| Microsoft Flight Simulator 3.0 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Sublogic |
| Publisher(s) | Microsoft |
| Designer(s) | Bruce Artwick |
| Series | Microsoft Flight Simulator |
| Platform(s) | MS-DOS |
| Release | 1988 |
| Genre(s) | Amateur flight simulation |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Microsoft Flight Simulator, commonly known as Microsoft Flight Simulator 3.0 or FS3, is a flight simulator video game. It was released in mid-1988 for the MS-DOS. [1]
Microsoft Flight Simulator 3 improved the flight experience by adding additional aircraft and airports to the simulated area found in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2.0 , as well as improved high-res (EGA) graphics, and other features lifted from the Amiga/ST versions.
The three simulated aircraft were the Gates Learjet 25, Cessna Skylane, and Sopwith Camel. Flight Simulator 3 also allowed the user to customize the display; multiple windows, each displaying one of several views, could be positioned and sized on the screen. The supported views included the instrument and control panel, a map view, and various external camera angles.
This version included a program to convert the old series of Sublogic Scenery Disks into scenery files (known as SCN files), which could then be copied to the FS3 directory, allowing the user to expand the FS world.
Richard Sheffield for Compute! said "If you earned your wings on an old Flight Simulator version, you'll enjoy and appreciate the improvement made to version 3.0. If you're new to the hangar, this is the package to start with." [2]
Robert Luhn for PC World said "if you're anxious for the next step in flight simulation, pick up version 3.0." [3]
Steve Williams for Family Computing said "The graphics of Version 3.0 look better; the game system allows for more flexibility; and the improved planes give flying aces fresh challenges while the new options help novice pilots ease into flying. Flight Simulator 3.0 leaves all the other flight simulators flapping their wings." [4]
The Hercules Graphics Card (HGC) is a computer graphics controller formerly made by Hercules Computer Technology, Inc. that combines IBM's text-only MDA display standard with a bitmapped graphics mode, also offering a parallel printer port. This allows the HGC to offer both high-quality text and graphics from a single card.
Microsoft Flight Simulator is a series of flight simulator programs for MS-DOS, Classic Mac OS and Microsoft Windows operating systems. It was an early product in the Microsoft application portfolio and differed significantly from Microsoft's other software, which was largely business-oriented. As of November 2022, Microsoft Flight Simulator is the longest-running software product line for Microsoft, predating Windows by three years. Microsoft Flight Simulator is one of the longest-running PC video game series of all time.
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Microsoft Flight Simulator X is a 2006 flight simulation video game originally developed by Aces Game Studio and published by Microsoft Game Studios for Microsoft Windows. It is the sequel to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 and the tenth installment of the Microsoft Flight Simulator series, which was first released in 1982. It is built on an upgraded graphics rendering engine, showcasing DirectX 10 features in Windows Vista and was marketed by Microsoft as the most important technological milestone in the series at the time. FSX is the first version in the series to be released on DVD media.
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Jet is a combat flight simulator video game originally published in 1985 by Sublogic. The game was released in 1985 for MS-DOS and the Commodore 64, 1986 for the Apple II, 1988 for the Atari ST and Amiga, and 1989 for the Macintosh and NEC PC-9801.
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Flight Simulator II is a video game developed by Bruce Artwick and published by Sublogic as the sequel to FS1 Flight Simulator. It was released in December 1983 for the Apple II, in 1984 for Atari 8-bit and Commodore 64, in 1986 for the Amiga and Atari ST, the Atari XEGS as a pack-in title in 1987 and in August 1988 for the Color Computer 3.
Microsoft Flight Simulator is an amateur flight simulator developed by Asobo Studio and published by Xbox Game Studios. It is an entry in the Microsoft Flight Simulator series which began in 1982, and was preceded by Microsoft Flight Simulator X in 2006. The game is a return of the series after 14 years, with development beginning six years prior to its release. It was released on August 18, 2020, for Windows, with a virtual reality (VR) version released in December of the same year as part of the free Sim 2 update. Microsoft Flight Simulator is the first game in the series to see a VR and console release, with it being released on the Xbox Series X and Series S on July 27, 2021.