The long lived ‘Flight Simulator’ is now dead as far as Microsoft is concerned. There will be no effort to revive it in our time by Microsoft.

That does not mean that Flight Simulator will never be seen again. Too many people depend on it — including some professional pilots.

Mike Ferro wrote about this collapse of smaller Microsoft subsidiaries in its wider sense on Jan.23, 2009 when he referred to the results of the layoffs at Microsoft.

Microsoft is bailing out of Flight Simulator. Thirty years ago it took over the program — it did not write it no matter what anyone tells you — and now, in its flurry of resizing, it is going to crash and burn. So are 5,000 jobs at Microsoft so let us not feel too badly for one program.

Has Microsoft actually killed Flight Simulator? Yes, as far as Microsoft is concerned. It has shuttered ACES Studios, the developer of the Flight Simulator series of games, whose latest incarnation is Flight Simulator X with the original version being shipped in 1982.

What we need for this situation is PR speak, which may (just) let us find the truth amongst the verbiage.

A Microsoft spokeswoman said that while the studio has been closed, the software company remains committed to the Flight Simulator franchise. That is a phrase that deserves thinking about. On the one had we are committed to the program. On the other we are closing the studios and firing everyone concerned.

So now we need more PR speak. Step forward Microsoft spokeswoman Kelda Rericha. ‘We can confirm the closing of ACES Studios, which was responsible for the Flight Simulator franchise. Following our annual strategy review process, IEB [Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business unit] is making adjustments within our business to align our people against our highest priorities. The closure of ACES Studios was one of those specific changes.’

You could read that, with some difficulty, as saying we have axed Flight Simulator.

Kelda Rericha will not have a bar of it. She simply will not discuss useful details. She did, however, suggest that the Flight Simulator series is likely to stick around in some form or another.

After the first burst of PR double-talk we got: ‘We are committed to the Flight Simulator franchise, which has proven to be a successful PC-based game for the last 27 years. You should expect us to continue to invest in enabling great Live experiences on Windows, including flying games, but we have nothing specific to announce at this time.’

That can be easily translated. As far as Microsoft is concerned Flight Simulator is dead. And there are many who would discuss what it was doing there in the first place.

But, but, but. The program was mainly run by outside contractors so it seems unlikely that Flight Simulator will go away entirely, even if it means rebranding — Microsoft-Attack and Burn might be a suitable title.

Flight Simulator has a vocal and active database. It is unlikely they will let it go quietly into that good night.

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Entry was posted on Sunday, January 25th, 2009 at 1:14 am under Uncategorized.

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