If you’re not a newcomer, however, you can jump straight into the plane and environment of your choosing.

If you’re just getting started, the Flight School will teach you the basics of flight in the game and allow you to get acclimated. While not nearly as deep as FSX, there are a lot of things you can pick between. Lifewire / Zach Sweat Gameplay: As close as you can get to flying a plane in your homeīooting up X-Plane 11, you’re greeted with a host of available options to choose from before your flight. You’ll also be able to fine-tune things based on your preference from there. When those have completed installing, you should be able to see the HOTAS connected in X-Plane 11 under the control settings. Once you’ve got it hooked up, Windows should recognize the device and download the necessary drivers. Don’t forget to connect the pedals to the throttle with the included cable. Beginning with the obvious, connect all the cables to your computer’s USB ports. This unit is one of the more popular, affordable options, so we’ll briefly discuss how to set it up. There are a number of these to choose from, but we went with the Thrustmaster T16000M FCS HOTAS which includes the added pedals. Combining one of these with X-Plane 11 will increase the immersion considerably. A HOTAS, or “hands-on throttle-and-stick,” is a set of peripherals that allow you to control your in-game aircraft with more realistic inputs. Be sure to adjust the settings in the menu to your specific setup for things like resolution, quality, controls, etc.Īside from setting up your game, it’s a good idea to connect your HOTAS during the initial setup. Once your software is fully set up, you can now launch the game and get yourself flying. While many popular flight simulators are starting to show their age, X-Plane 11 is a breath of fresh air in the genre, and a breathtaking one at that.

X plane 11