Gamasutra Sponsored Feature: Microsoft Flight Simulator X SOARS to New Heights with Multi-Threading

Gamasutra writes: "[The seminal Flight Simulator franchise is embracing multithreading with the latest version, Microsoft Flight Simulator X, and in this sponsored feature for Intel's Visual Computing microsite, engineers explain the threading techniques that help enhance the sim's visuals.]

For many pilots, no sensation evokes greater pleasure than that fleeting moment when gravity is undone, the accelerating rush of air over the curved wing surfaces gracefully lifts the wheels from the runway, and in an instant of exquisite weightlessness pulls the aircraft skyward. For many gamers and flying buffs, the closest way to capture the sensations of flying without leaving the ground has been Microsoft Flight Simulator*, a long-lived and respected presence in the oft fickle world of gaming. Now into its second decade of existence, the tenth version, Microsoft Flight Simulator X, successfully takes advantage of multithreading and Intel® CoreTM microarchitecture, thanks to ongoing collaboration between Microsoft development teams and Intel engineering staff members.

As you might expect from a computer simulation that models the intricacies of aircraft control systems, expansive scenery across the entire surface of the planet, and the complexities of flight, effective playback requires powerful processing capabilities. The engagement between Microsoft and Intel and the collaborative engineering efforts resulted in some of the most richly rendered visuals ever seen in a desktop flight simulator. The multi-threading techniques employed in Microsoft's latest release preview the possibilities in future business and entertainment software where processor-intensive tasks performed in parallel will give developers abundant opportunities to model and depict natural-world phenomena."