Papa and Tott make very good points.
I taught at two Factory based Sim Training operations where one operation involved flying the actual aircraft as an Instructor and Check Airman in addition to the Sim.
The first was in the very early days of Helicopter Sim training and latter was decades later.
What I noticed over the years and the difference between the two Operators was significant.
The immediate difference was at the first....you hacked it or you failed no matter what your position in the Client's Corporate Chain of Command was......and at the other....no one failed....the worst that happened is they got a change of instructor for a check ride.
The other major difference was in the real lack of progress in matching actual flight characteristics of the aircraft being modeled.
One place sought to continually improve the system on a daily basis....it was an on-going effort.
At the other place....Instructors were told to minimize the negative reactions by avoiding situations that put those short comings on display.
I am a firm believer in the Sim as a teaching aid and with the advent better visuals and systems that provide for much better coordination of the Sim and Visual we will continue to gain value for money.
What we must do....industry, regulators, and Sim folks is to work together to find ways to gain the maximum benefit from the Sim Training.
I see the majority of the problem in this Sim Training thing is there are far too many sacred cows....and folks protecting their own rice bowls and that corrupts the system.
One company I worked for that used Sim training did so only after the Oil Company Client dictated they would.
They flew us from Africa via Europe to Texas....and without a bit of rest....had us in the Sim in the wee hours of the Texas Morning for our training.
Later they insisted they provide their own Training Captains and the Sim Operator would be just that....a Sim Operator....despite being a factory based training facility.
Folks....that is not the attitude that makes for effective training.
Take a moment and analyze how your own Operator....and Authority....and Sim Operator are conducting your training......and decide if there might be improvements and then make it known in a professional manner to those that can facilitate those improvements.
As an Operator....there is no sense wasting money on bad training at any level....it just doesn't pay to do that.
Sometimes you do not have all the answers and others might really have some useful insight that you could benefit from.