I agree with you...

...but from what I've heard about it so far, I doubt it counts as a pure sim and so I probably wouldn't consider it an FS replacement. I know the lines are very grey, but to me it just sounds like a game, and a very limited one at that.

Worse, the Reg implies that it'll be a limited environment with a single plane, that you can pay to expand later. If that's the case, MS will have to lock it down to prevent a 3rd-party market from springing up and slurping their revenue. I can see that leading to lack of choice, if nothing else. Cynically, it's like the IBM PS/2 all over again - slamming the gate after the horse is long gone.

I might download it to give it a go. But I doubt it'll ever be a viable replacement for what we already have. Shame really - can you imagine FS with Crysis2-level graphics...?