Hifi Simulations have released more information regarding the upcoming release of Active Sky XP, their first weather engine for Laminar's sim. We previously reported on ASXP last week, when Hifi released the first previews and information about the product. They revealed that ASXP is now in release candidate phase and should be released before the year's end.

Since then, Hifi have added a "Frequently Asked Questions" section to the webpage we sourced our information from - this includes new information not previously divulged by the famed Prepar3D and FSX developer.

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When asked about the price of Active Sky XP, Hifi said;

"We have planned a reduced promotional launch price, estimated at $39.99 USD, in appreciation of our customers who have enabled us to create ASXP.  We expect to increase pricing some time after launch, with specific dates yet to be determined."

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Active Sky XP will be compatible with X-Plane's default clouds but will also include and optional cloud replacement, which focuses on performance. Hifi stress that this optional cloud-set is not equatable to Active Sky Cloud Art (also known as ASCA), which will be available for X-Plane some time in late 2019.  In addition to this, it has been confirmed that 3rd party textures will be compatible with ASXP, therefore the likes of Ultra Weather XP and FSEnhancer will be compatible with Active Sky for X-Plane.

On the topic of updates, Hifi state that they have free updates planned for ASXP, however they are not willing to disclose any of the details just yet. Another frequently asked question regards X-Plane updates and whether updates will remain free after major simulator updates. The answer is no. Hifi cite costs as the main reason behind this decision.

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Weather Radar also appears to be a frequent talking point. Hifi say that ASXP is compatible with X-Plane 11's default weather radar systems and that custom radar technology will follow later, potentially alongside an ASCA-type product in late 2019.

Addon developers will be pleased as ASXP will have an SDK available. This will behave much the same as their previous generation products with varied exceptions.

See the full webpage here. To find out more about Active Sky XP, see our previous article.

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