Why aren't there more flight simulators on the XBox?

January 6, 2005 6:05 PM

After the elections sapped my will to do anything constructive, I bought an XBOX, which I mostly am enjoying. There seem to be lots of RPGs, sports simulations, driving games, and FPS games (mostly based on movies), but I haven't been able to find many games involving flight; spacecraft, jets, dirigibles, I don't care. I just want to fly around, and, preferably, blow stuff up. Is there some inherent limitation of the XBOX that makes flight games hard?
posted by jimfl to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (14 answers total)

No: Crimson Skies.
posted by yerfatma at 6:24 PM on January 6, 2005

Have you tried Crimson Skies? I've heard that's pretty great.

Flight games, especially simulation-type games, are just not very popular right now, sadly.
posted by selfnoise at 6:24 PM on January 6, 2005

(Alternatively) Yes: it's too heavy to fly.
posted by yerfatma at 6:24 PM on January 6, 2005

A quick Google reveals quite a few contenders !
posted by bruceyeah at 6:29 PM on January 6, 2005

Wait a minute. While flight games may or may not be very popular, there is some inherent limitation in the XBOX that makes them unsuitable: the controller. You need lots of little buttons to do a flight simulator correctly, and on the XBOX controller you've got.. what.. 8 game play buttons? 12 if you count the d-pad. That's my guess as to why you don't see XBOX flight sims.

Crimson Skies is fun (I've beaten it twice), but you can't really call it a flight simulator. It's an FPS set in a plane. If you just want to fly around and blow stuff up, though, you couldn't choose a better title.
posted by Hildago at 6:43 PM on January 6, 2005

The PS2 is similarly equipped (yet has the Ace Combat series) and the GameCube is kinda weird for flight. I realize console controllers preclude true flight simulation, but two sticks should get you fairly close. To a helicopter sim anyway.
posted by yerfatma at 7:27 PM on January 6, 2005

not helpful, but controller limitations didn't seem to stop steel battalion.

just sayin' is all.
posted by juv3nal at 10:14 PM on January 6, 2005

Hildago: What you say is true, but jimfl doesn't appear to be looking for flight sims, but games involving flight (like Crimson Skies).
posted by Bugbread at 4:27 AM on January 7, 2005

The Battlestar Galactica game involves a ton of flying. The entire game is basically fly, blow this up, shoot that, fly this now, etc.
posted by Kellydamnit at 8:38 AM on January 7, 2005

There are two Star Wars fly-in-space-and-shoot-stuff games for Xbox: Starfighter and Jedi Starfighter. I've played the first and it's pretty good.
posted by mmoncur at 9:33 AM on January 7, 2005

James, if you'll forgive the left-of-topic post: your powerbook will happily run Warbirds, if you enjoy MMP games.
posted by mwhybark at 11:58 AM on January 7, 2005

Come to think of you, you'd probably enjoy trying DoA III, too, although it's more or less abandoned.

Download here. Stick will be helpful.
posted by mwhybark at 12:04 PM on January 7, 2005

I'll throw another vote for Crimson Skies. I've never played multiplayer, which I hear is a total blast, but the single-player mission is fun and it's a great 'pick it up and shoot stuff for fifteen minutes' game.
posted by schoolgirl report at 2:15 PM on January 7, 2005

Bugbread: I was referring to part of a comment by selfnoise earlier in the thread. I should have quoted it, I guess.
posted by Hildago at 11:29 AM on January 11, 2005