Check out our Monthly Survey Page to see what our users are running.
We do often include affiliate links to earn us some pennies. See more here.

Laminar Research have now released a huge upgrade to their flight simulator with X-Plane 11.50, which brings in lots of rendering changes and advancements.

A massive release, since they completely rewrote their rendering engine to provide Vulkan (on Windows and Linux systems) and Metal (on Mac). This should provide X-Plane 11 players with smoother frame rates, with far less stuttering and better performance overall. For the Linux version you need at least NVIDIA 440.26 and for AMD they're supporting the 'official AMD GPU drivers' along with amdvlk but they didn't state any particular version.

Pictured - X-Plane 11.50 on Linux.

What else does it bring in? Looking over what they've done it adds:

  • 498 new airports
  • 1,742 airports had either no scenery or 2D-only scenery in 11.40, but have 3-D scenery in 11.50
  • 2,427 airports gained some new scenery
  • Tons of bug fixes

That's a huge amount that went into it, all in addition to a much more modern and performant rendering engine.

It may take a while for things to settle down, especially when it comes to all the addons since a lot of them need updating for the new systems. According to the release announcement, it's a staggered release. With the standalone you can manually check for an update, whereas on Steam it's still in a Beta branch but it seems they will push that to the main install for everyone tomorrow.

You can pick up X-Plane 11 on Steam and their website.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
14 Likes
About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
See more from me
The comments on this article are closed.
20 comments
Page: 1/2»
  Go to:

Ehvis Sep 10, 2020
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
I've held off on testing the Vulkan renderer so far. Mostly because I've been busy with other things. But it looks like it's time to give it a spin again!
AzP Sep 10, 2020
Interesting! I've seen many comments (from the developers I think) that the graphics engine really isn't their main bottleneck, but more or less "everything else". But another native Vulkan-based engine is always welcome!

I'm looking forward to tests of it on Phoronix (or other sites).


Last edited by AzP on 10 September 2020 at 1:40 pm UTC
slaapliedje Sep 10, 2020
Quoting: AzPInteresting! I've seen many comments (from the developers I think) that the graphics engine really isn't their main bottleneck, but more or less "everything else". But another native Vulkan-based engine is always welcome!

I'm looking forward to tests of it on Phoronix (or other sites).
I could be wrong here, but moving to Vulkan should make the VR stuff work in Linux? As I believe native Vulkan is a requirement at this point?

So there is that... which also means I should really dig into it with my overly expensive Thrustmaster Warthog set up + Valve Index :)
Ehvis Sep 10, 2020
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: AzPInteresting! I've seen many comments (from the developers I think) that the graphics engine really isn't their main bottleneck, but more or less "everything else". But another native Vulkan-based engine is always welcome!

I'm looking forward to tests of it on Phoronix (or other sites).
I could be wrong here, but moving to Vulkan should make the VR stuff work in Linux? As I believe native Vulkan is a requirement at this point?

So there is that... which also means I should really dig into it with my overly expensive Thrustmaster Warthog set up + Valve Index :)

Nah, that worked with OpenGL as well. What didn't work were the index controllers since the default bindings left you without the ability to interact.

Performance wasn't the main focus of going Vulkan. It was really about getting the rendering engine into a debuggable state where they could actually fix things according to real data instead of having to guess where the OpenGL driver was having issues. This in turn should (eventually) lead to a stutter free flying experience. Having a more modern platform for the future was of course a thing as well. Eventually they will have to overhaul the weather (rendering) engine.
bisbyx Sep 10, 2020
Whenever I see "linux support" and "VR support"... I feel like that doesn't always guarantee "VR on Linux support"

linux + valve index + this game = ?
slaapliedje Sep 10, 2020
Quoting: Ehvis
Quoting: slaapliedje
Quoting: AzPInteresting! I've seen many comments (from the developers I think) that the graphics engine really isn't their main bottleneck, but more or less "everything else". But another native Vulkan-based engine is always welcome!

I'm looking forward to tests of it on Phoronix (or other sites).
I could be wrong here, but moving to Vulkan should make the VR stuff work in Linux? As I believe native Vulkan is a requirement at this point?

So there is that... which also means I should really dig into it with my overly expensive Thrustmaster Warthog set up + Valve Index :)

Nah, that worked with OpenGL as well. What didn't work were the index controllers since the default bindings left you without the ability to interact.

Performance wasn't the main focus of going Vulkan. It was really about getting the rendering engine into a debuggable state where they could actually fix things according to real data instead of having to guess where the OpenGL driver was having issues. This in turn should (eventually) lead to a stutter free flying experience. Having a more modern platform for the future was of course a thing as well. Eventually they will have to overhaul the weather (rendering) engine.
From my understanding of it, that would have required OpenGL to Vulkan wrapper? As I thought SteamVR only supported Vulkan on Linux. Granted, I could be completely wrong.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/250820/discussions/5/133261370000921428/


Last edited by slaapliedje on 10 September 2020 at 4:55 pm UTC
vipor29 Sep 10, 2020
probably runs better than microsoft flight sim too
Eike Sep 10, 2020
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
I bet they had Berlin's new airport ready before Berlin had? :D
slaapliedje Sep 10, 2020
Quoting: vipor29probably runs better than microsoft flight sim too
Ha, I bought FS 2020, tried to run it, it asked me to log in... tried to find my old hotmail address, finally got in, it said it needed the xbox live app.. I grumbled, installed it, then it proceeded to crash to the desktop before even trying to download the data. So I promptly removed the game, removed the xbox live crap, and refunded the damn thing.
Mountain Man Sep 10, 2020
Runs great on my system. Gave me roughly 10 more FPS, and it's silky smooth. Took a flight through New York City which is kind of the "iron man" test of flight simulators because of how dense the scenery is, and it hovered around 30 frames per second.
While you're here, please consider supporting GamingOnLinux on:

Reward Tiers: Patreon. Plain Donations: PayPal.

This ensures all of our main content remains totally free for everyone! Patreon supporters can also remove all adverts and sponsors! Supporting us helps bring good, fresh content. Without your continued support, we simply could not continue!

You can find even more ways to support us on this dedicated page any time. If you already are, thank you!
The comments on this article are closed.