This was Microsoft's gutsy effort to impress upon visiting journalists how good the company thought MSFS was in its current, pre-alpha state. But, yes, I piloted a Cessna 172 for about a half-hour, managing its altitude and bearing in a trip that took me from Renton to Snoqualmie Falls and from Microsoft's Bellevue headquarters to the north end of Seattle itself. And an instructor sat at my side the entire time I was in the real plane, ready to take control should I lose control or become uncomfortable. To clarify: I did not manage my real flight's take-off or landing, in spite of practicing both in Microsoft Flight Simulator.

This new version of the game better be realistic. in real life, in a real Cessna 172, as the pilot. Hours later, I would do the exact same thing. My MSFS kiosk was set up with a pre-loaded virtual flight opportunity: to take off in a Cessna 172 from the Renton Municipal Airport, then simulate flight around the cities, forests, and valleys of the Seattle area. For all the notes I took at the event about rotational weather systems, drag coefficients, and friction models, I got the feeling Microsoft and Asobo wanted to bowl me over with something a bit more specific and literal with its new Microsoft Flight Simulator, slated to launch on Windows PCs in '2020.' Nobody in my family held aviation in esteem. I didn't even grow up playing MSFS, Janes, or other classic flight-sim series. The second type is me, a person who has logged very little time in one of those pricey, realistic flight-sim cockpits, let alone flying a real plane. Members of the new game's lead development team, Asobo Studio, were on hand to speak about reviving the decades-old MSFS brand and the inherent scrutiny those fans will direct at any rebirth.

The first is the plane enthusiast, the kind of person who purchases pricey equipment in order to recreate the experience of piloting aircraft. RENTON, Wash.-This month's Microsoft Flight Simulator world-premiere reveal event, held at a hangar just outside Seattle, was designed for two types of people. Now he's back to his 'holding on for dear life' thing.

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