Rating: 
Summary: Most realistic flightsim you can get
Review: This flightsim ist the most realistic I have ever seen. The flightmodel is nearly perfect and the graphics are awesome. If you want to buy a good flightsim take this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Sim, But Flawed
Review: This is a terrific flight simulator, but it has some serious flaws. Because the world is modeled as flat, long flights do not function properly. Distant bearings are often not correct, one can't fly over the dateline, and worst of all, the ground shakes violently after significant distances are flown. In addition, though the flight model is vastly better than most sims, there are problems in the flight model that prevent acrobatic manuvers in planes that should should be able to handel them (loops don't work well at all). Finaly, the scenery is bland and although there are tools to improve it, the tools are themselves quite limited. There is hope, though, because Laminar Research is constantly adding to and fixing X-Plane. Perhaps a round world and acrobatics are in X-Plane's future. Only the developer knows for sure.
Rating: 
Summary: Getting better
Review: This is an amended version of my earlier review. It was changed to reflect progress that has been made with respect to the ability to loop in version 5.6.This is a terrific flight simulator, but it has some serious flaws. Because the world is modeled as flat, long flights do not function properly. Distant bearings are often not correct, one can't fly over the dateline, and worst of all, the ground shakes violently after significant distances are flown. In addition, though the flight model is vastly better than most sims, there are problems in the flight model that prevent acrobatic maneuvers in planes that should be able to handle them. Loops don't always work. At intermediate speeds, loops are possible with a slight jitter passing through vertical. At high or low speeds, jets have a tendency to get stuck as they pass through 90 degrees. Finally, the scenery is bland and although there are tools to improve it, the tools are themselves quite limited. There is hope, though, because Laminar Research has promised to address all three of the problems listed above in future releases. Major upgrades are posted regularly at the x-plane website (they will be free through version 5.99).
Rating:
Summary: A Brilliant Flight Sim!
Review: This is probably the best flight sim out there! First, the good points: 1)The flight models are brilliant, and a lot more realistic than Microsoft FS 2000. As a pilot myself, I can quite easily tell the difference between good and bad flight models. 2)Great frame rates. I have a Pentium 4 1.5GHz with 256Meg RAM, and the game runs totally smooth. I get about 60FPS in X-Plane, and about 30FPS in MSFS2000. 3)Updates come regularly, and can be downloaded directly from the website for FREE! Each update adds new features and planes. 4)One of the best weather engines out there! Download real weather, or create your own. The thunderstorms are brilliant, and microbursts are modelled well. The snow drifting across the runway is great! The Bad Points: 1)The flat terrain. This makes the world look all the same. The only redeeming factor for the world is that most airports are modelled. How many people have heard of a little private airfield called Yearby? 2)The panels aren't as complex as the ones in MSFS, but are still functional. All in all, a great flight sim, but download the demo version from the website first.
Rating: 
Summary: Hmmm....
Review: well, I have to admit..I DO NOT OWN THE GAME. but from the demo it wasn't very impressive. I own a whole bunch of flight sim stuff-Ch yoke, pedals-the works. When I started the demo I got these random alerts about the problems my computer was having but it said it could fix them. I plugged in my yoke and pedals expecting that the game would recognize them (considering that it did say to go to CH's website for sticks and yokes). I push the throttle...nothing happens. ? well, ok and I went to the settings and finally set up all the controls after about 30 minutes of frustration. (THE DARN THING DIDN"T COME WITH A READ ME OR ANYTHING..IT LEFT ME ALL ON MY OWN WITS) well, now that I set my controls (only half of them because half the controls weren't even on the list of controls. For a matter fo fact, the game only lets you look left and right, the rest is panning. It didn't recognize the hat switch of flipper switches for gears so I couldn't lower or raise gears. very frusterating. Well, then I thought: I've heard all this rage about the shuttle re-entry, let's try it! I go into the menu to shuttle approach and click it. It loads, and puts me in space..cool! All of a sudden an alert pops up saying space isn't in the demo. HUH? but it loaded me in here and im now stuck in this one screen and it glitches my comp. sigh Now I have to restart...oh well..I told myself: alright one more try...after about 2 minutes another darn alret pops up: "I have not recognized the 7.0 X plane CD so I am going to disable the joystick"...What the HECK? disable the stick? Well now I can't fly at all so I just went back to playing fs 2002 which is vastly more intelligent and fun. When I first used fs 2002 I recognized my yoke and pedals in the equipement tab. X Plane (even though it advertises CH products) doesn't even bother to recognize my yoke or pedals. So, maybe if I owned the game and had a manual it would make more sense...but if a demo is supposed to attract a buyer this sure did a terrible job of it, I'm not motivated to buy it AT ALL.
Rating:
Summary: Hmmm....
Review: well, I have to admit..I DO NOT OWN THE GAME. but from the demo it wasn't very impressive. I own a whole bunch of flight sim stuff-Ch yoke, pedals-the works. When I started the demo I got these random alerts about the problems my computer was having but it said it could fix them. I plugged in my yoke and pedals expecting that the game would recognize them (considering that it did say to go to CH's website for sticks and yokes). I push the throttle...nothing happens. ? well, ok and I went to the settings and finally set up all the controls after about 30 minutes of frustration. (THE DARN THING DIDN"T COME WITH A READ ME OR ANYTHING..IT LEFT ME ALL ON MY OWN WITS) well, now that I set my controls (only half of them because half the controls weren't even on the list of controls. For a matter fo fact, the game only lets you look left and right, the rest is panning. It didn't recognize the hat switch of flipper switches for gears so I couldn't lower or raise gears. very frusterating. Well, then I thought: I've heard all this rage about the shuttle re-entry, let's try it! I go into the menu to shuttle approach and click it. It loads, and puts me in space..cool! All of a sudden an alert pops up saying space isn't in the demo. HUH? but it loaded me in here and im now stuck in this one screen and it glitches my comp. sigh Now I have to restart...oh well..I told myself: alright one more try...after about 2 minutes another darn alret pops up: "I have not recognized the 7.0 X plane CD so I am going to disable the joystick"...What the HECK? disable the stick? Well now I can't fly at all so I just went back to playing fs 2002 which is vastly more intelligent and fun. When I first used fs 2002 I recognized my yoke and pedals in the equipement tab. X Plane (even though it advertises CH products) doesn't even bother to recognize my yoke or pedals. So, maybe if I owned the game and had a manual it would make more sense...but if a demo is supposed to attract a buyer this sure did a terrible job of it, I'm not motivated to buy it AT ALL.
Rating:
Summary: Good promise, with room for improvement
Review: William Philips's review is pretty accurate. The flight model is absolutely incredible, with the exception of the acrobatics handling (stall modeling is also bit off). I mostly use X-Plane for flying larger jet airliners where acrobatics aren't (usually) an issue. The feeling of mass with the big jets is wonderful. Another major plus is the ultra-smooth framerates. I usually get around 8-12 FPS with FS2000, whereas I'm in the 30+ range with X-Plane - this is on a p3-850 with a GeForce2. Of course, the terrain model in FS2000 is substantially better than that in X-Plane and accounts for some of the frame rate difference, making it better for low-altitude IFR flight. The weather modeling is quite good, better than FS2000, although the actual cloud textures aren't as nice. Flying through thunderstorms at night with lightning illuminating the cockpit and surrounding clouds is fantastic. All in all, a good sim, which is both better and worse than FS2000. It has the potential to be the greatest sim of all time, and is certainly heading in that direction. My MAJOR gripe is the flat-earth model, which severely affects instrument navigation. Given that the other major sims (FS2000, Fly) use a round earth, this is a SERIOUS limitation. However, this is not enough to make me regret purchasing the sim. In a sense, you're buying the chance to participate in the development of a sim-for-simmers, and this is pretty unique among software developers.
Rating:
Summary: You'll forget where you are!
Review: With extensive realism and eye poping special effects, this game has made its way up to the top of my most used list! Fly at any airport. Even on Mars! The most realistic weather affects too!
Rating:
Summary: X plane Soars Above The Rest!!!
Review: X Plane is an AWSOME game-from the giant 777 to the tiny RC Helicopters its got EVRYTHING!! if Your a beginer this is the simulator for you!!!and its not very complicated.over 7,000 airports make this one-of-a-kind.Even if you cant figure it out at first-give it time.my favorite is the Boieng 777 its a very cool plane. also I love space and with the ability to fly the space shuttle and on mars it adds to my long list of compliments-thanks NASA!!!!!!!!Each plane has its own cockpit. its not a lie-this game does have over 40 aircraft.you can land/takeoff from an aircraft carrier and an oil rig at sea!!! you can also fly a blinp.you customize evrything before the flight-weather-time of day-turbulance-even what altitude the clouds are at!!!from the air the ground looks EXACTLY like it does in a real plane!you can download new aircraft [from the producers] and get lots of flying tips!! with real weather conditions like snow wind and turbulance this game is so realistic you will think your in the real pilots seat!! This is a great flight simulator and I recomend it to anyone who loves the feling of flying!!
Rating:
Summary: Laminar Reasearch vs. Microsoft
Review: X-Plane Is much better that Flight simulator. The Rendering of graphinc and frame rates is so good. I have a 750 MHZ Celoron Proccesser with 64 MB ram + 11MB Graphics Memory. X-plane runs almost perfect. Free Updates too make this a good buy.
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