Peter R. writes:

Many pilots here told me you were a few kings shy of a full deck,
too, but I prefer evidence other than anecdotal.

The pilots who told me were pilots in real life. You never know what
someone is on USENET.

People who call MSFS a game haunt mostly USENET. When I talk to real
pilots they acknowledge that it's a simulator much more than it's a
"game," even if it obviously isn't real life. If they truly want a
game, there are other programs that fit the bill much more accurately
than MSFS.

I also know quite a few non-pilots who find MSFS to be a waste of
time, precisely because it's not a game to them. A few days I spent
an hour explaining to someone just how to get in the air and find an
airport to land with instruments (and MSFS makes this all very easy,
especially if you crank down the realism). I'm not sure that he saw
much game value in this, but his daughter has developed a fascination
with the simulator and he wanted to explain it to her. Maybe she's a
future pilot.

Indeed, MSFS is probably motivating a significant number of people
into flying for real every day, so I wouldn't knock it too quickly.

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