Quote:
Originally Posted by Hartmann
And more
X plane (for flight sim)
Orbiter (space, upgraded to the 2010 version)
Arma (well is ground warfare , but is a sim)
|
Also, don't forget Microsoft Flight Simulator (2004 and FSX). The base product is officially dead, but there is a very healthy 3rd party market still active for planes and scenery. It's not a bad thing to have a 100% "dead" but stable and relatively bug-free platform for 3rd party developers to build on. MSFS probably has another 5 years or so of life, before a change in OS or GPU standards finally kills it off.
X-Plane is growing steadily too, from attrition of MSFS users, or people just looking for something new. I fly X-Plane frequently, and I've probably spent $150 in the last year just on payware plane models and scenery.
Also, Aerosoft (MSFS scenery and plane developer) is working on their own new civilian flight sim, due for initial in 2011 or 2012.
There will always be a civilian PC flight sim market. People like to fly for entertainment, and real-world pilots use it to keep their skills sharp (the pro version of X-Plane is even FAA-certified). It's a niche market, but the people in that niche spend lots of money.