Microsoft and Asobo have recently announced a plethora of new details about the upcoming Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, including opening pre-orders for the new sim. They are very confident about the new game, calling FS24 the “Most Ambitious Flight Sim Ever”.

‍Career System

‍One of the flagship features coming to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is the new career system. Microsoft says that their system “mimics the experience of how real-world pilots start their aviation careers”. In the new simulator, users will be able to pick an airport to start their training journey at, and meet a mentor. The training will start out with the basics of flight in a smaller aircraft, and then users will be able to go through a certification tree for different aircraft plus specialties for things like airliner flying, firefighting, search and rescue, and more.

Performance on those missions will give the user experience and credits, which can be saved to eventually buy aircraft and manage a fleet, which will be affected by how aircraft are flown. According to Microsoft, “every landing, every bump on the runway, is going to impact the warranty of your planes, affecting the cost to keep them maintained”.

‍Aircraft List

‍The full list of aircraft that will be included at release has also been revealed. Some notable additions include the Boeing 737 MAX8, Northrup Grumman A-10C II, Airbus A321LR, and the Airship Industries A600. Included in the Standard Edition are many of the default aircraft from MSFS 2020 upgraded for FS24, as well as 30 new aircraft, bringing the total to 70 aircraft. The Deluxe Edition adds another 10 aircraft, with 5 more new with FS24. Premium Deluxe gives users 15 more aircraft on top of the standard and deluxe versions bringing the total to 95, with 10 new with FS24, including aircraft such as the Boeing Dreamlifter, Saab 340, and Boeing C17 Globemaster III. (For a more in-depth breakdown on the categories that you can buy, check the “Pre-Orders” section below.)

New Technology‍

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is slated to include many new technological improvements. First and foremost, they are introducing a cloud-focused “thin client”. Much more data will be streamed over the internet including all Marketplace content, reducing overall installation size, which was a very common complaint about MSFS 2020. Microsoft claims that the base installation size will be around 30 gigabytes, which makes for more than a tenfold decrease from the previous simulator. Asobo Co-Founder and CEO Sebastian Wloch explains further that they have “integrated everything into the cloud, and it is all streamed and kept into a rolling cache on the hardware. You don’t have to install any new World Updates; they’re just streamed seamlessly.”

Another major addition is the Electronic Flight Bag built by the team at Working Title. It will be accessible from the aircraft as well as the main menu, giving users a more powerful tool for flight planning, integrated charts, and weight and balance management.

Some other features include a revamped UI, first person mode, overhauled weather and seasons, “soft body” physics simulation, simulation of every glider port and all maritime traffic, new AI traffic, new photogrammetry, wake turbulence, and much more.

Marketplace Updates

The Marketplace is also going to receive many significant changes in the new sim. One of the most requested features was to overhaul the rating system. The new system will include different ratings for different aspects of a product, such as visual fidelity, system depth, and more. All of those ratings are combined to an overall rating, but users are able to see both the aggregate score as well as the individual categories.

Microsoft will also be introducing a rental period for products on the Marketplace. Users will be able to rent some products for a certain period of time for a fee, the price of which depends on how long the rental period is. If the user decides to purchase the product some time after purchasing the rental, the user will only have to pay the difference between the full product price and the rental fee. At the time of writing, Microsoft has not specified how long that period will be. This rental practice will be implemented into all Microsoft products on the Marketplace, but third-party developers will have to opt in to make this available for their products.

If a user owns any Marketplace content from MSFS 2020, it will be brought to FS24, with limited exceptions for addons that may not be compatible with FS24.

FS24 will also include gifting products and virtual currency to friends, provided that users know the recipient’s Xbox Gamertag.

Pre-Orders

Microsoft has opened up pre-orders for the new simulator today, with 4 editions being available for purchase. Like MSFS 2020 before it, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 will have the Standard, Deluxe, and Premium Deluxe editions, but Microsoft is introducing a new tier with FS24, the “Aviator Edition”. The Aviator Edition will come with everything included in the Premium Deluxe Edition, as well as all 30 of the Microsoft-published Marketplace aircraft released from 2021 to 2024.

There is also a new limited physical “Collector’s Edition” for sale at the Aerosoft Store priced at $259.99 before tax and shipping, which will come with the Aviator Edition of FS24 plus other physical goodies exclusive to the Collector’s Edition, which we’ve listed in full below.

Here’s a detailed breakdown on what each edition will include (all prices in USD):

Standard Edition: $69.99

• 40 Aircraft from MSFS 2020 Upgraded for FS24
• 30 New FS24 Aircraft (Total of 70 aircraft)
• 150 Handcrafted Airports

Deluxe Edition: $99.99

• All Aircraft in Standard Edition plus 5 upgraded MSFS 2020 aircraft and 5 new FS24 Aircraft (Total of 80 Aircraft)
• 5 new handcrafted airports (Total of 155)

Premium Deluxe: $129.99

• All Aircraft in Standard and Deluxe plus 5 upgraded MSFS 2020 aircraft and 10 new FS24 Aircraft (Total of 95 Aircraft)
• 5 new handcrafted airports (Total of 160)

Aviator Edition: $199.99

• All Aircraft in previous editions, plus 30 Microsoft-published payware Marketplace Aircraft (Total of 125 Aircraft)
• All handcrafted airports included in Premium Deluxe

Limited Collector’s Edition: $259.99

• Everything in Aviator Edition
• Aviator Edition metal box
• Limited and numbered Herpa metal 1/500 scale model of the Antonov An-225
• Flight bag incl. 6 patches to attach
• FS24 logo pin and key ring
• High-quality art lithograph
• Personal letter to the fans from Jorg Neumann
• FS24 Luggage Tag

At the time of writing, Microsoft has not specified what the list of handcrafted airports included in FS24 will be. You can pre-order FS24 at the Microsoft Store. All pre-orders will come with the De Havilland Canada CL-415 firefighting aircraft to fly in MSFS 2020.

Conclusion

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 will have major impacts for the hobby, the extent of which is still yet to be seen. As new information comes out about the new entrant in the Microsoft Flight Simulator franchise, Threshold will keep you updated, so stay tuned for that and for more high-quality flight simulation news and reviews!