[Do the "Orbs" redeemable products ever change?]

Bumping this topic as I'm in the same situation as the OP.

 

Will the Orbs store collection be expanded / rotated?

 

AFAIA, there hasn't been anything new for MSFS for several months at least, despite newer Orbx products coming online a number of months ago.

[Marketing of Great Britain South]

While I see the marketing on the product page has now been updated, the original marketing for GB South led people to believe that it was more feature rich than it currently is.

 

On the Wayback Machine archive, you can see the list of features to prompt people to buy on that basis, when it in fact did not.

 

• Immersive tours and missions for many churches, castles and historic landmarks.
• Custom animated animals across many fields and farms.
• Helipads across a range of select landmarks.
• Fully compatible with World Update 3 […]

 

These features (some of them novel to an Orbx created product) were likely to encourage greater sales. I find it unacceptable that it was marketed as having these features included, only to remove them from the sales blurb after initial purchases were made.

 

Additionally, given the large geographic spread of the POIs in each GB region, all 3 products really should have an official list and map of the included models available to view. This has been asked for previously and would make your customers happy. Only through the goodwill of one of the product testers has an unofficial map of GB South been created.

 

Orbx may want to rethink how the company deals with its retail customers through the customer journey.

 

[Is EU Great Britain South for MSFS still being made, or has MSFS 2024 announcement delayed it?]

3 hours ago, John Burgess said:

The kmz files are not a good guide to what is actually present.

Quite a lot of the things marked on the kmz are not in the scenery and never were.

They were only really intended as an aid for us when testing.

 

The POI's which would have conflicted with the Asobo POI's or our London Landmarks were removed as were any which conflicted with objects modelled in any addon airports available through Orbx.

Hopefully we didn't miss any.

 

Thanks. Appreciate the description of how compatibility between WU3, London Landmarks, Orbx EGLC and the new GB South scenery is maintained.

 

I prefer the KML/KMZ files as I find them easier to use when flying in the sim. One that highlights all the London Landmarks POIs would be great.

 

There's only one small issue at the moment, however. Pyreegue's East Midlands airport scenery includes a rendition of Ratcliffe Power Station, as does GB South. Would you kindly consider creating an option to exclude your version of it, please?

 

That aside, this add-on has justified my decision to buy it without hesitation.

[Is EU Great Britain South for MSFS still being made, or has MSFS 2024 announcement delayed it?]

45 minutes ago, Nick Cooper said:

these are what the testers were given at the outset.

 

Thanks for these.

By any chance do you have the file(s) for GB Central?

 

 

Also, I see that there are dupilcates of the POIs that were in WU3 (e.g. Windsor Castle, the Eden Project) and some buildings already covered by Orbx's Landmarks London City pack, but no 'Configure' button on the product page in Orbx Central.

 

Could you or one of the development team please let us know, what actions (if any) are required if WU3, Landmarks London City and now GB South are all installed (and photogrammetry is turned off), please?

[Trees in the middle of airport ESGG Gothenburg]

4 hours ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

Yes, if the only difference being trees at the airport I can exclude those trees for none-PG users. The compatibility might not be perfect though, and some objects that were in the previous version outside the airport has been excluded as they are now covered by the PG might be missing but hopefully it won't bother too much.

Will check it out!

 

Even if the only benefit is underlying trees not displaying themselves on the airfield, that would be enough for me.

[Trees in the middle of airport ESGG Gothenburg]

15 hours ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

Our version is made to be compatible with the two World Update Nordics installed, streamed data and photogrammetry enabled.

 

Appreciate the quick fix, Marcus.

I am concerned that we need to turn on photogrammetry to have the fix function, however.
Please note that some us consider PG as not fit for purpose. It often presents buildings with a 'melted' look, shows both buildings and fauna as strange geometric shapes until their resolution increases as you approach them and gives the wrong colour to trees (if using a seasons texture add-on like AccuSeason or Bijan Seasons pack).

 

Could you reconsider creating a separate fix for those of us using Bing Data World Graphics, but not PG, please?

Thanks.

[Orbx and Melbourne]

Well done to Sascha and the rest of the team for a return to form for Orbx.
Thoroughly enjoying the YMML and Landmarks Melbourne City Pack combination.

[MSFS 2024]

3 hours ago, flying_fish said:

I agree Iain. Always pleased to see a sim evolve, but seems to me that this is about the X box gamers. That's fine. don't begrudge them their enjoyment. I'd like to see them get a simple VFR or IFR flight right. But of course cash is King.

 

After yesterday's seminar from Jorg and Seb, I don't know how people can continue to believe it's "about the Xbox gamers."

 

MS has updated their FAQ regarding several points of contention and concern surrounding MSFS2024. A few key points from a much larger post, relevant to many hardcore flight simmers (my emphasis below) :

 

Quote

Will there be improvements to the core simulator technology in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024? 

The development team is improving almost every aspect of the simulator. Some examples include: 

• • Improved multithreading to improve performance 
  • Faster download, load, and installation speeds 
  • Improved aerodynamics and physics simulation 
  • Improved aircraft systems including electrical, pneumatic, fuel, and hydraulics 
  • New failure and wear & tear system 
  • Deeper and wider avionics systems
  • Cockpit tablet available by default 

Source: https://www.flightsimulator.com/microsoft-flight-simulator-2024-faq/

 

I know this is marketing, however following clarifications and dispelling of gossip, I'm now cautiously optimistic about what the new sim will bring for both flight simmers and 'Xbox gamers'.

[ESSA Stockholm-Arlanda V2. A brief update on the progress.]

3 minutes ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

you want to like the project yourself and not only to make an income

^^This is arguably the second most important point behind access to good source material (as you already highlighted).

 

I think it's obvious when a dev has an affinity to the project they are working on (be it scenery, aircraft, utility), the quality shines through. By the looks of things, I'd say that Arlanda is a favourite of yours. 👌

[ESSA Stockholm-Arlanda V2. A brief update on the progress.]

9 hours ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

of course will have an impact on the kind of project I need to pick.

First off, great job on ESSA!

I think you (and Jetstream Designs) got the balance right between fabulous visuals and brilliant performance.

 

Secondly, how about a large airport away from Scandinavia?

RJTT, MMMX, HECA, OMAA, KMIA, KDFW, VABB, LIMC are all crying out for a good developer to take them on. Yes, they may be default handcrafted or released by another dev, yet there is a market—just ask iniBuilds.

[EU Great Britain South]

+1

[PYREEGUE Dev Co. 2023 Roadmap]

14 hours ago, Trevor Hannant said:

One I'd love to see redone is London City

 

Same here. The new parallel taxiway and new parking stands extended into the Dock are sufficiently significant to deserve a new version. They completely change airside operations.

 

If not, then I suppose EGNM or EGGW would be my next preferred options.

[3rd Party dev issues]

2 hours ago, bvdboomen said:

You mentioned replay and sound utilities. I guess the market for such add-ons is not that big and MSFS is improving on those areas?

 

There has been no significant improvement in the base sim for the replay function (still a clunky experimental feature), nor any sound enhancement (actually a camera shake/movement and sound enhancement add-on, if I'm guessing the OP correctly).

 

The number of new mid- to high-quality payware add-ons releasing has noticeably dropped to a dribble. Improvements to already released add-ons has also fallen—some notable promised updates have not arrived as soon™ as had been envisaged.

 

Rather than believe the market isn't big enough, I would instead say that that the MSFS Aircraft & Avionics Update (AAU1) is slowing some nearly finished aircraft releases and SU12, by bringing WASM to Xbox (among other upgrades), is further delaying add-ons coming to market. I can only hope that things improve soon.

[Orbs Selection is Horrible]

Have to agree. As it stands, Orbs is a good idea, terribly executed.
Orbx can make MSFS products require more Orbs to purchase, offsetting 'the cost of giving away' newer MSFS products. (It's not 'giving away' if you retain my loyalty for future purchases).

 

The current system has no appeal whatsoever and Central has been copied rather well by other stores/developers. I might as well use other stores who give greater value to my custom.

[ESSA Stockholm-Arlanda V2. A brief update on the progress.]

6 hours ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

I am honestly a bit troubled about many products released these days, as I also mentioned in the post as well in a comment. Mostly for my own sake really, it's key to understand the community if I will be able to create things the community wants to buy. And I feel I barely understand the market anymore. There is a massive focus on interiors and PBR, texture work is sharp but generic and in preview screenshots there are rarely shots from showing close up airside. Basically every aspect of what I try to be good at in my sceneries doesn't seem that requested anymore, so I felt I can't drop a high-definition interior without announcing that or people would get upset. I often drop in texture resolution in favour for variation, I don't do full PBR, I texture with real world photos instead of materials, I even bake shadows even when MSFS2020 has an automatic shadow system in place. I'm simply old school and I realized it's better I focus on what I can do good & would enjoy myself as a customer instead of trying to create something I don't really get myself.

Appreciate the candid update.
Personally, I think for large glass-fronted terminals like T5A at EGLL, T2 at EDDK, the main terminal at EICK and the B and C terminals at KDCA, then it's well worth the developer's time and effort to fully model an interior as it makes such a big impact. You park on stand looking directly into the terminal building, where much of the interior is visible.

For airports whose terminals provide only some of the interior to view  e.g. KMIA or KBOS, then parallax could make more sense.
A major problem is you can run into arguments from people who feel short-changed that their home airport isn't 'up-to-standard'.

 

You're right in that the market has shifted. It's more demanding of what a passenger would see and experience rather than a flight crew (e.g. devs returning to their soundpacks to match the tone and volume of engine sounds in the cockpit to how they would sound to pax in the cabin in payware airliners).

 

 

6 hours ago, Marcus Nyberg said:

it's better to focus on what is included instead of proudly pointing out what is not

 

Completely agree. There's so much to look forward to in your work here and you have to design something you also enjoy.

As long as you give people the option to turn on/off static airliners, service vehicles, ground equipment, extra clutter, parked cars, etc. to personalise for personal preference and for performance, I feel something as high a quality of scenery you appear to be delivering will have lots of demand.
 

[ESSA Stockholm-Arlanda V2. A brief update on the progress.]

6 hours ago, wolfko said:

As stunning and awsome all these interiors are looking which are currently added by many developers, I prefer it when developers put their emphasis and time on the really important areas of an airport which are

1) outside airside

2) outside landside

 

It seems funny to me personally seeing more and more ads and previews of aiports showcasing almost more interior than outside pics (not valid for Orbx).

This development is pointing in the wrong direction. It might fit a passenger sim, but not a flight sim.

 

I'd say it's the opposite.

From the cockpit of an airliner sat at the gate, I'm going to see *far more* of the interior of a glass-fronted terminal than I'm going to see of the landside part of the airport, usually hidden from view by said terminal building.

[Are Exclusions Possible with EU Great Britain North]

Sadly @Caluma65, the Orbx forums are not as active nor responsive as they once were.
FlyTampa's KLAS for MSFS was finally added to the Orbx store yesterday and passed without any announcement. I had a question about this months ago that remained unanswered.

[Announcing the Emerald Isle's crown jewel, Landmarks Dublin City Pack!]

On 11/15/2022 at 4:04 AM, Orbx said:

• Animated yellow double-decker buses across the main bridges of the River Liffey

 

 

Looks great!
 

@Orbx Just one point to note, traffic in Ireland drives on the left.
The bus in the second image quoted above is travelling on the wrong side over the Samuel Beckett Bridge. The bus in the bottom of the first pic quoted above is looks to be driving on the pavement and is also travelling in the wrong direction against the one-way system of George's Quay.

Hopefully, two simple fixes to make this an even better product.

[Partner products unavailable in Orbx's store]

Good to see that in the time since I raised this, Gran Canaria has appeared from Aerosoft and Copenhagen is now available from FlyTampa.

There are still some FlyTampa titles that haven't made it to the Orbx store following this post.

 

Quote

We are delighted to have now on OrbxDirect the entire FlyTampa team

LGKR and KLAS for MSFS and LGAV for XP11 all remain unavailable here. Any news?
 

[Beautiful Model of the World]

It's great to see Alexey's work become part of the Orbx portfolio.
My interest is picqued by all the previous positive comments about his work.

 

I have a question though. Will he be able to provide updates to his products following any SU or WU that Asobo release?
My concern is given the geopoltical issues he faces, buying one of these add-ons doesn't necessarily mean a quick set of updates, nor any updates at all.

I would be interested to hear what assurances Orbx management can give that these add-ons won't become essentially become abandonware.

[Update on what I've been up to lately]

On 9/14/2022 at 8:38 AM, Marcus Nyberg said:

ESSB & ESMS is pretty much done through beta now. ESGG will take longer.

Looking forward to all the updates and ESSA, whenever they're ready.
 

[Is this something new with Central?]

11 minutes ago, Jack Sawyer said:

The real world aircraft I worked had tillers on both sides.

 

Yep. I was thinking 737 or Q400 when I said that. Other airliners, e.g. A320 or 747, clearly have two.

 

10 minutes ago, Jack Sawyer said:

Thanks.  So this is modeled in the sim?  Which airport?

 

Yes it is, great addition to airliner realism.
Aerosoft Brussels, Aerosoft Gran Canaria and obviously Pryeegue's Belfast that are identified (I'm sure I'm missing more). There are other airport sceneries available elsewhere, but it would be wrong to advertise for alternatives while on Orbx's site.
 

[Is this something new with Central?]

1 hour ago, Jack Sawyer said:

What exactly does this feature actually do?

 

The captain (as that's the side of the airliner that usually has the steering tiller) guides the aircraft onto stand, following the guidance of the VDGS box, rather than a marshaller.

Here's how a real world VDGS operates.

 

 

[Partner products unavailable in Orbx's store]

I realise that this topic is subject to confidential commercial agreements. However, I am wondering whether Orbx is *actively seeking* to add missing partner add-ons to the repertoire of products for sale under the Orbx banner?

As some examples, these MSFS add-ons are not (yet?) available here:
FlyTampa: Las Vegas, Copenhagen
Aerosoft: Gran Canaria, Land's End

Having accidentally purchased two different add-ons more than once, I've limited all future purchases to just a couple of resellers.
As Orbx makes up one half of my vendor choice, it would be great to know that Orbx is making moves to bring all partners' efforts (especially FlyTampa's) to their store.

[P3DV5 - FlyTampa YSSY Jetways]

On 6/12/2022 at 10:45 AM, shane2801 said:

Hi everyone

Do all the jetways just appear out from a wall? Have a look at the HSBC jetway, when it is selected the whole jetway comes out from the building. Is this normal? Or is this a glitch?

 

You have a problem with your install. Your screenshot is showing the default airport building covering the FlyTampa one.
The HSBC jetway is the correct one, the GSX jetway is displayed because the default airport is incorrectly appearing.

 

Two things to check:

1. Is the FlyTampa Sydney scenery entered towards the top of your scenery library list?

2. Have you purchased YSSY v2? V1 is not compatible with P3D v5.
If you have bought v2, have you used the FlyTampa Universal Installer?
https://flytampa.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13842  (located here, but uninstall your current version before attempting to reinstall).

 

If neither of those suggestions work, open a thread over on the FT YSSY sub-forum and show this issue. The developers are (usually) pretty quick to respond to issues.