Microsoft, via a developer Q&A blog post, announced that its hugely popular Flight Simulator would be receiving an update to add NVIDIA's DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling) support at some point throughout this year. Purpose-developed by Nvidia for its RTX graphics cards, the technology should thus allow virtual captains to enjoy the majestic experience of flying some of the world's most famous aircraft - with framerates that are closer to actual cruising altitude.
Microsoft and Asobe Studios developed Flight Simulator, and the game's vistas and detailed models are known to stress even the graphics cards that make it into our Best Picks. The addition of DLSS - which Nvidia says can improve framerates by over 70% when enabled, depending on settings - should thus allow for either increased performance or higher levels of detail.
The update will add another option for Nvidia users to improve performance. Still, it's not the first upscaling technology the game has implemented - that honor belongs to AMD's FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution) upscaling technology. However, gamers generally consider DLSS to offer a superior image quality than AMD's FSR (at least in still images). So it certainly comes as welcome news to users rocking an RTX-class graphics card from the green team.
Flight Simulator has received many performance-enhancing updates since its debut in August 2020, including support for DX12 rendering and other general performance improvements. The team at Asobo Studios also usually keeps a clean roadmap of progress and upcoming updates, though the DLSS addition announcement does stop short of an actual hard release date.
Some of the other updates to be deployed for the latest Flight Simulator throughout 2022 include a "new digital elevation model" and updated satellite imagery for Australia through Update 7, dropping on January 31st. The addition of new Portugal and Spain maps with the World Update 8 should drop around the end of March. A free Top Gun: Maverick expansion pack will arrive in May 2022.
