Is payware costing more?

[tomtombaz]

I am a 16 year old kid with not much money and love my flightsim. I have capt sim 707 and fly the tristar
but with the latest 747 from pmdg and the Magestic software dash 8 pro which is 99 euros

[hatter]

You mean, more companies will offer add-ons of good quality? I can only hope. Sure, $55.00 for a computer game is a little steep for me (and for a lot of people), but as long as people are willing to pay, they will charge that price.

Don't worry about it. Get yourself an afterschool job and save up. No use crying over it.

Or, you could just send 20 euros and get yourself the RAS Spit, and be just about as happy.

[Hai Perso Coyone?]

I have the PMDG 747....and all of their other products. And I can proudly say that those were the best $120 or so that I spent...all their systems are very accurately modelled...
Cheers,
Ashar

[JBaymore]

Yeah... good payware isn't usually cheap.  And as simmers are demanding more and more and more realism... the development costs to produce such planes and scenery go up and up and up.

I don't think PMDG is really "cleaning up" (profit wise) on the new 747.  I think that the cost to develop it was really, really high.  That translates to a high retail price.  Any other aircraft that is similarly modeled will likely cost about the same............unless someone is willing to work for "peanuts".  It is "Business 101".

I am a ceramic artist and I produce my claywork for sale.  Certain of my pieces involve production techniques that take expensive raw materials such as gold chloride to produce a red overglaze.  Some involve a clay body that is incredibly difficult to prepare so that it is even useable.  Some involve a forming and/or firing technique that results in high losses for every finished piece that actually makes it.

The end result on those pieces makes it worth it to do it.  But ...... I have a lot invested in each piece.

Needles to say... pieces developed with those issues involved sell for far higher prices than pieces that don't involve costly and time consuming processes.  Some people can afford those pieces... some can't.  And of course, some people cannot afford ANY handcrafted work that I do.


You can buy hamburger, chuck steak, T Bone steak, and filet mignon.  The quality of the cut determines the price.


It is always frustrating wanting something that you cannot afford.  If you focus on the goal and it is important enough to you however, you often find that you can eventually figure out a way to buy it.  Or... as you focus.... you realize that it is not really worth the "cost" to you.

"And if you try sometimes, you just might find...... you get what you need."  -Rolling Stones


best,

...................john

[Stormtropper]

I also have noiticed the steep prices lately...

...if only every company is like carenado, offering the top of the line products for a pocket change

And I don't think the quality is getting any better, from what I heard, the PMDG 747 is really buggy...and for $55, they can kiss my @$$.

The bottom line for me really isn't about the price, if I like a certain company, and enjoy their products, I will buy it, no matter how much it costs.

...PMDG has pissed me off time and time again...

[Hai Perso Coyone?]

And I don't think the quality is getting any better, from what I heard, the PMDG 747 is really buggy...and for $55, they can kiss my @$$.

I don't think the PMDG 747 is buggy....I have it and it flies like a charm

[Rocket_Bird]

I personally would have bought PMDG's 747 if it werent for that heavy price tag though I like the quality of PMDG's addons.  

There are some payware companies out there who charge big for addons which makes me question whether or not its really worth it.  I can imagine they can make big money off of it too.  Theres even companies (aerosoft is one of them) that make you have to connect to their server to even verify that you bought their products everytime you reinstall.  Like not that its much of a huge biggie, but it just makes it feel like the product i bought aint even mine (Not to say I don't like aerosoft, I have two of their planes and I love it, but just making a point).  

However, with all that said, there are still some places that offer quality for a fair price.  And I would just like to warmly mention Aeroworx and their King Air B200, probably the most realistic addon ever, it costs about 30 bucks but in comparison to some of the other places ive seen, its well worth it.  

[JBaymore]

rocket_bird,

Yeah the whole "verify" thing is a real shame.  It's too bad that some cheapo' rotten people make it necessary for the honest majority to put up with that stuff.  Such is life, I guess.

I have held off buying it...... so in thinking about it I find I don't actually have enough "want" for it.  ;)

best,

................john

[GA_Pilot]

The way I look at it, flightsimming is a hobby, and with all hobbies you have to spend money, so the question would be how much do you want, or can afford to spend on your hobby  ???

[SaVas]

I agree that flight simming is a hobby. Some can get by with the plethora of available freeware addons which can make your simming experience a wonderful treat over the box version of FS9...then there are those of us that like simming and want to experience some things that are not available for free and dont mind paying for such.

Keep in mind FS9 although aging, is reaching its "vine ripened" stage in that developers have had it for a while and have found more and more ways of improving on it. Some earlier products were cheaper but looking at them now, they dont compare to what some release today. Why? because FS9 has matured and in its infant stages developers themselves were still learning what they could and could not do, now they have found ways to improve on past works and as such it takes a lot of invested time.

You would not have found a PMDG 747 or Level D 767 quality addon 2 years ago. Some were close like the PMDG 737NG and even PMDG improved upon that with the 800/900 series addon.

As they say you tend to get what you pay for.

You can buy a painting for $5.00 at a yard sale or you can buy a Van Gogh for $50,000,000.00. They are in fact both paintings and hang on a wall. Before the Germans bought Rolls Royce, the Rolls was strictly handcrafted and you paid for that, but again its just a car right? Like a Chevy Cavalier. Both Chevrolet and Rolls Royce have history that fills volumes of books but a handcrafted car that costs $300,000 compared to a car that costs $11,000. Both tend to get you from point A to point B. Just one isnt exactly built by robots...or at least at one time wasnt.

Some buy video game after video game for their Xbox or Playstation 2. Play a $50 game, finish it in 2 weeks and buy another game...rinse and repeat.

Its all a matter of perception. As I have said before..some would pay big $$$ for their hobby like a signed baseball. To me its worthless as I hate baseball, but then they could in fact say why spend $55 for a software addon for a flight sim? Because I want to and I enjoy flight simming.

So yes, costs will tend to go up with the "cream of the crop" especially in jumbo jets as there is so much that has to go into their programming compared to say a Carenado Cessna which looks fantastic, but doesnt require even a 10th of the programming for the systems like the FMC and the hundreds of switches etc. found in the PMDG 747 or Level D 767

[Gary R.]

One way i have found to work with the higher cost of add-ons is to selct add-ons based on the unique way i sim.  I don't have a lot of time to spend with it so my aircraft choices are generally geared to short/medium distances.  I am talking high quality piston/turbine singles and twins.  Like Meridian, PC-12, 421 Golden Eagle, C115 Commander.  My airliners are also selected with sorter routes in mind.  Embraer PIC, PMDG 737=600/700, F1 DC-9.  I want the new F1 ATR-72 but I can wait til my birthday in November.  Meantime my Fanda Dash-8 with a few enhancements serves my commuter flights well.  Also, I choose enhancements that increase realism 100% even on average freewares.  RXP avionics is a good choice and fsuipc registered is indespensible.  I have Wings of Power  and Breifing Time as well as Ready for Pushback but I only ever have time or touch and go and pattern with those biggies.

[CODY614]

I don't think the PMDG 747 is buggy....I have it and it flies like a charm

Only thing thats buggy is it makes you fly by the numbers.
As for his question......Grab the 747!
Both the PMDG 737's are priced well, Considering what you get. And I can only imagine what the MD-11 will go for.
Heavens, Cpt. Sim's C-130 is gonna sell for what $50 or $55, I think that's what I read.

But all these guys are pushing the envelope.

Heck....Go get FS Passengers and mess with it for awhile, That will take your mind off everything else!

I remember the very first version of FS......My how things have changed. Stick airplanes.....wireframe scenery

I'm guessing that every-one here will continue to pay for the "Good Stuff".
Just make your decisions wisely......and ask before you buy.....I'm sure somebody here has bought what you might be looking at

[Gary R.]

My main dis-appointment with PMDG's 737-600/700 is that they don't simulate IRS initialization which is the very first thing before you bang any keys on the route pages.  Even the older PSS airliners and 767 PIC had this implemented.  Biw, I don't have 800/900 upgrade yet.  Did they add the IRS in that updated version?  I hear their 744 has it.