Ok well I'm new around here and popped in here to see what was what and hear all the raving about G2 which sounds like a really neat program. But I went to the Tower Hobbies site and about died of shock! $200 bucks for a video game? I mean I know it's well modelled, but I've got lot's of realistic game that don't cost half that much. For comparison Microsoft Flight Simulator is very realistic, and I'm working on my pilot's liscense and have a good number of hours to know. But it's more like $50 vs. $200. Of course you get the controller thing but does nobody but me find this an excessive price? Or maybe I'm shopping at the wrong place. I've been flying FMS since before I got back into R/C and it's ok at least it helps train you thumb-eye coordination. But it's free and decent. Now either G2 is either just perfect to a T or it's way overpriced.

It's one of those things that there isn’t any competition out there charge what you want I agree the price is steep and the way I convinced myself was to use the Tower 3 Easy Pay plan that way it didn’t feel like I was dumping all that cash at the same time. I love it though and it has been a great 3D learning tool. It’s far superior to the Dave Brown and the few others out there that are equally expensive and you don’t get very much and are of poorer quality.

Thanks
Mike Badger
www.Aero3D.net

From the pics and the ability to fly online with others I'm not at all dogging the simulator. From all I've read and watched video's, and looked at screenshots it's awesome. I just think that for $200 plane addons should be either free or a lot cheaper. But like you said I guess maybe they don't have enough market to let it go for $80 and still turn a profit. I think I'll stick it out with FMS until the price drops hopefully. I've read some people complain about the intense copy protection but at that kinda price I can see why.
Good sim, Baaad price. Not to mention things like the lite version is $20 cheaper but to upgrade from lite to full it's $80.

Hello SigKavalier,
My first flight sim was the Dave Brown and later changed to Realflight when they first came out. Since I bought realflight I've bought all the up grades and everything.Looking back I have over $200.00 invested. I ended up donating the Dave Brown sim later.
Like everyone else I bought the G2 up grade,then the G2 interlink up grade.I think was $179.00 when it first came out.I didn't get very fussy over the price. Since I bought the g2 interlink, I have flown on line in multiplayer with numerious G2 owners and had a great time.Most of the G2 flyers I've met here at RCU and they are all great people and wonderful fliers.
So in the long run $200.00 is not a bad price when you concider what you get in return.
You get to meet people on line,there are numerious down load plane,trim scemes, and there is always someone out there that will show you how to fly that certain monuver.
If you go to your LHS and buy a RC plane in a kit you will pay at least $200.00 for the kit pluse extra if you need equipment. Then you build it and later if the plane last, you go out and buy another $200.00 kit for a more advanced plane.
Some where along the line you will crash and there you have a kit you spent $200.00 rekited at no extra cost.
On RealFlight you crash numerious time and the plane pops back brand new and at no extra cost.
I guess all in all I haven't regreted spending the money on RealFlight products. I have enjoyed flying on G2 tramendously.
Theres always the 3 payment thing at Tower Hobbies,bidding on Ebay or just sending Santa a nice wish list.
You never know sometime you might be flying online with Santa on G2 and never know it. HO HO HO
NEDYOB

I bought mine used for $130 (traded a US 40 for it). I love it. I like modifying the planes. I like that I have a plane that flies like my Knife. I really like flying online. I like that I can use my trim scheme on RF planes. I like that I can alter fields. I was an FMS user and stopped using it after I decided the landings and other charactoristics weren't very realistic. I would highly reccommend FMS to the new flier to get thier thumbs going the right direction. I would highly reccomend RF G2 to the experienced pilot.

Yes like I said I imagine it's a great simulator but for example if I was new. For the price of G2 and the upgrades (plane packages whatever) I could get something like a sturdy birdy 2 and have it airborne with a radio and all. I'd really like to have G2 but at te price I'd rather have another plane because I'm not much of a crasher. But I think I found a way around the price kinda. I'm bidding on a copy of the original realflight on ebay. That plus the upgrade will bring me to about $100 without the interface. I figure I can just use my cable and JR radio I use for FMS.

Sig
I felt just like you. I was wrong.

So for those of you who had Dave Brown and went to Real Flight, what exactly do you think you have gained besides altering the colors of the planes and the ability to play on line? I ask because I purchased the most recent Dave Brown Sim with the aerobatic plane CD and I'm pretty impressed with the flight modeling and the graphics. Not to mention it installed without fuss on my Win XP machine. I really liked the looks of Real Flight, but was put off by the price and the troubles people were experiencing with XP. If there is a GREAT reason why I should switch over I'd probably do it just because I need a good sim for the winter months here in OH

Hello Schuie Driver,
Don't get me wrong about Dave Brown Sims. I bought the DB Sim when it first came out before RealFlight Classic.The DB Sim was more like flying in a cartoon. I later tried the RF Classic and that was more realistic then the DB Sim I first had.Since then I've stuck with RF all the way up to RF G2 Interlink.
Im shure Dave Brown has a real nice sim and has kept up with all the update since it first came out.
I just am sold on RealFlight and am very satisfied with there product and service.
NEDYOB

G2 IS JUST AN ALL OUT BETTER SIM THAN THE REST. IF YOU WANT TO SAVE YOURSELF A LOT OF SUFFERING AND MONEY JUST GO BUY IT. I DID 1 1/2 YEARS AGO TO LEARN TO FLY AND KNOW I CAN PERFORM ANY MANEUVER OUT THERE WITH CONTROL AND PRECISION.
I WATCHED MY WRING IT OUT VOLUME 3 OF DAVE PATRICK DOING ROLLING CIRCLES AND THEN PRACTICED THEM ON THE SIM UNTIL MY STICK MOVEMENTS WERE SMOOTH AND CONTROLLED. ONCE I TRIED IT AT THE FIELD IT WAS LIKE I HAD BEEN DOING THEM FOREVER. THE SAME FOR ALL THE IMAC MANEUVERS AND THE 3D STUFF. AND IVE ONLY BEEN FLYING SINCE NOVEMBER OF 2001
because OF ITS SMOOTH GRAPHICS AND HIGH FRAME RATES THE SIM FEELS EXTRAORDINARILY REAL WHICH GIVES YOU A GREAT SENSE OF CONFIDENCE AND FOCUS.

Sig,

Any Sim will save you more than the cost of the sim in crash damage. As you become a better pilot and start to attempt more daring manuevers, you will be able to practice and crash 100's of times on the sim. If you were to do the same at the field you might go broke or give up the hobby all together. Think of the Sim as insurance. $200 now or $2000 later.

Mark M.

I've been practiceing hovering/torque rolls on G2 .. now i can hover for a good amount of time and even start a torque roll on my sig Somethin' Extra (which the weight isnt even far back enough and the torque rolls are ssssllllooooowwww due to the large light wing)

I've stopped practicing on the TOC cap that is available for G2 and started using the stock Ultimate or even the P51 its more challenging and makes my SE feel like its nothing.

the physics arent 100% on g2 (flatspins anyone?) but they are real close.

I also like puttin some mp3s on while flying and fly in time with the music ...

I have pulled off some flat spins in G2. Or very, very close to a flat spin. Flat enough for me to exclaim, "A flat spin!".

For that $200, I have crashed 2 million dollars worth of planes and loved every minute of it! I make it a point not to fly it on Friday night....I get so satisfied that I won't go to the field on Sat. morning.

Even more reason to stop by www.Aero3D.net and register for the first on-line IMAC event in G2 History!

Realflight G2 for $200 ? Wow I wish stuff was cheap like that in Canada!! RF G2 is $300+ over here!
Everytime you feel tight pulling cash out of your wallet to buy something goto this site http://www.hobbyhobby.com/
that is what stuff costs for us Canadians! hehe

I solo'ed on my first flight, thanks to G2. I took out my first trainer last summer. Impetuous and impatient, I tried to fly it alone..... lost control two seconds into the flight. Lots the plane , engine and radio.....

Rather than leave the hobby, I bought G2 (interface version) and proceeded to practice an hour here, two there.... All told over the fall, winter and early spring, I logged well over 180 hours.

First time my trainer took the plane alone. Trimmed it... and handed it over to me. The rest was history..... Yesterday afternoon, I flew at the field and my trainer could not believe how fast I have learned to fly. I'm trying my hand at 3D maneuvers, all thanks to practicing on G2.

Could I have done it on another sim ??? Probably. Could I get various aircrafts for others sims, cheaper or free? ABSOLUTELY !!! The only regret that I have is not having had my sim last spring !

if you're balking at the $200 for G2, you might want to look at Easyfly, it's not GREAT but the physics are pretty good, and there IS a decent trainer for it that you can download, and at only $40 from www.quantummodels.com for the version with the RC joystick (which will work with all the other sims including G2) it's a pretty good deal, I HAVE had a problem with it at one point where I managed to hose it up and it would run REALLY sluggishly but after reinstalling my OS (which needed to be done anyway) it's running great again. It's not as robust as G2 in all the customization methods and such, but if you're looking to improve your stick/eye coordination and want something that looks a little better than FMS (and has better physics on the included models as well as a few of the downloaded ones) then I'd recommend EasyFly.
I've been meaning to contact the guy who designed the EasyFly trainer and ask if I can put it up on my site as his site doesn't seem to have it anymore.
I've got an article comparing many of the sims on my site HERE. I hope you find something to suit your needs.

CharlesP