We are pleased to announce a major upgrade to our best-selling Zurich scenery, which will be released in
3 subsequent Steps, as follows:
1st Step
Better TexturesWe worked at every single texture of the scenery, improving materials quality, texture depth and the precision of both bump mapping and specular mapping (on FSX), in order to give a more pleasing look which compares with our more recent offerings. In the following screenshot, an example how the new version compares to the current one:
Thanks to improved Bump-mapping and Specular mapping, the scenery has a sharper look with better depth impression.
Better Night renditionAll night textures has been improved, offering more vibrant colors and variety:
ParkMe and YouControlZurich was released before we introduced our powerful Python script engine, and still featured lots of limited and slow FS9 code to handle interactivity, as in Docking systems. ZurichX 2.0 will use the more advanced ParkMe system which has been popular with all our latest product, and YouControl to handle user-controlled animations like hangar doors.
Increased LOD and Visibility rangesZurich was initially released in 2007, so it was optimized to give the absolute best fps on systems available back then. Since the 2011 PC are way more capable, we reworked all LOD levels and visibility ranges of the scenery, to give better visual range and usability with much wider zoom settings. HOWEVER, we also modified ALL 3D objects to reduce unneeded polygonal complexity and, by working on all objects, we were able to eliminate about 30.000 polygons from the scenery which means, the added visibility range and LOD are coming at basically NO COST in fps so, Zurich will still offer the same fps friendly experience as before, but with greater visibility and less objects pop-up.
Fixed Autogen exclusionA patch that was already available as a separate download on our forum, will be included in the base package, so the scenery will not exclude a large Autogen area around the airport anymore.
Improved Crosswind AFCADA better AFCAD is included, with improved Crosswind operation, and Airlines codes added to most parking stands.
The 1st STEP Upgrade, is a FREE UPGRADE for all past and future ZurichX customers for FSX and FS9, and will be available shortly, before the end of June 2011.
2nd Step
New Schengen Pier BSince Switzerland entered in the Schengen agreement, Zurich airport is going to be remodeled right now, the old Terminal B has been demolished, to be replaced by a new Terminal B which will be operative before the end of 2011. The 2nd Step of the ZurichX upgrade will feature the new Terminal B, and several other modifications that are related to this change.
The 2nd STEP Upgrade will be a FREE UPGRADE for all past and future ZurichX customers for FSX and FS9, and will be available in the next months, probably a few week after KLAX will be released.
3nd Step
New technology Ground with ShadersIn preparation to allow ZurichX to be still usable and look fresh in the next years, we'll remade all the ground scenery using Advanced Shaders methods we introduced with KDFW and KLAX, that offers exceptionally sharp and realistic looking textures on ground, eliminating entirely all legacy FS9 code, which results in a fps saving too. Considering how effective this was at a much larger airport like Dallas-Fort Worth, we anticipate the performance benefit will be even larger with Zurich.
The 3rd STEP Upgrade will be a PAY UPGRADE for FSX ONLY, and will be available before the end of 2011. The price is expected to be low, probably less than 50% of the current product price.
New Price!
Starting today, ZurichX is now priced at:
9.9 EUR!!
The lower price is effective automatically, there's no Coupon to insert, and it will entitle to full support and the ability to get all the Upgrades.
But wait...
What about our loyal customers that bought it at yesterday's price ?As a "Thank you" gesture for having supported us in the past, following the Zurich price reduction, we are giving a
9 US$ Discount Coupon to ALL Zurich 1.x purchasers, even those going back to 2007!! This Coupon will
last all 2011 and it's valid with ANY FSDT product of your choice, even those NOT YET RELEASED! So yes, even if you already have all our products, you will be able to use the Coupon to purchase our upcoming big 2011 releases, like KLAX or GSX! And yes, the Coupon is ALSO valid if you purchase Zurich starting today at the new low price.
To use the Coupon, type the following:
THANKSZURICH(it's all Upper case)
In the "Coupon ID" field of your Order, and verify the Discount has been applied before confirming the Order. PLEASE NOTE, the ordering system looks at your email to verify if you qualify for the offer so, if you purchased Zurich using a different Email, please
let us know so we can update our records with your current Email address. If you still have your purchase receipt with your Order Number, you can also update your Email address yourself, on the Esellerate support site:
http://store.esellerate.net/support
