Were you aware that Microsoft has released over ten different flight simulators throughout its history? If you’re curious about the origins of this classic game, you can explore an open-source project called FSHistory. It allows you to play the first four Flight Simulators that were released between 1982 and 1989. Although the latest Microsoft Flight Simulator came out in 2020, discovering the game’s history can be a fascinating journey for aviation enthusiasts and gamers alike.
Flight Simulator was first released in November 1982 by Sublogic. The initial version featured simplistic graphics, monochrome wireframe graphics, and a basic gaming experience. However, it was still considered quite realistic at the time. In 1984, Microsoft launched Flight Simulator 2.0 for IBM PCs, which offered minor improvements such as better graphics and more precise simulation. The updated version also supported joystick and mouse inputs and various other computer systems, including Hercules graphics and LCD screens for laptops.
Flight Simulator 3.0 was released in 1988, and it provided an enhanced flight experience by including additional planes and airports to the simulated area, external views, and improved EGA graphics. This version also allowed users to convert Sublogic’s old landscape disks into landscape files, expanding the Flight Simulator world. The fourth version, released in 1989, brought more improvements, such as enhanced aircraft models, dynamic landscape features, and random weather models. It was even available for Macintosh computers in 1991.
FSHistory is an emulator that aims to take you on a journey to discover the first four versions of Flight Simulator. This emulator works well with a mouse and keyboard and can run on your smartphone, although it is recommended to use a proper PC keyboard for the best gaming experience. The project is coded in C and runs in the browser, with only a few hundred lines of code and the dos.js library. It emulates an 8086 processor, along with elements of a 286 and 386 processor, keyboard, mouse, graphics controller, and more. The emulator also implements DOS and BIOS functions similar to those of DOSBox. Additionally, Flight Simulator’s 40th-anniversary version includes an easter egg that allows you to access the first four versions of the game in DOS by pressing the ELT button on a Diamond DA62 on the runway.
And guess what? It’s this FSHistory emulator that is integrated into the easter egg!
