Microsoft Flight Simulator continues to evolve as the ultimate platform for digital simming. After its stellar PC debut last year and Xbox Series X and S launch a short while ago, developer Asobo has outlined what will be available in the upcoming Game of the Year Edition coming to PC and Consoles on November 18.

As per the headline the update will being early support for DirectX 12 on PC, which should pave the way for ongoing performance improvements and optimisations on the platform. With its stunning visuals and realistic representation of the planet on which we all live it should come as no surprise that Flight Sim is the sort of game that pushes rigs to their absolute limit. DirectX 12 sports advanced features to improve rendering, with something like VRS being perfect for boosting performance. And with DirectX 12 we'd love to see the implementation of things like NVIDIA DLSS and AMD's FidelityFX Super Resolution tech.

As for the game itself there's plenty more coming; new airports, more discovery flights, more planes, expanded tutorials, and even support for the brand-new Windows 11.



Here's the breakdown from Jorg Neumann, Head of Microsoft Flight Simulator.

New Aircraft

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Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet: Our first military jet and a highly requested feature from the community. The Top Gun: Maverick expansion will release with the movie next Spring, but we wanted simmers to have the opportunity to test their need for speed this holiday.

VoloCity: We partnered with well-known German company Volocopter, which is working on an eVTOL called “VoloCity”, a vision for an urban air taxi. We worked closely with the Volocopter engineering team to develop an authentic version of the prototype aircraft for the simulator. This is our first aircraft that can perform pinpoint landings and is a teaser of what you can look forward to in 2022 when we intend to launch helicopters in the sim.

Pilatus PC-6 Porter: This legendary short takeoff and landing (STOL) utility aircraft is a highly versatile plane from Switzerland and comes with several cockpits, cabins, and landing gear variations. It is the result of our close collaboration with the manufacturer and the development efforts by famed developers Hans Hartmann and Alexander Metzger resulted in a great and fun new aircraft with exception capabilities in the simulator.

CubCrafters NX Cub: Yakima-based CubCrafters recently introduced a nosewheel option for their flagship CC-19 XCub Aircraft, popularly called the NX Cub, which we are pleased to introduce to the flight sim audience to further enhance our bush flying and off airport options.

Aviat Pitts Special S1S: One of our most popular planes gets a single-seat option with the release of this aircraft.

New Airports

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Germany - Leipzig/Halle Airport (EDDP), Allgäu Airport Memmingen (EDJA), Kassel Airport (EDVK)
Switzerland - Lugano Airport (LSZA), Zurich Airport (LSZH), Luzern-Beromunster Airport (LSZO)
United States - Patrick Space Force Base (KCOF), Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (KNKX)

New Missions

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Based on the popularity of the recently introduced Discovery Flights, we are adding an additional 6 locations (Helsinki, Freiburg im Breisgau, Mecca, Monument Valley, Singapore, and Mount Cook) to this popular series.

New Tutorials

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To further expand the onboarding experience, we are adding 14 new tutorials, introducing simmers to Bush flying (in an Icon A5) and IFR (in a Cessna 172).

New Features

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We are also pleased to introduce several highly requested features by the community: an updated weather system, early access to DX12, and a dev mode replay system.

New Photogrammetry Cities

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As part of our ongoing collaboration with Bing Maps, we are pleased to add a number of new photogrammetry cities: Helsinki (Finland), Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany), Brighton, Derby, Eastbourne, Newcastle, and Nottingham (UK) and Utrecht (Netherlands).

In addition to the above, the first paid expansion 'Reno Air Races' also launches on November 18.