The big picture: The update arrives just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week said postponing holiday travel and staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others during the pandemic. With the new update, at least some gamers will have further motivation to do just that.
Microsoft on Tuesday published a new update for Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) that focuses on roughly 50 points of interest across the US.
Release notes for the update (1.11.5.0, World Update II: US) highlight all of the changes. Among the new high-fidelity points of interest include Mount Rushmore, the White House, Fort Knox, the Hoover Dam, the Pearl Harbor memorial site and the Las Vegas Strip at night.
The update also includes four new hand-crafted airports (Atlanta International, Friday Harbor, Dallas / Fort Worth International Airport and New York Stewart International Airport) as well as visual and logical improvements to four dozen additional airports.
Microsoft has additionally baked in several performance and stability fixes that should help the game run smoother on more machines. A general review of all aircraft was also conducted, we’re told, with changes made as needed. The full change log can be viewed over on the Flight Simulator homepage.