As far as HSC goes, if the route is set within the past 5 or so years, then the yards at Altoona and Johnstown are shadows of what they once were. Most of the Altoona yards are overgrown with weeds and small trees with only enough track free to hold trains waiting crews and/or clearance to leave. I think there is some local switching remaining at Altoona outside of what happens in Junita shops.
When did NS get the first GEVOs? That could be 15+ years ago, right? So they could make them busier (not that I have high hopes for Skyhook).
It is in the process of being shut down, but currently still does work. The NS shops in Roanoke, VA have fully closed. The line itself is extremely busy with intermodals, mix freight and coal. They still have tank car trains with various things like oil. When I am sitting on the deck of the Bridgeview B&B watching the trains cross Rockville bridge which is near Harrisburg, PA, you can easily see up to 10 an hour at some times and will get 3 trains on the bridge at the same time. Not all of these head west from here but still 5+ an hours is common.
This is why HSC should be backdated as it is in TS Classic. Then we'd have some really interesting rolling stock and these yards would be active. Not to mention the opportunity for some iconic Pennsy steam down the road. I'm all for NS being in the game, but another route could be found say in the South or the old Nickel route in Indiana.
Nov. 2 News: -Now both Sherman Hill and Horseshoe Curve are in 'Upcoming' (expecting to see some first screenshots soon enough) OP updated to reflect today's roadmap
Indeed, it's been like nearly 2 months now that these two routes started off from 'in planning' on the roadmap (crazy timing indeed). Should be interesting to see how Sherman Hill is gonna look like in TSW2 (especially the locos). Horseshoe Curve is a little iffy to me after Cane Creek but well see nevertheless. (and after the roadmap stream, it seems that Sherman Hill was at the same on hold problem like the Class 313, though it was planned to be released back in March)
Judging by Sam and Adam’s comments, timings are the hardest thing for Dtg to pin down. Things appear to change schedules on a nearly daily basis
So for the sounds of Horseshoe Curve, Sean from Skyhook has confirmed the two horns to be used are the Nathan K5HLL instead of the K5LA that was requested for the GEVO. And the GP38-2 will have the Lesslie RS3L, meaning (what is confirmed by number range) that these Geeps will be Ex-Conrail/PC. So no High Hooded units (aka ex-SOU) this time, unfortunately.
I wasn't expecting them; that would require a significant rebuild of the existing models, not just a repaint. Besides, NS has been progressively cutting down those still in the roster (ex-SOU and ex-N&W both) However, I'm still holding out hope that sooner or later we'll get a high-nose GP7 for Clinchfield.
Why not add in Genset to both routes as DLC 2700s Union Pacific Norfolk Southern 300s. Later On Sand Patch CSX 1300s
After the cane creek plague filled mess i shutter to think what horseshoe curve with be like.Since i can't see skyhook getting this one right either.
In response to the OP, what on earth does "the pandemic" have to do with whether or not new DLC are produced, since this kind of work can easily be done on line?
Except for one part of that problem, Audio. As an example from the SD70ACe request from Matt (and the more infamous BR 187 from Skyhook). Or the Dash 8 they made last year that's technically reused from the AC44 (sounds and all), not to mention the F7 engine is just Kuju sounds remixed (and don't get me started with the CRR SD40 either). I'm not saying the Pandemic is a major problem, but it is only a fraction of it in some parts when making US locomotives so far by DTG (before Boston Sprinter).
And I thought this week was gonna have something US route-related in an article (nope, it was a G6 instead). But it seems someone managed to spy an ACe from yesterday's stream (I may have been late to the party for that. But, ah well). And it's confirmed that it'll be the first batch (8309-8423) of units with the high headlights on top of the window (ironically, the same model from TS1 as I predicted).
Nov. 15 News: And now, Sherman Hill has the first article about building the route from Derek Siddle himself. Not to also mention that the route is now available to wishlist on Steam. With a summary of what's included: -58 miles (93 km) from Cheyenne to Laramie (3rd track included, unknown) -The SD70ACe in Union Pacific Yellow (with the red safety stripe) -The SD40-2 in Union Pacific Yellow (Unknown as of yet) -and for the Rolling Stocks are: 60‘ Boxcars (Hi-Cubes), Reefers (Mechanical), Autoracks, 3-Bay Covered Hoppers, Tankers, Bethgon II Hoppers, and Gunderson Husky Stack Well Cars (With Branded Containers) The OP is updated slightly to reflect today's news. (and I can not wait to get it soon too)
Nov. 16 News: Yesterday's news was good, but today got even better. Sherman Hill is the next route to be released on 'Next Arrival' (with no release date, in case some are wondering) and will be shown on stream this Thursday (from RFTV Schedule) While Horseshoe Curve got downgraded to 'In Production' (Unexpected, but probably for the best at the moment). The OP got updated in light of today's news.
Well, today's roadmap stream was interesting. But not as much as the final bit, where it shows a full-on Intermodal train on Sherman Hill (4 ACes front - 100 Well Cars with mix and match containers - 2 ACes back). Meaning for the first time, 100 car trains are possible now. Whether that can be implemented for Gen 8 consoles (XB1 & PS4), hopefully, that can be answered from the preview stream this Thursday.
Frankly I hope the release date is not too soon after the preview stream. I’d like to think dtg will take time to review feedback before finalising the build.
Well, Skyhooks at it again. Not only they wanted the horns for the GEVO (Which is the K5HLL they're going for) from the community, but also the engine sounds for the GEVO too (again, NO Youtube Videos). Which is a good thing, since a V12 GEVO engine is very different from a V16 7FDL engine. But, this is still good in the right direction though.
I'm really glad the developers try involving the community in search for train audio sources. There is nothing to loose with it. At worst case they settle with the usual method of reusing sound from something else, but if they're lucky they get a good source and everyone is happy.
Crystal balls being gazed; slime shovels being sharpened. What a joy it must be to work as a DTG route creator.
Nov. 18th News: Today's article announces that next week (Nov. 25th) will be the release for Sherman Hill
Am I the only one thinking the ballast separating from the terrain looks really bad here? Aside from that, it looks great and promising.
No, you're not. This separation border has been a recurring issue on most routes since forever. I don't know if it's an artistic problem to do a realistic merge or just poor decision making but the effect often looks like a model railroad layout.
Pretty much, yeah. With a better ballast shape, or simply sinking the track more into the ground, it could look much better on all routes.Track very often don't stick out of the ground like that, they are in level with the rest of the surrounding. Though in this case, even a matching terrain texture would help by a lot.
Nov. 30th News: With Sherman Hill now behind us, it's time for the next focus of the next 2 US routes that are on the roadmap now; Horseshoe Curve & the new Harlem Line. Harlem Line (In Production) A well-known commuter line in New York operated by Metro-North from the Grand Central Terminal all the way to Wassaic. Now the two locos represented are of course Bombardier's & Budd's finest EMUs in the North East, the M7A and the M3A respectively (both reused from LIRR I'm betting). Now, this route is gonna be ended at North White Plains, which will roughly be at least 23 miles/38 km in length. But consider lucky that this is another US Passenger route that you people have been begging for a while now, so be glad for that (if not then that's your choice as well). And with the next add-ons releasing soon in December (G6 & RhB AC), it's safe to assume that both HSC & Harlem will be at least released next year for sure (Unless SteamDB has other tricks to be seen later on). (OP updated to reflect today's Roadmap)
Well I was hoping for a new US passanger line but not a reused "LIRR2" somewhere else... LIRR is so broken and dead (both the trains and the route)... I was hoping for at least something like a Genesis P40 or something like that.
While not in relation to TSW, but today DTG is finally gonna be re-releasing some BNSF add-ons on TS1 to the rest of the world again (no more unbranded for the non-US folks anymore). Which now begs the question of will we finally see some official BNSF orange into TSW? Who knows for sure at this point (might be a while for that to happen), but we'll see indeed. Update: On today's preview stream (Dec. 9th), Matt confirms that this license also implies to TSW as well. But there's nothing in the pipeline at the moment, so it's gonna be a little while to see a BNSF route for consideration in the near future.
This is fantastic! However, since DTG usually has to get an operator license on a per-game basis, it's unlikely that we will get any BNSF content in TSW any time soon. If their licensing department can work that same magic twice, then I think we'll start seeing some orange appearing in TSW. I'm looking forward to what will be done with this new agreement. Cheers
Well that's true, but if they managed to get them to give worldwide licence for the TS products instead of the US only ones, then I suppose it's not unimaginable that they will be able to get licence for TSW as well. I mean this definitely means they are still in good terms with them and are communicating with each other, so likely they could get new licences as well.
I agree, I do think they will be able to get a TSW license as well, I just don't know how long that timeline will be. Cheers