>> Aerosoft official retail partner for Microsoft Flight Simulator <<

[Mathijs Kok]

Rebirth of a legend

 

It is with great pride that we can announce that Microsoft has chosen Aerosoft as its retail publishing partner for the new Microsoft Flight Simulator .

 

Aerosoft will bring the two boxed versions of this venerable simulator to customers in Europe. Including 10 (!) double-layer DVD’s and a printed manual in a spectacular box, it is an ideal way of entering the new age of flight simulation.

 

For the last few months, we have been working closely with the spirited team from Microsoft and the talented developers at Asobo. They have helped us in getting our add-ons ready for the new simulation platform and in a very small way our 27 years of experience assisted in creating this amazing simulator.

 

We should be able to start shipping the boxes at or around August 21st. The official announcement from Microsoft is here.

[mopperle]

Any pricing for the boxed version(s)?

[John Kunde]

Any hardware requirements for the different PC versions (online - offline)?

 

Thanks in advance
John

[pmb]

Hardware spec are here:

 

https://flightsimulator.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360015204020-Microsoft-Flight-Simulator-Pre-order-FAQ

 

They're the same for all versions as they only differ in airports and planes added.

 

Kind regards, Michael

[John Kunde]

Thank you!

 

vor 25 Minuten, pmb sagte:

They're the same for all versions as they only differ in airports and planes added.

I thought so, that's why I edited my question and added "(online - offline)"

 

Edit: I only get about 5 Mbps with my internet connection, so I wonder if I will stay with FSX (and photoreal sceneries) or use MSFS in offline mode (with pre-download of the countries I'm interested in).
But I think to answer this question we have to wait until MSFS is out and there are more reports about the different experiences . . .

[AA777-200ER]

Now if Aerosoft would redevelop the Airbus A330 with even more variety -200 (passenger/freighter) and other engine choices.

Now for the airports....

 

Darryl

[Mathijs Kok]

On 7/13/2020 at 5:59 PM, John Kunde said:

Any hardware requirements for the different PC versions (online - offline)?

 

Thanks in advance
John

 

No,  let me explain what the boxed version actually contains. Microsoft Flight SImulator (that's the name, not FS2020) contains four major parts (Note the sizes are estimates from what we know at this moment.)

1. The simulator code itself (the 'sim') that is around pretty small in size at 900 MB,  this is a mandatory part of the sim.
2. The world and aircraft delivered by Microsoft, (that content depends on the version (the 'content') that is around 90 GB, this is a mandatory part of the sim.
3. Optional online streamed content (this is an optional part of the sim)
4. 3rd party files (clearly fully optional)

Our DVD's contains 'all' of part 2, apart from the updates Microsoft and Asobo do between the moment the the DVD's are pressed and release. When you install, the sim will updates all files immediately form the servers and you will get the very latest code for the simulator itself and all content is updated. This is very much a simulator that depends on the cloud if you want to use it to its full potential. So the boxed version makes it possible for people on a slower internet connection to get the sim installed without downloading the 'content'.  So the simulator is in every way, 100% the same. The boxed retail version just gets you a nice box, printed manual and about 90 Gb you do not have to download. There is no difference between boxed retail and the verison MS sells directly. 

 

 

 

 

[Mathijs Kok]

2 hours ago, mopperle said:

Any pricing for the boxed version(s)?

 

We should announce that very soon but just assume it is very close to the price you pay Microsoft.

[Mathijs Kok]

1 hour ago, John Kunde said:

Edit: I only get about 5 Mbps with my internet connection, so I wonder if I will stay with FSX (and photoreal sceneries) or use MSFS in offline mode (with pre-download of the countries I'm interested in).
But I think to answer this question we have to wait until MSFS is out and there are more reports about the different experiences . . .

 

Sure you could, but I got less internet than you and I can tell you the comparison is silly. MFS is a simulator that still has to grow,  but I have not seen ANY area that looks better with 3rd party photoreal add-ons then default MFS with downloaded content. And yes that means I get get a glass of wine while the sim buffers. But with any connection over 25 MB you hardly notice it. 

[RandyGiles]

You mention only two boxed versions?

 

Which 2 out of the 3 digital versions will be available as physical releases? I'm assuming standard and premium deluxe edition?

 

I'm also guessing that the box will contain a code to redeem in the msft store so you end up owning the digital copy but have the choice of either downloading the game from the store or using the discs? This is how the Halo Wars 2 physical PC version was handled.

[John Kunde]

vor 48 Minuten, Mathijs Kok sagte:

And yes that means I get get a glass of wine while the sim buffers.

Don't drink and fly! 😉

 

For me buffering is not possible. Because I'm not flying like a bus driver, I'm flying like a pensioner on a bike or on a motorhome: just discovering the world and forgetting time. Having a VFR flightplan when starting, but normally changing flightplan before landing.

 

I would like to use a "download service" from Aerosoft, let's say I would like to buy whole countries like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy etc. on an USB stick.

No matter what it costs. I don't have (too) much money, but depending on the price I would vary the time until I buy the next country.
I hope you understand what I mean.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

Please allow me a personal comment I have been cropping up for close to a year.

 

We learned about the new sim at the same time as everybody else. It is utterly incredible Microsoft and Asobo managed to keep this such a secret for over two years. But very soon after the first announcement was done we were called by Microsoft to see if we had any interest in working with them. Uhhhh.... yeah! 

 

Now we had some luck. The development team, Asobo, is based in Bordeaux and I live close to Bordeaux. So we could set up a quick meeting (this is all before Corona, when we still could shake hands etc). At that moment we already understood that the team from Microsoft was very willing to coordinate with 3rd party developers, but they also wanted some of the experience Aerosoft gathered in the last 27 years. It was bloody amazing to be honest. We had questions, we got questions, we met people in every part of the project. Utterly different from any team at Microsoft that worked on FS. They started with the question "what can we do to make your addons work?'. 

 

And then I visited Asobo for the first time. Now remember this was a good while ago, I think it was August 2019. We were all (and I mean everybody) assuming the videos we seen were rendered on some high end server farm. But here I was, stick in hand, on a rather modest machine, in meeting room, seeing  the sim at 50 fps on a 4k screen. My yaw hit the floor. And I have seen a lot of yaws hit the floor since then. This was default sim, no add-ons, and the aircraft were pretty solid and the world was alive and looked totally amazing. Not just Frankfurt airport, but also my house. In the default sim. No add-on in FS or P3d has my house.  I mean this is very rural France. A village of 300 persons. Looking even closer I noticed that even the trees were accurate. They have a tree database. Not kinds of trees, but actual locations of trees around the world. Mind blown.

 

We have been working with Asobo ever since. I visited them many times and have been always received with grace and friendship. No question was too weird, no comment was ignored. Super kind people. I wish I could share what information was exchanged, just take my word, what we asked, we got or got an explanation why it could not be done (yet). This is a very very cool team of developers. They get FS, they understand it, they read forums.

 

Next to this technical exchange (remember there was no SDK yet and Asbobo and our devs were still very much discussing what a high end, complex add-on needs), we started commercial discussion with them. We wanted to bring the product in boxed form to customers.  Keep in mind that in many parts of the world boxed FS add-ons still do very well. The boxed version of X-Plane we handled did extremely well and we are super proud of that. As we learned that MFS was a very large product (over 80Gb) we knew that there would be alot of people who could use a boxed version. And after a lot of discussions we got the deal. Aerosoft would produce the boxed retail version, starting with the European market. This is a big deal for us. Believe me.

 

Enter Corona. Try to get hundreds of thousands of DVD's pressed and boxes made while Asia was unreachable and most of Europe in lockdown. It was not easy. It was stressful. But it is done and we are able to start shipping soon. As we reach this next milestone in this project, I can tell you I have never met any team working on MFS that was this nice, this responsive and this focussed on what this sim really is. It's a platform,  MS and Asobo make money on selling it, others make money on expanding it and yet others expand it because they love it. I have been working flight sims for 20 years and I can tell you this is different.  This is a new start. Is it done? Nope, nobody will claim that. You never complete a flightsim. But is a very stable new base to work on. MS and Asobo are not delivering this and step back. They understand it needs enhancements and optimizing. They understand that of the world changes the base sim needs to change. They understand it need accurate weather andt AI traffic. They are in it for the long run.

 

And that, my friends, is all that counts.We can make the Airbusses, my friends at PMDG can make the Boeings, Carenado will make the smaller aircraft, others will make the airports. But what we all need is the base. A solid, reliable base. And I think we just got that. A platform. It needs to grow and P3D and X-Plane are far from defeated, but boy do they have some competition. 

 

To show our dedication to this new platform, we have hired a new top class support guy who will support this sim (@Tom) and are hiring development staff to increase our production for the new platform. As we were (are?) one of the very last companies to stop development for FSX and it clones) you can rest assured that existing platforms as X-Plane and P3D will be stay supported. We love all serious sims. Always have, always will. You decide the best platform and we'll make the add-ons.

 

 

 

[Mathijs Kok]

12 minutes ago, John Kunde said:

Don't drink and fly! 😉

 

For me buffering is not possible. Because I'm not flying like a bus driver, I'm flying like a pensioner on a bike or on a motorhome: just discovering the world and forgetting time. Having a VFR flightplan when starting, but normally changing flightplan before landing.

 

I would like to use a "download service" from Aerosoft, let's say I would like to buy whole countries like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy etc. on an USB stick.

No matter what it costs. I don't have (too) much money, but depending on the price I would vary the time until I buy the next country.
I hope you understand what I mean.

 

 

You might see some more details when looking behind you, but just keep your buffer large enough and all will be fine. I took two circuits over Manhattan to buffer it all and then went sightseeing. Believe me, no current add-on comes close.

 

[Mathijs Kok]

42 minutes ago, RandyGiles said:

You mention only two boxed versions?

 

Which 2 out of the 3 digital versions will be available as physical releases? I'm assuming standard and premium deluxe edition?

 

I'm also guessing that the box will contain a code to redeem in the msft store so you end up owning the digital copy but have the choice of either downloading the game from the store or using the discs? This is how the Halo Wars 2 physical PC version was handled.

 

Yes that is how it works. I am not able to say which two version will be on disk, but if you installed from DVD you will NOT have to download the same files again. So the option to download the exact same files again would be rather silly.

[John Kunde]

vor 4 Stunden , Mathijs Kok sagte:

 

You might see some more details when looking behind you, but just keep your buffer large enough and all will be fine. I took two circuits over Manhattan to buffer it all and then went sightseeing.

Sorry, but I suppose you did not understand what I mean / what I want.

I dream the dream of flying.

But flying in real life is much too expensive, takes too much time (if you live in Europe and want to fly in Northern and Southern America or Africa or Asia) and I want to be independant from real weather.
In other words: I love to fly VFR and normally I _plan_ to discover and enjoy for example the region between Munich and Stuttgart, but finally I land in Cologne or Frankfurt or Leipzig or Berlin or Paris or Innsbruck or Madrid or Lisbon or . . .
So I am convinced that buffering is not practicable for me.

Since years I am hoping to have Germany (and other regions of the world) in the quality of Austria Professional HD.
And I'm bored from wasting so much time of my life with (pre)downloading the sceneries, while my internet connection is limited to 5 Mbps.
So what _I_ want is to order whole Germany, whole Switzerland, whole Italy and other regions from Aerosoft, then AS will send me a Micro-SD-card (e.g.), I put this Micro-SD-card in my PC or Notebook and start flying.
(Okay, I wouldn't have a problem with copying the files first to the internal PC drive and make the registration in the scenery library first.)

No abo, no MS account, no internet connection, no waste of time for downloading, no waste of ressources by streaming all the time. Just be independant.
So I see a chance for Aerosoft to offer this service and to earn money with this service.
Just check the conditions with MS and give it a try. You can't loose anything by doing this.

 

[pmb]

6 hours ago, Mathijs Kok said:

Please allow me a personal comment I have been cropping up for close to a year.

 

We learned about the new sim at the same time as everybody else. It is utterly incredible Microsoft and Asobo managed to keep this such a secret for over two years. But very soon after the first announcement was done we were called by Microsoft to see if we had any interest in working with them. Uhhhh.... yeah! 

 

Thank you, Mathijs, for the nice and open report, and for your engagement. I have been an MSFS alpha tester from quite early on, and without going into any detail I can say I fully share your enthusiasm.

 

Kind regards, Michael

  

[Mathijs Kok]

8 hours ago, John Kunde said:

No abo, no MS account, no internet connection, no waste of time for downloading, no waste of ressources by streaming all the time. Just be independant.
So I see a chance for Aerosoft to offer this service and to earn money with this service.
Just check the conditions with MS and give it a try. You can't loose anything by doing this.

 

Absolutely not possible and we most certainly do not plan anything like that. Sorry.

[TonyD]

With all your "inside knowledge", I hope it won't be too long before we have a new twotter

[Mathijs Kok]

While we are not willing to share all our plans for MFS products, the Twin Otter will most certainly be one of the six product we have currently scheduled, some of those are already deep in development.

 

Btw, I know a lot of people thought that the Airbus 320 that is a default aircraft in the simulator was one of ours. This is incorrect, we had nothing to do with that. We enjoyed the rumors though!

[lorosamp]

Good morning Mr Kok,

just for better understanding.

The version that I found in the Aerosoft website for 129,99€ is already the box version? 
thank you very muck for your help.

Lorenzo

[Mathijs Kok]

Yes, that is the boxed version. Ten DVD's!

[lorosamp]

Ok thank You everything is clear...

have a nice day 

Lorenzo 

[RandyGiles]

So I was right, it was the standard and premium deluxe edition

 

Just placed my order for the premium deluxe, can't wait.

 

I'll still install it from the MSFT store via gamepass as I can then pre load the game and just use the code in the box to unlock the extra premium deluxe content.

[janda]

17 hours ago, Mathijs Kok said:

 

No,  let me explain what the boxed version actually contains. Microsoft Flight SImulator (that's the name, not FS2020) contains four major parts (Note the sizes are estimates from what we know at this moment.)

1. The simulator code itself (the 'sim') that is pretty small in size, this is a mandatory part of the sim.
2. The world and aircraft delivered by Microsoft, (that content depends on the version (the 'content') that is around 90 GB, this is a mandatory part of the sim.
3. Optional online streamed content (this is an optional part of the sim)
4. 3rd party files (clearly fully optional)

Our DVD's contains 'all' of part 2, apart from the updates Microsoft and Asobo do between the moment the the DVD's are pressed and release. When you install, the sim will updates all files immediately form the servers and you will get the very latest code for the simulator itself and all content is updated. This is very much a simulator that depends on the cloud if you want to use it to its full potential. So the boxed version makes it possible for people on a slower internet connection to get the sim installed without downloading the 'content'.  So the simulator is in every way, 100% the same. The boxed retail version just gets you a nice box, printed manual and about 90 Gb you do not have to download. There is no difference between boxed retail and the verison MS sells directly. 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Mathijs,

 

only 15 mb code???  is it mistake?

 

brds

[Mathijs Kok]

Sorry it is indeed more, not sure how large, but f you remove all scenery and objects and see just the core sim it will still be relatively small.