Yeah, Where not raving on about how good the clouds are, it’s more how there depicted and that the weather engine depicts weather much better in general like being able to render full overcast which is something MSFS still cannot do sufficiently. Yes the clouds in XP are blurry especially when your close but being able to see accurate depicted Cumulonimbus clouds off in the distance and multi layered cloud structures makes flying so much more immersive and makes the experience so much better.
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See, this is actually actionable analysis and advice, that I think the MSFS team can takeaway. It’s specific, acknowledges the weakness of the XP 12.2.0 clouds, and says exactly where the MSFS team can improve.
Let’s acknowledge there are problems with the XP 12.2.0 clouds, but at the same time, there are things it does better than MSFS 2024 and where specifically the MSFS team can improve on the clouds.
But such an analysis has to acknowledge the weaknesses and problems of the XP 12.2.0 clouds, and this can’t be done if we are not allowed to post anything negative about them in this thread.
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These are interesting comparisons between the two atmospheric simulations. At the moment, I don’t favor one implementation over the other, but from my perspective this is finally starting to show that MS is wrong to neglect consistent development of their (mediocre) atmosphere simulation. Not a bad thing, because many users obviously aren’t even aware of what they’re missing.
And like many others, I continue to wonder about MSobo’s direction: While they’re moving away from Blackshark AI to further improve Autogen and partner with many other additional third parties, their stagnant collaboration with Meteoblue seems set in stone. Why they strive for progress in almost every area of the simulation but settle for minor adjustments to the atmospheric simulation is a mystery to me.
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I took this pic a couple days ago and to me it shows a realistic cloud layout. Notice the haze differences along the horizon. My main complaint is the clouds themselves which could be better (and I am sure they were better when this sim was released ? – maybe its a seasonal thing)
I think the lighting is better in FS24:
these are fake weather but they look good to me (better than the XP sunset above which I think is too dark)
There are good things in XP12 but I think if MS/Asobo would actually concentrate on atmospherics and cloud appearance then it would be superior in all ways. Laminar is working hard on atmospherics because its their best shot at beating FS. Really I wish both would improve in all ways possible but we really are at the limits of technological feasibility it seems to me. I’m hoping XP will partner with some map provider so it gets TIN like FS has. and I hope MS/Asobo make better clouds and learn how to make not just better cumulus but nice layers of other types of clouds (that don’t just look like thinner squashed cumulus).
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The exposure of the sky in FS2024 is still horrible to me.
It’s as if the internal tone mapper has highlights at 200% and adds another 200% bloom on top of it.
2020 handles exposure much better in my opinion.
but the light simulation through volumetrics definitely is leaps ahead of 2020.
i am looking forward to any improvements that is coming.
even tho i haven’t simmed in a year, likely won’t either for a while.
i still was heavily invested in this hobby and will return to it in the future.
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Same here, I was pondering taking a break from FS, then I realized in 2 years from now FS2020 won’t exist anymore. I want to enjoy 2020 as much as I can; who knows what the future has in store. With FS2024 being the way it is after we were promised “a next-level sim, the future of the MSFS franchise, building upon FS2020” I can never know.
I am one of the very few who hasn’t touched 2024 with a 20-foot stick yet. I don’t want it to ruin my perception of 2020, which works well enough for me, and many people say once they go to 2024, they’re with it, for better or for worse.
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completely off topic but glad to see you here!
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Likewise!!
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Thanks buddy 
I’ve been away for a long time, but i still try to keep track of FS news when i can.
I got a bit burned out tweaking and tweaking away.
And fell down into a spiral of negativity nitpicking at every single thing.
Currently just enjoying work and other games.
I will revisit flight simming in the future.
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That first shot is just mind-blowingly good.
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The fact that water and puddles stay on the ground too and don’t immediately disappear when the rain stops. Asobo can’t even get that to work.
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Just don’t look down too often.
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One day Xplane will stream photogrammetry, and every other “sim” will bite the dust…
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FS2020 was once close to this and THEN came marketing with a bright idea: “lets make it run on a slow console”
to sum up almost every thread on this forum if not since FS2020 then at least since FS2024:
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That’s the problem.
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I took some photos the other day, and forgot to upload them. I was once again comparing Asobo live weather with Active Sky weather, and I think it illustrates what we sometimes lose. I would stress sometimes in that it isn’t always like this, but what I see in Active Sky is what we used to see in those early months of the 2020 release until the SU5-SU7 period.
Here are some shots with ASFS in 2024.
Here is what I got when I set ASFS to “Passive” which then loads in the Asobo live weather.
Gone for the most part are the banks of clouds, replaced with cotton ball cumulous everywhere.
This is out in PNG again, a favourite place of mine to fly due to challenging weather, terrain, and tiny airstrips. Weather station wise I don’t think there are a lot of those out there.
The number of times I have ran this comparison has me believe this has nothing to do with the engine, and whether it is able to display different kinds of clouds as it clearly can, but more to do with either the data being ingested being right, or whether it is correct but being interpreted incorrectly.
You do have to factor in the way that ASFS works, and that Asobo live weather is superior in that regard, so what I am seeing above may be accurate for somewhere in my vicinity, but maybe not my immediate vicinity due to the way it interpolates results.
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