Microsoft have just shocked the world of aviation-gaming by confirming that they’ll be releasing a new ‘sophisticated, immersive and awe-inspiring’ instalment to the much-loved simulation franchise next year and if the announcement trailer is anything to go off I think we’ve got a lot to be excited about! Flight Simulator 2024 is said to serve as a sequel to Flight Simulator 2020 and they themselves have said that it will be available for the following platforms on day one of release: Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Cloud Gaming, PC Game Pass, Windows 10 & 11 and Steam. An exact date of release is still yet to be confirmed.
From the teaser video we can see that Flight Simulator 2024 has made a huge push in order to allow users to delve into a plethora of real-world practical uses within the aviation field. In addition to the recreational and commercial styles of flying we’re now accustomed to within Flight Simulator; the teaser video shows crystal clear in-game shots of crucial aviatic applications such as Aerial Firefighting, Search and Rescue, Helicopter Cargo Transportation, Air Ambulance, Agricultural Aviation, Mountain Rescue, Aerial Construction, Industrial Cargo Transportation, Remote Cargo Ops and Scientific Research. We also see stunning examples of the more pleasurable pursuits such as Skydive Aviation, Air Racing, VIP Charter Service, Executive Transportation, Airship Tours and Hot Air Balloon Rides!
The announcement took many, including us here at Editors Keys, by surprise - especially given a lengthier timespan between releases that we were beginning to get accustomed to. At the time of writing - the top comment on the announcement video "The 10+ years FS2020 would be supported went by surprisingly fast." has racked up over 1,200 likes whilst another echoed this frustration by saying "this had better be an expansion pack. MSFS 2020 was just starting to finally get quality aircraft for pete's sake".
From our experience, it seemed the large community of MSFS20 users that adopted our dedicated Flight Simulator Shortcut Keyboard, many of whom had upgraded from the previous Flight Simulator X model, were happy with the latest version of the software and hoping to maintain their dedicated set up for slightly longer than four years. That being said many will think it's a small price to pay to get hands on with latest advancements the software has to offer and that excitement was also echoed in the comment section with exclamations such as the following "One of the most unexpected announcements ever! This looks incredible!".
As a Flight Sim user you won’t have to look at the difference in quality between these two in-game stills of gliders taken some twenty three years apart to know how far this simulator has come in that time but it’s worth taking a moment to embrace the visual advancements that we’ll soon have at our fingertips. I think it’s safe to say we were all blown away by the visual realism that came with Flight Simulator 2020 but it seems that Microsoft had no plans to stop there as we can see noticeable improvements in weather and landscape graphics at first glance.
It’s also worth mentioning that we can only expect these visuals to keep improving due to the increasing addition of, and interaction with, a wider range of human characters within the simulation. So, do you think this is enough to be released as a simulator of its own or are you hoping this will be an expansion instead? Let us know in the comments below! You also may know that this wasn't the only big Flight Simulator announcement that day, click here to see whats got simmers up in arms...
