Hey all, thanks for taking the time to watch my video. In this video I'll be running over everything I've learnt in my first day as well as what you need to do to try out Liftoff yourself
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Hey guys, this is Jack and welcome to my very first Drone Video. Now in this video, I'll be showing you all the simulator I'm using to practice, along with how you can set it up on your computer so that you can play this at home as well. I'll also show you some footage of my first flights in the simulator and the progress I've made in 1 day.
Now before I start this whole new series of videos, I just want to make a note that a week ago I was a total noob at this myself and everything that I know is what I have learnt online. If you are an experienced drone pilot and you pick up that I made a mistake with technical references or anything else, please don't hesitate to reach out and I will fix it asap. I apologize in advance because I am still learning everyday myself.
Now let's get right to this. The Simulator that I'll be playing is called Liftoff. It was released 3 weeks ago and is currently in the Alpha testing stage. Now one thing to remember is that this is a Simulator, as of November 29th 2015, it's not a "traditional" game yet. In the future there will be features such as multiplayer races and so forth which will make this a full on game with objectives and goals, but right now this is just to practice on, so don't expect some amazing story to play or anything like that. We're hoping to see a Track Editor released within the next 2 weeks as well and I believe that this will push the simulator into a whole new level, but more on that later.
You can purchase this off Steam for $20, and I can honestly say that if you have a slight interest in this, then it's definitely worth getting it. If you've never tried Drone Racing yourself but really want to give it a shot, then this is definitely the easiest way to do it, and it won't cost you a lot either.
Right now I'm playing this with my PS4 controller. You can hook up your Xbox controller as well. The only small problem when playing with a Console controller is that your throttle will always be engaged halfway. The reason for this is because the controller sticks are made in such a way that the sticks always go back to the middle. A drone radio which you use to fly has one stick that does not jump to the middle vertically. This isn't such a big problem, but just keep that in mind. The only big difference would be that a radio will be a lot more precise since you wouldn't have to fight the throttle.
Now the really nice thing is that Liftoff already has a PS4 controller preset, so all you have to do is just hook up your controller to your PC and you're set. To do this, you would have to download some software and install it on your computer so that you can use the controller. Here's a really good video where they explain exactly how to do this. You can click on this link and it'll open in a new tab so you can watch the video after this one.
Alright, so now that you know what the Simulator is and how to get it yourself, let's have a look at some of my first flying scenes. Now before flying in Liftoff, I used to play a simulator game on my phone for a total time of about 2 hours. I then jumped onto Liftoff and played around for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, this is what I was able to do. This doesn't seem exciting right now, and it's not, but it is a start. You'll notice that I crash a lot and overcorrect my mistakes which result in even more crashes... But I guess we all have to start somewhere.
Now the first flying field in Liftoff is Straw Bale. This is currently the only field with a designated race course. When I first played here, I set myself a goal that I want to achieve for the day; fly the entire course going through all pylons without crashing in both directions. It took me 6 hours of flying to eventually get this right, but I got it.
So this is where I'm at right now. When I started playing I could feel how control over the drone got better with every minute passing. The funny thing is, it's like a skill that you learn which you can't unlearn. If you look back, it's weird to imagine that you couldn't do this 6 hours ago. So if you are playing this for the first time and you're able to record your footage, do yourself a favor and record it. Later on you'll look back and have a little chuckle at how you were flying then.
Now in my next video, I'm gonna have a shot at freestyle flying. This is what I want to get good at and this is what my channel will be all about. In the future once I'm more confident with what I'm doing, I'll also be making guide videos where I'll teach whatever I've learnt.
Thanks a lot for watching, and I'll catch you all in my next video.
This is Jack signing off.
