Welcome to Missing in Action, a column solemnly dedicated to the non-existent memories all of the games we wish we could be playing. This is intended as a free and public service, so there’s no need to thank us. Hell, we’ll even consult with you if you want to make one of these games – as long as the end product doesn’t suck.

This month’s installment is dedicated to a game that we thought would be a no-brainer:

Microsoft Flight Simulator: The 360 Edition.

Have you ever played a civilian flight simulator game? I know, it sounds like a bit of a niche market (see: super-nerdy), but once you get a Force Feedback joystick hooked up you’re in for one of the coolest and most unique experiences available in modern video games.

Flight Simulator 1.0 first came out for MS DOS in 1982, and 25 years later, the game has never found a home on a console. There have been other renowned aeronautic games over the years, going back as far as Pilotwings and as recent as Crimson Skies, but none share the same focus as Flight Simulator. While other games focus on arcade action or dogfights, Flight Simulator puts you behind the realistically recreated controls of real planes, and sends you on your way to fly the fairly friendly skies.

Why so friendly? Well, the challenge of Flight Simulator comes not from enemy AI or angry opponents, but from things like weather and mechanical failures. You won’t find yourself evading flak fire or dropping torpedo bombs, but that in no way limits the fun to be had here. I for one like to run Flight Sim while I watch TV or if I just need something to kill some time. The nature of the game is such that you can jump in any plane, head to almost anywhere in the world and just cruise around. You can choose your weather conditions and set up timed mechanical failures. In addition to the awesome pickup-and-takeoff quality of this game, there are a ton of missions. From classic historical flights to specific challenges dealing with weather or tough terrain, or even instrumentation failures, this all requires mastery of using your flaps, ailerons and communication equipment in perfect harmony with the throttle, stick and rudders.

The sky becomes a whole new playground when you master a flight stick, but the Xbox 360 doesn’t support any Force Feedback joysticks – yet. Imagine this for a second: Microsoft releases the Xbox 360 Wireless Force Feedback Joystick bundled with Flight Simulator 360. Of course, the stick would ideally mimic the classic Microsoft Sidewinder joystick and provide an amazing sensory experience. Sure, you can play with the 360 controller if you want, but don’t you want the stick to match your Wireless Racing Wheel?

You and your wingmen hop online, and after a quick pre-flight check-in, you’re ready to take off. The open nature of a real-world simulator like this allows for innumerable possibilities for making your own fun. Create tight formation demo flights to show off your skills, play tag or hold races. The recent versions of Flight Simulator on the PC provide the opportunity to play as an air traffic controller, and the same should be presented here.

This game provides another perfect opportunity to showcase the unique MMO mechanics presented in other games like Test Drive Unlimited. If that’s the case, you can more than likely expect a few bogeys to find your trail occasionally, since some people just love to cause trouble. Remember that in a Flight Sim game you won’t have guns, bombs or any other armaments so don’t expect mass destruction – but do come prepared with some evasive maneuvers.

So sure, it would be fun, and a great way for Microsoft to make some money on new peripherals and downloadable content, but what exactly makes Flight Sim perfect for the 360? Let’s start with the basics – achievements. Flight Sim provides an opportunity for some seriously creative and challenging additions to your Gamerscore. Start with the easy stuff like “Complete All Training Missions” or “Perfect Landing,” and work your way towards achievements like “Formation Barrel Roll,” “Fly Through a 300-Meter Cumulonimbus Cloud” or “100 Hours of Flight Time.” Since the gameplay is so open-ended, you’ll need to be creative to boost your Gamerscore here – ideally many of the achievements would be listed as “secret” until you unlock them. Of course, as you fly around, your Live Vision Camera will display your picture to nearby co-pilots, and you’ll chat with them over your headset. A great feature would be the ability to add real-world bookmarks. For example, take off from LAX and guide fellow pilots to a mark that shows where you grew up or even highlight your house. Think of it like Google Earth, but…well, fun and multiplayer.

Of course it’s not an Xbox Live game without leaderboards, and that’s the case with this hypothetical game as well. You’ll be scored on landings, flight time, your ability to avoid weather and disasters, and even formation flying and performance of stunts at higher levels. Landing successfully with hardware failures will net you a big boost, and crashing too often will get you onto the board that you don’t want to be a part of. “Fastest NY-to-LA flight time,” “highest altitude,” or “longest flight time with engines off” could make for some really fun and unique competition.

One of the greatest things that came out of the recent years of gaming has been the opportunity to congregate with your peers online, and this is something that’s been largely overlooked on the 360. There are plenty of opportunities for 16 or even 24 player matches, but there aren’t really any games where you can gather with friends or other like-minded individuals and just hang out. Flight Simulator could provide a great opportunity for that as well as delivering a great gameplay experience, not to mention an opportunity to earn some extra scratch from peripherals and downloadable content. With a potential cash cow like this already in their lap, we thought Microsoft would have jumped on this by now. Oh well, here’s hoping we hearing a Flight Sim 360 announcement soon! Just remember, you heard it here first! Well, sort of…