Microsoft Flight Simulator

All the comments saying that you have to download the game whilst its running are correct. You will not be able to play the game until multiple hours of downloads are completed (that count towards your playtime) preventing you from a refund.
This should be changed, its scummy and promotes disgusting business practices.
That being said, if you look past it's major flaw (the download system) it is the premier and most advanced flight simulator on the market. Everything except the download system is absolutely amazing. I would also recommend installing the MFS2020 map enhancement mod. It enables you to overlay google maps/different data rather than the default Bing map that is integrated into the game.

The game recreates the whole Earth using satellite maps and AI. You can take off from your local airport and fly over your own house.
The graphics, especially the clouds, lighting, and weather effects, are stunning and make you feel like you're actually flying.
You can turn on real-time weather, so if it's raining somewhere in the world, it's raining in the game. You can also see real flights happening around you.
The 40th Anniversary edition adds many new aircraft for free, including helicopters, gliders, and famous historical planes like the Wright Flyer and the Spirit of St. Louis.
You can make it as easy or as hard as you want. Turn on all the help to just enjoy the view, or turn it all off for a super-realistic challenge.
Many major airports are handcrafted to look just like their real-life counterparts, and the cockpits of the planes are incredibly detailed and functional.
The developers regularly release free "World Updates" that make different parts of the world look even better.

My first 10 hours was trying to figure out how to get past the game crashing once i booted up the 1gb launcher to actually download the 110gb. I spent days trying to figure it out and it was something stupid like needing to install a english (US) language pack.
After i finally got to play the game it was amazing other than a few small bugs with the autopilot and the atc not doing what its told. totally recommend this game for those interested in aviation.
if you're having the same problem as me:
Install the English (US) language pack for windows. The game requires it for air traffic control. Fixed the closing to desktop for me.
Instructions here:

I'm gonna need to wait before installing this, but I felt it important to make sure buyers are away that this game is 400gig+

whats crazy is that the game takes 2 hours to download no matter what kind of internet you have just so you cant refund. these developers are so petty

---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☑ Beautiful
☐ Good
☐ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☐ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☑ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☐ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 15% of your 1TB hard drive
☑ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☑ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☑ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☑ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☑ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☐ Worth the price
☑ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☐ Never heard of
☑ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☐ 6
☑ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

Notes:
Loading takes a long time

I’ve put around 3,500 hours into Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, and honestly, it’s been a wild ride. When it first came out, it completely changed the game. The graphics, the detail, the realism... it blew everything else out of the water. Flying anywhere in the world feels so amazing.
But after five years, the excitement’s been replaced with frustration. The same core bugs from day one are still here. Things like autopilot acting up, broken ATC, weird flight models, and random performance drops. It’s crazy that this stuff still isn’t fixed after all this time.
The focus over the years has been all over the place. Instead of tightening up the core sim, they poured effort into world updates, marketplace content, and third-party partnerships. Looks great for marketing, but doesn’t fix the issues that actually affect flying day to day.
Those developer Q&As started out promising, but they turned into the same routine: big talk, nice words, little action. Month after month, the community raised the same concerns, and the answers never really changed.
And now with MSFS 2024, it’s hard not to feel like we’re being sold the same story again. It’s built on the same foundation, and many of the same problems seem to have carried over. After years of loyalty and patience, that’s a real letdown.
To be clear, MSFS 2020 is still an incredible simulator..... when it works. It looks stunning and can deliver truly amazing moments. But after 3,500 hours, I can say it’s been one of the most impressive yet frustrating sims I’ve ever used.
Amazing potential, poor priorities, and disappointing follow-through from both Asobo and Microsoft. For a company this big, we deserved better.