Microsoft Confirms Aces Closure

[Major_Spittle]

Err.. actually MS do have competition, especially in the mobile market which they've barely dented. PC sales are down which is where they get most of their revenue from and the long term future is certainly less golden than it has been for the boys from Redmond.

Ironically you'll get more for your stocks because of their decision....

Mobile market, lol. I don't think people were laid of in the " Mobile market " division and yes they make a lot of money off of a popular operating system they sell but I can't remember the name of it off hand with all the competition in that market. :kiss:

 

[SkippyBing]

No people weren't laid off in the mobile market because that's where they're focusing their efforts. Meanwhile Windows is below 90% market share for the first time in years and falling, Internet Explorer is below 60% and the Xbox 360 is falling way behind the Wii in the console war. Basically MS are looking a lot less like the dominant force in any of their markets and have to do something to maintain the impression of a strong going concern, more here: http://www.dailytech.com/Microsoft+Misses+Earnings+Cuts+5000+Jobs/article14034.htm
Interestingly none of the tech sites I read has picked up on the dropping of ACES and what it means for MS future direction, which may indicate we're more of a niche market than I'd thought.

 

[Francois]

Interestingly none of the tech sites I read has picked up on the dropping of ACES and what it means for MS future direction, which may indicate we're more of a niche market than I'd thought.

Good morning, I see you woke up

But you're right, FS is a total niche market compared to other game companies and game genres, and a total niche market internally at MS. So is ESP.... many MS 'salesmen' didn't know anything about it and we couldn't buy licenses in specific countries..... go figure.

 

[jfri]

Yes, but he controls are so much better on a PC.

"You should expect us to continue to invest in enabling great LIVE experiences on Windows, including flying games, but we have nothing specific to announce at this time."" Quote from Richera. Does this mean that FSXI will never come?

I'm off to find a cliff to jump from

Of course this must mean FS11 is not coming, at least not for a very long time. This reminds me of the first train simulator where first TS 2 was announced and than cancelled. TS2 almost become reality a very long time after first being cancalled. If all people who was working on and supposed to develope FS11 disappears that worl won't be done. If later some flying game title is released that is going to be something different than FS11 was supposed to be.

 

[MM]

One thing that strikes me about this is that Microsoft's decision-makers eliminated the entire ACES enterprise. The HQ did not postpone or drop Train Simulator...which had stretched beyond deadline. They did not cut the staff in half, put the code development on a slow boil, and push out the Flight Simulator dates into the indefinite future. They did not bore down to the ESP core and let the games follow along. They completely, and rather dramatically, eradicated the ACES program.
<o> </o>
Given the size of ACES and the size of Microsoft—we are talking three orders of magnitude here—Microsoft HQ's decision will not affect Microsoft's bottom line measurably. This move, even if it were noticed, will not reassure investors.
<o> </o>

 

[jeansy]

i have to agree and disagree with many of the comments

1, FS isnt dead, if anything its going to get stronger over the next yrs we will see the numbers increase as people will upgrade hardware and come over from fs9, which means many of the talented developers who still work in fs9 when they upgrade in the near future we all will be on the same level there wont be the case of fs11 vs fs10 like there is today with fsx vs fs9 even after 2.5yrs later. so as a user, the quality and number of addons will be our benefit !

2, i cant see MS cutting away FS completely, it is a trademark name, i can only guess that it will be mothballed for a later date when they have sorted out their OS direction. honestly there is too much money just in the name of it, not to mention the code that goes with it, even if they sell it it wont make as much money as holding on to it for another 30yrs. selling it now will only make a quick buck.

3, i honestly feel sorry for the people that were screwed over by management for something they had no part in, maybe they should clean out the OS department, they are the ones who gave out the new code for vista and promised the world of it and made everyone change to suite and to turn around and produce a flop which so called lost all that money, if vista was a pet it would been put down at birth. shame on you guys you spent all that money and even today you still talk your product up as it costs the jobs of others, piss poor!

sorry guys thats my 2cents, its late in the morning and my dictionary isnt working and im trying to give up smoking :argue:

but then again sometimes i get my days wrong, who knows what is the future for this hobby, one thing is for sure MS have turn their backs on its employees and supporters !!!