Giveaway of the Day Forums

1. 

   Whiterabbit-uk
   Games Guru

   I meant to post this several weeks ago when Microsoft finally released their revamped version of their successful Flight sim package. Now you get a whole Hawaiian Island to explore totally for free. The visuals are fantastic and for anyone who would like to try out a great flight sim for free, here's your opportunity now. you can either download the package as a free standing game or via Steam if you wish. They have already released four dlc's for the game, but these are not free. Two are copies of two famous WWII planes the Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero and the P51 - Mustang, plus an all terrain tail dragger called the Maule M-7-260C. The final dlc adds the rest of the Hawaiian Islands to the free part of the game. I sense that Microsoft will be using the free part of the game to add many more dlc's some maybe free much like the developers of Railworks have doe with Railworks 3 (I've purchased almost 100 dlc's for that game at a staggering cost of over a thousand pounds. but for me the simulation is well worth it. The free version is already making me want to purchase the newly released dlc which costs separately:
   Downloadable Content For This Game:

   Microsoft Flight: Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero - £4.79

   Microsoft Flight: North American P-51 Mustang - £5.99

   Microsoft Flight: Maule M-7-260C - £9.99

   Microsoft Flight: Hawaiian Adventure - £14.99

   However you can get the last three dlc's as a single package called Microsoft Flight: Hawaiian Starter Bundle for £21.99

   The cost of all four separately is £34.76, but if you purchase the Microsoft Flight: Hawaiian Starter Bundle and the Zero seperately they will cost you £26.78. Remember that the base game is totally FREE. :)

   

   

   

   Video:

   You can see a couple of videos of Microsoft flight HERE, [ur=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-JluDG-OSE]HERE[/url] and [ur=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HY4bOiV28BU&feature=fvwrel]HERE[/url]

   The Free Game:

   Experience the thrill and wonder of flight with Microsoft Flight. This free download gives you the opportunity to explore the skies over the beautiful Big Island of Hawaii in the state-of-the-art Icon A5 or the classic Boeing Stearman. Enjoy hours of gameplay with a variety of exciting missions, challenges that will test your skills, and hidden Aerocaches that will give you yet another reason to explore.

   

   

   Key Features:

   1) ... Free to Download and Play: Enjoy hours of exciting gameplay for free with the initial download.

   2) ... Got a Mouse? You Can Fly! Jump into the adventure of flying with no special hardware or past experience.

   

   3) ... Beautifully Rendered Planes and Locations: Immerse yourself in a vibrant aviation experience as you soar over visually stunning landscapes, and fly with authentic weather patterns and flight physics.

   

   4) ... Level Up and Unlock New Content: Earn experience points, explore, accept daily challenges, discover hidden Aerocaches, and master an ever-expanding variety of planes.

   5) ... Customize Your Experience: Fly through career mode, complete missions, search for hidden adventures or simply explore the sky. Beginners can get up in the air in no time, while customizable difficulty levels offer challenges for even the most experienced PC pilot.

   

   6) ... Fly with Friends: Connect with Games for Windows - LIVE to explore the skies with your friends and enjoy seamless integration of achievements, gamertags, gamerscores, additional free content and more!

   System Requirements

   Minimum:

   OS:Windows XP (SP3)
   Processor:Dual Core 2.0 GHz
   Memory:2 GB RAM
   Graphics:256 MB card capable of shader 3.0
   DirectX®:9.0c
   Hard Drive:10 GB HD space

   Games for Windows - LIVE System Requirements: Multiplayer play and other LIVE features included at no charge; games may offer additional downloads that may require additional fees. LIVE is not available in all countries, visit http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/countries for more information.

   Features and system requirements may change without notice. Subject to Terms of Use (at http://www.gamesforwindows.com/live/termsofuse). Broadband Internet service required (sold separately). Some broadband services may not work with LIVE and performance may vary. Under 13 requires parental consent. See http://www.gamesforwindows.com/live for full details.

   Recommended:

   OS:Windows 7 64-bit
   Processor:Intel® Core™ i7 960 @ 3.20GHz, AMD® Phenom™ II X6 1100T 3.3 GHz
   Memory:6 GB RAM
   Graphics:ATI Radeon™ HD 5870, NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 560
   DirectX®:9.0c
   Hard Drive:15 GB HD space
   Other Requirements:Broadband Internet connection

   

   

   Download:

   You can get the game via Steam (well worth getting it via steam becasue it will automatically be kept up to date). You do need the Steam client installed tohugh. you can get it dfor Steam HERE

   or if you want it free standing you can get it directly from Microsoft HERE

   I'll add some images and video soon

   Posted 12 years ago #
2. 

   Whiterabbit-uk
   Games Guru

   I reckon this will go the same way as Microsofts flight sim X, with loads of custom content created for free as time passes. At the moment you only get a couple of free flight models with the free game. To add more you have to purchase the dlc, which isn't cheap at the moment. Hopefully there will be free stuff released by the flight sim community eventually.

   Posted 12 years ago #
3. 

   litemotif
   Member

   I have MS Flight Sim X. How do you think this new version compares?

   Posted 12 years ago #
4. 

   Whiterabbit-uk
   Games Guru

   If you are looking for graphic looks then the new one is heads above FSX. However as yet it's limited in that there are no commercial airline models nor a large selection of planes to fly; but I reckon that will change with time as the flight sim commnunity get their hands on development tools.

   I reckon Microsoft will try to milk it like Railworks has done with their DLC charging around $10 for each extra plane model and around $20 - $40 for expansion packs to add more flying space with decent scenery.

   So far I've been very happy with the new game, though as yet for sheer weight of content both commercial and free Microsoft FSX knocks spots off it, but I'm loving the experience. When I look out of my cockpit (apart from the Zero and Mustang models from the dlc packs which have no cockpit interiors) the world below looks beautiful and almost real.

   Without the Real Sceney add-ons (eg VFR packs) fr FSX, Microsoft Flight looks so much better. The four dlcs have already cost nearly as much as a full version new AAA game and I'm sure they will be adding more soon. Hawaii sure looks good from the air, though ground textures are very poor close up apart from the runways. However, when you are up in the sky those ground textures mean nothing. If they did then the way I'd want them, I'd need a super computer to play the game. :)

   Here's two of the comparison images taken from the link I've posted below:

   Image taken using Microsoft FSX:

   

   Image taken using Microsoft Flight:

   

   You can see the differences between Flight and FSX HERE. The guy whose taken the screenshots has done a brilliant job of the comparisons. HERE's a video showing the same plus a few more comparisons and here's an excellent video showing take off.s from both games from the same airport. apart from the much more realistic look of the Flight game you can see immediately how good the airstip is when you get two strips crossing each other. On the FSX version it looks like one strip has been overlaid on top of the other and looks really false, wheras in the Flight example you can see how they have blended the strips together so that they both run into each other as you'd expect them to. You can see that comparison HERE

   Posted 12 years ago #
5. 

   litemotif
   Member

   Thanks, Stephen. I guess with the passage of time you would expect the graphics to be better, but this is pretty amazing! I guess I'm going to have to update again ;-)

   Posted 12 years ago #
6. 

   Whiterabbit-uk
   Games Guru

   I was really pleased when I downloaded it. I didn't actually install it initially, leaving Microsofts installer on the desktop. I only installed it the other day after reading about the release of the extra content; but really didn't play it till I saw it on Steam yesterday. I'm very impressed and can't wait for more areas to be able to fly over.

   Posted 12 years ago #
7. 

   delenn13
   Minbari Ambassador

   Thanks Wabbit. The hubby has one of these...Need to let him know about this. He's better at these than I am.

   Posted 12 years ago #
8. 

   Whiterabbit-uk
   Games Guru

   I'm sure he's going to love it.

   I don't think any other true flight sin can beat this unless you include non true flight games like ArmA II and Battlefield Vietnam/Battlefield 2, all of which have a large selection of flight models, though you don't get the same interactivity with the flight models apart from maybe the digital Flight Sims Black Shark and Warthog sims, but I don't think the ariel views are as convincing

   Posted 12 years ago #

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