Glider Sim
Experience the ultimate sensation of gliding through the sky!
Glider Sim is a professional paragliding and paramotor simulator built for real pilots in mind and is aiming to achieve photorealistic graphics! The sim can be played outside VR or inside VR. We recommend playing in Virtual Reality as it provides the highest level of immersion!
The simulator takes place in Sun Valley, ID, United States. The scenery is derived from real world satellite imagery and overlaid with high resolution textures, grass, trees and wildflowers! The scenery also includes custom placed roads, houses, buildings, power lines, soaring eagles, cruising airplanes and more! We are striving to create a beautiful living environment with many placed detailed scenery objects that you can discover as you fly and explore the map.
Lots of attention went into the flight physics of the gliders as well as the wind and thermal system. Set your launch point and flying conditions then takeoff into the skies! Use wind current such as ridge lift and thermals to stay airborne, or if you’re using the powered paramotor (Paramotor Trike) throttle up and cruise over the detailed scenery. You can toggle on and off the wind visualization particle systems as well as change other flight conditions such as wind speed and direction.
Experience state of the art flight physics where each cell of the glider is modeled and has physics applied! You can do maneuvers such as wingovers, spirals, stalls, and swoops. Watch out and don’t let your wing collapse!
More features we hope to add to the game during Early Access is as follows:
- Scored Challenges/ Missions.
- Multiplayer
- Updates to scenery such as more trees, rocks, houses, road traffic and detailed buildings.
- More gliders to choose from such as speedwings, miniwings and hang gliders.
Don’t forget to share this experience with your fellow gliding enthusiasts and we look forward to hearing your feedback in the community hub as we continue development!
See you in the skies!
——–Special Note ———
If you are interested in hooking up Glider Sim to a harness while in VR we have a separate edition called Glider Sim – Harness Edition. It includes bonus features such as flight tracking and post flight analysis tools. Meant for Instructors and the die hard paragliding pilots. Please go to 5drealities.com/games/GliderSim_Harness.aspx website to learn more.
Game Discussion
Steam User 8
Experienced on the Meta Quest 3
You can view my gameplay & early impressions here:
I enjoyed this experience more than I thought I would. This game / app has basically the depth behind it if you're really serious about a gliding simulator. However, if you're not serious about gliding, it's also a quirky way to visit spots all around the world.
With Google Earth Online (now included free) you will have a pass to visit all around the world where there's Google Maps. That includes multiplayer. Just imagine hang gliding with your bestie in Paris, France or London, England or Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. It's thrilling, but also approachable by the most casual of gamers.
Keep in mind, there's really only 3 detailed locations offline. Game is running on the Unity Engine. I did not experience any optimization issues on my RTX 5090 on high graphical settings. You can play comfortably seated.
Rate 8/10.
I bought this game! If you enjoyed my review, please consider joining my Steam Curator group Oculus Rift Reviews.
Steam User 2
Just played online, soo much fun! Awesome community! My favorite game on steam currently
Steam User 1
Glider Sim Deluxe on Quest 3 – The Closest Thing to Real Flight Without Leaving Your Living Room
Glider Sim Deluxe on the Quest 3 is one of those rare VR experiences that quietly sneaks up on you and then refuses to let go. The moment you step off your first launch point and the ground falls away beneath your feet, something clicks in your brain: this isn’t just a game. It’s flight.
The sense of freedom is absolutely extraordinary. Instead of piloting a loud machine, you’re riding invisible rivers of air, searching for thermals, carving along mountain ridges, and drifting across landscapes with a calm, almost meditative rhythm. VR feels made for this kind of experience, and the Quest 3’s clarity makes the world stretch convincingly to the horizon.
What truly sets Glider Sim Deluxe apart is its realism. The physics system models wind, lift, and thermals in a way that feels alive rather than scripted. Every turn, stall, or climb responds naturally to the air around you, creating that magical “just one more flight” loop. According to the developers, the sim uses real aerodynamic calculations and dynamic weather systems to recreate authentic soaring behavior, and you can genuinely feel that attention to detail while flying.
The variety is another huge win. You’re not limited to one type of aircraft. Paragliders, hang gliders, paramotors, ultralight trikes, speed wings, and even FPV drones all offer different flying personalities. Switching between them feels like learning entirely new sports, which keeps the experience fresh for dozens of hours.
And then there’s the scale. Being able to explore real-world locations using streamed global terrain makes the game feel endlessly expansive. You can launch from mountains, coastlines, or cities across the planet, turning VR into a personal aerial travel machine. Recent updates even removed the subscription requirement for global exploration, making the experience far more accessible and generous for players.
On Quest 3 specifically, the standalone performance is impressive. Yes, compromises exist compared to high-end PC VR, but considering the headset is essentially running a full flight simulator untethered, the immersion remains remarkable. Community players frequently describe it as one of the best “free flight” experiences currently available on standalone VR hardware.
What surprised me most is how relaxing it is. Some sessions become thrilling speed runs through valleys, while others feel like floating meditation sessions where you simply watch the sun move across the sky. Few VR games manage both adrenaline and tranquility so effortlessly.
Pros
Incredible sense of presence and freedom
Deep, believable flight physics
Multiple aircraft types with unique handling
Fly virtually anywhere on Earth
Perfect showcase for Quest 3 immersion
Cons
Visual distance is limited compared to PC VR (understandable for standalone hardware)
Learning real soaring techniques takes a little patience
Final Verdict:
Glider Sim Deluxe isn’t just a flight simulator. It’s a digital escape hatch. If you’ve ever looked at birds and wondered what the air feels like beneath wings, this is about as close as VR currently gets.
Easy recommendation for Quest 3 owners.
Steam User 0
The paraglider needs trim settings and the brakes are WAY too snappy but otherwise its currently the best ultralight sim with realized inflatable wing physics that im aware of.
Steam User 0
Best flight physics in a game so far. The speedflying is way to fun.
Steam User 0
The new upgrades really lifted the sim. Thermalling was enjoyable and fun. I can recomend this for long winter hours checking out the scenery, looking at ridgelines, hotspots etc. Great work!
Steam User 0
So fun and useful. I'm a powered paraglider pilot, and this let's me experience other wings and types of gliders such as hang gliders. Love it!