StormVR6 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 After enjoying some wonderful flights around FTX Global's New York and Cork - and seeing the news regarding the new Vector package - I've been left wondering if Global will cause the full fat regions to become obsolete, or, at least, less appealing. Currently, within Global, I'm able to enjoy a lighting system that actually works, with far better visual appearance than the gimmicky FTX day/night system and almost zero impact on performance. I'm able to fly from the US to the UK without stopping the flight, exiting FSX and switching to the European region. I can enjoy the luxury of choosing any destination in the world, in the knowledge that I'll arrive witnessing FTX textures. Obviously, at present, the full fat regions exhibit a higher level of fidelity, but they're not photo real scenery packs, therefore not accurate. And with the imminent arrival of both OpenLC and Vector (both of which I'll be buying) the differences in fidelity will become so small that why bother with individual regions when I can have the entire globe (upgraded with OpenLC and Vector) for around the same price as seven, comparably minuscule, regions? The quality of the FTX regions is significant here; much of the extra detail is wasted because it's not accurate in the first place; how much more will somebody, who has never visited England, appreciate the full region over the Global version once it's had it's OpenLC/Vector upgrades? Neither are close to photo real, so who cares if the full version of Blackpool has a tower and the Global version doesn't? Do the full regions offer enough to justify their price and allow them to stand head and shoulders above what Global will eventually offer? Should I stop buying regions and simply wait for OpenLC and Vector? Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Straight forward answer is no. the full regions have their localized specific items and annotation, something that with FTX-Global and FTX-Vector is not possible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 You decide for yourself when NCA Northern California is released. In that region alone, the following area are made in gorgeous photoreal, watermasked and annotated with autogen and full seasons:Brown MountainCinder ConeCrater LakeGlass MountainHoney LakeHumboldt BayKlamath LakeKlamath MarshLassen PeakLower Klamath LakeMount ShastaWhitney ButteThen every airport is upgraded with 3 D grass, PeopleFow, CreatureFlow, StaticFow, custom modelled hangars and much moreThen we have a whole bunch of never before seen textures fully annotatedTim has modelled a beautiful Golden Gate Bridge and brand new Bay Bridges.We have made the region fully compatible with Aerosoft San Franciso X, as well as FlightBeam's KSFO.We then have the new 3D lighting systems, the first for a region, for incredible lighting without FPS loss (EDIT: NCA will still use the older style lights, sorry)Add to that hand-placed landclass created by two people for every single square kilometre, much better than any OSM based LCFinally add Holger's exemplary roads, rivers, coastlines, railways and his impeccable eye for detail.That is content you will never, ever get with FTX Global and the three layers, not in a million years. So we are not concerned about revenue lost from FTX regions, not a tiny bit.A good and valid question though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chunk Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 You just made me even more anxious for NorCal John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sven Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Oh my! I live right in the geographical center of NCA. I feel so very fortunate. Photoreal Humboldt Bay really got my attention. Sven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlennH Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Im assuming its a huge job to go back and do the older regions with the new lighting system? Just a question....dont bite my head off! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormVR6 Posted September 13, 2013 Author Share Posted September 13, 2013 You decide for yourself when NCA Northern California is released. In that region alone, the following area are made in gorgeous photoreal, watermasked and annotated with autogen and full seasons: Brown Mountain Cinder Cone Crater Lake Glass Mountain Honey Lake Humboldt Bay Klamath Lake Klamath Marsh Lassen Peak Lower Klamath Lake Mount Shasta Whitney Butte Then every airport is upgraded with 3 D grass, PeopleFow, CreatureFlow, StaticFow, custom modelled hangars and much more Then we have a whole bunch of never before seen textures fully annotated Tim has modelled a beautiful Golden Gate Bridge and brand new Bay Bridges. We have made the region fully compatible with Aerosoft San Franciso X, as well as FlightBeam's KSFO. We then have the new 3D lighting systems, the first for a region, for incredible lighting without FPS loss Add to that hand-placed landclass created by two people for every single square kilometre, much better than any OSM based LC Finally add Holger's exemplary roads, rivers, coastlines, railways and his impeccable eye for detail. That is content you will never, ever get with FTX Global and the three layers, not in a million years. So we are not concerned about revenue lost from FTX regions, not a tiny bit. A good and valid question though I think that pretty much answers my question, John! Thanks for the elaboration. And the new lighting is truly outstanding, great work. Im assuming its a huge job to go back and do the older regions with the new lighting system? Just a question....dont bite my head off! lol I hope not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Im assuming its a huge job to go back and do the older regions with the new lighting system? Just a question....dont bite my head off! lol Hi Glenn, it was already announced a wee while back that there will be a retrofit to the older sceneries to update the lighting system to the latest standards, only drawback is that this takes time, I can only advise to stay tuned for the announcements Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sightseer Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 You just made me even more anxious for NorCal John. +1 It seems to me that Global and OpenLC and OpenVector will actually raise the bar on individual regions so they'd probably be even better than before. Orbx keeps raising the bar. I think I will (gladly) be stuck in NCA for quite some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Goff Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 To illustrate John's points I have some preview shots from NorCal showing exactly what sort of extra detail a region provides. Note these are pre-beta shots but I think they illustrate the point: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmiG Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 +1 It seems to me that Global and OpenLC and OpenVector will actually raise the bar on individual regions so they'd probably be even better than before. Orbx keeps raising the bar. I think I will (gladly) be stuck in NCA for quite some time. Yeah they will have to if they want to sell those regions. I've always been very skeptical towards FTX Global, but combined with Vector and OpenLC, it might actually be worth giving it a shot. It would allow for fairly accurate scenery over my home country of Sweden - I'm not expecting the same quality as OrbX regions, but towns should at least be recognizable instead of missing completely in the sim. I'm also interested in doing some bush flying in Africa and explore the rest of the US. Then you can just fill in with OrbX regions as they get released over a period of several years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfeldman Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Beautiful Alex! Just beautiful. Regards Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paddler Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Thanks Alex. That illustrates the point nicely. Rick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cabnz Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Things just keep getting better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew 737 Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 +1It seems to me that Global and OpenLC and OpenVector will actually raise the bar on individual regions so they'd probably be even better than before. Orbx keeps raising the bar. I think I will (gladly) be stuck in NCA for quite some time. I just thought exactly the same after reading John's post - lets watch this space Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jotayhen Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 The OP's question is an intriguing one probably more so for those who are more interested in long-distance, high-altitude, high-speed flight. Also probably for those who live in areas of the world not covered in as much detail as is provided by the existing regional scenery packages. Speaking as one whose primary focus is low-altitude, low-speed flight, the existing regional packages provide by far the best opportunity to enjoy my best flight experience. I believe all would agree that the existing available full-featured territorial scenery packages are best viewed from a "low and slow" perspective. Given that, each of these packages individually offers a very large area in which to explore and when they are linked together the overall territory becomes huge in comparison to the ground covered during the average GA flight experience. I certainly recognize the value of FTXG and the upcoming newly announced products. I own and enjoy Global and I fully intend to purchase the new products when each becomes available. As good as Global is and I'm certain the new announcements will be, they probably will not replace the satisfaction and enjoyment I receive by owning the existing Orbx "fat" territories and the accompanying individual airports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Im assuming its a huge job to go back and do the older regions with the new lighting system? Just a question....dont bite my head off! lol Actually it's not a HUGE job, but not a small one either. That said, there are some new tools out there which will de-compile .agn files to text files and re-compile them back again, so we are actually looking at writing some code which will automatically suck in all our AGN tiles, replace the codes for the lighting with the new ones, then recompile. That in theory should make the conversion process possible in a few days, once the conversion tool code is written and debugged. That is the theory anyway. We will look seriously into the conversion side of things for the older regions once openLC Europe is released and things quieten down over the Dec-Jan break. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2189 Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 To be honest Guys I'm a real life Commercial Pilot..... But that's just better! Everyday i can't wait to get home and take a short flight in ORBX-Land Beautiful pics Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Todd Harrell Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Boys from the 'Boro don't make no junk, do they Alex? Fine work, my friend. Todd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry W Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 I've been flying the NGX and Ax320 almost exclusively and I have purchased all of the regions, with the exception of Northern Ireland. I have destinations in all of the regions except for NI. The release of FTXG has been a god-send with the new 777. I've purchased 9 airports in the past week alone because I can now fly into any area of the world without the let-down of default scenery. I don't really "need" (in a relative sense) NCA but I'll buy it because it will make that area incrementally better for me. It's purely a matter of personal taste in making the experience subjectively better. It even makes VFR more tempting for me. And like many (most?) customers, getting the new lighting in the existing regions is high on my list (although I now see that won't happen in NCA initially). The great thing for me about FTX products is that I can have a single source for all of my scenery. I don't have to deal with making sure that scenery products from different vendors play nice together. All of that is taken care of for me now. I still have to give a little thought with some airports, but it doesn't confuse my aging mind the way landclass, mesh, vector, etc do. This is the golden age of simming for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnny Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 a quick final question from me if I may - the discussions concerning the breakdown of the various elements has helped me understand a few things I have taken for granted in the past - but concerning the mesh, which generates the topographic detail - this only included in the regions, and without the regions a third party mesh would be required? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxbat Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 I could be wrong - but I think some of the EU regions did not have a mesh? Or maybe it was one of the others. a quick final question from me if I may - the discussions concerning the breakdown of the various elements has helped me understand a few things I have taken for granted in the past - but concerning the mesh, which generates the topographic detail - this only included in the regions, and without the regions a third party mesh would be required? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airwolf Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 I thought NCA had new 3D lights....looks like they are changed to old school lights. Oh well, still super excited for this release. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpreou Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Interesting discussion. Generally, other than my current RtW trip, my flying will be limited to NZ, my home country, and the UK later on (since I spent the first 25 yrs of my life there). Even so, I'm a proud owner of Global, will definitely buy Vector and will also (when funds permit) invest in a decent global mesh. I will also buy ORBX regions and airports as funds permit. Why? you ask, when I have clearly stated I won't fly in these areas much? Two reasons 1. When I *do* visit other areas of the world in FSX, I want the best experience I can get at reasonable cost, since it is incredibly unlikely I will go there in person (therefore, I won't even notice minor inaccuracies, or even major ones probably, but it will look good). 2. In no small part, and at least equal to the first reason; I want to support ORBX since they are making the kind of progress our hobby *needs*. Thanks guys. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolter van der Spoel Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 I could be wrong - but I think some of the EU regions did not have a mesh? Or maybe it was one of the others. the only region that did not have mesh with it was NIR, there where a few minor bubbles with it that where resolved within 2 days by a patch from Paul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxbat Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Cool thanks Wolter. To the OP - I have been pondering the same question myself and decided that for the type of flying I do - Low, slow, VFR - the regions are great with points of interest, upgraded airports and the regional colour variations. That said even I think with the Global+LC+Vector data - maybe the difference isn't going to be that much for VFR flying. Hope the regions get even better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misha Cajic Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 I thought NCA had new 3D lights....looks like they are changed to old school lights. Oh well, still super excited for this release. What made you think that? NCA is using the new efficient 3D lights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airwolf Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 What made you think that? NCA is using the new efficient 3D lights Hey, I read JV's post 3 on this thread and it is edited stating older style lights http://www.orbxsystems.com/forum/topic/64720-will-global-make-full-fat-regions-obsolete/?p=591326 Now, I am confused Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Harris Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 Hey, I read JV's post 3 on this thread and it is edited stating older style lights http://www.orbxsystems.com/forum/topic/64720-will-global-make-full-fat-regions-obsolete/?p=591326 Now, I am confused Misha is not an official spokesperson for NCA, my apologies for any confusion, this subject is currently being discussed internally Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Misha Cajic Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 Deepest apologies guys. Ignore my comment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airwolf Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 Misha is not an official spokesperson for NCA, my apologies for any confusion, this subject is currently being discussed internally Deepest apologies guys. Ignore my comment No worries. It is all good. Enjoy your weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulL01 Posted September 15, 2013 Share Posted September 15, 2013 Note these are pre-beta shots but I think they illustrate the point: This is great, can't wait! Though I know its hard to achieve perfect color balance when needing to match other color pallets,but IMHO the mountain soil colors look somewhat too light compared to the real vulcanized terrain I'm accustomed to seeing. Maybe its a sunlit vs overcast type of thing but it just looks weird to me as some of these areas are dark grey, almost black, certainly not light grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vtracy Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 I hate all you guys who live in ORBX FTX Region-Land! John, when will I download Europe region(s)? Volker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Hamilton Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 Now that it's four months later, are we still going to have the old style of lights in NCA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 No they are new style FTXG lights Bruce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdonner Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Then every airport is upgraded with 3 D grass, PeopleFow, CreatureFlow, StaticFow, custom modelled hangars and much more Cool, less FPS, just what the doctor ordered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Venema Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 Don't be an idiot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iflygary Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 Remember, he said the shots were PRE-BETA. There's still work to be done to get it just right! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan King Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 No they are new style FTXG lights Bruce. Hey John, Just to clarify, on the 1st page you said they will be the old lights, then here you said they will be the new ones. i know things evolve in the process, so just wanted to be clear that it will be the new 3d lighting for NCA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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