TFDI has released the pricing for their upcoming MD-11
- Base Pack (Cargo or Passenger): $89.99 USD
- Expansion (The One You Did Not Purchase Already): $14.99
- Extended Simulation Package: $14.99
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Probably sound a bit grumpy, but I saw that mentioned on another news site, visited their website and it turns out they basically have nothing but a couple of renders and some mock-ups.
Theyāre a looong way off from making a big song and dance about pricing, if you ask me.
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Ah but thatās where youāre wrong (luckily). The pics supplied with the pricing update are old ones, from late november or so. I wonder too why they havenāt updated 'm yet but at least it shouldnāt mean anything about the current state of development.
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It seems to me ( my opinion ) , that they are testing the water , as regards the pricing release ( I think this would be one of / most expensive add on for MSFS ) . They may be expecting a bit of a " poop storm " over the pricing ( approx ā¬80 ) .
Once the MD-11 is high fidelity , I could justify such a price .
Not a chance for me at that price.
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Given their track record, I suspect it will be of very high fidelity.
Their Boeing 717 was of that quality.
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ohhh it is either Cargo or Pax for $89.99! hmmm, that is a bit cheeky tbh. Even inibuilds give you both with the A300 and 3 variants with the A310. Hmm so I reckon around $130 all in with discounts Perhaps.
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As much as I love(d) the MD-11, that price seems too high for the quality of pics iāve seen on their website.
I still maintain that so far, NOTHING comes even close to what FBW does in quality of flight model and systems. Canāt wait for their A380 to come out too. And Iād Love to see an A350 of FBW quality standards.
Sorry, TFDI was excellent for FSX, but i have my doubts for MSFS2020. But I donāt say āneverāā¦Iāll prefer to see/read what the first buyers will say/write about it.
Speaking ofā¦I think any 3rd party dev (aircraft), when requesting a price of overā¦letās say 50$,Ā£,ā¬ā¦should give a trial period of a day or 3 to tease the potential buyers. in DCS, some 3rd party devs did/do that, and itās an excellent commercial stunt, to proof that your product is worth that amount ( or not ) according to what the users expect from it.
P.S In the meantime, PMDG 737 and Fenix A320 CEO came on the market, and they also surclasses the MD11 on all the points, including their prices !!
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DCS today (on the standalone version) lets you try ALL modules, first party and third party for a period of 2 weeks. And you also get the two weeks back after 6 months. Trial is per module as well, meaning you could spend months trying everything.
On the subject of MD11, very much wait and see for me.
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I donāt think this dog is mad enough at this price. Iād have liked to have had a look at this aircraft and was quite looking forward to it but Iād rather give my dough to fenix or PMDG.
It would have to have exceptional reviews to convince me otherwise at nearly Ā£90 including vat.
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I donāt mind paying good money for a great product. I suppose this addon wonāt be released via Marketplace/Xbox, right? Smaller segment and a lot of work in it. I donāt think they overpriced it if the market segment is just smaller for it. Much like the old days.
Besides, you donāt have to collect them all at once, right? Thereās no harm in spending big money on a great plane that will keep you entertained for weeks or months before looking at something extra again.
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well, thatās the reference i wanted to point at. Maybe for some scenery or aircrafts second/third party, they should do the same for MSFSā¦
Price is always a controversial point. Depending on what a person earns and/or is willing to pay for an addon and also the level of detail they seek in an addon, even the country they live in, someone will find the price fair and others too expensive.
Personally, for what they are promising for this MD-11, I think the price is fair. But obviously they have to show it first to prove that theyāve delivered on everything they promised.
fair enough, but again, how do you know before hand that the product will be great ? with the experience, I have learned that an expensive product isnāt per se a great product. And also, great for one, doesnāt mean great for another one. Hence the idea of a couple of days or a week free trial, like they do on DCS for their 2nd and 3rd party addons.
Welcome to how things āused to be back in the (favorite legacy sim) daysā when it was an expensive hobby for a very niche market. Thanks to MSFS it has changed but this particular dev has been developing this aircraft for several years and is making it available to both platforms. With the large userbase of MSFS, they should perhaps reconsider the pricing to take advantage but unfortunately they appear stuck in that by-gone era.
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Well good luck with that pricing, well outside of my expected spend.
The Fenix A320 and PMDG 737 are largely going to set the acceptable benchmark for high end aircraft in this sim and I feel trying to exceed that is going to bring a lot of scrutiny around value for money.
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Iām totally in favour of trials! Itās a very good way to show that you are confident with the quality of your product.
With regards to Tfdi I have never owned an aircraft of them but they are saying themselves that the MD11 would be ābeyond study levelā and people who owned their B717 seem to agree with that ability. I can only hope so. The MD11 is my alltime favourite and I think I must have logged at least 1500 hours in that one from PMDG. 
I heard some people mention how a 737 or A320 find a lot easier market in the sim because many people want to fly the planes they see at their local airports.
I donāt know to what extend that is scientific but it sounds plausible to some extent.
Then there are also those in the niche market who prefer certain planes due to certain quirks of technology. I love 80ās planes like the MD80, 11 or A310 so for me thatās instant buy ā¦I do realize Iām not a majority however and high fidelity addon developers in that niche market will charge us minority a little extra for all their hard work on a passionate product. Iām fine with that.
Iām not going to collect and consume these addons. I donāt have to buy them all instantly on release. Itās not mass production and not mass consumption. I will expand my collection after a few months when the time is ripe for something extra. Like a connoisseur. And by then I saved up for that.
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Strange that you assume that the PMDG 737 and especially the Fenix A320 will be cheaper. I wouldnāt be so sure.
Also, the Fenix A320, for the level of detail they are promising, will greatly exceed this benchmark, compared to most of high-end products for other flight simulators. I would be surprised if the price went below $100.
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Yes and PMDG now does the same with selling them per type-variant. It will sound cheaper and for some it will be as they really donāt want a 737-600 or -900ā¦ but the majority will probably pay the same as they did in other platforms (as collectors).
Iāll be buying the 700/800 and 900. But I wonāt be buying an A319 or A318 next to the A320. For me, going fly-by-wire and operating them with the Airbus joystick which I enjoy far less than my honeycomb alpa, I couldnāt really tell the difference between the A319-feel and the A320-feel. Iāll probably add the A321 though, but mostly because I like itās added size and range. Similar cockpits are great for real world airliners but somewhat boring in the sim. Fly-by-wire technology adds so many filters in real world flight and also especially in a simulator. Its one of the reasons why I never really warmed up to flying Airbus in simulators but I must say that the FBW-team turned me around with their A320 and I am enjoying working together with an Airbus by now. I enjoy how smart they are and how well the monitor me back, being the weakest link in its systems. 
Iām looking very much forward to the Fenix level of depth that we can expect.
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