Flight Simulator 2004 __TOP__

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight is a flight simulation video game released in 2003, and is part of the Microsoft Flight Simulator video game series. It is the last version to support Windows 98/9x series of operating systems.

Flight Simulator 2004

Flight Simulator 2004 (9.0): A Century of Flight, also known as FS9 or FS2004, was shipped with several historical aircraft such as the Wright Flyer, Ford Tri-Motor, and the Douglas DC-3 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' first flight. The program included an improved weather engine, that provided true three-dimensional clouds and true localized weather conditions for the first time.[2] The engine also allowed users to download weather information from actual weather stations, allowing the simulator to synchronize the weather with the real world. Other enhancements from the previous version included better ATC communications, GPS equipment, interactive virtual cockpits, and more variety in autogen such as barns, street lights, silos, etc.

According to The NPD Group, Flight Simulator 2004 was the 14th-best-selling computer game of 2003.[4] It claimed 18th and 17th places on NPD's annual computer game sales charts for 2004 and 2005, respectively.[5][6] Flight Simulator 2004 sold 670,000 copies and earned $26.8 million in the United States alone by August 2006. At the time, this led Edge to declare it the country's 19th-best-selling computer game, and best-selling Microsoft Flight Simulator title, released since January 2000.[7] The game also received a "Silver" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA),[8] indicating sales of at least 100,000 copies in the United Kingdom.[9]

All entries in the Microsoft Flight Simulator series released in the 2000s, including Flight Simulator 2004, reached combined sales of 3.1 million units in the United States by August 2006.[7]

The editors of Computer Gaming World presented Flight Simulator 2004 with their 2003 "Flight Simulation of the Year" award. They wrote, "All the details fall together in FS2004: A Century of Flight, the first release in this venerable series that convincingly re-creates the entire flying experience."[10] It was also a nominee for PC Gamer US's 2003 "Best Simulation" award, although it lost to IL-2 Sturmovik: Forgotten Battles. The editors called Flight Simulator 2004 "the best-looking and highest-flying collection of vintage and modern aircraft in this storied series".[11]

You can also fly a Lockheed Vega, used by Amelia Earhart flying across the Atlantic, the Sopwith Camel civilian flight simulator, or try transporting goods with a long-haul DC-3. Not only can you fly vintage airplanes, you can fly the historic routes of the famous flights taken by the Wright Brothers, Lindbergh, Earhart and more. They are relatively difficult to learn for beginners. Experienced flyers will have a faster learning curve.

Any flight simulator is a challenge to fly with just a keyboard. The older aircraft are even more difficult to fly due to their design. For example, the Curtiss Jenny is a tail-dragger that takes a certain amount of finesse to bring down properly. For that reason, most experienced users will recommend the use of a joystick at a minimum. A yoke with rudder controls is even better. Many of the older planes are hard to maneuver in turns without some serious rudder wrenching.

FS2004 can be difficult for first time players. Microsoft has taken steps to help beginners with a series of videos from certified flight instructors. There are also multiple tutorials and the ability to adjust the difficulty levels. Users should expect that the menus can be intricate and take some time to learn.

The packaging includes a small booklet detailing the history of flight. This is not the main user manual. The main user manual can be printed out or simply accessed within the program or at the program website.

On the back of the history of flight booklet is a chart of keyboard commands for players with no access to a joystick or yoke. Commands include Pause, Full Screen Mode, Circle Views, Change Simulation Rate, ATC Menu, Engine Start, Increase/Decrease Throttle, Increase/Decrease Propeller, High Display, Lean/Enrich Mixture, Landing Gear Up/Down, Retract/Extend Flaps, Slew Mode (allows you to reposition), On/Off, etc.

FS2004 can also draw upon real time weather conditions pulled from the web. Users can choose local weather to mimic conditions happening outside their window. Thunderstorms, snowstorms, fog, rain, sleet, sunshine, cold fronts and more are available at the click of your mouse.

A comprehensive learning center offers flight training including the complete theory of flying. This is a good place to practice if you want to be a pilot. In fact, many flight schools recommend their students use it on a regular business.

The training is also productive for current pilots wanting to stay sharp behind the controls. You can practice flying at night. Or you can practice holding patterns, approaches, bad weather flight, instrument flying, ending failures, missed approaches, etc.

FS2004 has been found to be very versatile, working well on many machines, even those with low memory or slower video cards. While terrain and water imagery is much improved, buildings and other structures still retain a primitive look similar to FS2002. The advantage is that players using all types of machines can run the program. Many people still stick with FS2004 - some prefer it over FSX.

FS2004 can be operated at a higher frame rate than many newer flight simulators so graphics can be rendered more accurately. It is easier on many computer systems, allowing more users to enjoy it and subsequently develop add-ons for it.

The community has developed many extras including scenery, cockpit panels, ATC exchanges and landscapes. You can also find additional aircraft, cars and boats. This is especially attractive for FS2004 as it did not ship with as wide a variety of aircraft as FSX.

However, dissenters are in the minority. It is not uncommon for Microsoft Flight Simulator fans to skip the newer FSX edition completely and go right to FS2004. While the graphics are not as impressive, for many computer systems FS2004 is more stable, reliable and functional.

Flight Simulator is arguably the most popular program in the history of flight simulators. It appeals to many different types of users: pilots trying to keep your skills sharp, students training to become pilots, and casual users who just love flying over the Alps in a DC-3 or trying to land a Boeing 747 in a snowstorm in New York City.

This section covers thousands of freeware downloads and add-ons for Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004, or as it's more well known within the community, FS2004. FS2004 has been one of the most popular and highly developed flight simulator packages that Microsoft have ever released for PC. Some users even swear by it, preferring it to FSX.

Because FS2004 is probably the most popular flight simulation package ever released, freeware developers have released thousands of files that can be installed into it. Many users prefer FS2004 to later releases of Microsoft Flight Simulator because it's friendlier on frame rates and can be made to provide graphics equal to that of FSX, but with double the frame rate speed.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 was released on 29 July 2003, and ever since that release date, developers have been creating add-ons for it. FS2004 provided a major leap in terms of environment textures, 3D modeling and weather systems from the previous releases and could be run on almost all of the latest computers at the time of the release date. This differed from FSX because when that was released, thousands of users had trouble running it on their computer systems with problems with frame rates, lagging and such a slowdown that it was almost unusable.

In this section you will find thousands of files that can be installed alongside FS2004 including aircraft, scenery, tools, utilities, vehicles and more. Installing any of the packages is quite easy and most of them include detailed installation instructions. Scenery files can bring new airports and airfields that may have not existed or been very under-developed, while downloading add-on aircraft can allow you to pilot some of the most famous fighter jets, civil passenger jets and helicopters.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight, a really nice simulation game sold in 2003 for Windows, is available and ready to be played again! Time to play a flight and vehicle simulator video game title.

Share your gamer memories, help others to run the game or comment anything you'd like. If you have trouble to run Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight (Windows) , read the abandonware guide first!

The A2A Simulations Team, from customer support to programmer, everyone on the team is a flight simulation enthusiast with a passion for aviation, and a good hint of general gaming interest thrown in for good measure. We produce cutting edge simulations for the home flight simulation hobbyist and commercial/Military flight training.

Starting with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000, you can use the Real-World Weather feature. You can download "real-world" weather data from the Internet and display the data in the flight simulation.Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 also included a new feature that is named "Dynamic Weather." The Dynamic Weather feature in Flight Simulator 2004 affects the formation or the dissipation of clouds, the onset of precipitation, and the movement of frontal systems.For more information about the weather features that are available in Flight Simulator and about how to use them, see the online documentation that is provided with your copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator.

If you are using Flight Simulator 2004 and you feel that weather is changing at the wrong pace or is too static, you may have to adjust the Dynamic Weather feature settings. When the Rate at which weather changes over time slider is set to None, the weather in Flight Simulator 2004 remains the way that you set it in theUser-defined weather dialog box or as it was downloaded from the Internet. When this option is set to Mild,Medium, High, or Extreme, the weather conditions change dynamically depending on the atmospheric conditions that are set in the Weather dialog box. To change the setting for the Rate at which weather changes over time slider, follow these steps: 041b061a72