Medway Valley Line Discussion Thread

Fair enough. I guess it's not up to 3P's to break the modern mold. It's up to DTG to set the expectations.

JT has a long and established pedigree in train simming and they can go their own way. Firefly and other newer devs are more fragile and have to establish themselves in the market.
So my criticism of route and traction choice is aimed squarely at DTG and not a fledgling group like yours. Good luck with your first route. It wouldn't hurt me to buy it and support your effort, even though it's not my thing.

 

This overuse of the word 'bus route' gets tiresome after a while... Cardiff Valley is a bus route not just in terms of stops but also the 'Pacer' being semi related to the Leyland National! And to an extent Cathcart Circle on the circular service. But routes like this? Nah. Not really a bus route at all.

Exciting times though, looking forward to this very much! I've been craving the 375/6 for quite some time. The 375/9 was always a bit of a bad choice, and is probably the worst of the 375 fleet in terms of seating and layout. Also nice to have the Adtranz style 1st Gen Electrostar headlights to add some variety for us EMU anoraks! I also really appreciate the team reaching out to the community and taking time to explain in detail about texturing and reassurance in general.

 

Well, I count about 14 stops in 26 miles. It's kinda the definition of a " bus stop " route. But that term is descriptive rather than a denigration. It's just what it is, especially coupled with an emu with a myopia inducing windshield, stopping twice at every corner.

But it's what people like yourself want and I guess that's reason enough to make another one. As I've said I might buy it just to support those guys, but if it's anything like that stop- start section of SEHS, I won't be playing it much.

 

The second one ruined performance and second did anyone actually want it updated?

 

Here's a link to the current timetable...

Table 3b

Very much clockface and it does look as if most services call at all stations. However there are one or two slightly longer sections to get a bit of speed up.

 

I think it averages out at a stopping pattern of every 4 minutes, but several of them are every 3 minutes. It’s definitely no express route but considering a prevailing line speed of 70mph I would agree it’s not a full on community bus service.

I do also think that many of us ask for better variety in content & whilst it doesn’t tick that box in many areas, it does move away from the constant AC express content the UK has been getting a lot of lately.

 

It's a fun drive, and it's a good route for doing conductor mode. It's also a good route to sit and be a passenger. You'll be able to explore around some of the stations on foot, and find some hidden things. It also makes use of Cargoline 1 and 2 for freight, including aggregates unloading at Allington Sidings. Fair ammount of RHTT services as well.

 

Ah, there's a good idea. Ill be able to use my peripheral vision then.

The mention of freight always brings a gleam to my eye.

I'm starting to warm a bit to this route.

 

I think after the last release everyone should do the same really

 

I see a lot of people complaining about the lack of routes from the 'BR ERA'. I think it's silly to complain about that, considering there is a decent amount of it currently. Also getting material for stock thats not used anymore is very difficult. What I'd love to see is UK content from the early 2000s or late 90s. I'd love to see some loco Hauled trains especially any with DVTs. Like maybe GA, LNER or Chiltern.

 

As a developer, and as a player. I would always suggest to make informed decisions when it comes to purchases. Always get as much information as possible.

 

I'm very excited for this route and am looking forward to the inevitable detailed article on the Dovetail site. Personally I prefer more urban routes, but the fact that the authors of the enhancement packs we see on the modding website are the creators means this will be a certified banger. Of course I won't pre order until more information is available considering the track laying disaster the Mildmay Line ended up being, so I am approaching this with caution, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited by this announcement and am way more optimistic.



On another note, could we please not do the predictable bashing every time we see a modern route being announced. It's always the same characters with the same synonyms being thrown around. Plastic, bus driver, and of course the usual, "why not BR." It's tiring, depressing to read, and has nothing to do with the route being discussed. Go save your money for the annual JustTrains releases or the mountain of classic German routes available.

 

I remember the excitement for this in TSC, even though I’m not local, it’s a lovely little line. So the reproduction in TSW, especially with the team behind it should be excellent!

 

What would a 2025 TT introduce? Stock is pretty much the same as when that timetable was set. Same liveries too. Unless you mean a full scenery upgrade, then I fully agree. SEHS is lowkey one of my favourite routes from a gameplay POV. Hopefully DTG will be bothered to sub in the new 375 subclasses though.

I'd love to see a 2012 TT though, as we'd be able to use the P1 and P4 and HS1 would be extremely busy (2012 Olympic traffic).

 

THANK YOU FOR SAYING THIS. I’m sick of people saying this. Since when were bus-stop routes a bad thing. It’s just a different kind of route, I unfortunately can’t play ECML because of the great distances between stops and boring scenery, and by the looks of it, both of the BR WCML routes would make me feel the same.

 

I was meaning that with Medway being set with a 2025 TT, if SEHS can match this so services on a route hop will mirror with the two DLCs connecting.. This way one can run a single service across two DLCs...

 

Network Southeast or Connex would be absolutely sublime.

 

Having lived in Paddock Wood, Yalding and Maidstone I have to agree

 

IC225 DLC for Peterborough to Doncaster is way overdue at this point

 

good luck with the release but not an area I can say I get excited about not something I will jump to buy as not my type of route BUT if it pulls off well and has no issues then I will gladly purchase to support a new developers first release…….. just don’t release with blurry textures for your first route

 

Couldn’t agree more. There is a post earlier from Jetwash, which, he states is his personal opinion, that for me is potentially ringing alarms bells for the console guys. I hope I’m proved wrong however as I have a lot of respect for the team behind Firefly. Time will tell.

 

Definitely going to buy this cant help thinking though it looks like the Train Simulator version of Mead-way Explorer re-packaged

 

Oh yeah good point. It would be nice to transition smoothly between the two. Who knows, maybe Firefly are in the process of making a 465/0 and /1 to bundle a 2025 TT for SEHS like AABS are doing with the 805 (I'm on hopium)

 

Currently our texture streaming pool usage is well within the boundaries of even the Series S, which is what causes texturing blurring. Performance on the route is good, it's running better than SEHS is. On the preview stream we will be showing it in clear weather, and at night so people can see how good the night lighting looks as well.

 

Just to be clear, referring to a route as “bus stop” type may be slightly irreverent but not necessarily disparaging. It simply describes the type of service pattern to expect. Doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad.

 

Excellent Fawx. Good to see third party developers not shying away from showcasing their routes in all its glory. I wish you and your team every success fella.

 

As a Series S user, this is good to hear

 

That's really good to hear thankyou Fawx!
I'm glad that it's something you guys have been so aware of in the grand scheme. I know how seriously you and the others take your content and it shows even in the early screenshots!

Wishing you guys all the best with this one! TSW definitely needs it Can't wait to see that night lighting either!

 

Don’t know the area at all, but anything adjacent to SEHS is fine by me. Looking forward to this one.

 

its all well and good saying that HOWEVER the proof is in the actual route being PLAYED on a series S.

 

Why’s it ringing alarm bells? It says, and was intended to infer, the total opposite!

As I said, and as Fawx has reiterated, testing thus far shows we are well within the streaming pool limit set for consoles, including the Series S.

 

I wish it came with a better section of the ECML. That is probably one of the most boring sections

 

Has this been tested on an ACTUALY SERIES S though genuine question

 

Xbox testing doesn't happen until just before release, and there is nothing we can do about that. It's not up to us.
It runs well on PC hardware that is equivalent to the Series S, and that is all that we can test for now.

 

Ok so you cant be 100 percent sure that this will run well on a Series S until it is actually on a release build so console players should still be cautious giving recent issues with consoles then. A console processes things differently to a pc.

I seriously hope though you have a smooth release and wish you all well.

 

People have an inalienable right to criticise developers' content choices. " Bashing " is your word.

Sounds like you're " bashing " ECML because it's not a bus stop route.

All very confusing, but we all have a right to voice our opinion. If you guys don't like criticism, you have a right to make a hard pass.

 

Simply because punters have heard it time & again mate with different dlc’s. I have nothing but admiration for you & the rest of the team but the proof of the pudding is in the eating!
I know that what I’m about to say is not really an option but it would be good if on the preview stream one run could be shown on console & another showcased on a PC with graphics turned up to max. That way everyone can manage their expectations. Just a thought!

 

…there’s the alarm bell….you cannot be certain until you see it run on the appropriate hardware! Simulation can only…well…simulate!

 

and if they are sitting here saying what they are saying and the opposite happens then there reputation is damaged on the first release and people will be reluctant to buy from them again. They really need to just stop this claim just now until it is actually TESTED ON A CONSOLE

 

Hate to be a negative nancy... but.. Its definitely a bold strategy to come out and say it will run great on a series S..

When it wasn't actually tested on a series S.. or X.. or PS5

Birmingham to Crewe was ment to run brilliant too..
Was "tested" and passed QA
Then were very quick to highlight how it wasnt actually tested on either console.. just on a PC.. so 'they didnt know how bad it was'

DtG still tell us "they don't know what causes blurry textures"
But a 3rd party does..and has solved it..


weve always been told CCTV would be "to resorse heavy.. won't happen" .. again 3rd party.. has working CCTV..

Either this one third party team is about to prove DTGs incompetence... or this will be another B2C day 1..

(granted i have 0 idea who you guys are as im fresh in the forums.. but from what i can work out in this thread.. the team make mods for PC and the community seems to have faith) So that is definitely reassuring..

genuinely good luck Devs!! I hope you make me eat my words when this comes out!!

 

I didn’t, but apparently people wanted the extension to Leipzig as quoted by Matt during the preview stream.

 

I seriously don’t remember seeing a single suggestion for it and stuff like bml or NTP would have been better for a update

 

I for one am looking forward to this route greatly! With a team of respected modders at the helm, things seem positive and the screenshots are great.

Like everyone, as a console user I do worry before routes come out that actually the performance turns out to be poor in practise, but I really hope this turns out to be wrong in this case!