--- description: If you're going to make a flight simulator, then make a flight simulator. title: Dovetail Games Clinches License for Microsoft Flight Simulator image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Here's Hoping Dovetail's Version of Microsoft Flight Simulator Is a Bona Fide Flight Simulator by [Matt Peckham](/author/matt-peckham/) ## Matt Peckham Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 10, 2014 1:54 PM CUT by [Matt Peckham](/author/matt-peckham/) ## Matt Peckham Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 10, 2014 1:54 PM CUT Good news for _Microsoft Flight Simulator_ fans, or at least I think it is: [Dovetail Games](http://www.dovetailgames.com "undefined"), the Britain-based publisher of the _Train Simulator_ (nee _Railworks_) series as well as _Dovetail Games Fishing_ just managed to get its mitts on the license for _Microsoft’s Flight Simulator_ franchise. The licensing agreement gives Dovetail the right to “develop and publish all-new flight products” derived from Microsoft’s technology, and [Dovetail says](http://www.dovetailgames.com/news/2014/jul/9/dovetail-games-licensing-deal-with-microsoft-takes-flight "undefined") it expects to have something new to market by next year. What that initial piece might look like is anyone’s guess, be it a standalone product or an expansion to an existing product, say a belated appendage to _Microsoft Flight Simulator X_ — the last generally respected simulation-grounded release Microsoft put out before its [ill-fated dalliance with free-to-play](http://www.microsoft.com/games/flight/ "undefined"). Speaking of _Flight Simulator X_, Dovetail says it’s also secured the rights to redistribute a version of that eight-year-old game bundled with its 2007 _Acceleration_ expansion by way of Valve’s Steam digital download service. The new version will be called simply _Microsoft Flight Simulator X: Steam Edition_. Look for that to appear later this year, says the company. It’s not clear how Dovetail plans to adjust, development-wise, to the challenge of digging deep into the nuances of aeronautics and avionics. Trains are hardly planes, obviously, so I assume there’s going to be some hire-on (perhaps ideally involving former _Flight Simulator_ team members, though now I’m speculating wildly). After the _Microsoft Flight_ debacle, for me anyway, it’s as simple as this: If you’re going to make a simulator, then make a simulator, not something dumbed down or parceled out to broaden its appeal or sales potential. Figure out how to make ends meet by catering to the demographic that your genre, by definition, appeals to. When it comes to flight simulation, or really simulators in general, that’s going to be a niche, and it’ll always be a niche, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2972718/heres-hoping-dovetails-version-of-microsoft-flight-simulator-is-a-bona-fide-flight-simulator/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2972718/heres-hoping-dovetails-version-of-microsoft-flight-simulator-is-a-bona-fide-flight-simulator/"},"headline":"Here's Hoping Dovetail's Version of Microsoft Flight Simulator Is a Bona Fide Flight Simulator","datePublished":"2014-07-10T13:54:03.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:02:44.369Z","description":"If you're going to make a flight simulator, then make a flight simulator.","url":"https://time.com/2972718/heres-hoping-dovetails-version-of-microsoft-flight-simulator-is-a-bona-fide-flight-simulator/","keywords":["Tech","Video Games","Microsoft"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Matt Peckham","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/matt-peckham/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2972718/heres-hoping-dovetails-version-of-microsoft-flight-simulator-is-a-bona-fide-flight-simulator/","name":"Here's Hoping Dovetail's Version of Microsoft Flight Simulator Is a Bona Fide Flight Simulator"}}]}] ```