Microsoft 'Aces' studio to close..

nikimcbee · 01-23-09, 02:51 PM

On the news, they said MS was laying of R&D people.

You'd think there are more useless people around there than R&D. (such has HR)

SteamWake · 01-23-09, 02:57 PM

Its the D in R & D that is of concearn.

Ill bet the execs arent taking any pay cuts.

But I read where Aces were directly and considerably impacted. Aces are the folks that brought us Flight Simulator and Train Simulator. Train Simulator 2 already like 4 years into development was scheduled for release "Holiday season of 09" (around december of 09). No adjustments, or postponements are officcial yet but I fear the worst. MSTS 2 is one of the few titles I was looking foward too.

I cannot find anywhere, other than internet blogs, an 'offocal' source how the changes will effect any of their products or planned products.

longam · 01-23-09, 03:03 PM

Dang, How many more delays...

There is nothing on the insider page so far.
http://www.tsinsider.com/

SteamWake · 01-23-09, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by longam

Dang, How many more delays...

There is nothing on the insider page so far.
http://www.tsinsider.com/

Yea I checked there and trainsim.com and a few others. So far just a bunch of conjecture and a lot of 'dissapointment' with the occassional 'sky is falling'. Kind of like Subsim :rotfl:

Still I hold out hope, a tremdous amount of research, coding, and art had been accomplished and was left to believe it was nearing completion. Its hard to believe they would just stop at this point. But its Micro$oft so really nothing is hard to believe.

Zachstar · 01-23-09, 03:19 PM

If any of that team is fired there will be a perfect excuse for a delay and such there will be.

Microsoft is getting real stupid on this one. They did not touch their overseas departments but Aces? Ins't MSFS one of their most profitable game ventures outside of Halo?

Zachstar · 01-23-09, 05:02 PM

Confirmed BTW they are shuttering.

What a horrible horrible decision.

01-24-09, 04:45 AM

It's not only trainsim that will take a hit but Flightsim as well

I think it does imply a serious setback in Flightsimulator development.

Will FSX be the last version ? Nobody knows.

Will somebody else pick it up ?
Under the present economics I doubt that to happen soon.
Massive cuts are in progress in the entire IT industries all over the world.

Starting with a venture like this will involve a lot of risk for the buyer of the license ( if it is sold at all).
Not only is the technology much more evolved since the series started but also has the hardware.
Not a single version of FS could be played maxed out on then current hardware.
The computers always needed to catch up a year later.
Since we see a recession coming all over the world people will keep their money in their pockets and pay the more basic bills prior to paying for a new computer in the upcoming 3 years.
This will slowdown computer development as well as game development.
Afterall is the gaming industry one of the main drivers for new hardware development.
Even now (after the release in 2006) it's hard to play FSX maxed out on the current hardware.
It's a niche product, and the modding of FS will touch maybe 10% of the total number of users world wide.
90% are playing it right of the shelf and will never install any mod except for a servicepack.

In my humble opinion Flightsimulator will live on but it will be centered on the 2 versions that are available, FS9 and FSX.
No development activities are in progress for either 2 of them, making them finished products and the standards for the (at least) upcoming 3 years.
It will make the FS world a place where you use either FS9, FSX or both.

A new start will be A GOOD THING but also imply a setback for all add-on developers ( either freeware or payware) since they will have to reinvent the wheel on the coding for the new game.
So no additional aircraft, no airlines, no scenery, you name it.

Since a lot of developers didn't make the step towards FSX already I think that even less people are willing to make the same step towards a complete new environment.
In the end we will end up with less development from 3rd parties and less toys to play with for the community.

So does this decision impact the FS world ?
It certainly does, the FS world will become emptier in new versions.

I hope that the people that lost their job yesterday will be able to find something new in the upcoming times.
I also want to thank them for their motivation, their enthusiasm and their dedication towards a game series that lasted longer then any other pc game series.
FS will live on !

There will a lot side effects on this decission of MS, addon developers will also start to go down in a matter of time.

01-23-09, 02:51 PM	#1
nikimcbee Fleet Admiral Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Patroling the Slot. Posts: 17,952 Downloads: 90 Uploads: 0	On the news, they said MS was laying of R&D people. You'd think there are more useless people around there than R&D. (such has HR) __________________

01-23-09, 03:19 PM	#5
Zachstar Sea Lord Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shreveport, Louisiana Posts: 1,956 Downloads: 13 Uploads: 0	If any of that team is fired there will be a perfect excuse for a delay and such there will be. Microsoft is getting real stupid on this one. They did not touch their overseas departments but Aces? Ins't MSFS one of their most profitable game ventures outside of Halo? __________________

01-23-09, 05:02 PM	#6
Zachstar Sea Lord Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shreveport, Louisiana Posts: 1,956 Downloads: 13 Uploads: 0	Confirmed BTW they are shuttering. What a horrible horrible decision. __________________

01-23-09, 02:57 PM	#2
SteamWake Rear Admiral Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 13,224 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	Its the D in R & D that is of concearn. Ill bet the execs arent taking any pay cuts. But I read where Aces were directly and considerably impacted. Aces are the folks that brought us Flight Simulator and Train Simulator. Train Simulator 2 already like 4 years into development was scheduled for release "Holiday season of 09" (around december of 09). No adjustments, or postponements are officcial yet but I fear the worst. MSTS 2 is one of the few titles I was looking foward too. I cannot find anywhere, other than internet blogs, an 'offocal' source how the changes will effect any of their products or planned products.

01-23-09, 03:03 PM	#3
longam Admiral Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 2,014 Downloads: 26 Uploads: 0	Dang, How many more delays... There is nothing on the insider page so far. http://www.tsinsider.com/

01-24-09, 04:45 AM	#7
f14driver Stowaway Posts: n/a Downloads: Uploads:	It's not only trainsim that will take a hit but Flightsim as well I think it does imply a serious setback in Flightsimulator development. Will FSX be the last version ? Nobody knows. Will somebody else pick it up ? Under the present economics I doubt that to happen soon. Massive cuts are in progress in the entire IT industries all over the world. Starting with a venture like this will involve a lot of risk for the buyer of the license ( if it is sold at all). Not only is the technology much more evolved since the series started but also has the hardware. Not a single version of FS could be played maxed out on then current hardware. The computers always needed to catch up a year later. Since we see a recession coming all over the world people will keep their money in their pockets and pay the more basic bills prior to paying for a new computer in the upcoming 3 years. This will slowdown computer development as well as game development. Afterall is the gaming industry one of the main drivers for new hardware development. Even now (after the release in 2006) it's hard to play FSX maxed out on the current hardware. It's a niche product, and the modding of FS will touch maybe 10% of the total number of users world wide. 90% are playing it right of the shelf and will never install any mod except for a servicepack. In my humble opinion Flightsimulator will live on but it will be centered on the 2 versions that are available, FS9 and FSX. No development activities are in progress for either 2 of them, making them finished products and the standards for the (at least) upcoming 3 years. It will make the FS world a place where you use either FS9, FSX or both. A new start will be A GOOD THING but also imply a setback for all add-on developers ( either freeware or payware) since they will have to reinvent the wheel on the coding for the new game. So no additional aircraft, no airlines, no scenery, you name it. Since a lot of developers didn't make the step towards FSX already I think that even less people are willing to make the same step towards a complete new environment. In the end we will end up with less development from 3rd parties and less toys to play with for the community. So does this decision impact the FS world ? It certainly does, the FS world will become emptier in new versions. I hope that the people that lost their job yesterday will be able to find something new in the upcoming times. I also want to thank them for their motivation, their enthusiasm and their dedication towards a game series that lasted longer then any other pc game series. FS will live on ! There will a lot side effects on this decission of MS, addon developers will also start to go down in a matter of time.