Developer Launch Day Update | Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024

Summary

In a launch day update for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, key team members, including Yorg Newman (Head of Microsoft Flight Simulator) and Sebastian Block (CEO of Asobo Studio), discuss the excitement around the game's release. However, they reveal that the overwhelming demand has caused server issues, particularly with the new career mode and missions. These server problems have led to delays and missing content, including default aircraft. Despite this, the team is working to resolve the issues quickly and is committed to transparency, apologizing for the frustration while promising improvements and updates to the community.

Takeaways

• 😀 The launch day for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 has arrived, and there’s significant excitement within the team.
• 😀 Jane, the Senior Community Manager, introduces Yorg Newman (Head of Flight Simulator) and Sebastian Block (CEO of Asobo Studio) to provide an update.
• 😀 Despite high excitement, the demand for *Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024* overwhelmed the infrastructure, leading to server issues.
• 😀 A new system in the simulator requires users to access server data during launch, which has been affected by a saturated cache, causing delays.
• 😀 The technical problem involves a server cache that was thoroughly tested but failed under the unexpectedly high load from users.
• 😀 Some players experience long initial loading times or errors at 97%, due to the server issues and missing data.
• 😀 To address the problem, the team has been throttling user access and restarting services, with some temporary improvement.
• 😀 Missing content, such as aircraft, in users' libraries is due to the server issues preventing certain data from loading correctly.
• 😀 The queue screen and extreme loading times will disappear once the server issue is resolved and the load is normalized.
• 😀 The team apologizes for the launch-day issues and assures users that they are working hard to fix the problems.
• 😀 The community is encouraged to keep providing feedback, and the team promises transparency through social channels and forums.

Q & A

What was the initial excitement around Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024's launch?

There was a lot of excitement surrounding the launch of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, with the team feeling proud of what they had accomplished, especially with the involvement of Microsoft and Asobo Studio's partners.

What major issue did the team encounter on launch day?

The major issue the team encountered was server overload. The demand from users was much higher than anticipated, overwhelming the infrastructure, especially the caching system.

What were the specific new features in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 that contributed to the server issues?

The new features, including career mode and missions, required users to request a significant amount of data from the servers, which led to the cache becoming saturated and causing server-related problems.

How did the team test their infrastructure before the launch?

The team conducted low tests during the Tech Alpha with up to 200,000 simulated users, which seemed sufficient at the time, but the real-world demand exceeded those expectations.

What is the role of the server cache in the Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 system?

The server cache stores data that the simulator requests. However, when it gets overloaded, it causes slow loading times, missing content, or even failure to load certain aspects of the simulator.

How did the team try to resolve the issue with the server overload?

The team attempted to restart the services, throttle the number of simultaneous users, and adjust the speed of the queues, but the cache continued to collapse due to the extreme load.

What happens when the server cache is overwhelmed?

When the server cache is overwhelmed, users experience long loading times or the simulator fails to load at 97%. Some content, such as aircraft, might be missing, though critical features of the simulator can still work.

Is the issue with missing aircraft or content related to the server problems?

Yes, missing aircraft or content is a direct result of the server cache issue. Non-critical content may not load correctly when the server cannot deliver all the necessary data.

What are the team's plans to address the server issues?

The team is actively working to fix the issues, including investigating the cause of the overload, restarting the services, and continuing to provide updates to the community through their social channels and forums.

How has the community been involved in the process of resolving the issues?

The community has been providing valuable feedback, which the team is using to identify specific problems and track progress. The team appreciates the feedback and has committed to maintaining transparency in their communications.