Hopefully the Majestic Q400.
Leonardo Maddog
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“Study-Level” generally infers the plane is simulated at such a high level of detail, it’s almost indistinguishable from the real thing (were it not for the fact it’s a video game). It more originated when there were some Flight Simulators (standalone and addons) that were qualified by the FAA (or other regional aviation authority) as a Flight Training Device which allowed a student pilot to log real hours that would count towards their pilots license. This was software that the average consumer could purchase, albeit for the price of a 10 year old car but you could get a discount if you were an actual student pilot
The answer is in the term itself… You can study the aircraft itself using the simulation. This doesn’t mean that you learn to fly but you can use the plane with the real POH, FCOM, FCTM and operate the simulation as close to the real counterpart as the home cockpit environment allows.
Initially this term was quite clearly defined and few developers provided such a level of detail. One of the very few remaining from earlier times are PMDG who have done that for almost 20 years. Today the term has been softened up and there are just enough people who think it’s necessary or “cool” or whatever to belittle it for whatever reasons so it has more or less lost the point. But there are still different levels of system depth available and typical developers of the high end of these levels (aka study level) have been mentioned above.
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Oh, I see.
Tractor Farming Game Harvester would be ‘Study Level’ for an Accountancy Undergraduate from Islington.
People always say they want “study level” without realizing how much time and effort it takes to learn the plane…and what it costs.
Do you want to pay like $80 USD per plane? Because this is how you get $80 USD per plane.
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Yes, I want to pay 80$ per plane if its study level. I have paid 100$ per plane in the past for other sims and have no problem doing so again, infact I will never buy anything that is not study level because its boring for me.
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yes exactly my interpretation. try flying the crj from cold and dark( and also following real world routes and constraints) and then you get what study level means in fs2020. and the great thing is you dont get bored with the sim, it just gets more interesting, then one day try vatsim or the like…
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I think of study level as the type of plane you can learn to fly reading the actual plane’s literature rather than the add on manual. All the buttons work, and it flys within the same accepted variety of numbers as the real plane.
So by my definition, I would add the Just Fly Pipers to the list along with the CRJ, and PMDB DC6.
I am not sure I accept, “Study level means you need to study.” as a definition, as I think simple planes can be study level, too. Most people get their PPL in a simple plane so those MUST be study level.
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Fair enough. Define “study level?”
As has been said hundreds of times before:
…
Study level means: any plane in a simulator that’s modelled to a high detail in its systems and flight model and is basically just a bit of a buzzword when you get down to it.
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The term is entirely relative to what task you’re studying.
Want to learn how VOR navigation works, how varying OBS setting affects the needle position? Heck, anything in the sim can allow you to study that.
Want to learn how to actually land an aircraft in a gusty crosswind? NOTHING in any desktop sim can allow you to study that; it’s something you have to do for real.
And there’s many degrees in between.
“Study level” to me means a good amount of systems depth. Enough so that the systems work correctly under normal conditions, and they work “mostly” correctly in abnormals. No home sim will ever get abnormals perfect either, so I don’t expect perfection, just ballpark.
Simmers these days seem to be after this holy grail of an experience, where you can sit at your $3,000 computer and use $150 worth of software, and actually truly experience flight in a $50 million dollar aircraft. I mean… think about it. 
What we’re getting here is an approximation. It’s a good enough approximation to trigger the suspension of disbelief, and make you feel like you’re having an experience you really aren’t. Just like watching an intense movie can make you actually experience fear, stress etc., even though you logically know it’s all make believe.
I’ve used sim versions of many aircraft I fly for real, from GA to airliners. The reality is that a true 1-for-1 level of simulation of operating a complex aircraft in your desk chair on consumer hardware is not only impractical, it’s impossible. So at some point we all have a threshold we consider “good enough”, where we feel we’re learning and we’re immersed in the experience. I guess that’s my definition of “study level.”
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I like that!
It does seem the commercial jet simmers want, “Study level” more often than the GA simmers. And I suspect it is simply because GA craft are easier to make. Simpler systems. Simpler flight models. Simpler start up procedures.
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The challenger is”Hot Start Level” which is above study level !
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A2A, PMDG, HOTSTART and all the planes I have in DCS. Maybe there are others but these are the ones I know and those type of planes I consider study level. When I do something wrong with a plane I want it to have concequences and I want most of the switches to actually function and be deeply simulated. Default aircraft and Carenado is the opposite of what I consider study level. Just flight arrow somewhere in the middle…
Study level is like fine art. You can’t define it but you know it when you see it. And it will usually be priced over $100.
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I think this A320 sim qualifies as a “studylevel” one.
Its only $20M. Quite a bargain if you ask me. 1 major downside, it has only 1 livery.
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Only one livery!?!
TFDi even talks about ‘beyond study level’ for their upcoming MD11:
A new airliner for Flight Simulator is always something to be excited about, especially knowing how few they are. TFDi has very high hopes for its project, which they say is being developed up to a quality standard that is “beyond study level“. Bold claims, although it’s unclear what that means. TDFi says they are about 50 to 60% through the development, with the FMC and various other systems already working inside MSFS.
To justify the “study level” claims, the MD-11 will come with the simulation of failures, abnormal procedures, circuit breakers, and other things that are not usually available in other similar products in the market. An example that was given was an instance where there’s a system overload, which leads to a popping circuit-breaker and a cascading of failures to the rest of the airplane. TFDi says that most of the MD-11’s code is actually being run from outside MSFS, therefore circumventing some of the existing MSFS SDK limitations.
Working out your unexpected troubles with the actual QRH and abnormal procedures checklists on your lap. Yeah, that constitutes (beyond) study level for me.
With simulations, there is a balance between the tedium of real life and the high points. It’s a good idea to abstract away the parts of aviation that are boring. But there will always be a group of customers that want to do all the boring parts themselves. It’s just that the further you go in that direction, you alienate the casual and semi-serious simmers.
Another odd thing about study level products is that it’s a bit of a marketing trick to hype up a moderately increased level of detail. This is a risky game as it can be hard for the actual product to match the expectations.
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