XBOX or PC?

I currently play MSF on an laptop, which works good enough with medium/low settings,

But one day I would like to experience the game in its best quality and with the upcoming XBOX release i wonder if that would be the way to go?

Will for example stuttering or playing ultra settings even be a problem on a console?

to answer that today , you will need a Crystal Ball.

My advice to you is to do your research before you commit to an X-BOX for MSFS.

Wait for the release and for trusted third party reviews :slight_smile:

Nobody can give you a solid answer right now. I’ll all just guesswork and conjecture.

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It would be interesting to see if an XBOX + PC monitor does the job as good as an expensive gamingrig,

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no, because they will set their predifined XBOX settings in the console to run at specific frame and specific resolution. you dont tweaks settings on console, except uually to choose between 3 diferent preset (max quality @30fps 4k, 60fps with variable resolution for stable FPS, etc)

graphics will surely not be ultra if they want it to be stable 60fps @4k for exemple

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I have Microsoft Store version MSFS on my PC and try on Xbox X/S Series when released.

I will stick to which platform have more stability, since on my PC, MSFS crash (CTD, unrecoverable stutter) often.

I am not pro simmer too, so using M+KB+Xbox Controller is enough for me.

Hi All

Just to let you know more platform choices are available to you if you factor in Xbox Cloud Gaming as well. Though the caveat here is MSFS is not launched on Xbox yet I’m pretty sure MSFS will be part of the Cloud Gaming offer from Xbox once MSFS launches on Xbox this summer.

Here is some info;

Cloud gaming (Beta) with Xbox Game Pass | Xbox

Play Xbox favourites on the devices you own

‘Get access to over 100 high-quality games on Xbox console, Windows 10 PC and Android mobile phone or tablet.’

Currently Im on a limited invite Beta, where you’ll be able to play over 100+ console games through your web browser. I see no reason within the next year why MSFS cannot be played through a browser with an Xbox controller.

So does that mean if one already owns the game in Microsoft Store one would not need to buy it again on XBOX?

The impression I got from what Jorg said during one of the Q&A sessions (SDK I think) was that this was the case, although that probably needs confirming.

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Just bare in mind that you don’t have graphical settings in a console.You get what you get and just play.

If you’re wondering whether it’s worth waiting for the Xbox release rather than buying a faster PC, I’d say yes if you’re happy with the choice of console controllers and don’t play PC exclusive games.

Windows on PC is actually behind the gaming capabilities of the OS running on the Xbox Series S and X. One example is DirectStorage which powers instant resume is hardware accelerated on the Xbox Series and will be implemented in Windows 10 in a different way. A RTX 3070 FE uses DDR5 memory whereas the Xbox Series X uses DDR6 in its SOC. The Series X is best value for money but as to how well the DX12 version of the game will be optimised for the console - we’ll have to wait and see.

If you simply want “plug and play” functionality, the X-Box may be a decent rig for you. However, if you enjoy tweaking settings and want more granular control of your hardware, gaming on a PC is a better way to go.

I like to be able to “peek under the hood” so a PC is my personal preference.

I have no experience with consoles but console always tend to have the upper hand with optimization as devs only have to focus on one hardware.
PC different configs different results. Impossible to optimize for all PCs and you’ll spend a lot more money on a PC if you want the most out of the sim.
If your goal is just run the sim without having to thinker with different settings/hardware straight up get the XBOX.

There’s a lot that nobody knows yet, but there are a few things that I personally think strongly favor a PC over the XBox version, depending of course on your style of “play”.

First, if you want VR (and trust me, you want VR), your choice is made. The XBox has no VR capability, and to date anyway, MS has completely shot the idea down. That could change tomorrow, of course, but that’s how it is now.

Next, do you want to play now, or wait until “Summer 2021” arrives, whatever that means. It’s out on PC, but not on XBox.

And then there’s your style. Do you like to goof around and fly around familiar landmarks, possibly using almost exclusively an outside view (i.e. do you use MSFS as a toy/game), or are you a serious simmer, who does realistic Point-A to Point-B flying, using IFR charts and approach plates, completing a flight from start to finish (perhaps even gate/parking to gate/parking? I personally call the toy/game type a “gamer”, and the serious type, well, “serious”. If you’re a gamer, the XBox may be the right choice for you. The costs are less, though it has a lot of disadvantages
 No VR (which I already said), very few 3rd party addons available, flying with an XBox controller is no way to fly an aircraft, and much more.

So there are some facts and some opinions on the matter, which certainly didn’t answer your question, but hopefully gave you some good information for you to come up with your own answer. Personally, I’m hard-core simming on a PC all day. In fact, I don’t own a console of any kind anymore, nor do I ever intend to. But that’s me, and you and I are two different people.

Good luck to you, if you have any questions, just toss them at me, but please tag me so I get notified. Merely responding does not do that.

you maybe forgot one Kev; budget.

If you’re on a limited budget; wait for the XBox version. There’s no way you can buy/self-build a PC with the same performance as you’d get from an XBox series X for the same money. Not even remotely close.

Absolutely! Let’s be real, flight simming is not a cheap hobby. It’s couch change compared to actual flying, but compared to say, building a model airplane from a kit, simming is very expensive. So for those who are on a limited budget because they have to be, or maybe they’re the young ones amongst us who are using their parent’s money, and they control the purse strings, the XBox version is a good choice. And, it’s good that it exists for those folks, where in the past the only choice may have been to not flight sim at all.

But if you’ve got the money available to you, in my personal opinion, the PC remains the best choice. Maybe you don’t want to (or can’t afford to) go VR today, but that will probably change at some point, both your desire and fundage.

That’s one of the reasons I think it was so very smart of MS to make the option available, I just wish they’d get it “in the can” so to speak, so the developers can stop dedicating so much time on the XBox stuff, and get back to devving (is that a word?) for us hard-core folks! In a twisted sort of way, the XBox users are actually subsidizing the dev work for us “serious” simmers, so to all y’all, I say thank you.

That’s why I don’t object very hard at being basically a beta tester for the XBox version, because it’s going to pay our bills in the long run. Or rather, MS’s bills on our behalf.

Assuming any of what I just said makes even a lick of sense. If not, then just ignore me lol


I am for sure what you call a “gamer”, and i would be really disappointed if I buy an expensive computer and then end up with something that still have performance issues,

The thing I’m really curios about is how the XBOX will work with photogrammetry, on my PC now its always stutters while (and after) its loading. So I wonder on XBOX if you would always would be flying smoothly, while the photogrammetry is barley load.

@IcedPond8966315 Well, you have to understand that even the badassest of all badass computers you can buy right now, say a 10900K combined with a 3090, plus 64GB of RAM and all that happy (a) bed of roses is not going to be able to run the sim full bore. It really was designed for tomorrow’s hardware, not that which is available today, not that a 3090 is available for most of us anyway.

And if you consider yourself a gamer anyway, then the XBox version might be the right one for you to begin with. But that’s your call.

Well, other than the obvious, which is that your internet speed will have a significant impact on it, nobody except perhaps some MS/Asobo insiders knows the answer to your question just yet. You’re going to have to wait until it’s out to see some reviews, etc., to get that kind of info.

Sorry if that’s not what you wanted to hear. Er, read, I guess.

The only thing we know for sure, is a $400 Xbox, will run MSFS WAAAAY better than a $400 PC.

I would assume the only thing you’d really give up are things like a proper HOTAS and the weird peripherals you can hook up to a PC.

I think the new Xbox is supposed to be comparable to an R7 5800X + 6700XT?

I think either the CPU or GPU cores are 1 generation behind (so either Zen2 CPU cores or RDNA 1 GPU cores). They’re much better integrated though (since it’s a console), so you can’t directly compare them.

But yeh, you’re not going to get anywhere near to the performance you’ll get from an XBox series S/X with an equivalently priced PC.