August 18th, 2020.

That’s the date in which the flood gates will open, and the flight simulation community will be bathed in the cool waters of the new flight simulator Microsoft is putting out there.

According to our friends over at FSElite, the sim will be released in 3 different versions, both on a digital and physical versions.

The Standard Edition will cost $59.99 and it will come with 20 aircraft and 30 custom-built airports.

The Deluxe Edition brings 5 new aircraft (25 in total) and 5 new airports (35 in total) and will cost $89.99.

The Premium Deluxe Edition will build upon the previous version with 5 more aircraft and 5 additional airports. That’s 30 aircraft and 40 custom-built airports. This version will come out at a cost of $119.99.

You can pre-purchase any of these versions of Microsoft Flight Simulator already.

120 bucks for a sim???

You heard it right: one hundred and twenty. Well, a cent below that, but yeah. Still one. Hundred. And. Twenty. US. Dollars.

What gives?

Well, first of all, that’s for the most expensive version. Right? Just the base sim, which comes with 20 aircraft already, will cost you $59.99!

Still, those $120 give you 30 (THIRTY) aircraft in total, 40 custom-built, high-quality airports, scenery to die for, amazing weather system, life traffic, integrated multiplayer, the whole package!

The default aircraft seem like no other default aircraft in any sim. Any of them, out there.

Just look at every single thing MSFS has to offer and is putting on the table for all of us and ask yourself: how much money AND time would you need to spend to get the same results out of what Microsoft is bringing us?

I think a lot more than $120. And, probably, with much worse results.

What about VR??? $120 for a VR-less sim?

Calm down! VR is coming. This is the release of a sim that is an absolute wonder of technology. The amount of stuff Microsoft and Asobo combined to do this is just mind-blowing. From a developer perspective, I find this to be one of those projects that I think only a company such as Microsoft, with their know-how, tools, resources and development firepower could come up with.

We asked for VR and we WILL have VR. But we will need to be a bit patient on that one. Microsoft has done so much already in over 5 years of development(!!!) that I think they deserve some slack here.

Hey! Wait a minute! It comes with helicopters! Right???

It doesn’t, folks. Not yet.

Back when we first took a look at the new Microsoft Flight Simulator, at the World Preview Event, the development team approached me and they said that, eventually, helicopters will come to the sim, but not right now, as Microsoft wants do to them “properly” (that was the exact expression they used – properly).

As such, they will be counting on us, here at HeliSimmer.com and the community around us to help them do that.

So, yes: helicopters will come. Just not right now.