Like its predecessor, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 offers an expansive opportunity to explore the entirety of our planet from the comfort of your own home. When I reviewed Microsoft Flight Simulator in 2020, it was the first and only game to receive a perfect score from me, largely because of its vast possibilities. While this year’s edition brings some exciting features to the table, it also comes with some of the same old issues. Release codes were delayed, and early server hiccups made it impossible to play for the first 24 hours. Despite these setbacks, I’m delving into my virtual aviation journey and working on this review. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 has some standout features, yet it hasn’t quite left me as awe-struck as its predecessor did. Still, I’m genuinely impressed with what it offers.
One of the standout additions in Flight Simulator 2024 is its career mode. You start by choosing a home base airport and join a fictional aviation company as a pilot. From there, it unfolds like a classic skill tree: complete beginner missions to unlock more complex tasks. For instance, after obtaining your commercial pilot’s license, you can get a tailwheel endorsement, paving the way for jobs like search and rescue. Alternatively, getting certified in helicopters opens opportunities like operating a sky crane, which I find particularly thrilling. Each new certification unlocks a range of jobs, from scenic flights to more challenging helicopter tasks.
Eventually, you gather enough resources and reputation to break away from the company and establish your own aviation business. I haven’t reached this milestone yet, but I’m making good progress with my fixed-wing endorsements. My ultimate goal remains undecided, though the prospect of starting my own company and investing in a fleet of aircraft is enticing.
In the early stages of career mode, you’ll engage in basic flight training to get familiar with flying. However, the training feels recycled from the 2020 version, taking place at the same Sedona, Arizona airfield. The tasks are nearly identical, albeit with slightly clearer AI instructions and on-screen prompts. I do appreciate the updated tooltips in 2024, as they save me countless Google searches whenever I forget how to release the parking brake — something that happened more often in the previous version.
Progressing through career mode gradually unlocks new mission types. I did find it odd, however, that not all missions are localized to your chosen home airport. For instance, I started at Machias Valley Airfield in Maine but was soon tasked with missions in Europe. Though not a deal-breaker, it slightly disrupted the immersive “career” experience I had envisioned.
Reflecting on the 2020 Microsoft Flight Simulator, it was a groundbreaking release. The freedom to hop into a plane and fly virtually anywhere worldwide was astonishing. The base game’s 20 aircraft provided ample choices for even the most dedicated aviation fans, and customizable assists catered to pilots of all skill levels. The incorporation of real-world mapping data elevated it beyond a mere game to an awe-inspiring experience, even if loading times were less than perfect. Landing at iconic airports or remote strips in South America offered a unique way to explore our world.
But back to 2024 — the career mode is a highlight. In the 2020 edition, I would create my own imaginative missions, such as air-delivering pizza from Maine’s Knox County Regional Airport to Matinicus Island — a real-world occurrence, no less. Now, with structured challenges, I’m finding myself becoming a more adept virtual pilot. It remains my preferred feature of Flight Simulator 2024, and I’m eager to either start my own airline or perhaps a sky crane company. Or maybe both; I’ve got the time to decide.
Another fresh addition is the challenge league, which brings a more game-like experience while retaining the simulator’s authentic flight physics. Weekly challenges and leaderboards speak to my competitive side. Among the initial challenges, my personal favorite is the F/A-18 rally race through the Grand Canyon. Navigating Maverick’s jet through gates at breakneck speed is no small feat, yet immensely fun. My time of about 1 minute and 54 seconds landed me in the Bronze league, leaving plenty of room for improvement. The thrill of outperforming an unknown rival’s Xbox Live score is truly satisfying.
One aspect I enjoyed about the previous Flight Simulator was its encouragement of virtual tourism. In the 2024 edition, this has been highlighted in the photo challenge mode. You visit famous landmarks to capture specific photos — like taking a shot of the Great Sphinx during the equinox with the sun positioned just so. It’s one thing to simply fly overhead, but now you can land, disembark, and explore on foot, though the walking speed feels cumbersome to those used to faster-paced video games. Terrain detail can vary based on factors like your PC’s power, internet strength, and server health.
Despite some dated elements around the Great Pyramid, the up-close detail, especially of the natural landscapes like sand and desert rocks, is impressive. The realism extends to environmental interactions: taxiing through tall grass leaves lasting tracks, and mud clings to your wheels, potentially affecting aerodynamics — though I can’t personally attest to flying with mud-laden tires.
Animal animations have also received an upgrade. Rather than static markers, animals now roam their expected habitats. It was a thrill to see a moose casually cross the runway in my simulated Maine, enhancing the realism. I’m hopeful that global exploration might bring me face-to-face with a virtual lion soon.
On the graphics front, Flight Simulator 2024 can outshine its predecessor, particularly in areas like the Grand Canyon. Where it once resembled a texture-mapped model, it now looks almost lifelike. Equipped with a powerful i9 processor, Radeon RX 7900XT GPU, and 64GB of RAM, my setup should showcase these improvements, though streaming from the cloud remains a challenge. While exploring Venice in career mode, I noticed St. Mark’s Basilica was rendered without textures, which was a stark contrast to the city’s otherwise detailed surroundings. I’d prefer a hybrid model that allows key areas to be stored locally on my drive, but for now, cloud reliance is the focus.
Running the game on high settings taxes my GPU to its limits, underscoring both the game’s ambitious scope and the technical demand.
Despite some technical setbacks at launch, Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is a win for me. While it hasn’t recaptured the sheer magic of discovering a world without limits for the first time, the enhancements and career mode keep me engaged. With early bugs fading, I’m savoring the elements that make Flight Simulator special — especially the structured flights and deeper commercial aviation insight offered by career mode. My final verdict is still in the air, but Flight Simulator 2024 is shaping up to be a stellar addition to the series, even if it hasn’t quite replicated the breathtaking wonder of its 2020 predecessor.
