Microsoft Flight Simulator locks enhanced versions of major airports like Heathrow behind $120 edition
Game gets August release date for Windows 10 and Xbox Game Pass
Enhanced versions of major airports like Heathrow and San Francisco International will only be available in the most expensive version of Microsoft Flight Simulator when it’s released for PC on August 18, 2020.
Microsoft said on Monday that the game is now available to pre-order on Windows 10 or pre-install with Xbox Game Pass for PC.
The title comes in three digital editions, with the more expensive versions including a greater number of “handcrafted international airports” and “highly detailed planes with unique flight models”, which are listed in the images below.
The $59.99 Standard Edition, which will be available on launch day with Xbox Game Pass for PC, includes 20 additional planes and 30 handcrafted airports.
The $89.99 Deluxe Edition comes with 25 extra planes and 35 handcrafted airports, while the $119.99 Premium Deluxe Edition includes 30 additional planes and 40 handcrafted airports.
A physical version will be also be available at European stores via Aerosoft.
Developed by French studio Asobo, the new Flight Simulator uses textures and topographical data from Bing Maps, as well as 3D world features such as terrain and buildings generated using Microsoft’s Azure cloud tech.
Microsoft has claimed that the game’s terrain is so accurate that players can apply Visual Flight Rules to navigate using known roads, rivers and lakes.
The title will also be released for Xbox One at a later date.
Flight Simulator features include:
- Vivid and Detailed Landscapes – Immerse yourself in the vast and beautiful world that is our planet with more than 1.5 billion buildings, 2 trillion trees, mountains, roads, rivers and more.
- A Living World – Earth is vibrant and ever-changing and so is the world of Microsoft Flight Simulator which includes live traffic, real-time weather and animals.
- Highly Detailed Aircraft – Hone your pilot skills in a variety of aircraft from light planes to commercial jets with comprehensive flight models. Every aircraft includes highly detailed and accurate cockpits with realistic instrumentation.
- New Checklist System – From pro to beginner, scale your level from full manual to full assist with interactive and highlighted instrument guidance and checklist.
- Dynamic Weather – The new weather engine enables users to switch on the live weather mode to experience real-time weather including accurate wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity, rain and more.
- New Day & Night Engine – Experience flight at any time of day or year allowing for night VFR, visual flight rules, navigation.
- Aerodynamic Modeling – A state-of-the-art physics engine with over 1,000 control surfaces per plane allows for a truly realistic experience.
Further reading
Flight Simulator will feature ‘all airports on Earth’, but 80 will have extra detail
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