For low res, no.
Hi res, sure. Make it optional, or let players download the region they like. Or just the airports with much lower res landscapes, etc etc.
Or just, let them have it all and make these choices. Memory is CHEAP nowadays. If you’re a flight sim enthusiast, a few terabytes for the map data is the least expensive part of your setup by far.
Precisely this – I don’t remember anyone complaining that the FS2020 install size was too large, even if its install size was the butt of a few good-natured jokes. They’ve solved a problem that didn’t exist and in doing so have turned FS into an always online internet-connected live service instead of a game. I’m not touching this game with a 40 foot aileron until an offline mode of some quality exists.
All I wanted them to change was the fact that the installer for the game in 2020 would download then decompress one file at a time, so it took forever for the game to install (on top of the fact that it uses an in-game installer in the first place).
I don’t have the new version, but based on what I’ve been reading they sure curled the monkey paw this time.
My internet service in Silicon Valley charges like $1/GB above 1TB of usage per month :(
