There's also what else comes with these engines. The James deluxe adds milk & tar wagons, his own timetable and 4 James stories. I think each engine carries their own popularity ranking better than others, they all will have an audience and depends on what is offered. If we get one for Fergus and another for Billy, more will get Fergus. Depends what comes with them too, like if you have to get an engine you're not keen on just for a unique rolling stock that's been bundled with them (e.g. Belle with Water Tankers).
Honestly, I completely agree. I’d much rather see 2–3 genuinely substantial DLCs a year than have Dovetail rush content out just to meet a quota. If this really is an in-house project with no third-party teams available to help, then 4–6 months per DLC sounds completely reasonable. But at the same time, they absolutely cannot let it become one DLC a year. After everything we’ve already waited through, that would kill whatever momentum and excitement the game has left. Two solid DLCs a year feels like the bare minimum for keeping the community engaged while still giving the team enough time to deliver quality content.
TSW's expansions come in at £20 to £30 for a route plus a couple of locomotives depending on the length of the route. WoS will almost certainly follow the same pricing model so I wouldn't get your hopes up otherwise. It already has done in terms of the James expansion which matches TSW's single locomotive add ons.
It's true, I would pay to see my classic heros. Because that is why I bought the game in the first place: the first dozen, diesel, boco, daisy, mavis, .... And off course for the main line, thomas his branchline, brendham docks, the sheds, the quarry. That's what is triggering us for months, right???
This may seem like a minor issue, but I’ve noticed that the tenders often bounce up and down while you’re traveling down the line. It’s pretty insignificant compared to some of the bigger issues I’d like to see fixed, but it still affects the overall realism. If Dovetail wants to emphasize realism in the game, I think details like tender movement should be addressed too. It may be a small thing, but those little details can make a big difference.
I understand the comparison, and I agree that WoS will probably follow Dovetail’s established DLC model. My concern isn’t that paid DLC exists—it’s whether the amount of content actually justifies the price. If a £20–30 expansion comes with a substantial route and multiple engines, that’s reasonable. But if we’re paying that much for a small branch line and only one or two characters, I think people are justified in questioning the value.
Have to say, I never noticed minor bouncing in the tender because every time I tried a scenario on it, my entire loco bounced off the tracks midway through the run and I had to start over. Never did manage to successfully complete one without this happening within the steam refund window...
Absolutely. That’s the heart of the frustration. We’re willing to pay for DLC when it brings the classic characters and locations we bought the game for in the first place. The main dozen, Diesel, BoCo, Daisy, Mavis, the main line, Thomas’ Branch Line, Brendam Docks, the sheds, the quarry—that’s the Sodor experience people were expecting. I think the uproar wouldn't be this intense if these core characters were in the base game to begin with. The problem isn’t necessarily that DLC costs money; it’s that the core game still feels incomplete months after launch, while we’ve been left waiting in silence. That’s what has been triggering the community for months.
I don't have that experience at all. It feels like it's what was promised for the price promised. I never expected the "whole world of Sodor" in the first release. It'll remain to be seen whether future DLC will be worth their costs. But tha'ts true of everything.
That’s fair, and I understand where you’re coming from. I think the difference is that I personally expected more of the core Sodor experience at launch—not the entire island, but at least a few more branch lines, characters, and major locations. I’m completely fine paying for DLC if it’s substantial and actually worth the price. I just hope Dovetail understands that a lot of fans expected a stronger foundation for the $50 we paid. WE DO NOT NEED A WONDERS OF SODOR 2, DOVETAIL!
I don't mind them bouncing a little when travelling, however I've also noticed them continuing to bounce once stopped at stations which is a little out of the ordinary...
I don’t want much… only 9 extra characters and a branch line included in the base game We got the game I expected from the initial launch trailer followed up by the weekly character reveals with exactly the same characters I expected, yes I’d rather Edward and Henry over Emily and the Brendan branch would have been nice but I’m not furious over it because I understand it’s dovetail’s business model to add them at a later date as dlc
unlike TSW I don’t see them making wonders of Sodor an annual release, they don’t have enough dev teams to bring out sufficient content to support that
I think it would be quite bad optics if they did they would annoy a lot of people. Different audience remember.
In my personal and unimportant opinion, they don't need to make an anual game. I think dovetail can make more dlcs and make this "little" wonder of Sodor continue to be better than ever. They could add lines, engines, stories, shuntings, locations, collectables, music, rolling stock, easter eggs, timetables, maybe even different gamemodes... There are still tons of possibilities for everyone. The foundation has been laid, and upgrades are not endless but still there is a lot to be done until satisfaction is brought to the hearts of these fans and players. Maybe the end of august could bring that magical feeling back that we all had the first time we entered the Wonders of Sodor. With the things we initialy had the 6 engines, the 2 lines, the sheds, stories, timetables, etc, we had a great start of what could become the heaven of Sodor. But it will come with patience, sheer will and desire and a price
I will be honest here. I think that compared to the older console games that covered Thomas and Friends that I played on the SNES and the N64 (the latter if I remember right). This is by far the best Thomas and Friends game I have played and I have the James DLC. I love this game and to be honest. I think that its up to Mattel/Hasbro to decide what DTG are permitted to do with future releases but if anyone from Mattel/Hasbro are reading this forum for feedback/suggestions for new characters is this. The logical steps would be in this order and depending on if these DLC's would be packs or individuals which could be. Edward and Henry, This would take care of the legacy locomotives and would allow both to work on mainline freight and passenger duties like from the original 1984 series as developed by Britt Alcroft. Also scenarios based on various episodes from the TV series from the models to the CGI era. Toby and Duck, Toby with Henrietta could allow for light passenger workings and for Toby to work at the Ffarquhar Quarry and could include some scenarios where Toby gets yelled at from the policeman from that episode. Duck could be introduced with the western route expansion that would allow Oliver to be added later. Donald and Douglas, That would add more freight traffic into the timetable and as more traffic is added into the game with more characters. I would like to see free roam reworked where there is trains in the map already that we could ride as a passenger or on the footplate with the AI driver. Rebecca, Being Engine 22, Rebecca could add another Express layer into the timetable as well as doing her own scenarios based on the TV series. That would also increase the frequency of the express trains to one per hour instead of every two hours. Oliver, He could do freight and work alongside Duck. Bill and Ben, These could work at the quarry at Ffarquhar and work alongside Toby, Diesel as well as James and Henry, Daisy, Mavis and Boco, These could be added into the traffic as well as have their own story missions. Arry and Bert. Technically these could be reworked from the Diesel model with a new livery and new faces to represent them. These would be allocated to the steelworks. Rosie, Hiro, Nia, Bear, Diesel 10, Diesel 40 etc that could be covered in future packs along with their own stories and would be added into the timetable mode in the traffic in their own workings etc. Looking forward to the next update and I say, keep up the great work on this game. I love it!
Adding little things for lower cost to add gradually would sell better than larger chunks for a higher price tag. For example adding 3 locos one at a time vs 3 in a "pack." You can offer the pack later as a "deal" but the entry cost is lower for each one and you're not "stuck" with characters you don't like. A deal where you have to buy ones you didn't ask for isn't a "deal." It also gives you 4 chances to market instead of one.(Five if they link to a route DLC)
That's rather counter to how other games do it, most games focus on a season pass (Which often the whole pack is cheaper than a TSW route DLC), with the options to buy separate items being a secondary focus. Even in games that don't do that there's usually larger expansions which are the big sellers. ETS2's country expansions or Cities Skyline expansions being the obvious examples. With smaller, cosmetic only DLC being done in between that sells really only to the hardcore players. Smaller does not inherently equal better sellers, and a lot of the more casual crowd that have been exposed to this and not TSW aren't going to expect the TSW DLC model. Legitimately doing singular expansions every few months with four or so characters and a 10 mile branch for $20 or so is probably the smarter play. And honestly even that might still bounce off casual players. $20's a lot for one small chunk of a game, cheaper and more content filled the packs, the more likely average people will buy into it.
