VFR Generation X Orkney & Shetland

[needles 1,013]

Hi Guys

Thought I'd let you know that, for those of you that are interested, the VFR Generation X team have now released the long awaited Orkney and Shetland scenery.

Check it out now at:

http://www.playhoriz...&products_id=43

Regards

Needles

[ddavid 149]

Thanks for the H.U., Brian. This looks a great product for VFR simmers in the far north, and it's up to the usual PlaySim (Horizon) high standard etc...

But I just don't get the price. At £25-ish, this is an expensive proposition for such a relatively small part of the U.K. I'm going to have to wait for someone to package this up with the Western Isles and, maybe, Mainland Scotland, before shelling out. Sorry to sound so pessimistic.

Cheers - Dai.

[needles 1,013]

Thanks for the H.U., Brian. This looks a great product for VFR simmers in the far north, and it's up to the usual PlaySim (Horizon) high standard etc...

But I just don't get the price. At £25-ish, this is an expensive proposition for such a relatively small part of the U.K. I'm going to have to wait for someone to package this up with the Western Isles and, maybe, Mainland Scotland, before shelling out. Sorry to sound so pessimistic.

Cheers - Dai.

Hi Dai,

Yes the price tag is quite steep, which is going to make buying the whole of Scotland (eventually), a mortgage job.

Why Scotland has to be left til last (imo) with such a hefty price on it baffles me.

But at least Horizon are actually doing something for the pilots up north.

I've already got The Western Isles, so I will have to get this one too.

Looking forward to it.

Cheers

Brian

[ddavid 149]

Mind the rock-lined clouds, Bri'!!

Cheers - Dai.

[allardjd 1,853]

Mind the rock-lined clouds, Bri'!!

Cumulus Granitus...

[mutley 4,497]

Mind the rock-lined clouds, Bri'!!

Cumulus Granitus...

Very funny!

[needles 1,013]

I'm getting a wee bit nervous guys. Do you know summat I dinnae?

Orkney and Shetland should be a breeze to navigate....no trees, no mountains......where's the problem???

Close to Iceland I grant you but apart from the odd ash cloud, what else is there?

Stop worrying me guys.

I'll have all my settings on easy. That should give me a helping hand surely!!!:th_smiles73:

[MarkJones 0]

Keep an eye out for the odd few hundred Geese flying in close formation

[Tim_A 997]

Yes the price tag is quite steep, which is going to make buying the whole of Scotland (eventually), a mortgage job.

Why Scotland has to be left til last (imo) with such a hefty price on it baffles me.

I can't say with any authority, but much of the high price is due to the high cost of the base imagery from GetMapping. Unlike the US and even Austrailia, where orthophotos are either public domain or only attract nominal fees, the European government mentality is that *everything* must not only pay its own way, but also make a profit.

As to why it's last, that's easy. It was only 2009 that photography of Scotland was completed, and even now, the colour-matching of all the photograps to a standard acceptable for FS is still ongoing. Just getting enough cloud-free days (in the right places) to get all the photographs has taken quite a few years...

Tim (Beta tester. Also, my old flying instructor used to fly a lot of photo-survey missions, so I have a pretty good idea of how it's done)

[GabethePilot 1]

Well looking at my wall map, the northern island mass, is pretty big.

But, the coastlines are enormous.... probably as much as the entirety of England and Wales ? 'Slartibartfast' would've been proud - second only to the Fjordds of Norway... :001_th_smiles89:

I would imagine - though not sure - that the coastline masks they do - which are pretty awesome, probably take a lot of time.

Hence... the price, which is possibly related to time investment.

Just a guess.

[needles 1,013]

HI Guys

@Tim, Thanks for your thoughts and knowledge on the matter. Much appreciated. Personally I'm not against the cost of producing this scenery or any other scenery. It's just that, I have flown several cessna flights over the Highlands and have been waiting a long time for the relevant FSX scenery to emerge hence my mini protest. I understand it takes a great deal of time and effort to produce scenery of this quality so I would, of course purchase the Scotland scenery when it comes out as I have an interest in it as a resident in the Highlands. I'm just very impatient.:001_th_smiles48:

I'm just glad that Horizon are doing the area justice. I have the Western Isles already and can't wait for the rest of Scotland to emerge.:001_th_smiles89:

Cheers guys.

Pics will be posted when I have the scenery loaded.

Brian

[ddavid 149]

Och ... Suspense is worse than disappointment ... Eh, Jimmy?!?

Cheers - Dai.

[MarkJones 0]

Will probably wait till the full set is available and going cheap / special offers.

I had to laugh when I saw that you could pickup all three volumes for about 30 quid a while ago with me having paid full price for each one... :biggrin:

[GabethePilot 1]

Yes, I believe some places such as flightsim.com, do the Version 2 3 Volume E & W set for £30... still !

[Tim_A 997]

I would imagine - though not sure - that the coastline masks they do - which are pretty awesome, probably take a lot of time.

I would agree - the coastlines are a -- probably *the* -- major effort, both in dev and testing.

Also, for those not familiar with the area, here are some very nice RW aerial documentaries covering the Orkneys and Shetlands. Each doco is split into three parts:

Orkney:

[Tim_A 997]

... and Shetland (sorry, had to split it into two posts, as the forum complained)

[ddavid 149]

If the scenery's that good, Tim, I'm in!

Cheers - Dai.