Going Overground (v.2) | The Goblin Discussion & Speculation Thread

I can't say I'm super keen to pay nearly £2 a mile of track haha. But if the scenery is sufficiently good, and the freight is done well on it, I'll likely pick it up.

 

Yeah I’m there with you, these low speed constant stopper runs aren’t really my thing, but there’s little I can do to resist such an urban line, plus I used to live in Walthamstow & have done a fair bit of engineering work in the area. Hopefully we get Freightliner stock with it.

 

Yeah if we get a Freightliner 66, and the yard with plenty of freight workings, I'll pick it up day one.

 

I'm sure there are multiple jokes involving goblin but none likely to be suitable for a PG forum

But in the context of the line, why is it named Goblin and is it an official thing or just something a random came up with in the 60s or whenever

 

Gospel Oak Barking Line.

 

The name ‘Goblin’ is just an amalgamation of Gospel Oak & Barking ‘Line’. No idea how it originated (probably came from TFL and just spread). I’ve heard them refer to it as various other things too such as the Gob.

 

Similar how Bedford to St Pancras became disparagingly referred to as the "BedPan" line in the late 70's when the Class 127 DMU's were on their last legs.

 

I'm getting a little tired of these stocking filler routes to be honest, this one is even shorter than bakerloo with way less stations and according to Trainline takes about 40 mins end to end so the price should hopefully reflect that, I'm expecting £25 because unlike Glossop Line this comes with a new train but would be pleasantly surprised if it was £20

I don't think it would be a route I would keep coming back to as I'm not a fan of Underground/Overground stuff but I'll give it a chance as long as it isn't £30

 

They could do an interesting legacy add on with this route, similar to the upcoming Centro 323- a Silverlink liveried 150.

Obviously whoever does it would have to remodel the front end, and hopefully fix at least some of the problems with Rivets 150 though.

 

We could totally do this with other routes

POB could become Blorp, NTP could be Manly (Manlee, bit of a stretch that one) or maybe Pickle (Pic Le) and so on

 

Freight wise, the diesel locomotive in the background is the blue Class 47. One would expect this will turn out to be the seriously over-used Class 66 upon release. Maybe they have the Class 70 as another surprise

 

They did in TSC, though you had to pay twice... but I would be stoked for a full North London Line with Goblin. I really enjoy the London Overground and Underground.

 

Yes, c2c introduced their 12 new Class 720 Aventras a couple of months ago, to supplement the fleet of Class 357 Electrostars.

As I've posted elsewhere in the Suggestions forum in recent months, the LTS route would be ideal for TSW4 as it's a complete route with a variety of landscape from the City of London (Fenchurch Street being just a 4-platform London terminus!) through East London, the Essex countryside and then beside the sea through Southend.

The dream for me would be a combined GOBLIN and LTS route, given the interchange at Barking, with AI-driven S7 Tube Stock between Upminster and Bromley-by-Bow where the lines run parallel. Failing that, GOBLIN first with AI-driven c2c Aventras, then an LTS route pack later. And then maybe one day a District/Hammersmith & City Tube line route with AI layers from both GOBLIN and LTS?

 

Oh I am aware. I just meant currently

 

About to refresh my recollection of the route in the TSC version, will report in later.

 

I must admit that I gave it a go last night & it is a little disappointing to come back and see the scope of the TSW rendition of it.

 

Scratch that as the 172 now seems to be bugged. Hitting "T" to open the doors now triggers an emergency brake application which can't be recovered from (1.9 bar left in the cylinders) and there are no interactive cab controls to use with the mouse.

 

Yeah that’s plagued it for a few years now. I usually run the AP150 on it (the DTG 172 is pretty poor).

 

What shines for me is it's location virtually in Central London (London postcodes and pretty central). This should give a unique feel to it as an urban route. Birmingham Cross City is not an urban route and this route through London is a significantly more urban environment. I'd like to see the hustle and bustle of the capital reproduced both in sights and sounds. TSC does this quite well with things like emergency vehicle sirens etc. It should look stunning at night in a pretty unique way. The EMU's themselves are state of the art and cool to ride in (literally thanks to the aircon), there are no guards so forget ticket checking. Besides most travelers have Oyster Cards. There are other places these units run too, not only in the wider environment around the Goblin Line, but also from Liverpool Street and Euston. Maybe they can be layered into further routes in the future if we are lucky enough to get an GEML for example.

 

Didn't expect to get the Goblin, somewhat short and similar to other commuter routes we've had recently in terms of gameplay, but if the price is right (£24.99, preferably with a pre-order discount like Glossop) I would be more inclined to purchase on day one. Don't mind the modern era as it differentiates it from the TSC equivalent with the inclusion of Barking Riverside. The Class 710 is also welcome, hopefully it can allow for more Aventra family EMUs in the future, such as a Class 730 for Birmingham Cross-City.

My only concern being the lack of other available stock to layer onto places where the line intersects with other lines such as at Barking, which could make an otherwise busy route in central London seem rather desolate. Echoing others, a freight locomotive would be a good accompaniment, such as a Freightliner 66 with some new wagons (e.g. FTA/FSA container wagons).

 

Gonna get it no matter what, cos barking riverside is very close to my local station,

 

We're slowly getting LTS!
This will mean East Ham Depot to Purfleet will be in TSW, when GOBLIN comes out.

Dear DTG, it seems a shame not to do the rest of the line now you've got some of it built!

 

Got it working, but as I recalled it really is a stop/start bus service. Never much more than a mile between stations. Not very fast either, extensive section only 30 MPH quite a few 20’s too. In short rather boring. DTG are going to need to come up with something special to make just the Goblin line itself appealing, even at a sale price.

Edit: And TBH if you've got the TSC version with NLL which actually looks very nice, you're not going to be rushing to get it in TSW. Like Glossop, a few runs in each direction and you'll be done, without the NLL to add variety.

What it does have going for it is a few short sharp gradient changes but the only challenge there with one handled train is braking early enough to not overspeed, which in TSW (unlike TSC) has no real penalty anyway.

 

So, one thing I've noticed is that 66587 (the bright pink ONE 66 from the delayed Rivet Engineering Express pack) is actually... a Freightliner loco. If the FL license has been sorted, there is a huge FL yard at one end of this route - could we finally be about to see a new Class 66 livery for the many, many freight runs?



(would also leave the door open for the G&W livery too)

 

I think you're forgetting that the Goblin has the brand new Aventra EMU whereas the Glossop just rehashed a unit already in the game. Also the Goblin has plenty of freight traffic, so not comparable really. Hopefully this as the pioneer unit in a new family of Aventra trains helps make up for it's admittedly short route, this time at least. Or maybe I'm just defending it because it's so local to me and on my photo!

 

I strongly suspect that the TSW version of 66587 will be stripped of any Freightliner branding the real loco might carry.

 

Yeah, but the train itself doesn't matter. It is still a modern EMU on a relatively short route, be it a 323 or 710.

 

If i may give my 2 pence.

The route itself feels like a last route for TSW4 unlike a first DTG TSW4 non base route with a similar-ish length to Glossop. However this is the entire Goblin Line set extremely modern so another London electric commuter route - atleast its OHLE to some extent rather then third rail.

For the (currently known) choice of rolling stock with the route you cant really do anything but the 710 without cutting out Riverside given that opened extremely recently. Personally I'd rather see a 172 set before Riverside but that's probably just me.

I'm guessing the price will be closer to say 19.99 pounds rather then the usual 29.99 given the length.

Given the route scenary will be mostly built up but hopefully DTG take a leaf from JT and make the scenary look absolutely gorgeous as if executed it could be a more built up beauty rather then rural.

To make peopleintrested it NEEDS atleast a new freight operator and preferably a new freight loco (albeit I'm fine with a new 66 livery at this point)

I'll have to wait for news before making my final decision however.

 

This route to me, seems like another IOW.

You know, a small, not very long route that is good to waste time on every now and then.

 

Tbh IOW2022 is probably rivets best work with the main drawbacks being Physics and not properly have liveries (albeit not really rivets fault to be fair livery wise). The modeling and scenary is very good.

Another IOW2022 like route would actually be a lot of fun - short, well modeled and fun to mess around with time to time.

 

Which sadly is another one handled EMU, seems to be a DTG speciality. No doubt whisper quiet and even if it does have a decent traction sound, DTG will probably botch them.

Perhaps I was hasty to dismiss the route as “boring”, limited perhaps a better adjective. However there would be more credence if DTG were to sell this as early access with a plan to eventually create a north London network with the NLL, WLL adding in the Bakerloo and rest of the DC line from Euston to Watford along with several new trains. That IMHO is the sort of vision DTG should be taking, but instead it will join Cathcart, BCC and all the other routes as a one hit wonder and after a few months left to fester in the pile of forgotten DLC.

 

Must admit I do enjoy Cathcart (despite the impossible timetable) and Glossop more than BCC (I think that routes run time is too long and I get bored)

The Goblin is the perfect run time, really.

 

Well if the TSC timetable with the 172 is accurate you really have to rag it to keep time.

Funnily enough I do like Cathcart especially the runs out to Newton or Neilston. The problem is that huge empty station at Glasgow Central which epitomises DTG’s lack of dynamic thinking when it comes to ongoing route development. As WSR is going to show, upgrades and extensions are possible if someone remembers to keep an uncooked master so this should have been the springboard for a wider Glasgow network.

Funny I feel the same about BCC. Not a huge fan of the 323 IRL which doesn’t help, but very samey and in this case end to end taking nearly 90 minutes. Another case where we need more than one save slot so you can return to your run after a few days doing other things. And again that big empty station at New Street which should be alive and bustling with trains from all corners of the UK. A complete waste of the hours that must have gone into making the model.

 

A North London network, as in TSC, would be awesome, but sadly I don't think they follow that sensible policy anymore. It seems all they want to do are relatively quick A to B routes with a sole EMU then move on, so in those aspects you are probably correct unfortunately.
But at least we have a new class of unit for the UK that brings not only a 710 for the first time in train simulation but also hopefully upgraded scenery in London.
What I like about UK releases is the sheer variety of paint-schemes in liveries, I for one am getting fed up to the back teeth with red German trains and shall not be buying any more..

 

I think the train is the whole point of the release. The scenery supports it. But I agree it is another quick A to B route which is not very deep in game play. I normally complain about these myself but I guess as I know it so well and like the unit, it just about passes my test on this occasion.

 

Not for me this one, maybe if it becomes part of a network I'll consider it later on and the 710 just reminds me of a modern tram (god I hate these modern "trains"), deffo not my kind of thing.

Would of purchased if set in 70's/80's and part of a bigger network.

 

It will very much depend on the selling price and factors such as the Class 710 sound. If DTG do a good job of that (!), the base selling price is £19.99 with 10% off for preorder then that might tip the balance. That or an assurance from the EP that this is indeed the first stage of a planned larger London network, either NLL/DC Line or as others have made a case for, the LT&S.

 

Whether I buy this one or not is going to depend very much on the freight content that is included.

 

I think there's a good point about the success of this route depending on the quality of the scenery. There are lots of views of famous London landmarks along the elevated sections, reservoirs, the River Thames, playing fields, marketplaces, busy London streets and a busy interchange at Barking. If the latter is done well with white/pink 710s in leiu of C2C's 720s and white/blue 387s in the place of 357s then it will feel incredibly more immersive than New Street in the Birmingham Cross City DLC. Throw in some freight services and I think it has the possibility of being a very good route.

I hope they get the nighttime glow over London right for this one, Birmingham looks like it's had a city-wide power cut at night.

 

On a lighter note can we speculate on some of the godawful puns they will come up with for achievements and scenario names?

The Noddy Goblin (ISTR they were the main protaganists in Mrs Blyton's stories, probably banned now).
King Goblin (from The Hobbit where Orc's were referred to as "goblins").
Hobgoblin - a type of bottled red ale.
Sneaky Goblin - the loot stealers in Clash Of Clans.

 

Fully expecting a few puns on "Barking" too.
One stop short of Barking. Gospel Oak to Woodgrange Park (engineering timetable)
Barking Spider ......no, maybe not that one.

 

Not sure if you live in London but ticket inspectors a very much a thing especially on lines that just have validators and not barriers, DLR, Tramlink saw some on the bus today too

 

Exactly. Without the freight component, it will be just another short, A-B single go-kart route, stopping twice at every corner. Expect a pitch black London at night missing some landmarks, just like BCC, Cathcart and Glossop.

Why DTG is choosing these " stocking stuffer " routes instead of something more substantial is probably a business decision, but this whole series of tedious " electrostar " routes lacking freshness and imagination is becoming very predictable.

I'm sure that there are far, far more interesting parts of the UK than this dreary section of North London which is probably best traversed underground while reading a magazine.

 

Perhaps “Barking Up the Wrong Tree”? Could be something along the lines of a low-hanging tree branch messing up the overhead lines or something.

 

I would say it’s probably going to be at £19.99 for the route, it’s about £13 for new trains, leaving about £7 left for the route, that’s with VAT, I’d say it isn’t bad at all tbh.

meaning with VAT on the per mileage payments front/breakdown it’s about 0.53p per mile

 

As an ex-londoner I can confirm.

Albeit I rarely see people actually check tickets within the fair zone outside of constantly on tramlink

Guards though are very much on every train.

 

As much as I'd like an Aventra. This is not the route for it. I really hope there is some new amazing feature everyone's been asking for with this like gaurd Mode or smth. Otherwise it's definitely not worth it.

 

Amen! I mean I’m not averse to short electric commuter routes with one handled train if it’s the right prototype. Not UK but last night I had a go on the UW Tokyo route in TSC. It’s an absolute blast as even on an all stations train you are getting up to 100 km/h or more between stops. You are in a multi track environment with trains seemingly whizzing past on all lines at regular intervals. Plus the train you are driving has an audible and well defined traction whine. I somehow doubt the Goblin Line in TSW will deliver any of that.

The only downer was, arriving at Ueno station the frame rate tanked but well, that’s TSC for you.

If DTG wanted to do a modern London orientated electric route they would have been better off doing the Metropolitan or District Line or part thereof.

 

Can't say I've ever seen 'ticket inspectors' on trains in London before.
You get the odd revenue enforcement officer, but they rarely count, certainly no guards on London Overground or EL.

As for the DLR, those are 'customer service agents' and are more responsible for operating the doors and sitting on their phones than they are actually checking tickets.
Of the ungodly amount of times I've used the DLR, I've been checked once..

 

Looking forward to this route for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I know this line very well indeed having lived in Wanstead for a long time, finally there is a route I know!
Secondly, the distance. This maybe contentious for some people, who seem to like services that are lengthy, but I have limited time to play and an end to end run of this duration is perfect!

Having said all of that, they may well mess it up completely, but let’s give them the benefit of the doubt!