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The Staff of SOH
~ MS Flight done ~
- Thread starter boxcar
- Start date
Yup. Poke a fork in it, it's done....
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...s-development-of-flight-project-columbia.aspx
MS seems to love walking in on FS development teams and giving them pink slips without notice.
Same day they released the Carbon Cub. :isadizzy:
Hope they keep the servers operating for a while.
Be a bummer to spend that much on DLC's and have them shut off the switch.
No further development for Flight but the servers are still up for the foreseeable future. It still is available for download, it is just that no more content is to be expected.
This was almost foreseeable, although I'm a bit surprised that it happens so soon.
Mark
Mark
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It may be so,however yesterday a new plane was added..The Carbon Cub,complete model...It may very well be the "GAME" aspect of "FLIGHT: may be waning,but for many,the "SIM" part may not.Were FLIGHT to shut down tomorrow ,I for one still will have the superior scenery to fly over....For the Nattering Nabobs Of Negativism,other factors are in play...and quite simply "ITS THE ECONOMY STUPID"...As always that is the criteria we must use to judge by....If they are making a profit or not,the costs of operation,and other business practices...However,"FLIGHT" for many has been a big plus....Rather than Hurting FSX,or FS9,it man have had the opposite effect..that is introduce Desk Top Flying to Gamers who may find this far more interesting ,and with greater control of its in put...like the great people who have made FS9,and FSX to the great sim we have now!..They may in fact have a bigger market for their talents!..Like Mark Twain said once " "The Rumors of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated."
It may be so,however yesterday a new plane was added..The Carbon Cub,complete model...It may very well be the "GAME" aspect of "FLIGHT: may be waning,but for many,the "SIM" part may not.Were FLIGHT to shut down tomorrow ,I for one still will have the superior scenery to fly over....For the Nattering Nabobs Of Negativism,other factors are in play...and quite simply "ITS THE ECONOMY STUPID"...As always that is the criteria we must use to judge by....If they are making a profit or not,the costs of operation,and other business practices...However,"FLIGHT" for many has been a big plus....Rather than Hurting FSX,or FS9,it man have had the opposite effect..that is introduce Desk Top Flying to Gamers who may find this far more interesting ,and with greater control of its in put...like the great people who have made FS9,and FSX to the great sim we have now!..They may in fact have a bigger market for their talents!..Like Mark Twain said once " "The Rumors of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated."
Thoe6969
Charter Member
Don't hold your breath,cause you will never see another flight sim from microsucks.I'm afraid it was inevitable from the outset. MS got too greedy and simmers didn't take it up. OK give it 9 months then read the anouncement that Aces have re-formed and are working on FS 11 !!!!
Remember you heard it here.
Microsoft could've made more money by making an expansion or an new and improved FSX.
Mickey D
SOH-CM-2024
TuFun
Charter Member
I'm afraid it was inevitable from the outset. MS got too greedy and simmers didn't take it up. OK give it 9 months then read the anouncement that Aces have re-formed and are working on FS 11 !!!!
Remember you heard it here.
Looking for the Aces team? Look no further...
http://www.cascadegamefoundry.com/team/
"The studio has some of the most talented simulation designers in the business, but it will live or die on its unit sales, and the traditional simulation audience is too select to offer much security. Factor in the challenging economic conditions, and turning Aces’ quiet success into something that can sustain an independent business seems a daunting challenge."
"Cascade’s focus will still be on simulation, but Flood and Selby want to use their fresh start as an opportunity to rethink the genre and what it stands for. If you aren’t a fan of the Flight Simulator games, there’s an excellent chance your opinion of them will skew towards the negative. They are an acquired taste, and offer a take on fun that doesn’t chime with the average gamer’s definition of the term. The Cascade team understands this all too well, and intends to bring simulation into the 21st Century."
"A key component of Cascade’s ambition to reach a wider audience is what Flood calls “sliders on reality”. They will allow players to have control over just how much detail and depth they want the gameplay to include; it’s a small acknowledgement that, however much the Cascade team feel that detail is vital to true simulation, the average gamer won’t necessarily feel the same way."
"Satiating the core sim audience and broadening the genre’s appeal seem like mutually exclusive goals, but these “sliders on reality” could be an ideal solution. “The dangers of appealing only to the hardcore audience are big development costs and a relatively limited audience size, neither of which are welcome in today’s economy,” Flood says. “But, if we can deliver an accurate, riveting world and also leverage it to be accessible to a larger community, we can keep costs down and throw open the doors to a huge new audience.
We want to be respectful of the traditions, but embrace new technologies and modern audience expectations rather than rehash our previous work. The team is incredibly diverse with tremendous experience across all types of videogames – simulation, action, racing, strategy, and sports. We also have experience working on related technologies, like operating systems and instructional design… Working on games often provides unusual opportunities to combine these.”
Article: http://www.gamestm.co.uk/features/the-simulation-game/
View attachment 69770
Warhawk1130
Charter Member
Same here...As soon as I got my monster back in January, I got the FSX gold pack at a cheap price...looked at flight....saw what it was....never crossed my mind again....noting ventured, nothing wasted....
No surprise. Still picked up the cub though. Compared to FSX I really haven't invested a lot of money into this and still have two vast areas to explore. It's worth the coin for that quick fix which is all I do nowadays when it comes to flightsimming. Quick 15 minute sessions.
wombat666
Administrator
Source A: Microsoft Studios in Vancouver, the studio working on a AAA Kinect Shooter, has cancelled Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia and reportedly laid off all 35 members of its staff.
In a statement obtained by Polygon, Microsoft said: "Microsoft Studios has decided to end development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia. As a result of this action, some positions within the development teams have been eliminated. Microsoft human resources is working with the affected individuals to find new roles within the company."
"Microsoft Studios is always evaluating its portfolio of products to determine what is best for gamers, families and the company, and this decision was the result of the natural ebb and flow of our portfolio management. Many factors were considered in the difficult decision to stop development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia, but we feel it will help us better align with our long-term goals and development plans. For Microsoft Flight, we will continue to support the community that has embraced the title and the game will still be available to download for free at http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/."
The statement continues: "Microsoft Studios is invested in British Columbia and still has several teams, both in Vancouver and Victoria, which will continue to produce the best entertainment and gaming experiences possible."
A post appearing on a Facebook page dedicated to innovation in Vancouver announced that the entire staff at Microsoft Vancouver had been laid off as a result of the project cancellations.
The post reads: "We've just gotten word that the entire studio at Microsoft Games Studios on 840 Cambie has been laid off. 35 people in total. This is nuts. We'll update with more when we can."
Some Microsoft Vancouver employees took to Twitter to hint at the lay-offs, such as Tara Mustapha who tweeted: "This is what one wears when they get laid... Off. #jobsearch" and "These guys... Hella awesome <333 adopt one today!"
Another former employee, Mia Jerri, tweeted: "Now I can add 'casualty of the Vancouver games industry' to my list of achievements. On a good note, the weather is LOVELY today."http://www.theverge.com/gaming/2012/7/25/3187649/microsoft-vancouver-lays-off-staff-cancels-projects
Source B: "Microsoft Flight" was a new PC game from Microsoft Game Studios that brought a new perspective to the long-standing "Flight Simulator" franchise. Unfortunately, due to cuts, all 35 staff members have been laid off and the game is no longer in development, however, it is still being supported for the time being. "Microsoft Studios has decided to end development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia. As a result of this action, some positions within the development teams have been eliminated. Microsoft human resources is working with the affected individuals to find new roles within the company. Microsoft Studios is always evaluating its portfolio of products to determine what is best for gamers, families and the company, and this decision was the result of the natural ebb and flow of our portfolio management. Many factors were considered in the difficult decision to stop development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia, but we feel it will help us better align with our long-term goals and development plans. For Microsoft Flight, we will continue to support the community that has embraced the title and the game will still be available to download for free at http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/." http://www.winbeta.org/news/microsoft-flight-canceled-all-35-staff-members-laid#.UBF-suSEMQ8.twitter
I could care less about 'Flight' but obviously staff loyalty counts for nothing.
Bloody Muppets!!!
In a statement obtained by Polygon, Microsoft said: "Microsoft Studios has decided to end development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia. As a result of this action, some positions within the development teams have been eliminated. Microsoft human resources is working with the affected individuals to find new roles within the company."
"Microsoft Studios is always evaluating its portfolio of products to determine what is best for gamers, families and the company, and this decision was the result of the natural ebb and flow of our portfolio management. Many factors were considered in the difficult decision to stop development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia, but we feel it will help us better align with our long-term goals and development plans. For Microsoft Flight, we will continue to support the community that has embraced the title and the game will still be available to download for free at http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/."
The statement continues: "Microsoft Studios is invested in British Columbia and still has several teams, both in Vancouver and Victoria, which will continue to produce the best entertainment and gaming experiences possible."
A post appearing on a Facebook page dedicated to innovation in Vancouver announced that the entire staff at Microsoft Vancouver had been laid off as a result of the project cancellations.
The post reads: "We've just gotten word that the entire studio at Microsoft Games Studios on 840 Cambie has been laid off. 35 people in total. This is nuts. We'll update with more when we can."
Some Microsoft Vancouver employees took to Twitter to hint at the lay-offs, such as Tara Mustapha who tweeted: "This is what one wears when they get laid... Off. #jobsearch" and "These guys... Hella awesome <333 adopt one today!"
Another former employee, Mia Jerri, tweeted: "Now I can add 'casualty of the Vancouver games industry' to my list of achievements. On a good note, the weather is LOVELY today."http://www.theverge.com/gaming/2012/7/25/3187649/microsoft-vancouver-lays-off-staff-cancels-projects
Source B: "Microsoft Flight" was a new PC game from Microsoft Game Studios that brought a new perspective to the long-standing "Flight Simulator" franchise. Unfortunately, due to cuts, all 35 staff members have been laid off and the game is no longer in development, however, it is still being supported for the time being. "Microsoft Studios has decided to end development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia. As a result of this action, some positions within the development teams have been eliminated. Microsoft human resources is working with the affected individuals to find new roles within the company. Microsoft Studios is always evaluating its portfolio of products to determine what is best for gamers, families and the company, and this decision was the result of the natural ebb and flow of our portfolio management. Many factors were considered in the difficult decision to stop development on Microsoft Flight and Project Columbia, but we feel it will help us better align with our long-term goals and development plans. For Microsoft Flight, we will continue to support the community that has embraced the title and the game will still be available to download for free at http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/." http://www.winbeta.org/news/microsoft-flight-canceled-all-35-staff-members-laid#.UBF-suSEMQ8.twitter
I could care less about 'Flight' but obviously staff loyalty counts for nothing.
Bloody Muppets!!!
WRT to the above post...
1. At least two employees of MS who were on the Flight team will be remaining in position to keep the support forum at Steam as well as the support email system working, as well as maintaining the aerocache server and LIVE server(s) properly running.
2. All of the folks who worked on Flight worked out a suite of offices on the Microsoft Campus in Redmond, Washington...
...not - please take note - in Vancouver!
3. The total staff working on Flight consisted of fifty-two persons. The reported thirty-seven laid off in Vancouver were part of the "Project Columbia" team.
1. At least two employees of MS who were on the Flight team will be remaining in position to keep the support forum at Steam as well as the support email system working, as well as maintaining the aerocache server and LIVE server(s) properly running.
2. All of the folks who worked on Flight worked out a suite of offices on the Microsoft Campus in Redmond, Washington...
...not - please take note - in Vancouver!
3. The total staff working on Flight consisted of fifty-two persons. The reported thirty-seven laid off in Vancouver were part of the "Project Columbia" team.
Panther_99FS
Retired SOH Administrator
Is there a correlation to when Microsoft went awry with Flight Simulator software & Bill Gates stepping way with Steve Ballmer coming to power at Microsoft :ques: