Microsoft Flight Simulator newest game in the franchise comes out on August 18th, 2020. You take flight as you go across the world visiting thousands of airports, cities, historic landmarks, and more. The game has been built to replicate how the Earth truly looks from the air. As your skill is recognized, you will be able to to take on more types of planes and jets. The newest title also has weather and wind speed that replicate what a pilot might have to go through. You can play with others through a variety of modes. Either play with smaller groups of friends or a large amount of people. Fly across the world, while hanging out with others doing their own flight missions. Microsoft is even bringing VR to the game. MS Flight Simulator is a great series, but like many online games, it can be ruined by lag. Nothing is worse than the laggy game play causing you to crash on the runway. Part of this lag is due to server, but the rest is caused by your own connection to the game. We will provide suggestions for PC.
How to Fix Lag Spikes in Microsoft Flight Simulator
Here is the quickest way to improve Microsoft Flight Simulator lag on PC with a VPN.
- Sign up for ExpressVPN (includes a 30-day money back guarantee)
- Download the ExpressVPN app and connect to a server in the region you wish to play in.
- Test to see if your ping has lowered from your normal response time.
- Launch Microsoft Flight Simulator and enjoy!
Why Does Microsoft Flight Simulator Lag?
The popularity of MS Flight Simulator is both a blessing and a curse. As we mentioned, you will playing with other players with differing Internet connection speeds. If you have performance issues when using the Internet in general then you can expect lag spikes when playing Microsoft Flight Simulator. The two main considerations for lag are your Internet speed and hardware. PC gamers will want to focus on CPU, memory, and graphics card. Everyone needs a fast Internet connection.
More Tips to Fix Lag Spikes in MS Flight Simulator
PC users will want to start off by checking your system. We will go into more details about the hardware you need later in the post. For now, you will want to make sure your computer is running properly. You will also want to see if any of your apps is slowing down your PC. Many anti-virus programs do this in the background. After this, I would recommend connect to your internet via LAN cable rather than WiFi. It will give you a more reliable and faster connection. You can check out their Twitter for updates about Microsoft Flight Simulator
Let’s continue to look at the best way to increase your Internet speed and lower ping times. In doing so you can expect less lag and a better gaming experience. We recommend testing a VPN to improve ping and reduce your lag. The key is to find a better route between your system and the game server. Your ISP isn’t focused on this issue as much as VPN providers. They know that it’s a competitive advantage if they can offer you a faster router to key locations. Most of the game developers host regional game servers in the same locations. This allows VPNs to offer better routes and will give you a boost in performance.
Microsoft Flight Simulator Server Locations
Asobo Studio is going to use Microsoft Azure to host the game online modes. This is great as ExpressVPN has many locations close to the servers the game will use. Based on this and other games we can recommend specific VPN servers locations based on the region you wish to play in.
Here are some key VPN servers locations for ExpressVPN.
- United States – Washington DC and Los Angeles
- Canada – Toronto
- Europe – London, Frankfurt, Paris
- Asia Pacific – Singapore, Tokyo, Mumbai, Sydney
- South America – Sao Paulo
- China – Hong Kong
System Requirements and Recommendations
This section is mainly for PC gamers. You will want to make sure you have the proper system specs for MS Flight Simulator. The minimum requirements are often not enough to enjoy the game. You will want to come as close as possible (or above) these recommended system specs.
PC:
- Operating system – Windows 10 (64-bit)
- CPU – Intel i5-8400, AMD Ryzen 5 1500X, or better
- Video Card – NVIDIA GTX 970, AMD Radeon RX 590, or better
- Memory – 16 GB RAM
Here is a little more information on using a VPN for gaming.
How to Play Microsoft Flight Simulator with ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is our choice for fixing lag. All you will have to do is connect to a server location close to where the game is hosted. ExpressVPN has 160 server locations throughout the world for you to choose from. Gaming companies like Electronic Arts, Bethseda, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo use similar hosts. Some of the most popular hosts are Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS). ExpressVPN has servers located close to these data centers. This will give you a closer connection to the game and improve your experience. You will be able to reduce ping and fix lag by using ExpressVPN.
ExpressVPN has an exciting discount that is only offered to our users. You will be able to get 49% off a year of VPN with an extra 3 months added for free. This means you will be able to use the VPN and MediaStreamer service for over a year. If you are not satisfied, ExpressVPN offers a 30 day money back guarantee. Play online with less lag on PC, Mac, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, and more. You will also be able to take advantage of the service by using as much bandwidth as needed. I hope ExpressVPN improves your gaming experience
