Fenix Simulations continues to impress with its A320 for MSFS, a hugely-anticipated aircraft that is right on the verge of looking a little too good to be true… Each successive teaser is better than the previous one, so much so that the levels of hype for this aircraft are now completely off the charts!
At this point, the Fenix A320 needs no introduction, as it’s been amply discussed since it was unveiled back in July. This project has now entered a beta stage, which bodes well for a release in the near future, if no major issues are found. It’s obvious that Fenix is building this aircraft with utmost realism in mind, as seen by the previous feature previews, such as the supremely detailed fuel and hydraulic systems, or by the simple but remarkable walk around the aircraft from last week.
After some weeks of radio silence, Fenix has now started the hype train again as the A320 undergoes the necessary beta testing that it needs to get ready for the launch. This week, Amir Thacker has returned with a trio of staggering new images that show the incredible level of visual detail that is being put on this model. Just look at this madness:
Click to enlarge and see in all their glory.
This A320 has clearly seen its fair share of work. It’s smudged and full of scratches and dents, and the paint is even starting to come off a bit. It looks real and very authentic!
The polygon count and texture resolution seem absolutely insane, as is the quality of the shadows… which raises some questions. If this is how a tiny section of the airplane looks, if everything else is as detailed, how is this thing going to run in today’s hardware? We’ve seen some very impressive 3D models already in MSFS, but the texture work in the Fenix A320 is particularly striking. It looks very photorealistic and could easily pass as a real macro shot of the actual aircraft.
Fenix doesn’t seem afraid to share this kind of stuff, knowing it will greatly impress. They appear very confident in their product, but we’ve seen other developers overpromising in the past, and then underdelivering. I don’t want to be a pessimist, but we need to remember that this will be Fenix’s first aircraft ever for Flight Simulator, so there’s really nothing we can go back to in order to judge their previous promises.
People will certainly compare these images with whatever comes out, and that’s going to be extremely interesting to see. With the promise of incredible visuals and a study-level simulation, will Fenix be able to deliver what we are all now waiting for?
