As someone who has spent many hours playing and experimenting with different strategies, I think this update adds real depth. At the same time, I believe there are a few areas where the system could be refined further.
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Time Preferences by Passenger Type
At present, passengers’ decisions seem largely cost-driven. However, in reality, the importance of time versus money differs depending on the travel class. For example:-
Economy-class passengers tend to value lower prices over travel time.
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Business-class passengers, on the other hand, prioritize efficiency and arrival times (e.g., preferring early morning arrivals to afternoon or midnight flights).
Factoring this into the ORS would add greater realism and strategic depth.
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Airport Location Relative to City Center
The distance of an airport from the city center is another important factor, especially for short-haul flights and business travelers. For example, I have noticed consistently low demand on SHA–HND routes across multiple servers, while flights from HND to PVG are much easier to book fully due to the larger airport size. This feels unrealistic, as SHA is far closer to central Shanghai and should be very attractive for business travelers. Accounting for the convenience of airports could help address this imbalance. -
Aircraft Type Evaluation for Regional Flights
The current evaluation system discourages the use of wide-body aircraft on regional flights. In reality, however, many airlines—particularly in high-demand markets like Japan and South Korea—use high-density wide-body aircraft for such routes (e.g., HND–ITM, HND–GMP). Allowing the system to better reflect this practice would align the game more closely with real-world airline operations.
These are just some thoughts I had after exploring the new system. I’m excited about the direction AirlineSim is heading, and I hope to see more refinements in the future.