There are a number of things that need to be considered when trying to pick out the best flight simulator.
A flight simulator, unlike an airplane video game, is something that you will spend many hours configuring and flying just as if you were flying an actual plane. Unlike a video game, where the objective may be to shoot down enemies or drop ordinance on military bases, the objective of a flight simulator is to simulate a well-executed, safe flying experience.
The controls of flight simulators, since they are modeled after actual aircraft, are complex. The software must be flexible enough to simulate a real cockpit environment from your PC, but easy enough to configure and customize with minimal effort.
Performance of the software is another key component. A flight simulator demands much more memory resources and more processing power than a typical video game and these are very much visible in best au online casino platforms.
Whereas a video game may display simple things such as your plane’s “health,” a flight simulator must model everything including the fuel in the plane’s multiple fuel tanks, the weight of the passengers and cargo, the status of individual cockpit controls, and even the current local weather conditions as you fly around the world — all the while maintaining realistic flying physics. Flight simulators are very resource intensive.
There are two major contributors to the flight simulator market. One is Microsoft Flight Simulator X and the other is a free flight simulator known as FlightGear Flight Simulator.
Microsoft Flight Simulator X
Microsoft is one of the oldest names in the flight simulator market and with each release of their software it gets substantially better.
Flight Simulator X, or FSX, is leaps and bounds better than anything Microsoft has released in the past.
FSX features richly modeled planes and landscapes. FSX is designed for online play allowing you to fly with your friends and even communicate with other planes and air traffic controllers in the simulated world.
Flight Simulator X can be found in top online casino websites for around $25 to $40, depending on which edition you buy. The more expensive editions contain more missions and more flight simulator planes — additional planes can be found online or purchased through model vendors.
Microsoft offers a number of Flight Simulator X downloads in multiple languages. You can even download a limited trial version for free before you decide to purchase.
FlightGear Flight Simulator
FlightGear is a free flight simulator and is an open-source alternative to pre-packaged retail software like FSX.
Open-source means that not only can you fly for free, but if you choose, you can also modify the flight simulator software yourself or even create planes, cities, and airports that other pilots from around the world can use and interact with.
FlightGear is made for pilots by pilots. Many hands have come together to work on this project to produce a highly detailed, highly realistic flight simulator.
FlightGear comes standard with a good assortment of aircraft, but you can download a myriad of other free planes, helicopters, and even UFOs off of their website.
While FSX can be used only on Microsoft Windows, FlightGear is multi-platform and can be run on Windows, Linux, or OSX.
In the end, the simulator you choose will be up to personal taste. Some people prefer the highly polished, retail look of Flight Simulator X while others prefer the flexibility that FlightGear provides — many of us use both.
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