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Google Maps Replaces Bing Maps in Microsoft Flight Simulator for Obvious Reasons

Microsoft Flight Simulator is a stunning game, everybody knows this already, and without a doubt, it was one of the most anticipated releases this year in the gaming world.
The Statue of Liberty on Google Maps 1 photo
Photo: Google Maps
And while Microsoft has put a lot of effort into getting everything right, from graphics to gameplay, there’s one thing that the software giant couldn’t do anything about: Bing Maps and its somehow debatable quality of the provided mapping data.

More specifically, the world map that you see in Microsoft Flight Simulator while flying a plane over a specific region is powered by Bing Maps. And unsurprisingly, there are places where the buildings, the monuments, or specific landmarks are just replaced with generic blocks that look awkward, to say the least, especially given the effort that everybody has put into getting the game right.

Fortunately, the gaming community has joined forces and eventually managed to fix this problem with the simplest approach: they replaced Bing Maps completely and instead used Google Maps.

Be warned though, this isn’t an easy business, and posts on this dedicated Microsoft Flight Simulator subreddit include all the information that you need to get everything right. Several applications are required to complete this tweak, and needless to say, you’ll need plenty of time for the job.

But if you’re a Microsoft Flight Simulator fan, it might eventually be worth it, as you can now enjoy better graphics with 3D models that more accurately reproduce the real versions.

What Microsoft thinks about the whole thing is not known just yet as the software giant has remained completely tight-lipped on this mod. But at the end of the day, there’s a good chance Microsoft isn’t happy with these modifications, especially as it hoped to use the game for making more people aware of its alternative to Google Maps.

The good news is that it more or less managed to do this. The bad news is that the whole thing didn’t have the outcome it actually expected.

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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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