Microsoft Flight and SHO...

[GoldenRivet]

let alone... no ability to mod the game.

one of the big attractions to the flight simulator series, is that users can acquire software to create their own scenery, or create their own aircraft etc.

if you wanted to model your own home or your favorite attraction that wasnt in the sim, you could do this with some relative ease.

additionally, Silent Hunter's appeal, or at least a portion of it comes in the ability for users to modify their experience, even if this is done with a bit more difficulty than the flight simulator series.

Take the GWX mod for example.

If ubisoft looked at their sales data of shelved copies of SHIII in the few months following the release of GWX, i would wager that they would at least see a noticeable uptick in sales.

I suppose the real lasting difference between a sim and a game is that a game is meant to entertain

a sim is meant to entertain and inspire.