There have been drastic improvements in scenery quality for Microsoft's Flight Simulator over its 25 year history. Even so, the standard textures can always be improved upon.
Take your flight simming experience to the next level with one of these highly acclaimed scenery add-ons for FSX.
1. Photoreal America -- Sim Savvy
Sim-Savvy's "Massive Scenery Collection" makes its debut with Photoreal America. And massive it is! The program includes photo-realistic scenery that spans the entire U.S. mainland--a whopping 400 GB worth of scenery.
The photo data comes directly from the USDA's National Agriculture Imagery Program NAIP, which takes 1 meter/pixel aerial photos every 2 years of continental U.S.
Don't have a 400 GB hard drive? Fear not, your Photoreal America purchase includes a 1 TB external hard drive that comes preloaded with the software. The program runs from the external hard drive directly, so there is no need to copy files onto your computer.
Considering the size of this project, Photoreal America comes with a big price tag: $199 USD. In spite of this, Sim Savvy's program is still a worthwhile investment in the long run. You will get free updates whenever they become available.
2. Ground Environment X USA & Canada -- Flight1
At $34.95, this expansion pack provides an affordable alternative to Photoreal America. GEX replaces FSX's default scenery with highly detailed 1024x1024 pixel images that have a resolution of 1 meter per pixel.
One advantage of GEX over Photoreal America is that GEX includes night textures while Sim Savvy's product does not.
Flight simmers say that the scenery enhancements you'll see with GEX are subtle but noticeable. GEX takes empty white road lines and transforms them into major roads and highways bustling with traffic.
With GEX you also get a better "blending of seasons." Textures for the Fall and Spring mark a much more natural transition to winter and summer.
Despite the enhanced details, users say that frame rates aren't affected much.
3. Megascenery Bundle: Hawaii, Las Vegas, Reno -- PC Aviator
This $20 bundle, gives you wonderful scenery for three popular cities.
Unlike Ground Environment X and Photoreal America, which do not include any Hawaii data, Megascenery Bundle provides stunning photorealistic scenery textures for Ohau island. View some of the screen captures on the megascenery.com website and see for yourself. The ground looks exactly like what you'd see from above in real life.
Over 2,100 square miles of city landscape, rocky mountains, hilltops are included with the Las Vegas textures. The only drawback is the fact that the program doesn't enhance any of the 3D buildings on the Vegas Strip.
4. Megascenery X: Southern California -- PC Aviator
I live in Los Angeles, so I'm always eager to get my hands on the newest SoCal add-ons as soon as they hit the market. I was delighted by the scenery quality in Megascenery X. The level of detail is incredible. I was able to pick out my high school, my neighborhood, and even my house!
As with the Megascenery Bundle, this program does not add any 3D objects to are, but there are several other features that make up for it. The add-on scenery loads with better frame rates than the default scenery. Another cool feature:, you get night textures with this program. Most scenery expansion packs do not have night textures.
5. Manhattan X -- Aerosoft
Creating an elaborate virtual Manhattan is a daunting task. Even so, Aerosoft did a great job with this product.
The entire Manhattan Island is recreated in stunning detail. Not only is there tons of 3D automobile traffic with everything from limosines to public busses, you'll also see the regularly scheduled Staten Island Ferry and something else that's typically absent from flight sims--people!
Another great feature is the "sightseeing mission" where you tour the city in a helicopter. Starting at the Wall Street heliport, the mission involves flying around the city with a co-pilot who also serves as a tour guide. With a thick Brooklyn accent, your tour-guide points out areas of interest and provides interesting historical tidbits pertaining to the landmarks you encounter.
Users report average frame rates between 15 and 35 FPS on an Intel Quad Core machine with 2 GB of RAM. Aerosoft explains (in the user manual) exactly how you should modify the FSX display settings to maximize performance.
Excited about these scenery add-ons? Make sure you have a Gaming System with enough power to run them. One of the best laptops for FSX is the Asus G73JW. Check out an Asus G73JW review brought to you by shopguides.net
