X Plane

Rating:
Summary: Accurate flight models
Review: I purchased this game to supplement my real flight training mostly because of its highly touted flight model. I have found that for the most part, this simulator provides a very true flying experience from a physics standpoint. Utilizing incremental slices of the aicraft's structure and airfoils, this program simulates the real effect of aerodynamic forces on these "slices" and combines this data into a composite flight model. Subtle realism is key here as all flight sims are effective in simple X-Y-Z planes of motion. Graphics are not the greatest, but the people who this simulation targets are hardly worried about such trivial details.
Bottom Line: If you're looking for one of the most physically accurate simulations available, you should give X-Plane a try. If you're looking for fancy pictures and scenery, I would recommend looking elsewhere.

Rating:
Summary: computer bugs
Review: I recently purchased the latest version of this software. My initial impression of the sim was very favorable. When I tried to exit the program my PC (Dell PIII 933, nvidia TNT2 graphics card)consistently froze. After getting no response from the technical service either by phone or email I finally called the designer. The standard response was the video driver was not correct even though it is the one they recommend. As of now I am still not able to get the program to run well. My advice to any considering this purchase is if the program runs well, great, but if it does not do not expect alot of help from the manufacturer.

Rating:
Summary: BIG LET DOWN
Review: I STARTED OFF WITH FS 98 THEN I GOT FS 2000 AND LATELY BOUGHT FS 2002.NOW I MADE A MISTAKE AND BOUGHT X PLANE WHICH IS RUBBISH COMPARED WITH FS 2002. THE GRAPHICS AND SCENERY ETC IN FS 20002 ARE FAR SUPERIOR TO X PLANE. AS FAR AS I AM CONCERNED X PLANE DOES NOT GET OFF THE GROUND. IF YOU BUY ONLY ONE FLIGHT SIM GET THE BEST MICROSOFT FLIGHT SIM 2002 WHY SETTLE FOR AN INFERIOR VERSION.CHECK THE DEMOS AND SEE FOR YOURSELF.

Rating:
Summary: wow, but also a CAVEAT
Review: I use version 5.66 that I upgraded to for FREE after I bought X-Plane 5.54 by XICAT. It's awesome, very realistic experience... BUT: you should know that a newer improved version of X-plane (6.xx) is available from www.x-plane.com and if you own a fast computer with a good graphics card you should really get that instead of the discontinued version that XICAT still (!) sells. At X-Plane.com there also is a DEMO available for free!!! So you can check it out yourself.
Happy Flying!

Rating:
Summary: Game is too ugly and buggy
Review: I will admit that graphics are pretty important for me and I am quite excited about the upcoming Flight Simulator 2002 which looks like it is going to have ground breaking graphics. In contrast, X-Plane features graphics that are undeniably stuck in 1995. The terrain models are horrible up close and far away and the instrument panels are very low color 2d monstrosities. If graphics are important to you too, then don't even think about playing this game without first downloading the demo. As for talk about the flight model being realistic -- I find that the planes are easier to fly in X-Plane than in MSFS2000 which I also find more boring.

Rating:
Summary: My opinion on X-Plane
Review: I would say that X-plane is one of the better, but not best flight simulators out there. The graphics are beyond excellent, some of the scenes look so real that you'ld think that your watching real life! It has a variety of planes from small prop driven aircraft to Tremendously huge whales of aircraft. However, X-plane is in my view incomplete. You can't control the planes with out a joystick. The program's manual says that you can control the plane using the numeric keypad, but it doesn't tell you which keys do what. The simulator has an inluded text document that lists keyboard controls, but I've found that they don't work in the game. It feels like the simulator was designed more for professional pilots, rather than the average armchair pilot like you and me. It gives you no clue as to how to set the aircrat's instruments or how to even read some of them. You can forget about using air traffic Control. After you file a flight plan, they keep nagging over your head to maintain an altitude, and most planes are practically impossible to keep level. They just want to keep climbing or diving, and some just want to drop like rocks. I've tried setting the elevator and aileron trim, but it takes too long. You decide that you want an altitude of let's say 5000 feet, by the time you've gotten the plane level and under control, you'ld be well over 10,000 feet high. And forget about descending, you'ld have to go through the trim hassle all over again! This review is based on version 5.54, in my eyes it needs alot more work.

Rating:
Summary: Unfinished product?
Review: If you are tired of paying a lot of money for a software that does not work without a lot of your own help, then buy some other flight simulator. I am trying to give a fair review of this product although I am rather frustrated. Here is my personal experience with this program: I installed the software and found the interface to be rather inept and unprofessional when compared to other games and simulators. The game didn't run at first. It required me to go their website (X-Plane.com) to trouble shoot the problem. I'd say that the low quality of their website is a good representation of their software. I get the impression that some kid has been designing this software during breaks in his computer classes. I then downloaded the updated drivers for my video card. The game partially works now. If there is one highlight, it would be it's flight realism. I must admit that the simulator seems to move much closer to real time. The frame rate seems higher than the Microsoft FS2000. Landing the plane is more challenging and certain aspects of the actual fight appears to be much more like flying a real plane. I like the sounds coming from the radio. Gives the sim a little extra flavor. I guess that this adds to my frustration because I really want to use this simulator. However, I'm unable to use all the features of my flight yoke or new Force Feedback joystick. So now I must fly the friendly skies via my keyboard. How many Cesnas actually have a keyboard in them to operate the rudders and a mouse for the throttle? <g> Eventually I'm sure I'll work this problem out, but should not need to. I then attempted to download the latest version of the simulator from their makeshift website. The only ftp site that worked seems to be the one that someone put up in their Purdue.edu account. After downloading the 68 meg file on my 56k modem I find that it won't work on my computer at all. I'm still waiting for their technical support to reply to my message. I stopped holding my breath as he might be taking his midterm exams right now... I wish X-Plane had a larger staff of programmers. It has a lot of potential but appears to be a work in progress. I'd expect these results if I was beta testing the software, not in the version that is available on the store shelves. It certainly has not been a user friendly simulator. I hope I never fly a plane that has 1/16 of the problems as this sim. The above is just the opinion of a person who is getting rather tired of the poor quality of software being sold. The software companies seem to be the only ones who are not held responsible for the lack of quality in their products. They should be held accountable for the all the wasted time they cause in selling unproven products that do not run properly. -I prefer the MS simulator for it's user interface, better graphics, huge datbase of airports and cities, and control panels. To be fair, FS2000 has bugs in it too. But not nearly the same as X-Plane. -I prefer X-Planes actual flight realism due to it's high frame rate and communication sounds. However, in my opinion it's not worth the price they are charging. They should owe me a little for all my effort in making it work. I hope his midterm exams end soon...

Rating:
Summary: X-plane V5.52-V5.99
Review: My wife bought it for me because I am a pilot and I enjoy flight simulations, but mostly the flight simulation games. We gave $30 for X-plane V5 but you can get this version now either for free or for under $10 if you look around. Really it's not worth anything so please do not run right out and buy it. At least try the downloadable demo first.

X-plane isn't a game, it's a flight sim program. A flight sim and a flight sim game are two completely different things. In a flight sim you just "fly" your computerized airplane from one airport to another. If you think that's incredibly boring you are right. In a flight sim game you get to blow things up, and others get to shoot you down, so there's never a dull moment in a real flight sim game.

I installed X-plane V5, I had nothing but problems with it. The graphics are bad. The flight model isn't realistic. I laughed when I read someone else's "good" review of the product and they said "It's so smooth!" Yes it is and the kind of smoothness that it has is not realistic. Graphic scenery viewers are smooth to; they have no character at all. Real airplanes have character.

The joystick on X-plane V5 allows for two joysticks but only allows for 3 functions and they were programmed wrong. I've only got one joystick on this computer yet the default in the X-plane sim was for joystick 2?

The airplanes do everything they can to turn upside down, I took screenshots of the F-22 that literally flipped over on the runway and took off down the side of the runway upside down, all without me ever touching the controls.

The graphics inside and outside of the airplanes and the terrain are without question among the very worst I've ever seen. The control panel is nothing but basic computer graphics thrown on the screen in a rectangle with a tiny window above so you can see out. Apparently there's an option that allows the user to change the graphics if they know how to create their own graphics.

Airplanes all fly by the principles of aerodynamics, but every type of airplane has a unique feeling and characteristics all of its own. In X-plane V5 each time you change aircraft it changes your control panel. It changes your speed and stall settings, but all the airplanes have exactly the same problem. They have no feeling to them at all.

Tired and not thinking clearly, I decided I should get the latest patches for X-plane. I went to the X-plane website and in my fatigue I missed the small link to the older files. The FAQ's were no help so I sent a message to the author, Austin Meyer who promptly sent me a rude message to let me know I was a stupid idiot and there was nothing wrong with his software. In three different messages he let me know I was a stupid idiot. Yes I am, I should never have allowed my wife to buy his software.

A software vender or author should never insult their customers for any reason. I was astounded at the great effort he went to to insult me. Don't make the same mistake I made with this software.

They say X-plane is better than MS Flight sim, I'm confident they paid the guy to say that so they could write it on the box. I have tested MS Flight sim 95 and 2000 and I can tell you X-plane is not better than MS Flight Sim. Being a pilot with a brother who is a flight instructor I can tell you that you will not find X-plane in his school, but you will find MS Flight Sims.

Anyone who wants to read the full review and see the graphics can do so on the old Independent Software Consultants website at Http://www.dream-link.org/ISC Just go to the simulation games and then to flight sims.

Rating:
Summary: Something fishy here...
Review: Shell out forty bucks for this at Wal-mart. Get home, open the box. Nice pictures. Plop down in an armchair with the manual. Installation-easy peasy. Aircraft-simple. Flight controls-okay. Weather and part-maker, plane-maker, ground-maker-totally incomprehensible. Install, click 'play'. As soon as you start on the runway, you advance the throttle. Nothing happens. You switch to an outside view and throttle up again. Your rudder moves left. In frustration, you move the stick right. Your plane starts moving down the tarmac.
This and other quirks are fixable, but take a lot of adjusting. Another thing, in my aircraft folder, where are the 747, P-51, and other promised aircraft? Oh, I get it. I have to build em from scratch. Terrain-stinks. Object detail-blegh. Sharpness-very good. This is a SERIOUS sim meant only for advanced users. I dont know about you, but Im going back to the comforting simplicity of WW2 Fighters, FS, and the like.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Flight sim
Review: This flight sim is the only one you'll ever need. Superfast graphics, realistic flight model, and weather and most of all it is updated regually not like Microsoft Flight Simulator Over 700 aircraft enough? Oh it also has fast frame rate and you can fly on part of Mars and also in space. buy it