In January of last year, Microsoft made some rather harsh cuts to its Flight Simulator team, and naturally, fans of the series began to wonder if a proper follow-up would ever be made. As far as flight sims go, there are many out there, but Flight Simulator had an obvious backing that other game developers couldn’t quite match. The result was a game with almost unmatched depth and content.
Those fans can (hopefully) relax, though, as Microsoft has just announced “Microsoft Flight“, the series that’s going to follow in Flight Simulator’s footsteps. The name change might scare some, but Microsoft has said that it aims to cater to those who thrive on ultimate realism, and we’d hope so… since it’s those people that truly love the genre.
But at the same time, the company has also said that it’d be making sure that the gameplay could also please novice players, which seems like a smart move. For me personally, I’ve always loved the Flight Simulator series, but I couldn’t even ever land a plane, so for me, I used the game as more of a tech demo… to “pretend” I was actually flying.
If Microsoft can cater to both the novices and professionals alike, then I say that’s a good thing, but it goes without saying that it’s going to be difficult to pull off. All I hope is that the company doesn’t end up detracting from the previous series too much. Unfortunately, Microsoft hasn’t exactly divulged many specifics so far, but for those interested, a very brief and uneventful teaser trailer can be found here.
The company is offering few details on Flight, but Unangst said that it is looking to appeal to flying enthusiasts with the realism, accuracy, and fidelity they expect, but also imagines including other types of gameplay that might appeal more to novices. “It’s an opportunity for us to branch out even more into something that’s approachable,” he said.