Get ready to get your mind blown. Microsoft’s latest trailer is showing a lot of what we have been asking the sim to have. You can watch it above and you will find amazing new features, coming in 2024 such as firefighting, search and rescue (with hoisting), helicopter cargo transport, air ambulance, mountain rescue, aerial construction, among others.
Microsoft had promised us these features – and more – would come and it seems like we are getting them, perhaps even earlier than anticipated by a lot of us.
Update: it seems it may be possible that this is an entirely new release and not just an update. We are trying to find out more.
Update 2: official sources are presenting it as a "brand new sequel, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, coming next year".
Update 3: according to the Microsoft Flight Simulator official website, this will be a "[...] brand-new simulator [...] designed to take advantage of the latest technologies in simulation, cloud, machine learning, graphics and gaming to create the most sophisticated, immersive and awe-inspiring flight simulator of all time. To achieve this unprecedented level of accuracy, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is powered by the significantly evolved Asobo Studio engine."
Update 4: Microsoft clarified a few more things on a post on their forum. Here's the FAQ for your convenience:
Will Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 be a completely standalone sequel, or will it also be offered as a paid update for existing players?
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is a standalone simulator and the next-generation sequel to Microsoft Flight Simulator that launched in 2020. Current aircraft and airports that are in Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020), as well as virtually all Marketplace add-ons, will be supported in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
What kind of support can Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) players expect to see once Flight Simulator 2024 has been released?
We will continue to deliver our Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) Roadmap which has content ranging from Aircraft and Avionics Updates, Sim Updates, City and World Updates, and also the free Dune DLC 74. We will continue to support Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) post the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 launch.
Will all purchases users have made from the Marketplace be transferrable to the new simulator?
With very few exceptions, virtually all add-ons that work in Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) today will function in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. Add-ons that were purchased from the in-simulator Marketplace will not need to be re-purchased in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024.
