After weeks of testing, Sim Update 14, the last big update for Microsoft Flight Simulator in 2023 has finally arrived.
This updates comes armed with a slew of enhancements and additions, including ATC improvements, an overhauled Cirrus SR22, snow and ice coverage, atmospheric enhancements, and more.
Sprucing things up
The patch notes for Sim Update 14 are quite extensive, but here are just a few highlights as to what’s changed.
When setting up a flight plan, the in-game ATC will now allow users to choose whether their flight plan/world map flight settings are favoured over the current weather conditions. For instance, if an airport in the real-world is currently IFR due to severe weather, clearance can still be granted to the user even if their flight plan is VFR only. Another example is that wind direction may have changed at the airport since setting up the flight plan, thus calling for a different landing/departing runway, but the user’s previously selected runway can still be honoured.
Another much-appreciated change with the sim’s ATC is that clearance to the next altitude step will come earlier rather than handed out as the user’s aircraft hits the previously authorised altitude.
Various aircraft have been given some minor improvements in this update, but the Cirrus SR22 in particular has received quite the upgrade.
Asobo has revamped the SR22 with a brand-new model and has also reconfigured its flight dynamics. Now, the aircraft is more of a digital twin to its real-world counterpart in terms of both flight characteristics and performance. Its mechanical systems and avionics received a rework, including the Garmin G1000 NXi panel suite.
With this update, Asobo has taken one of the default aircraft from the sim’s launch and has practically turned it into an almost completely different, more advanced machine.
Bits and bobs aplenty
Further optimisation have gone live in Microsoft Flight Simulator, with “performance optimisations for long flights” having been listed specifically.
The way the sim renders atmospheric conditions has also been updated, with the differences being shown off in this Tweet from the development team:
Again, these are just a few highlights of Sim Update 14. The full patch notes can be found on the sim’s official site.
Microsoft Flight Simulator might be well over three years old at this point, but there’s still a lot more jet fuel left in its tank as Asobo seeks to keep refining the experience.
That said, its sequel, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, which had a reveal out of left field earlier this year, is still looming on the horizon. A release date has yet to be revealed, but Asobo confirmed months ago that more information is expected to be rolled out in Spring 2024.
With that in mind, Sim Update 14 is a big wrap-up for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 not just as its last major update for this year, but also as a formal sign off on the sim’s final year of being Asobo’s premier project.
We have yet to see just what support for this existing sim will look like after its predecessor gets clearance for takeoff.
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