So basically the title says it all I look at pictures on their website and it really seems to be a game changer compared to the normal game. But the prices are quite high. Are those enhancement pack worth it ?
I thought so. Some of them certainly do enhance the experience. Add more traffic to scenarios and make the railways look and feel more authentic.
AP sales do not happen often. I have everything AP has to offer. I will use that rolling stock when given the opportunity. AP product just feels right.
I think so in the main. Although their sound packs were usually sufficient. I do like having the liveries AP packs contain plus the attention to detail. I am hoping the withdrawn sound packs return as enhancement packs.
For me the immediate essential was the sky enhancement pack. It transformed the sim for me. I then followed quickly with the signal and track enhancements. I also have a lot of the other stuff they do as well but as was mentioned above, I also wait for the sales. You can build a wishlist ready on APs site so you are ready to go.
I haven't got the signal one yet. It doesn't seem to be usable on that many routes. It looks good though. I wonder how easy it is to put it on other routes?
There are two types of trains on APs website. Those that are made by DTG and AP Enhances their features - and those that AP made which you cannot get from DTG. The AP made products are good as it gives you something not available elsewhere
There are different types of EP packs: general route improvement packs and specific rolling stock improvement packs. My view on them is as follows: Weather Pack. Excellent. It makes an obvious improvement and can be made to work on almost any route. I don't know about the cloud pack, but it looks good in other's screenshots. Track Pack. Does what it says, but whether that is a sufficient improvement is something I'm not convinced of. Signal Pack. Disappointing. It doesn't increase visibility distance for me, which was the main reason I got it. Vegetation Pack. Disappointing. Introduces minor shimmering of foliage I don't have on the standard trees, which in my view are generally ok. The shape of some AP trees are a bit odd to me. Rolling Stock EPs. Generally worth getting, but be aware that they don't update the stock in the scenarios supplied with routes, you'll have to do that manually. You'll also have to create Quick Drives to use them.
l agree their prices are extremely high but they normally have three sales a year over the Easter Bank holiday, August Bank Holiday and the Christmas Bank Holiday. Then they are better value. Sale prices vary between 10% for recently released products to up to 40% for older products.
Which ones are you looking at? It really depends on the individual pack. Some are instant yes-es, others are less so.
This channel has videos featuring the AP enhancement packs and AP rolling stock: and many more in high quality. Who needs TSW anyway?
I echo to wait for the sales. You can get them for 40% off. Handy if you need a lot and want to save some dough. Also handy because some prices are now higher than they were originally, so the sale brings it closer to what they started at if not lower. There are lots of reskins with some of these. Some are not as worth it as others. But the AI horns feature, recently added to many, is a beautiful thing to have, so adds to the value instantly.
It comes down to will you use them now or are they just another purchase. If it is a loco you really enjoy driving then I would purchase that unit. If it is just a filler then wait for the sales. Supply and demand.
I'll assume you mean the EP that make changes to the sim environment and not just the EP packs for rolling stock. The answer is yes, they're worth having. The weather and cloud packs are amazing, and really allow atmosphere in the sim, and adds a whole load of realism. The track pack makes things look a whole lot nicer, and the signal pack is good too. You can actually see signals in full sunlight from miles away like you can in real life. The vegetation pack removes the older trees that look a little dated in some routes now. Coupled with AP rolling stock, it all breathes new life into an old sim, and IMO, looks more realistic that TSW, which has that shiny, unrealistic look to it.
Looks mint.. are you using any reshader? With the Steam sales Ive just invested in TSC (+ gone nuts on a lot of UK DLCs) out of the box visually not there but Im starting to go down that rabbit hole to get try and get it to how you have yours! The route choice, variety and length are just too good to pass up on with TSC when comparing to TSW especially with the AT mergers. My only concern currently is all the scenarios I want to use currently all rely on the AP train enhancements and why I grabbed the 800s plus the track enhancement pack, I think I might have to be patient on others or I could end up in divorce court LOL Any recommendations on Visual improvement mods outside of AP?
The only one which is a MUST in the UK is the weather. The rest do not give as big a change. Also get a free copy of Locoswap. You can swap out any rolling stock with anything you already have. Be warned. Make sure you are swapping for something of the same length otherwise you can screw up the scenario as part of the existing rolling stock could be triggering an event (AI trains etc).
So ended up just biting the bullet and grabbed Clouds/sky + weather/vegetation packs from AP despite the Aussie dollar tanking vs the pound (thank you pay in 4 lol) and wow what a difference!! Sim feels more alive visually and actually enjoy the endless possibility of TSC when comparing to TSW despite it being an old engine! will now look to play around with reshades! Will look at further AP enhancers for the rolling stock but that might have to wait for a sale as I feel myself and my wallet sliding deep down that rabbit hole with this hobby! Kind of wish I saved my money on some TSW DLCs now I also grabbed in the sale!
Sky + Cloud pack is an absolute gamechanger... I think this is the most important DLC in the history of TSC. When I see screenshots or videos of people, who don´t own those packs, I always have to think: "oh god, I could never go back to the default sky boxes". Here are some moody screenshots from my self built routes. Dusk and dawn just look stunning... better than TSW.
I have a TSC site which may be useful to you: https://sites.google.com/view/trainsimulatorcontent/home
I started off getting RW Enhancer and didn’t like it at all. I asked for help and somebody suggested getting the AP Weather and Signal Packs instead. For me they transform the game (I only play British routes). Soon after I got the Valenta HST and Class 50 packs and it’s been a slippery slope since then. I started making spreadsheets for what I needed for the scenarios I wanted to play and waiting for sales to get as much as I could. I really enjoy the AP enhanced rolling stock particularly some of the latest packs like the new HST’s. They are expensive but they are quality and if there is something wrong it gets fixed quickly. I’ve found the support to be excellent as well. A big positive for me is also that if a new feature is introduced, it is often retro fitted to older packs. They are the main reason I still find myself playing TSC far more than TSW.
Ive spent a bit of money this weekend but for my own personal enjoyment its been worth every $... To finish off on my spend (no more for now) I grabbed some DLCs in order to get the AT WCML missing link...OMG the run out of Liverpool Lime street even on an old engine is looking fantastic.. locked my FPS at 80 and besides some spikes here and there I have had a constant smile all weekend to how well it now looks and performs So looking forward to sinking my teeth into some long distance driving now!
This is what TSC players tried to explain over in the TSW forums back in the day. But we just got shoot down with all the usual: "no TSW is far superior, it has a timetable and the graphics are much better blabla". Your screenshot looks far more visualy pleasing to me than the overexposed experience, that is TSW. I really don´t like the direction TSW has been taking the past year, with really short commuter routes and uninspired "gameplay packs". I had high hopes when TSW first released many moons ago... but it kept drifting further in a very wrong direction over the years.
Yes sir, they are both avaidable for everyone to enjoy. First three pics is the second remaster of Hamburg-Hannover: https://railworks-austria.at/filebase/index.php?entry/15-hamburg-hannover-deluxe-remastered-v2023/ Last two pictures is called Harznetz 2000: https://rail-sim.de/forum/filebase/entry/10019-thn-harznetz2000-v1-1/ I worked on both projects with several other people from the German community and you will need a boatload of requirements to run them, as with most freeware. But unlike the remaster, Harznetz ist fully self created route with about 200 custom self made assets and it will be extended in the future.
