Everyone is talking about the cloud. Honestly, that’s the big pitch with Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam, but it’s kind of a double-edged sword. Asobo Studio decided to offload almost everything—textures, terrain data, even the core engine assets—to Microsoft’s servers to keep the initial download small. You’re looking at a tiny 30GB to 50GB install compared to the massive 150GB+ monster from the 2020 version. It sounds great until you realize your internet connection is now your primary graphics card.
If you’ve spent any time in the flight sim community lately, you know the vibe is a mix of pure hype and genuine anxiety. We aren't just talking about a reskin here. This is a total overhaul of the flight physics and the "digital twin" of the Earth. But the move to Steam has brought up some specific quirks that users of the Windows Store version don't always have to deal with, specifically regarding how your Steam Wallet interacts with the Marketplace and how the sim handles your existing DLC.
What's actually changing in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 Steam edition?
The biggest shift is the career mode. Finally. For years, we’ve been using third-party add-ons like NeoFly or Air Hauler to give us a reason to fly. Now, it’s baked in. You start as a rookie pilot doing search and rescue, crop dusting, or even aerial firefighting. It’s not just "fly from A to B." You actually have to get out of the plane. The "Walkaround" feature is a massive deal for realism. You can literally walk up to your Cessna, check the oil, and inspect the control surfaces. If you forget to remove a pitot tube cover, your instruments will fail in mid-air. That’s the level of granularity we're dealing with now.
The engine has been re-architected. It’s leaner. In the 2020 version, the sim would constantly get bogged down by "main thread" limitations, meaning your CPU was screaming while your expensive GPU sat at 60% usage. The 2024 build uses a much more aggressive multi-threading approach. It’s designed to utilize those extra cores on your Ryzen 9 or Intel i9.
But here is the catch.
Because the game streams so much data, your RAM and VRAM requirements have actually spiked. We are seeing recommendations for 64GB of RAM for the "Ideal" spec. That’s wild. Most gamers are still sitting on 16GB or 32GB. If you’re planning to run this on Steam at 4K with high settings, you basically need a workstation-class machine.
The thin client approach
Think of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam as a high-end streaming service. It uses a "Thin Client" architecture. Instead of your hard drive holding every tree and building in London, the game pulls that data in real-time based on where you are looking. Asobo claims this reduces the "long-term" storage bloat, but it puts a massive tax on your bandwidth. If you have a data cap, you’re going to hit it. Hard.
We are talking about 50Mbps to 100Mbps of consistent throughput just to keep the ground textures from looking like melted ice cream. If your internet flutters, the world literally disappears. It’s a bold move. Some would say it's risky.
The Steam Marketplace and Your 2020 DLC
One of the most common questions is: "Do my planes carry over?" The short answer is mostly yes, but the Steam-specific implementation is a bit clunky. Microsoft has committed to "backward compatibility" for the vast majority of aircraft and airports purchased in the 2020 Marketplace. If you bought a PMDG 737 or a Fenix A320 on Steam in the old sim, it should show up in your library in the new one.
However, there is a "but."
Some older planes won't take advantage of the new 2024 physics engine—like the improved tire friction or the way the wind interacts with the fuselage—unless the developers release a specific update. Some of those updates might be paid upgrades. It’s a bit of a mess. Also, if you bought planes directly from a developer's website (like Aerosoft or Just Flight) instead of the in-game Steam Marketplace, you’ll have to wait for them to provide new installers.
Why Steam users have it slightly different
Steam users have always dealt with the "double launcher" headache. You launch it on Steam, then it opens the Microsoft login, then it starts its own internal updater. It’s annoying. For 2024, they’ve tried to streamline this, but you still need a Microsoft Account. You can’t escape the Xbox ecosystem.
The Steam version does have one major advantage though: file management. If your sim gets corrupted—which happened a lot in 2020—Steam’s "Verify Integrity of Game Files" is a godsend, though you have to be careful not to let it delete your 200GB Community folder. Pro tip: Always move your Community folder to a different drive before doing a major Steam update.
The "Ideal" Specs are no joke
Let's look at what you actually need to run this thing without it becoming a slideshow.
- Minimum: You can get by with a GTX 970 and 16GB of RAM, but honestly, why would you? It’ll look like a game from 2010.
- Recommended: An RTX 2080 or 3070 and 32GB of RAM. This is where most people will land.
- Ideal: This is the "Aviation Nerd" tier. RTX 4080/4090, 64GB of RAM, and a fiber-optic internet connection.
The 64GB RAM requirement is the one that caught everyone off guard. Why so much? Because the sim is caching massive amounts of streaming photogrammetry data so that when you bank the plane, the world doesn't stutter while it tries to download the building behind you.
👉 See also: Gen One Type Chart: Why Red and Blue Were So Broken
New Mission Types: More than just "Sights and Sounds"
The variety in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam is actually staggering compared to the previous launch. You’ve got:
- Aerial Firefighting: This involves complex water scooping physics. You have to account for the weight of the water changing your center of gravity.
- Search and Rescue: You'll be landing helicopters on moving ships or in tight mountain crevices. The new physics engine handles "ground effect" for helicopters much better than the 2020 version ever did.
- Executive Transport: Basically, you're a glorified Uber driver for billionaires, but you have to keep the flight smooth. If you pull too many Gs, your "passengers" get annoyed.
- Agricultural Aviation: Crop dusting. It's low-altitude, high-stress flying. One wrong move and you're in a power line.
The detail on the ground has been increased by a factor of 4,000 in some areas. Instead of just flat textures, we’re seeing individual rocks, pebbles, and actual 3D grass. You can even see animals in certain regions. It’s getting closer to a "World Simulator" rather than just a flight sim.
Dealing with the Steam "Download Loop"
We've all been there. You buy a game on Steam, it downloads 500MB, then you open it and it wants to download another 100GB through a slow, proprietary downloader. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam tries to fix this by moving most of that data to the cloud.
But, if you find your download speed is crawling, there's a well-known fix. You often have to go into your Windows Command Prompt and disable "Autotuning" for your network. It’s a weird, technical quirk that has haunted this franchise for years.
Is it worth the upgrade?
If you’re a casual flyer who just likes to see your house from the air, the 2020 version is still fantastic. But if you want a "game" with a sense of progression, the 2024 version is a massive leap forward. The career mode gives the experience a "soul" that was missing before. It’s no longer just a sandbox; it’s a career.
The improved lighting engine alone—which now features Ray Tracing for better shadows and reflections—makes the cockpit feel alive. When you're flying into a sunset and the light reflects off the steam on your instruments, you'll get it. It’s those small, "kinda" insignificant details that add up to a huge feeling of immersion.
Actionable Next Steps for Steam Users
If you are planning to jump into Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam, do these three things immediately to save yourself a headache:
- Audit your RAM: If you have 16GB, you are going to struggle. Consider upgrading to at least 32GB before the sim launches. It is the cheapest way to see a massive performance gain in this specific title.
- Clean your Community Folder: Do not just copy-paste your old 2020 mods into the 2024 directory. It will crash. Start with a clean slate and add your favorite planes back one by one once the developers confirm they are compatible.
- Check your ISP Data Cap: Check your monthly internet usage. Because this sim relies on streaming high-resolution assets, a single 4-hour flight over a dense city like New York can eat through several gigabytes of data. If you’re on a limited plan, you might need to lower the "Data Bandwidth" settings in the options menu.
The transition to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 on Steam marks a turning point for the hobby. We are moving away from local storage and toward a truly persistent, cloud-based world. It’s not perfect, and the hardware requirements are steep, but the level of detail is something we haven't seen in any other form of media. Just make sure your internet is up to the task before you clear for takeoff.