VFR scenery comparison FS2020 > Xplane11

[glider66]

Here's why I like both !!

 

Screendumps at 1000ft after take-off from London City.

 

The top is FS2020 at high setting with a 50mb Internet connection.

 

The bottom is Xplane 11.5 with self-downloaded (free) Ortho4xp scenery using Google maps at Res 18.

 

I like both, for different reasons. The Xplane with Ortho4xp is absolutely accurate for VFR familiarity, photoreal, and needs no Internet connection. When flying a little higher than this, say 1500ft, it looks real and all landmarks can be spotted.

 

FS2020 however, is more lifelike because of the 3d buildings and vegetation, even though most of the buildings are "similar". (My local village Church for instance, is drawn as a block of flats !)

 

The fact that FS2020 has this level of detail anywhere in the world is amazing, and I'm sure the autogen 3d buildings will improve.

 

It's so much better than previous add-on packages that drew trees that were completely out of scale.

http://www.webfiles.org.uk/images/fSims/dome%20comparison.jpg

[jparnold]

Wow!

Thanks for that.

[Kapitan]

If you fly on flat places only and only where you have ortho4xp

What the new sim gives you is more accurate elevation, and i dont mean just mountains, any slight elevation, hills, slides, coastlines are more detailed.

 

One thing I do not like thou is the autogen building, I think buildings should be the real ones and this is a user input like Google maps, slowly people should be allowed by a simple way to choose from a databank of building shapes and put it exactly where it is, not just scenery developpers, it should be a simple trick like placing a chess piece in its square. Each local knows its city better than any developper

[DominicS]

Here's why I like both !!

 

Screendumps at 1000ft after take-off from London City.

 

The top is FS2020 at high setting with a 50mb Internet connection.

 

The bottom is Xplane 11.5 with self-downloaded (free) Ortho4xp scenery using Google maps at Res 18.

 

I like both, for different reasons. The Xplane with Ortho4xp is absolutely accurate for VFR familiarity, photoreal, and needs no Internet connection. When flying a little higher than this, say 1500ft, it looks real and all landmarks can be spotted.

 

FS2020 however, is more lifelike because of the 3d buildings and vegetation, even though most of the buildings are "similar". (My local village Church for instance, is drawn as a block of flats !)

 

The fact that FS2020 has this level of detail anywhere in the world is amazing, and I'm sure the autogen 3d buildings will improve.

 

It's so much better than previous add-on packages that drew trees that were completely out of scale.

http://www.webfiles.org.uk/images/fSims/dome%20comparison.jpg

 

If you want accurately placed buildings, trees, pylons, etc in X-Plane for Great Britain, then download GB Pro v2:

 

http://www.flightsim.com/vbfs/fslib.php?do=search&fsec=0&fname=gbpro.zip

 

When used with a photographic scenery of good quality, the results are stunning (far better than simply having a flat overlay).

 

Dominic

[Kapitan]

I went on and started a flight in London city because i thought your screens are bias, shows only half the truth

Another cool thing about MSFS is that colors change more with sun.

If you fly in clear skies the river waters can look greenish or blue from but as soon as you put scattered clouds it gets its brown color.

 

Then about orthox4.

Well if you could put Bing into XPlane you would say, look: Xplane now its better with Bing

Of course!

Thats what MSFS2020 is. A better sim because "already" has Bing/orthox included automatically, among other things

 

But thats not enough, Xplane with orthox4 still hasnt got

elevations correctly, better shading, better checklists, better airport live movement, better landscapes, better default planes, better weather, better everything

 

You can try and add many things to Xplane to improve it, but remember, MSFS2020 is default and will also improve with additional stuff, its a sim that starts in a different level so the developpers can do more realistic and detailed addons

Edited September 1, 2020 by Kapitan

[Kapitan]

Wow!

Thanks for that.

 

Hey Aussie man, you were complaining about the missing Sydney bridge at MsFS launch remember?

Well its added, msaddons.org, just 10 days after release

So you see, the possibilities of this sim, on the freeware side without spending extra money is endless, plus the payware addons to come will leave you guys speechless

[DominicS]

Here is a three page article I wrote a while back using ortho4XP scenery, plus the GB Pro 2 mentioned in my previous message:

 

https://www.flightsim.com/vbfs/content.php?20402-The-Need-to-Fly

 

It's amazing what's possible!

 

Dominic

[jparnold]

Thank goodness for that (Sydney Harbour Bridge)

[g7rta]

“The Xplane with Ortho4xp is absolutely accurate for VFR familiarity, photoreal, and needs no Internet connection“

 

MSFS will also work in offline mode. It’d be interesting to compare them this way too.

I bet MSFS will still look better :)

 

 

Regards

Steve

[DominicS]

“The Xplane with Ortho4xp is absolutely accurate for VFR familiarity, photoreal, and needs no Internet connection“

 

MSFS will also work in offline mode. It’d be interesting to compare them this way too.

I bet MSFS will still look better :)

 

 

Regards

Steve

 

 

[g7rta]

Hi Dominic, thanks for the clip.

Yep, it still looks good offline doesn’t it? To say this is the default scenery with no addons

 

 

Regards

Steve

[Roger Wensley]

Everything written here is relevant and correct. What spoils MSFS2020 for me, and by spoil I mean really disappoints, is the airfield scenery from under 1,000 feet. Flying to a destination is great. Arriving at the destination and landing is like finding you are in an FS9 or FSX stock airport, at best. If I showed you the "guessed" clubhouse at Rockcliffe in Ottawa compared with the actual building you would fall apart laughing. This contrast needs fixing, and if there is no way to improve the guessing system then it needs a simple and easy to use programme for placing modeled buildings into the scenery.

[DominicS]

Hi Dominic, thanks for the clip.

Yep, it still looks good offline doesn’t it? To say this is the default scenery with no addons

 

 

Regards

Steve

 

Hi Steve,

 

It's not too bad...but considering I usually only fly around the UK (Scotland in particular), I decided on creating a local cache of my area. This way I can fly with or without a connection, and still get nice visuals.

 

Cheers

 

Dominic

[Kapitan]

if you wait until all the high quality maps are downloaded, (in my computer takes a few seconds) its absolutely the same flying online or offline. But as you move on a flight path new territory appears so either you need to manually download the area (same as you do for orthox) or fly online

 

MSFS offline is better than Xplane without orthox

MSFS offline with manually downloaded cache is better than Xplane with orthox

MSFS online is no worries full scenery where ever you go

 

so... from any way you look at it

[Kapitan]

I must add that my internet is slow 10mb, and dont notice any lag as Bing updates the terrain as i fly along

[misbah]

Sydney look's better without the bridge!:D

[jparnold]

Sydney look's better without the bridge!:D

 

Oh No!

Show us a picture of what you mean and explain (ie is it the actual bridge, where it meets the land either side, Circular Quay or what?)

[glider66]

Well I did say I like both ! :)

 

I agree that 2020 is great, and I did set up a 200gb cache on my ssd, so yes, I can fly offline with good autogen.

 

I'm still using XP11.5 and FS2020 in equal doses, because I like the world-wide detailed 3d scenery, but when I'm flying around my local countryside, I prefer XP with Orth4xp because not only is my house very accurate (from 800ft), but even my car on the drive and my neighbour's fishpond !

 

Joking aside though, the VFR from height is spot on, instead of FS2020 turing my local village church into a flat roofed block of flats !

[Kapitan]

Agree, i used tileproxy back jn 2004 with FS9 and saw my house too, it was a great hype in those days to use tileproxy (a sort of Orthox) directly from google. With MSFS you cant see your house because the autogen creates buildings and trees artificially.

 

But it pays off. Right now Im making a flight from Santiago de Chile to Bariloche thru the Andes and the mountains are amazing. Upon arrival you expect to see a city (specially at night) so there is when autogen makes sense. You dont look for individual houses but a city slowly appearing in the horizon.

[cobalt]

Is the bridge supposed to be added automatically, as an update? I don't see it. Also, "msadddons.org" does not work as an address. So, how do I add the bridge? Many thanks.

Never mind -- I discovered it is msfsaddons.org.

Edited September 2, 2020 by cobalt
Found info on my own

[jparnold]

Is the bridge supposed to be added automatically, as an update? I don't see it. Also, "msadddons.org" does not work as an address. So, how do I add the bridge? Many thanks.

Never mind -- I discovered it is msfsaddons.org.

 

It confused me too BUT it seems to be a freeware scenery addon available for download here.

TRy this link https://www.flightsim.com/vbfs/fslib.php?searchid=79705470

OR

Go to the File Library (drop down menu) and select Search Files then leave the Search Only File Section as All File Sections and enter the following into the Filename section - sydharbourbridgev2.zip

You will need to 'unzip' the downloaded file and it will contain a file describing what to do.

BTW it seems the 'community folder' is located as follows -

C:\Users\__YourUserName__\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.FlightSimulator_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\Packages\Community

 

 

I hope this helps.