Leaked Alpha Footage

[Ganter]

I couldn't resist. DangerousDave - sorry if I done wrong Gov'nor.

A guy on the Alpha Test Programme has leaked some footage on the Chinese Video-sharing website BiliBili - supposedly so that MS can't take it down. I expect it won't be there for long so if you're interested grab it while you can.
Over at the "other" forum they're all refusing to watch because they say they're respecting the MS NDA (and they all want to get on the Alpha)

Out here in the Outhouse I think we're a bit more grown up.

I can't wait to see some of our wonderful warbirds in the hangar instead of the A320s and 747s, and smaller very rich boy's toys, etc.
Mind you, the Skyhawk looks lovely - and that's affordable to us mere mortals.

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1n5...31735056052342

And a general idea of strong, variable, gusty wind flight dynamics;

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV14f...31735056052342

Spin Behaviour; (You can actually see him doing controls to neutral, opposite rudder...)

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1V7...31735056052342

Courcheval Approach and Landing:

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1RT4y137Ao

Soundscapes;

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1e54y1d7DD

And lastly; why it all looks so darn good;

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1PJ...88.videocard.1

The vids reveal much - but then again, theres no way of verifying when they were captured. For instance - all the aircraft in the hangar have their wings - as in flight - not drooped, I believe that could date that video back as far as late April.

In the Soundscape Vid the trees are still big, big, big - I believe that's been corrected.

It's entirely possible that this is someone who's been chucked off the Alpha for breach of NDA and has decided to post in-flight footage that he or she captured before.

Who knows, who cares. What I really like is that it all appears to be really quite bloody good.

[Dev One]

Just looked at the turbulence video & am curious & asking of current light aircraft pilots, does the ASI vary that much in turbulence? Its so long ago that I was flying, 'cos I don't remember ever seeing that much effect. I can understand the reasoning, but not the experience.
I would also reduce the fore/aft visual 'g' effect, by at least a factor of 10 or more, & insert some vertical effect which I think could be more realistic & is more apparent in real world.
Keith

[hangarrat101]

I suppose it could vary that much but the turbulence would have to be extreme. I've seen 10-15kt variations plenty, although that's normally when it gets choppy at low level on the approach, not up high. I think if it ever got bad enough to see 40kt variations I'd be worrying about wings falling off and things. And seriously questioning my sanity as to why I'm flying on a day like that!

This sim does look absolutely stunning though, I think a new PC might be in the pipeline when finances allow.

[Naismith]

Damn now I need to self isolate again after watching that.

[Ganter]

Just looked at the turbulence video & am curious & asking of current light aircraft pilots, does the ASI vary that much in turbulence? Its so long ago that I was flying, 'cos I don't remember ever seeing that much effect. I can understand the reasoning, but not the experience.
I would also reduce the fore/aft visual 'g' effect, by at least a factor of 10 or more, & insert some vertical effect which I think could be more realistic & is more apparent in real world.
Keith

You raise an interesting point Dev,

But one I suspect few of us - who have some RW hours can answer, as personally, if I turned up at my airfield I usually fly from and the METAR was what it is in that video - I'd stay safely in my leathery nest in the Flying Club Bar at zero feet nervously looking out the window at the pattern.
That having been said - it's a ball in alcohol so there's no reason it might not behave like that. Flying those wholly unrealistic conditions for that SEP I would expect my focus to be pretty much 90% out the window with an occasional glance down at the ASI - and that's about it.

[Sundog]

As someone who has spent time in small planes the turbulence reaction looks overdone to me. Having said that, it may appear that way due to the position of the camera.

[Ganter]

I'd say - as a RW pilot with just a little over 500 hours in Pipers - what we're seeing in that video is pretty good; it's not so much G-Effects - it's more Weather-cocking in to wind - which is why the aircraft whips arounds and loses it's tail from time to time.
Something that FSX/ P3D never could or did do and is entirely missing in X-Plane.

So, encouraging in terms of flight dynamics.

Still share the general theme - that the aircraft - and pilot - are well out of the limitations for flight in those conditions and both should have stayed in the hangar/ bar.

[n4gix]

And lastly; why it all looks so darn good;

https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1PJ...88.videocard.1

This last video has nothing whatever to do with MSFS 2020. It is an entirely different engine than the custom engine Asobo has coded, albeit Asobo's custom engine does replicate many of the same features.

[Ganter]

This last video has nothing whatever to do with MSFS 2020. It is an entirely different engine than the custom engine Asobo has coded, albeit Asobo's custom engine does replicate many of the same features.

That's why I posted it!

Asobo have assembled their own version of it pretty much in all but name.
So it is indeed a good visual representation of why things will look like they will in MSFS2020.

The bit I don't get n4gix - is ray-tracing. Unreal does it - Asobo's doesn't - is that right?
But Asobo say they have an alternative. I'm afraid it's beyond my knowledge.

I know you know this stuff - can you enlighten?
I know it's to do with reflected light - and light bouncing around.

[tiger1962]

Ray-tracing is a known FPS Killer among console gamers, who are avoiding it like the plague until nVidia, AMD etc. fix it properly.

[n4gix]

The bit I don't get n4gix - is ray-tracing. Unreal does it - Asobo's doesn't - is that right?
But Asobo say they have an alternative. I'm afraid it's beyond my knowledge.

Asobo is currently using the DX11 API which does not support "ray tracing". Instead they are using an alternative custom hack that achieves a similar effect. No where does Asobo reveal the details of just how they've done this.

Unigine is using the DX12 API which directly supports "ray tracing" albeit at a rather high performance cost as it stands currently.