Issue:
There have been cases where a server outage can create the impression that the game has been corrupted or is broken when this is actually not the case.
Additional note:
Though this happened to me attempting to use MSFS-2020, this should also be investigated within 2024 as well as there is a lot of code reuse.
Desired behavior:
The game should, promptly, advise the user that the game is having difficulties reaching the server(s), cannot start as a result, and is retrying. At the same time it should advise the user that if this goes on for an extended time that it may be necessary to stop, wait awhile, and try again later.
Actual behavior:
The game stops at some point in the startup process, (typically the “installation manager” or the loading screen showing the current update package)
Impact on usability:
Because of the absence of notification when the servers are unreachable, it is impossible to know if the issue is caused by something that damaged the game’s installation or if there’s a network/server outage. Checking the forums isn’t immediately helpful because it can take upwards of 30 minutes to an hour for the forums to catch up with the fact that there’s an outage.
The result of this is needless troubleshooting and attempts to repair a game that actually isn’t broken, resulting in a game that IS broken and possibly needing a nuke-and-reinstall to fix the attempts to needlessly repair it.
IMHO, this is a serious, bordering on critical, user interface bug that should be addressed in the next bug-fix/enhancement update from MSobo.
FYI, there is a similar Wishlist to this one here:
However, this requests an announcement when developers are aware of major issues, as opposed to this topic by @Jimrh1993 where perhaps the request is for automated detection & notification.
This topic could be kept separate, or merged with the former (which currently has 42 votes), if @Jimrh1993 would like that. @Jimrh1993, what say ye?
Thank you for the details and the reference to a similar post,
In this case, though similar, I believe there are fundamental differences. In this particular case, I would like to see an in-game notification of when the game itself cannot reach it’s necessary servers.
I believe that this is both important and distinct for several reasons:
A particular inability to reach the servers is not necessarily caused by a global outage like this last one. It could be caused by a local network outage or even the cat accidentally unplugging the individual’s router.
An automated notification, provided by the game itself, is immediate. It provides the user with essential information so that he can determine the root cause - and if it IS a server outage, he can report it much more quickly.
It provides the user with knowledge that the game is operating properly, but lacks network access.
It avoids unnecessary troubleshooting since a network outage can often look like a corrupted game installation.
I am not a moderator here, neither do I make policy, so I am not the one to decide if it should be merged. However, I believe that these issues, though similar, are qualitatively different and would actually complement each other if they were both implemented.
I would respectfully request that both requests remain active, but perhaps have reference-links joining them so that one leads to the other.
P.S.
Re-reading, (and voting for!), the referenced topic, there is one potential flaw that prevents them from being identical:
If the game cannot reach the servers, how would it receive a server-hosted notification?
As a consequence, I believe that an in-game notification of connectivity issues is essential.
