How Realistic is Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020?

It’s been a while since the release of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020. Before its release, the game was hyped to be the world’s most realistic plane simulator game. It achieved a lot with the help of AI, let it be emulating some of the top planes in the world or recreating entire cities. That said, there is much more to discuss than just the simple claims and what it achieved. In this article, we will go over some of the most important factors to estimate how realistic MSFS 2020 is: How realistic planes are, how realistic cities are, how realistic flying is, and how realistic is it overall?

How Realistic are planes in Flight Simulator 2020?

When we talk about planes in video games, Microsoft Flight Simulator is the first name that comes to mind. There is a good reason behind it. All the planes featured in the game are simulated versions of their original counterparts. The game considers everything: the build, structure, length, and everything in between.

The results? It presents the most accurate replica of the planes. Not only does the game manage to handle the externals, but the internals as well. Everything from controls to the noises of these buttons is closely related to the originals. All in all, MSFS 2020 does a great job of making planes look realistic.

That being said, there are some major blunders that the developers made in making some planes. However, most of those were mainly bugs from the AI part, so later on, developers fixed a good amount of them in the game. Like many other games, there are still some bugs and a few unrealistic planes. Still, the game has the most realistic-looking planes to date.

Also Read: Fastest Jet in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020

How Realistic is Flying in MSFS 2020?

If you are wondering whether flight and planes are the same things, then no need since there is a difference between the two. Flight or flying is the experience you get from flying planes, whereas planes are how they are built physically. To determine how realistic flight or flying is in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, we need to compare the game’s physics to the real world and then see how some planes fly in the game compared to their real counterparts.

When it comes to physics, MSFS 2020 pretty much nailed it. Many players praise the game for representing physics in such a sense that the difference between the real world and the game is almost nonexistent. Gamer Pilots taking flights, landing, crashing, or cruising in the air are all done perfectly. That said, there were and are still some bugs that ruin physics completely, but if not for those, that game gets physics on-point.

Although the game gets physics right, it suffers at getting the flying right. Real-life pilots heavily tested the game. Most – or almost all were hugely disappointed by the delivery of the game. They said the game was overly hyped and could not provide any more realistic experience than some other simulator games. But if you take real pilots out of the picture and play the game just like an average gamer, you will likely not notice any unrealism in the game.

How Realistic Cities are in Microsoft Flight Simulator?

Now we know that planes are a mixed bag, but what about the world itself – more specifically, the cities from all over the world? In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, the developers used Bing Map’s real-life images from around the world and used AI to recreate those into the game. In simpler words, the game has everything taken from the real-life world, but is it able to deliver that level of realism?

MSFS 2020 recreated the entire earth – which has never been achieved in a game before. But there are some places and cities that have been paid special attention to. Those cities are mind-blowingly good and real. There are a total of 341 cities that are as real as possible, and you can check them yourself.

On the other hand, there are huge blunders in many cities. It’s mostly in cities that are unknown or if they are from non-popular countries. Still, if the game is going to represent realism, then it needs to have everything perfectly done; otherwise, it’s better not to make huge claims. There are many cities where the game would not show their main architectures, and on some, it would show sky scrappers when there are none.

How Realistic is Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020?

Above, we discussed some of the major things that make or break the game. In this section, we will go over some of the minor things that complement those main things. First off are the graphics, and those are fire. The amount of detail put in the textures, ray tracing, shadows, and everything in between is just nailed by the developers for Flight Simulator 2020.

This also makes the game a lot demanding on PC; at the max settings on 1440p, the game can give a tough time to even an RTX 3060. You need an RTX 3080 or 3090 to match visuals with a decent performance. Furthermore, you should consider getting yourself the I9-12900K to have an edge.

Additionally, there are smaller minor details, such as ever-changing weather based on real-life weather. Then some other details like having the ability to refuel or fly with your friends from real life make Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 feel real. Overall, a lot of work is put into this game to make it feel real.

Final Verdict

By discussing everything above, we can conclude that Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 is close to being real in certain aspects but way off in others. The graphics, physics, weathers, plane builts, some cities, and other minor details are perfect. But coming to the experience of being able to fly a real-life plane or recreating the entirety of this world, this game lacks in many departments. At the end of the day, the developers can take a lot from the game and make a great follow-up to the game.