, the ?official SDK will be available from day one onwards.

Flight Simulator 2024 is changing how Marketplace content works, but there's no reason for concern

Community support and third-party content are of huge importance for most tenured Microsoft Flight Simulator players. Whether we're talking about "simple" additions such as new planes or something more complicated, like driveable and customizable buggies, Flight Sim has historically been very good to its modders. The good news, then, is that this is bound to continue with MSFS 2024, too.

I highly recommend watching the featured section of the MSFS 2024 September devstream if you can, but here's the TL;DW in c?ase y??ou need it:

• Marketplace content will be available for streaming to Flight Simulator 2024 instantly, with downloads optional for those who want them via the new 'My Library' UI.
• You will be able to copy any and all third-party store content into the appropriate directory on launch day (i.e. stuff purchased from OrbX, simMarket, Aerosoft, PMDG, etc.).
• All PlayFab content will transfer from Flight Sim 2020 over to Flight Sim 2024, regardless of the platform you're playing on (Steam vs. Microsoft Store).
• Those who purchased the Premium Deluxe edition of 2020, and then purchased the standard edition of 2024 will get all the former's Premium Deluxe content in 2024, too.
• All existing planes are being upgraded for all users; there will not be two different versions of planes in 2024.
• Premium Deluxe planes are available as an optional separate purchase for standard and Deluxe edition owners.
• There's no dynamic bundle option to purchase Aviator Edition planes (i.e. if you only owned a few of the Aviator planes in 2020, the full Aviator bundle price will not be reduced in 2024).
• Owners of the Deluxe and Premium Deluxe versions of Flight Sim 2024 will receive special discounts on some official addons in the future.

It's a lot of information, to be sure, but it's good to hear further clarification on how content transfer will work between 2020 and 2024. The community has worked hard to massively expand the breadth of features, planes, and other assorted goodies in the previous build of Flight Sim, and it'd be a shame to lose all of that in one g??o.

Generally, then, we're looking at a very exciting upgrade with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. It seems like Asobo is trying to be about as user-friendly as possible, and though there are some technical hurdles still in place, I'd be hard-pressed to call any of this a bad deal. Don't forget that the officia?l system requirements are more than rea??sonable, too! All in all, then, it seems li?ke we've got much? to look forward to with this one.

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One-upping 2020's Microsoft Flight Simulator seemed pretty challenging, considering just how advanced that game was back in the day, but the 2024 version of Microsoft Flight Sim aims to do so with gusto. An??d, according to the latest news, it won't even punish your PC ?for trying to run it.

Notably, the developer Asobo has been showing off just how impressive Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024's full 3D landscapes, gameplay features, and content are from the very s??tart. This implied an extremely hefty list of PC hardware requir??ements, but the official listings are somewhat humble.

Now, obviously, the targeted 'Ideal Spec' for this game is basically top-of-the-line stuff, with 64 GB of RAM in town and the excellent RTX 4080/14700K combo. Yet, if you're just aiming to play the game and enjoy the planes themselves, you're going to able to do so on the ageing RX 5700 GPU. Astoni??shing stuff, really.

Official hardware requirements for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 are now in

While it's always worth keeping a pinch of salt in hand when it comes to official system requirements, the stuff Asobo's shown off here is promising indeed. It suggests that the game is going to be particularly RAM-hungry,?? though somewhat forgiving on the GPU and? CPU side of things. Let's be honest here: that Ryzen 5 2600X is getting a tad long in the tooth in 2024.

Storage-wise, too, this infographic is fairly surprising as it suggests the new Microsoft Flight Sim is going to be better at content compression than its predecessor. It's a steep difference, as the 2024 version of the game requires a relatively meager 50 GB of free space, while the 2020 build asked for thrice as much space by default, at 150 GB on day one.

As Microsoft Flight Simulator spans literally the entire planet, this time rendering it all in some seriously impressive detail, not a lot of that goodness can fit in those 50 gigs by default. To compensate, the game instead streams content from Microsoft's own servers, which means you'll need an Internet connection as well. Asobo specifies that a 10 Mbps Internet connection should do the trick well enough, though obviously the faster you traw??l the net, the better.

If the bit that concerns you is that Microsoft Flight Sim 2024 is nowhere to be found on Steam, I wouldn't worry too much. One of Asobo's senior community managers recently stated that the game would be live for pre-order on September 26, well ahead of its November 19 release date. So, Asobo is getting to it, and the latest Flight Simulator absolutely is coming to Steam.

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After what's been accomplished with 2020's Microsoft Flight Simulator in the area of graphics, it should come as absolutely no surprise that the upcoming Flight Simulator 2024 is kicking things up a notch further still. This ti??me, the developer aims to deliver a three-dimensional ground map.

As discussed on the recent Microsoft Flight Simulator development update (which was aptly spotted by Jonathan Bolding over at PC Gamer), the developer Asobo Studio basically confirmed our suspicions from a while back: that the rendering of the world we fly over is bound to be the major focus of the new title. Given the ridiculous fidelity of the plane models and their flight models, it does make sense that Asobo would now want to up the ante in regard to the rest of the simulation. So, Flight Simulator 2024 looks like it's going to have???? a fully 3D ground map in 30 biomes, as opposed to the prior games' texture streaming models.

Flight Simulator 2024 promises a higher world fidelity than ever before

What this means, in effect, is that the virtual Earth you fly over in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 features procedurally generated vegetation models across the board, and that the buildings themselves and other geometry will no longer rely purely on rudimentary polygons and stretched-out textures to look correct from some ways away. This should result in a way more believable representation of the real world, and judging by the fact that Asobo is ready to launch the game with 30 fully re?alized, distinctive biomes ready to go, the?re should be plenty of variety as well.

Graphics aren't the be-all-end-all of Flight Sim, however important they might be. To that end, Asobo has also promised a much more detailed realization of AI-controlled aircraft, more flight details and check-ups than ever before, and the ability to walk around planes to do manual pre-flight checkups. Asobo also promises about 500,000 tall obstacles for players to navigate through, around, or above (i.e. towers, turbines, masts, etc.). They have also integrated the global ship traffic into the simulation, with apparently every single oil rig in the world appearing in the Flight Sim pr??ecisely as they should. Helipads, too, have been given ?a similar treatment

Finally, Asobo has also confirmed that we're getting a proper in-game flight planner feature, which combined with pre-flight checklists should make for a way more immersive flying experience. In the context of Flight Sim, t??hat's a?? heck of a claim, and I can't wait to see more of it in action.

Fans of the franchise should check out Asobo Games' full 90-ish minute showcase above, as it's absolutely loaded with exciting showcases from the very start. If for no other reason, then just to see those sweet, sweet ray-traced shad??ows in motion!

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Microsoft Flight Simulator is a known quantity by now. An immaculate and widely acclaimed aircraft simulator with the sort of pedigree that almost no other modern gaming franchise could compare with, and one that's due for a comprehensive 2024 update to make it even better. But that's not even close to the full story, as Parallel 42's wacky Juice Goose third-party DLC can attest to. Indeed, it would appear that some enterprising devs have been working in the background to redefine what Microsoft Flight Sim can and cannot do.

Setting aside the wildly entertaining idea that Microsoft Flight Simulator might unofficially be turning into something along the lines of Forza Horizon, with the whole world being its playable area, the Juice Goose is supposedly a rather high-quality offering. Which it ought to be, of course, given that it's priced at a non-insignificant $15. The Juice Goose isn't necessarily the star of this particular show, however, insomuch as?? it may be a sign of things to come.

Is Microsoft Flight Sim turning into an everything sim?

The fact that Microsoft Flight Sim supports paid third-party expansion packs is not new information, as such. What is new, though, is that devs such as Parallel 42 have silently been working on entirely unexpected ways of enjoying Flight Sim all along. Aside from the aforementioned buggy (which comes with its own comprehensive set of features, customization options, and more), Parallel 42 has also developed a camping DLC, which is precisely what it says on the tin.

These are pricy offerings, naturally, and they won't be for everyone. After all, it's to be expected that the millions of people who have played Flight Sim did so mainly because of the aircraft themselves. There is a subset of players, however, that wish to support third-party devs that may attempt to cater to entirely different niches within MFS, and that's where the Juice?? Goose and other such DLCs come into? the picture.

Developments such as these might not be wholly surprising to those who have kept up with Flight Sim all along. The fact that the game is slowly morphing into something even more comp??rehensive and interesting might've gone over the more casual audiences' heads, however!

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The beloved simulator series marks a significant milestone

FIFA, Call of Duty, yet another rerelease of Skyrim �there are plenty of games out there that get new versions like clockwork, making them some of the staples of the gaming industry. One series with less sex appeal, but certainly a dedicated cult following, is Microsoft's Flight Simulator. While these games' releases are somewhat quiet in the grand scheme of the gaming industry, the first entry in the series was released all the way back in 1982, and there have been a total of fifteen Flight Simulator titles since. ?That has to make it one of the longest-r?unning game series ever.

The most recent Flight Simulator came out in 2020, and was met with nearly unanimously glowing reviews. It even claimed the spot as the third best game of its release year, just after Half-Life: Alyx and Hades. The gam?e was praised especially for its visual style, smooth controls, and acce??ssibility options.

Microsoft released a statement this morning that "10 million pilots have enjoyed the beauty, awe, and wonder of the world available in Microsoft Flight Simulator across Windows/PC, Xbox Clo?ud Gaming, and Xbox console." The post doesn't specify whether this number is in refierence to the series' most recent release or an all-time cumulative number, but I have to assume it's the latter. Regardless, that still makes the franchise a huge success, and it's clearly beloved by aviation enthusiasts everywhere.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QY7qXUZqoo

The post a??lso shared other impressive stats breaking down the series' rich history by numbers:

• 500 million flights
• 40 billion miles flown
• Equivalent of 10 million trips around the Earth
• Equivalent of 200 round trips from the Earth to the Sun

November 11 of this year was actually the 40th anniversary of the series, and to celebrate, Microsoft released a special anniversary edition of the 2020 Flight Simulator game. That edition including a whole host?? of new historical aircraft and ?airports, as well as new missions for players to partake in.

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Hop in a Pelican

Microsoft Flight Simulator is crossing over with Halo Infinite in a new add-on that lets players pilot a Pelican, and it's out today, for free. While the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase was mostly focuse?d on the game's 40th Anniversary Edition due out in November (with helicopters and gliders), the iconic USNC aircraft got all of the attention.

//youtu.be/l_F20n8BwME

Circling back to the new edition, Microsoft Flight Simulator 40th Anniversary Edition is tapping into nostalgia as a "comprehensive celebration of the franchise" and a "tribute to past editions," according to Xbox. Apart from newly added helicopters and gliders, the dev?elopers also confirmed the Spirit of St. Louis?? and a "true-to-life" Airbus A310.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 40th Anniversary Edition will be pla??yable for ??free if you already have the base game or you're a Game Pass subscriber on Xbox Series X/S or PC.

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Take me on your Mighty Wings tonight

It looks like you two characters... are going to Top Gun �or at least you will be if you frequent Microsoft Flight Simulator. The premier sky flying title has added a brand new DLC expansion themed after Paramount Pictures' new movie Top Gun: Maverick. Better still, ?the new DLC is free fo??r all players.

Wannabee Icemen can earn their stripes in three new training missions, learning the ways of unrestricted take-offs, split S maneuvers, and low altitude, high-speed maneuvering. Once you're pretty confident that you can take on any situation... inverted... then you can test your newfound abilities against five challenging "High Speed/Low Level" canyon runs, zipping through tight and unpredictable terrain at terrifying,? break-neck speeds.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWkczb0LIgI

By the time you're buzzing the tower and making those stuffed shirts spill their coffee, you'll be ready to ?take on the Carrier Deck Landing Challenge, which developer Asobo assures us is one of the? most demanding operations in military aviation. I bet Cruise had a go at it, the bleach-teethed nutcase. Finally, the expansion teases the addition of never-before-unveiled, Mach 10 hypersonic aircraft. Is that in the movie? Probably. I haven't seen it yet.

You might be wondering where the Top Gun: Maverick F/A-18E Super Hornet is in this mix. Well, it's already in Flight Simulator, as it was added last year before the corresponding movie was delayed, so chances are that flight aficionados are already pretty handy with it. A new livery pack will let you apply Top Gun and Maverick-themed de??cals to the jet fighter, so you'll truly feel the need... well, you know.

The Top Gun: Maverick DLC expansion is live in Microsoft Flight Simulator now. Coincidentally, Bandai Namco's Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown also receives its own Top Gun DLC today. For movie fans, Top Gun: Maverick launches in? theaters worldwide on May 27. It is, apparent??ly, very good indeed.

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DirectX 12 is back on the menu

Microsoft Flight Simulator is the type of enduring game you could potentially obsess over for years, and while plenty of players got enough of a no-risk cursory glance with Xbox Game Pass, more updates are on the way. It's not done yet! Far from it. Speaking of which, Microsoft Flight Simulator: Game of the Year Edition is coming out on November 18, 2021.

As announced this morning by Microsoft, the Game of the Year Edition will be a free update to the current game, an??d the ??long-awaited DirectX 12 support is finally (back) in sight.

According to an Xbox blog post, there will be five new aircraft, eight new airports, new Discovery Flights, and more tutorials in Microsoft Flight Sim's Game of the Year Edition. That's in addition to "highly requested community features" like the aforementioned DX12 support and "updated weather system," which will hopefully make as much of an impact as folks are anticipating. At?? any rate, that's one more box checked off the to-do list.

//youtu.be/x2C3d4pMo40

The new aircraft

• Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet
• VoloCity
• Pilatus PC-6 Porter
• CubCrafters NX Cub
• Aviat Pitts Special S1S

The new airports

• Germany: Leipzig/Halle Airport (EDDP), Allgäu Airport Memmingen (EDJA), Kassel Airport (EDVK)
• Switzerland: Lugano Airport (LSZA), Zurich Airport (LSZH), Luzern-Beromunster Airport (LSZO)
• United States: Patrick Space Force Base (KCOF), Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (KNKX)

Also on the near-future calendar: Reno Air Races. If you missed that tidbit at Gamescom, this is a competitive-minded expansion with the "fastest motorsport on Earth." It's yet another neat crossover; something to check out before next year's Top Gun expansion.

//youtu.be/QZqZjCaWIPg

From the outside looking in, I respect this ga??me and Aso?bo Studio's vision for it.

I get that die-hard fans probably have a passionate wishlist of features and fixes and what-ifs they'd like the developers to work through, and timelines may shift, but I feel like progress is being made, and the end result will be something (even more) special. I can't play these sims for the life of me, but I can appreciate Microsoft Flight Simulator from afar.

I hope the??y're able to stick with it for several?? more years, minimum.

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Two Xbox classics join console and cloud

Xbox has detailed some of the games rounding out the July Xbox Game Pass lineup. Alongside games both new and ??old, there are two classics from the original Xbox days joining the subscription service.

Blinx: The Time Sweeper and Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge both arrive on the Game Pass service for cloud and console on July 26. It's a little slice of Xbox nostalgia, and honestly, with the easy availability of playing games on the cloud, it seems like a fun way to re-experience ??these games years later.? It's nice to see Xbox keep adding older games to the Game Pass and cloud roster, adding a little bit of Xbox history alongside the newer games.

If you'd prefer the new games, this month's lineup has also got a good few of those. The gorgeous, time-bending RPG Cris Tales arrives today for cloud, console, and PC, and Last Stop, the new game from Virginia developer Variable State and Annapurna, arrives on Thursday, July 22. The Ascent is also arriving right at the end of the month, and Microsoft Flight Simulator's Xbox S??eries X and S debut also brings it to Game Pass on July 27.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_pq_Q2dwRQ

Here's the full? list of games confirmed?? for the service today, as well as their platforms and arrival dates:

• Battlefield V (Cloud) - July 20
• Cris Tales (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 20
• Atomicrops (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 22
• Raji: An Ancient Epic (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 22
• Last Stop (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 22
• Blinx: The Time Sweeper (Cloud, Console) - July 26
• Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge (Cloud, Console) - July 26
• Microsoft Flight Simulator (Xbox Series X|S) - July 27
• Lethal League Blaze (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 29
• Omno (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 29
• Project Wingman (PC) - July 29
• The Ascent (Cloud, Console, PC) - July 29

There are also a few games leavi??ng the Xbox Game Pass service on July 31:

• It Lurks Below (Console, PC)
• The Touryst (Cloud, Console, PC)
• UnderMine (Cloud, Console, PC)

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Another good Game Pass get

Xbox players will soon be able to get into the unbelievably pretty aerial antics of Microsoft Flight Simulator, as the Xbox Series X/S versions are launching July 27, 2021. If you're subbed to ?Game Pass, you're good t??o go. Better start reading up, pilot!

//www.youtube.com/??watch?v=QZ6XpfaWbko&list=PL0il2l-B_Wwaj87aLVYWvmJhL-8uftHNX&index=3

Technical details about the Xbox version of Microsoft Flight Simulator are limited right now, but Asobo did say on Twitter ??that it'll run at 30 frames per second. "On TVs that support VRR, the framerate can go above 30 FPS," according to the ??studio.

Stick around to the end of the E3 trailer, in which you'll see a �wait really? A Top Gun expansion??? It's free and it's meant to prop up the upcoming movie Top Gun: Maverick.?? Both are set for November 19, 2021. In a weird way, the crossover works.

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But can it fit in the overhead storage?

Video games are big, and they've kept getting bigger. So it's always nice to see devs find ways to make a reduction in their storage imprint like the Microsoft Flight Simulator team has with v1.16.2.0.

In its release notes for an update on May 25, the Microsoft Flight Simulator team ??notes it has performed some optimizations for the initial full download of the game. Now, the base game s??hould be only 83 GB in size, rather than over 170 GB.

That's a boon for anyone trying to save on storage space right now, especially as storage solutions can be fraught. Microsoft Flight Simulator hasn't hit the Xbox Series X or S just yet, but when it does, having a smaller impact on the file storage will be pretty handy. Those expansion cards don't grow on trees, you know.

Microsoft's beefy flight sim has been getting steady updates since its launch last year, adding crafted locales and, of course, virtual reality. I'm absolutely terrible at flying anything in it, but the tech behind the sim has resulted in some amazing things, like tracking real-life storms from a virtual cockpit.

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The bad news: VR motion controllers aren't supported

A beefed-up PC with a comfy VR setup and Microsoft Flight Simulator sounds like a dream right now.

The VR test period is over, and the update is ready: you can now fly with VR in Microsoft Flight Simulator if you have an Oculus, Vive, Valve Index, or Windows Mixed Reality he?adset. "All OpenXR-compliant headsets" are ??supported with this free update – look in the VR options menu to get started.

Here's what the VR mode looks like in?? broad str??okes:

It's worth stressing that motion controllers currently are not supported – a fact that's bound to bum out VR enthusiasts – and Microsoft Flight Simulator has a graphics setting for desktop and for VR.

"When you switch between the two modes the sim dynamically switches settings, which may briefly impact its performance," according to Asobo Studio. If needed, you can try and increase your performance with the Render Scale setting – that "has?? the gre?atest impact on framerate."

There's also a holiday scavenger hunt tucked away in today's update. If you're up for the challenge, there are a dozen "iconic landmarks" to track down. They've been done up with festiv??e lights.

You can also?? expect to see snow and ice, i??n general. The Live Weather feature was updated too.

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Not on Xbox One though

PC users have been at cruis??ing altitude for months now. Xbox folks, well, the doors didn't close for an on-time departure.

At The Game Awards, it was revealed that Microsoft Flight Simulator lands on consoles in the summer of 2021. Microsoft says ??that players can expect the same level of detail on Xbox Series S/X as can be found on PC.

However, interestingly enough, it seems as though Microsoft Flight Simulator isn't coming to last-gen con??soles. The Xbox Wire writeup makes no mention of an Xbox One version, and the trailer ends with "Coming to the al??l-new Xbox [in] summer 2021." That would make it the first game that leaves behind the old generation of Xbox.

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Insiders can sign up for the VR closed beta test

Microsoft Flight Simulator doesn't have VR support yet, but that's where you – or at least someone like you, who owns?? the right headset – com?e in. Asobo Studio is getting ready to run a VR closed beta.

You can run down the full requirements and sign-up over here if you qualify, but th??e important thing to note is that the first phase of the beta will be limited to Windows Mixed Reality, while the second phase will open up to encompass "additional headsets." Asobo says it will "only allow a sele??ct group of testers at any given time," so having the right setup and expressing interest won't guarantee that you'll get in.

It could be a while before we see footage of VR up and running in Microsoft Flight Simulator given that beta acces?s comes with a non-disclosure agreement, but I'm expecting eventual greatness. This game has a bright future ahead of it – years upon years of content updates – and VR will push it even higher.

I look forward to maybe one day owning powerful enough hardwar?e that can make the most of it.

October 1st, 2020 Development Update [Microsoft Flight Simulator]

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'The simulator's biggest launch in 38 years'

Microsoft is calling Microsoft Flight Simulator the "biggest game launch in Xbox Game Pass for PC history," and ther??e's a concrete figure to back up that hazy milestone: over a million unique players.

The m??ost popular airport? JFK. T??he longest flight? 10.39 hours.

It's been tough to gauge if existing fans are just that into the game and super vocal about it on social media or if Flight Simulator has tapped into a wider audience of players who haven't tried the series before or haven't touched it in many years. Either wa??y, their jolly travels are begging to be shared.

I've considered Flight Simulator to be perfect fodder for Game Pass since it was announced, but to see it climb to the top is still impressive. Even though the sim is intriguing as a subscription inclusion, it's not necessarily an impulse decision – you've gotta set aside a lot of space and time to fully download it.

The real question, though, is how will it fare on Xbox One? We still d?on't have a release date. More niche games with wider audience potential will be gre?atly appreciated on Game Pass. Bring 'em on.

Microsoft Flight Simulator is the biggest game launch in Xbox Game Pass for PC history with over 1 million players t?o d?ate [Xbox]

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'We are working really hard to make this happen'

Microsoft Flight Simulator came out just recently on PC on August 18.

But what about consoles? Well, that's still in the works. Although Microsoft has previously confirmed that Flight Simulator 2020 was coming to Xbox One and Series X, there's no timeline in mind. Though, a recent stream from Major Nel??son confirmed that it is still indeed in the works.

Speaking on the stream, Jorg Neumann (head of Microsoft Flight Simulator) issued the following statement: "we are dedicated to come to Xbox, and we are working really hard to make this happen. We don't have a timeline quite yet, but we're w?orking full speed." Nelson also reminded us that the game is already compatible with an Xbox controller; and Neumann says that the game is "totally doable" on a traditional controller.

For reference, the Microsoft Flight Simulator bit starts at roughly 29 minutes in, and the "Xbox question" happens right around the 48 minut?e mark.

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The sweet escape

August 18 feels like a sooner-than-expected release date for Microsoft Flight Simulator given all the recent tests, but Asobo Studio is confident enough to lock it in and open pre-orders for the PC version.

Plenty of folks will stick to Xbox Game Pass – the standard edition of Microsoft Flight Simulator will be playable with the PC subscription service at no extra charge – but hardcore fans?? have more to consider.

Apart from the $60 base vers?ion, Asobo is also selling a $90 Deluxe Edition and $120 Premium Deluxe Edition. You better believe there's a big "here's what you get" image to go along with that sticker sh??ock. In short, the more you spend, the more "handcrafted" airports and planes you'll get to experience.

• Standard: "20 highly detailed planes with unique flight models and 30 handcrafted airports."
• Deluxe: "five additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and five additional handcrafted international airports."
• Premium Deluxe: 10 additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and 10 additional handcrafted international airports."

To break things down, Microsoft Flight Simulator has "more than 37,000 airports" thanks to Bing Maps data, but some of them – the airports touted in these t?hree editions – have an extra person??al touch.

Asobo Studio has "no news to share regarding additional versions [like Steam or the Epic Games Store], but our goal is to have Microsoft Flight Simulator available on as many platforms as possible."

As for the defin??itely-still-happening Xbox One version, we just don't have a release date yet.

Microsoft Flight Simulator Set for Launch on August ??18 for PC, also with Xbox Game Pass for PC (Beta) [Xbox]

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Asobo Studio is putting in work

Microsoft Flight Simulator is still figuring out the finer details with assistance from the Insider Program community,? but for the rest ?of us, there's this: a fresh trailer to gawk at from today's X019 stream.

The attention to detail made possible by clo?ud computing is beautiful and terrifying all at once.

I have a feeling Game Pass curiosity will do Microsoft Flight Simulator a huge fa?vor when it releases for PC and Xbox One in 2020. Think of all the people who would otherwise never try something like this.

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Coming first to Windows 10 in 2020

Microsoft Flight Simulator is back and i?t's looking gorgeous in the er??a of 4K.

Announced at Microsoft's E3 2019 press conference, the "next generation of one of the most beloved simulation franchises" is releasing in 2020 – first for Windows 10 (and included in Game Pass), then on Xbox One at a later date. It leverages satel?lite data and Azure AI to pull off some stunning views.

"From light planes to wide-body jets, fly highly detailed and stunning aircraft in an incredibly realistic world," summarized Microsoft. "Create your flight plan and fly anywhere ??on the planet. Enjoy flying day or night and face realistic, challenging weather conditions."

Of all the possible games to show up at E3, I sure wasn't expecting to see a new Flight Simulator.

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