What you need to know
- Microsoft Flight Simulator is a superb flight sim that is notorious for pushing gaming PCs to the max.
- The game has already been confirmed for a release on the Xbox Series X|S later this year, but the rumored Xbox One version is nowhere to be seen.
- In a recent interview, Microsoft Flight Simulator head Jorg Neumann suggests that an Xbox One version is not off the tables yet.
- After Microsoft Flight Simulator launches on Xbox Series X|S and VR, and Xbox One version could be considered later on.
One of the games most sought-after on Xbox is Microsoft Flight Simulator, a fantastic flight sim from Microsoft's long-dormant franchise that combines powerful modern gaming hardware, new technologies, and Microsoft's advanced cloud tech to create an absolutely gorgeous showcase of the entire world. Recently, Microsoft confirmed that Microsoft Flight Simulator is coming to Xbox Series X|S later this year, but this noticeably omitted the aging Xbox One generation, which was originally rumored to also see Microsoft Flight Simulator at some point.
For many, this meant all hope was lost for Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox One consoles, instead requiring the powerful and still hard-to-buy Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S. In a recent interview with Eurogamer, however, the head of Microsoft Flight Simulator, Jorg Neumann, breathed new life into the possibility of MFS on Xbox One.
From the interview:
I guess it's a timing thing. Obviously memory matters. Certainly on Ultra settings, you need a big PC - well, that's a lot, lot more memory than what you had on an Xbox One. So it's a journey, like most things, you know - let's get the Xbox Series X and S versions done, and then we'll look ahead after that. We never close doors, and there are other options, though it's a little bit too early to talk about it.
Apparently optimizing Microsoft Flight Simulator for VR on PC has led to considerable enhancements to low-end performance, which could help a lot with bringing this monstrous and demanding visual game to the practically ancient hardware in Xbox One. While nothing has been confirmed or set in stone, at least the possibility hasn't been completely laid to rest.
Elsewhere in the interview, Neumann discussed how similar the Xbox and PC versions are going to be, as well as bringing community-made content to Xbox Series X|S as well. The team behind Microsoft Flight Simulator wants to make the experiences as close as possible, while catering to the (likely) large number of newcomers that would join because of the Xbox versions with better and more streamlined tutorials.
Finally, they also would like to bring all of Microsoft Flight Simulator's third-party add-ons to Xbox, if possible, with Neumann commenting "I think that's going to happen - I'm quite optimistic." This would be fantastic to see, as third-party add-ons and mod support in console games is still a rarity.
All-in-all, the interview is definitely deserving of a read, but the main takeaway is that players who are on older Xbox consoles like the still-capable Xbox One X may still see Microsoft Flight Simulator in the future.
Prepare for Microsoft Flight Simulator on Xbox with one of the Best 4K TVs for Xbox Series X|S to showcase all of its gorgeous visuals, and take control with one of the Best HOTAS Controllers for Xbox.
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