Flight simulator - looking for advice

Hi all,

I'm looking to buy a pressie for my brother - a flight simulator game for a PC.

I've found one on Amazon: Microsoft Flight Simulator X: Deluxe Edition (which is discounted from £40 to £19).

Any thoughts on this or any others?

And also a suitable joystick?

I know nothing of such things, so thanks in advance for all the advice .

Ts & Cs: Correspondence regarding individuals' joysticks will not be entered into.

[hindle8907]

I'll do you every flight simulator ever made for for 25 quid

Microsoft flight sim has a good following with lots of add ons, even though it's been discontinued.

A really good one that's still active and also has a good following is X-plane - http://www.x-plane.com/
That one is really customisable and has even been used by NASA.

As for a controller, it depends on what type of aircraft he likes to fly. A joystick is good for fighter type aircraft. Mind you, if he wants a combat type 'game', other simulations may be better. I can't recommend any of those.

For other aircraft types - general aviation, airliners etc., a control yoke would be better. If you want the full monty (usefull if he's going to really learn to fly), also go for a throttle quadrant and rudder pedals.

Cazz - you can use you my joy stick to have a practise on.. : )

Thank you for the advice so far.

Originally Posted by Quiff Wichard

Cazz - you can use you my joy stick to have a practise on.. : )

You didn't read the Terms & Conditions at the bottom of my original post, did you Dave?

aagghhh

you know me so well

I love Flight Simulator and have since it was just Chicago and the Cessna (which was version 2, I think)

I only have FS2004 as my PC couldn't handle FSX. Definitely a good purchase, it's pretty much the only game in town these days apart from X-Plane.

What is he into? Because aviation is a really wide field...

He definitely should register at www.flightsim.com as they have a HUUUUUGE archive of freeware add-ons, especially planes.

I have Ultimate Traffic, which increases the number of other planes on the ground and in the air to make things a bit more realistic - in the default game, and even with the option turned up all the way, you'll only have like seven planes at Heathrow, which means you'll never have to queue for takeoff or landing.

However, if he wants the game to learn for real, he should look into www.vatsim.com which is a huge online multiplayer community. Some people play as air traffic controllers, others can fly, and you are expected to use proper communication techniques and such for the most realistic experience possible (many pilots use it for training)

It can be fun to get realistic scenery of your favourite and/or local airport if you're going to use it a lot... I bought Cardiff from www.uk2000scenery.com (as I used to work there) and it really is spot-on in its recreation. You can also get realistic satellite photo scenery so the ground you're flying over looks better (the stuff that comes with the game is very bland and generic) too.

As for joysticks, it depends on how realistic he wants to go but just for fun something like a Saitek Cyborg will do everything fairly well...

I have fond memories of F/A Hornet:Korea from the 90's on my mac. Had a good stick for it too- CH Flightstick Pro (same one as on the X-Plane on the first X-Men movie!!!).

Could just manage carrier landings, but dealing with radar threats- er....no! I liked to just have fun flying around the training level on Hawaii.

I wouldn't mind a new joystick and something newer to toodle about on. Though there is a newer version of Hornet for OSX.

Getting some military jets into Flight Sim is eye opening. After spending countless hours puttering around in Piper Cherokees and 737s, planning a trip and being told by your nav system it'll take 90 minutes, getting into an F/A/-18 and getting there in a quarter of the time is thrilling! Even Vietnam or indeed Korean era fighter jets are stupidly fast in comparison, it really does highlight the difference.

I'm trying to get to grips with the helicopters but frankly it's a bit like hardcore bike sims (like SBK X in full sim mode)... real world vehicles have controls for all your limbs for a reason - you're just not dextrous enough to push buttons with your hands quick enough. I think I'd do a lot better with a proper collective/cyclic/pedals setup but I don't have the money, space or inclination (nor the thick enough skin for Mrs Metal laughing)

Originally Posted by hindle8907

I'll do you every flight simulator ever made for for 25 quid

Dont tell me you got flight sim on yer ipad too lol. Would be good for a control panel mind.