I have only followed the development of MSFS since 2022, but I wanted to express gratitude and appreciation for the many people at Asobo and the 3rd party developers who have worked to improve and advance MSFS and addons.
Although I’ve certainly had moments of pure frustration, I wanted to acknowledge that looking back, many - not all - but many of the more significant bugs and criticisms I and others have expressed have been addressed:
The stability of the core sim has improved with memory optimizations.
The improvement to avionics in default planes
Allowing public beta testing
More complexity and capabilities with WASM (on Xbox)
Improving the Forum for better engagement and problem solving
Providing more Developer Q&A sessions and answering more specific questions
I also appreciate Microsoft undertaking to rewrite MSFS (or at least parts of MSFS) in order to overcome remaining limitations and open up new possibilities. I’m encouraged by the way MS, Asobo, and 3rd party devs have remained engaged with and responsive to feeback.
I have also followed the upheaval and layoffs in the gaming industry over the past few years, and have learned to appreciate how much effort, talent, trial and error it takes to make any software work - let alone work well. And, how much pressure customers and companies can put on all the individual programmers to solve problems, and to do so on budget and on time…
Forgive me for bumping this thread again. I have been following the Dev Q&A videos, as well as posts by developers, and it is pretty clear that a huge number of developers and programmers have been working hard for many months leading up to the release of MSFS 2024.
Between the anxiety being expressed on the various forums, the wide range of expectations, and the pressure to get things out on time, I think it’s really important to send a message to all of those people who have been working behind the scenes that their work is appreciated.
The launch of MSFS 2024 is not an end - the work won’t stop. In some ways it gets harder because they will have to be ready to respond quickly to anything that might go wrong, and try to fix bugs that inevitably pop up, all while continuing to develop the new functionalities that are not complete or that we don’t even know about yet.
I’m sure they are under pressue - so cheers to their efforts. Really looking forward to the next few months in the new sim.
I don’t post on forums often, but I feel this is a moment where the developers truly need our support. Yes, the launch didn’t go as planned. But let’s not forget the team behind this simulator has given us four incredible years of enjoyment—and will surely deliver even more in the years to come with this new version. They deserve some collegiality and respect.
It’s easy to criticize someone else’s work, especially when we only see parts of the picture – A and B – without considering C, D, and E. What disappoints me more than the launch hiccups is the overwhelming negativity and rudeness from parts of the community, including some streamers. Criticism is fair, but it should be constructive and respectful, not hostile.
Personally, I see this situation as an opportunity, not a threat. An opportunity to embrace software that is ahead of its time, packed with innovations, and continues to push boundaries. The first 24 hours may not have met everyone’s expectations – I get that. But let’s remain calm, patient, and respectful.
I can respect developers - I was one before I retired. I worked for a large office and my audience was about 200 people, all internal to the corporation. I could go to them and ask them what they thought of this or that change, and if I got negative feedback, I was free to change the UI and/or code to reflect what the masses wanted because they were the ones that would be using the apps I created. And fortunately, I had a great management team that supported my efforts.
My problem is that I’m not sure who signed off on what I’ve seen so far with 2024. In my personal opinion, the UI is pretty bad, the process to update your peripherals isn’t well done, and the graphics aren’t that much better (if they are at all) from 2020. So the question is, was this the best the developers could do, or were they instructed on every step of the process by big brother and not given leeway in producing a better product?
One simply cannot judge the simulator until the servers are back to normal. This software heavily relies on cloud content, and with the current issues, it’s not functioning as intended. That said, I’ve already seen streams where the downloads briefly worked, and the improvements are undeniable. The sheer amount of work and refinement in this version is impressive. The concept of a digital twin of the planet has been significantly enhanced, that’s without any doubt.
Putting so much into the cloud was a bold and forward-thinking decision, but I believe it’s the right one, it’s pioneering the future. Designing a user interface that works seamlessly on both consoles and PCs is no small feat, either.
This project goes far beyond being “just a game.” Criticizing isolated issues without appreciating the broader vision feels like missing the forest for the trees.
But first of all, my purpose here is to encourage us as a community to show respect and support for the MSFS team. As a software developer myself (albeit in a different industry), I can recognize their dedication and professionalism. I also understand how they must feel right now in the face of overwhelming criticism – much of it negative and, unfortunately, rude. Let’s counterbalance that a bit, gents!
I can understand where you are coming from with this and I think 99% of the users of this product want so bad to get behind them but they have shown since the initial release of 2020 and most subsequent updates that they have a quality control and/or proper testing issue which they seem unable or unwilling to fix. They have brought most of this negativity upon themselves and have nobody else to blame.
You accustomed to paying for a service that is not rendered when promised? If your internet provider told you I will install your service on the 1st of the month, install it on the 10th, still charge you from the 1st of the month, that is “trust” in your book? Don’t criticize you say? I’ve been doing development for the past 30 years, cloud based (Azure) for the past 10 years. If my customers paid me and received this service (Healthcare industry) for a commitment I promised and received this garbage from me, I would be fired. When you make folks pay for a service ahead of a release, you better make sure you meet that commitment. Trust, you say. I think we are past that attribute. Now Microsoft and Asobo need to “earn” our trust back! And they aren’t close to being there yet!
Sorry, but I think you are looking through rose colored glasses. If this was a new indie developer with an innovative plan, that would be one thing. When you are an established developer releasing the next iteration of an existing product, backed by freaking Microsoft, and have a history of questionable updates, you are right to be heavily criticized when you promise the world but deliver something barely usable. Vision means nothing when you can’t even get the basics right.
2020 was a rough start, and that was at least understandable because they were charting new territory. It took several years of hit and miss updates, but 2020 has finally become a refined and polished sim. 2024 should be building on that, and thus not plagued by all these problems. If anything, they should have worked to become LESS reliant on the cloud, not more reliant. For all the good they did with 2020, the cloud services was often a problem due to slow downloads.
You have my vote. I posted on other discussions exactly what you are talking about and got some mild rebuke for being positive.
Seems that clear thinking people like you and me are few and far between and that most are like spoilt kids who want an ice cream and told no.
Anyway on the bright side, we know the sim will get better as time goes on.
I would typically wait much longer before diving into testing a major release like this. But honestly, with all the negativity circulating, I wanted to see the sim for myself and to reassure myself that my support for the developers wasn’t misplaced. Here are my findings.
I completely agree. The developers and team have clearly worked tirelessly on this, and it’s unfortunate the decision to prematurely underestimate the launch of MSFS 2024 has overshadowed their efforts. No one feels the weight of this release and is more devastated than them. I think moving forward they’ll turn it around and deliver the experience everyone is hoping for
Regarding the launch, it’s important to consider how difficult this decision must have been. Imagine you’re expecting an average server usage of A, but an initial release spike of A x 10. What are your options?
Build infrastructure to handle A x 10. This would ensure a smooth launch but at an enormous cost for servers that will only be utilized at that level for a few days. It’s an unsustainable solution.
Stage the release. While this could reduce server strain, it would require deciding who gets access first—a decision likely to lead to accusations of favoritism or discrimination. The backlash could easily rival the complaints from option (1), with uncertain results and the added risk of legal challenges.
It’s also worth noting that these decisions are typically not made by the developers themselves.
This all streaming concept isn’t going to work well for a lot of people. There is too much data to push to the user. There are too many potential bottle necks in the chain from server to user. The chain is only as good as the weakest link to your house. It can be bad enough with just the amount 2020 streamed, let alone what 2024 is trying to do.
We all know that Cologne and Naples weren’t build in one day. Appreciate how FS 24 is today and all the efforts put in. It can only grow better, with the help of us,users .
