Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024) Motion Sickness: Why It Happens & What Helps
Turbulence in Microsoft Flight Simulator bounces the cockpit while your chair holds perfectly still, and that gap is what turns a bumpy approach into a queasy one. The lever is a Camera Shake toggle most simmers only go hunting for after their first rough landing, and it exists in both the 2020 and 2024 editions. Players have also petitioned the official forums for camera smoothing specifically to reduce motion sickness in turbulence, which tells you how many people hit this on a flat monitor, no VR headset involved. Checked September 2026.
PC, Xbox Series X|S · first-person cockpit and external · Partial settings · Player-reported motion-sickness risk: commonly reported by motion-sensitive players.
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
Risk levels summarise what passengers and riders commonly report, not measured testing.
Key facts
- Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024) runs on PC, Xbox Series X|S.
- The camera is first-person cockpit and external.
- Player reports place it in the moderate band for motion sickness.
- The game ships some comfort settings, but not a full set.
- 3 specific settings are listed on this page, starting with Camera Shake.
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Why Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024) can trigger motion sickness
A real passenger feels the bumps their eyes see, so the two signals agree. In the sim, the camera reproduces every jolt of turbulence and every vibration of the airframe while your inner ear reports a quiet room. The cockpit view makes it stronger: the panel and window frame sit close to the camera, so a small shake sweeps a large share of your vision. Long flights stack the exposure, and instrument scanning keeps your eyes locked on the moving frame instead of the stable horizon. The Camera Shake toggle removes the added movement. What remains, the aircraft actually maneuvering, is far easier on most stomachs than the vibration layer.
- Turbulence shake reproduced by the cockpit camera while your body sits still
- Cockpit framing, where panel and window edges near the camera magnify small movements
- Long instrument scans that hold your eyes on the shaking near field instead of the horizon
- Live weather surprising you with rough air mid-flight
- External views that swing and reframe while the aircraft banks
Comfort settings in Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024)
Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024) ships some comfort settings, but not a full set.
| Setting | Where | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Camera Shake | Options > General Options > Camera, in the cockpit camera section on the 2020 edition; the 2024 edition rearranged its menus, so search its settings for camera shake | Off. This is the single change simmers report for turbulence bounce, and most only find it after the first bad approach |
| Weather choice | Weather panel, on the world map or in flight | Fly a calm preset instead of live weather while you test what your stomach tolerates. Live storms are the roughest camera motion in the sim |
| Camera view | In flight, camera controls | The external drone and showcase views hold steadier framing than the cockpit during rough stretches. Swapping out of the cockpit for a minute is a legitimate reset |
Set up before your next session with Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020 and 2024)
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What helps beyond the settings
- Turn Camera Shake off before a long flight rather than mid-symptom, then judge over a full leg
- Look at the horizon line out the windscreen between instrument scans; it is the one stable reference the sim draws
- Shorter legs with breaks beat one four-hour haul, because symptoms in the sim build gradually
- A drug-free sound-therapy app like Dizzout is designed to help once symptoms have started, and it runs through the same headphones you fly with
The fixes people reach for once they step away from the screen are covered separately, with the trials attached: the remedy verdicts.
Frequently asked questions
How do I turn off cockpit shake in Microsoft Flight Simulator?
Turn off the Camera Shake option. On the 2020 edition it sits with the cockpit camera settings under Options > General Options > Camera. The 2024 edition moved its menus around, so search the settings for camera shake rather than following a 2020 path. The toggle removes the turbulence bounce and airframe vibration from the view; the aircraft still moves, but the camera stops adding its own shake on top.
Why does simulator turbulence make me feel sick when real flying does not?
In a real aircraft your inner ear feels every bump your eyes see, so the signals match. In the sim your eyes get the full bounce and your body gets nothing, and that mismatch is the standard recipe for motion sickness. It is why turbulence, the part of the sim with the most unrequested camera motion, is the moment players name in the forums when they ask for smoothing options.
Is the camera shake setting in both the 2020 and 2024 editions?
Both editions let you disable camera shake. The 2020 edition files it under Options > General Options > Camera in the cockpit camera section. The 2024 edition kept the capability but reorganized its settings, so the reliable route is searching its options for camera shake. Menu layouts move between sim updates, which is why this page names the setting rather than promising one exact path for both editions.
Other game motion-sickness guides
Sources & further reading
- https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/turbulence-and-shaking-how-to-turn-off/271625
- https://www.avsim.com/forums/topic/581735-any-way-to-turn-off-cockpit-shake/
- https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/camera-shake/419765
- https://forums.flightsimulator.com/t/camera-smoothing-to-reduce-motion-sickness-in-turbulence/338837
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Based on publicly reported player experiences and each game's documented settings, as of September 2026. Settings menus change with updates, so check your version. Game names are trademarks of their respective owners; Dizzout is not affiliated with or endorsed by them. Motion-sickness sensitivity varies by person, so this is informational, not a game review or a substitute for a doctor's advice.