Mind that this isn’t about accuracy, but about the quality of depiction of cloudscapes in the sim.
METAR blending has drastically reduced* the overall quality of all weather in the sim. If this ensures slightly better accuracy with real-world reports, it doesn’t matter. There are many of us who do not want more accuracy, not at that cost.
*This has been evidenced by cases when blending was for some reason or another out of service, and we got a few days of pre-SU7 wonder as a result. It can also be witnessed regularly (if not reliably) as one loads into the sim. There is a short moment between startup and the first METAR blending pass, where clouds have been seen in natural formations that are then replaced by the ubiquitous stretched half transparent cotton puffs which nowadays is all we can get from live weather.
You may also note, that the quality and variety of weather formations possible with presets greatly exceeds that which is generated in Live Weather. Before Su7, this was not so, and Live WX could deliver top results that nowadays you can only get from static world-wide (and thus mostly useless) presets
So we ask for a toggle, so that we can choose between top-quality but perhaps not guaranteed to match weather, or a lesser quality METAR-injected compromise.
Seems trivial? If you watch the videos, you can see the difference in overall quality is heart breaking and enormous.
At present, the weather data is generated and the local computer uses that data to generate the weather conditions we fly in.
That’s fine, but when we get near an airport with METAR data, this takes precedence and there’s sometimes a pool of metar weather that doesn’t match the area around it.
I would prefer for this not to happen, so I would like to be able to tell my computer to ignore metar data when generating the weather conditions.
I accept that some people want live METAR for authenticity, but I prefer the weather to be consistent and convincing, rather than authentic.
So please can we have a toggle? METAR from METAR feeds, or METAR based on the made-up weather used away from the airport.
Sadly i don’t think a simple toggle will be enough to bring back the superior cloud and weather depiction of the release version.
It is not only METAR synthesis, although that plays a roll for certain, but changes to the lighting and cloud rendering with Sim Update 5 had a large impact on the immersion as well.
Yeah, what have they done? They can’t be proud of this? Can they? You brought back so many memories of the good old weather/atmosphere. Can’t believe we have actually experienced that type of weather. It didn’t last long though.
If they somehow got that into the sim again those that has not experienced that yet it would blow their minds as it did for us when we started the sim for the first time back when it got released.
Weather engine is still able to generate clouds as they were prior SU5 (or SU7) without big impact on frame rate, see the free cloud presets mod Floyds Epic Clouds » Microsoft Flight Simulator
So why Live weather suffered such a regression after those SUs ?, I still don’t understand what happened…
Yes, the core rendering of clouds are still in the sim. But the weather model that contains the data to be able to render the clouds in the sim is completely different after su7. And as TomL said in Su5 they also changed the lighting to be much too yellowish in tone and stuff like that.
As i have said before, the live-weather in the sim will depend on the quality of data they input into the sim that renders that data. Getting the more detailed weather model back would be a step in right direction.
I know they added that density slider in su7 too maybe that had some impact of the rendering. But that density slider doesn’t controll the variety in layers and cloudformations. Thats the injected data that controls stuff like that.
Who cares? We want that experience back. As a toggle as many METAR users don’t care how it looks and feels as long as the weather matches those METAR. It must feel sad for the devs or MS too to see their product looked way better at release soon 3 years ago. Escpecially the weather that we are supposed to fly in a flight simulator. That must be the biggest regression i have experienced in any type of software.
They have for sure improved many other areas but the atmosphere that is one of the most important aspects has moved backwards several steps.
Globalizing the entire earth and streaming that data to every user versus generating weather and streaming that, and they say the weather crashes the system. If you use a VPN and check the data usage between loading scenery or weather. Scenery tops out the connection easily whereas the initial weather load is a small blip that lasts less than 3 seconds. Sounds like MB shot down the idea before it could even have time to develop and even more so with METAR being the replacement solution.
This post is for people who wants an option, why do you keep posting here? If are ok with this weather go and play…an option won’t take anything away from you!
Wow now that is how live weather should look! And unbelievable there are thunderstorms! Something that has been eliminated on the MSFS planet due to Aboso climate change lol
We know the METAR data integration, which we did based on Microsoft’s specifications, which is derived from user feedback. Therefore, we can not really help because Microsoft needs to decide how they display our weather data.
We discussed the different options with them, and they decided to go for the implementation you currently have in the FS. If you want to have the old visuals again or a selection option, you must ask Microsoft directly because they decide what they show in the game. We basically deliver what they want to have implemented.
We assume that the METAR integration is the reason for these bubbles since they are not 100% consistent with the weather model data for different reasons (e.g. MEATAR measurements are sometimes simply wrong, and weather models do not always reflect hyper-local weather patterns). This is then causing problems with the visualizations because they are visualizing two data sources for the same place (airports).
And yet MS/Asobo have their hands tied because the uproar from the 5,000 or so consistent users of VATSIM compared to the tens of thousands or hundreds of users who don’t use it seems to dictate things. In this scenario, the majority doesn’t win. What’s even more farfetched and ridiculous about this whole thing is that on VATSIM if there’s ATC on, which is why people use it, they provide METARS anyways through ATIS’s or weather reports. Controllers are using outside sources or clients within VATSIM to communicate the weather anyways. Even if ATC wasn’t on, there is more than enough free access or even tools to pull that info up in a matter of seconds. VATSIM is the spoiled child of FS.
Yes the more added sources into the forecastmodel the worse it gets visually. I understand those who doesn’t care about the visuals but there is other users who cares.
We have a dilemma here, since the topi METAR DISRUPT THE WEATHER is logged as a bug…are we sealing with a bug that causes to see what we see or is it wanted from MFS??
Not sure what you mean by that exactly, see what we see. But MB clearly stated they give MS/Asobo whatever data they want. It’s up to MS/Asobo in how to use and display that data. According to them with the options presented, Asobo felt the current METAR situation was the best way to utilize it, based on what the community was wanting/complaining about. So either they can further improve and try to ‘fix’ the issue while keeping METARS or they can toss it out or create a toggle option. No matter which decision they choose they’re bound to p*** off one side. I stated yesterday that there’s probably around 5,000 consistent VATSIM users in total and yet for the tens of thousands or hundreds of non VATSIM users I found it silly that they changed the entire system just to placate a minority "hardcore’ group.
They can’t be proud of this? Can they? You brought back so many memories of the good old weather/atmosphere. Can’t believe we have actually experienced that type of weather. It didn’t last long though.