As somebody who doesn’t have a huge amount of time, I have now reached the point where I have far more content for the game than I will ever have the opportunity to play. I was thinking about what I personally want from the game going forward. For myself that is more routes set in the past, as I feel the railways, irrespective of which country, were a far more interesting place then. Also I prefer as much realism as possible, whether that is things like correct sounds, engine rooms or busy station yards which make good use of all available layers. Additionally, while simple A to B routes have their place in the game, routes with additional branch lines, freight yards, places to explore and just general variety really appeal to me. While I do not necessarily dislike the dreaded ‘one handed emu’, it is getting boring when that is all a lot of the routes have to offer. On a more positive note though, I do understand that a lot of people really enjoy them and there is nothing wrong with that. TSW is meant to be for everyone and if modern emus sell well, that brings in much needed money for developers which can help to improve the game for all of us, which is obviously a big positive. My favourite period is BR Blue, though I definitely would not complain at a bit of NSE, especially if it came with a Class 50! Obviously there have been endless discussions on here about how BR Blue doesn’t sell and things like engine rooms are too expensive and time consuming to make but these are the things that are important to me. I have decided that for me personally, going forward, instead of picking up endless routes in sales that I will probably never play I will try and support the developers (including DTG) that make the content I really want. While I am only one person, and I don’t know how much my individual purchases count, I am going to try and buy content I really want on Day 1 and hope my money will help and encourage developers to make more of the content I really want. Obviously not everyone can afford to do this but I am lucky that I am now in a position financially where I can afford to do this. Also by not wasting money on routes that I don’t really want in sales, I have more money available for Day 1 purchases. My list of Day 1 purchases so far and planned purchases is as follows : Simtrack Studios - Class 323 expansion pack While I know there was grumbling about the price of this pack I simply wanted to give Simtrack a bit of money to encourage them and help get started. I looked at this as basically a donation. And also because I am really excited for : Simtrack Studios - Class 104 Just Trains - Blackpool Branches I don’t think any explanation is needed for that one! Personally at the moment, they are the developer that most excites me and I want to support the most. TSG - Class 218 A proper loco and a diesel one at that. We absolutely need more locos like this in the game! TSG - Class 101 Expert Again a proper loco. While this doesn’t excite me as much as the Class 218, I enjoy as much realism as possible in the game, so want to to support our first expert level loco. Also it will keep me going until someone decides to make an expert level BR Class 56! DTG - Class 380 While this is a one handle EMU I liked this because it helps to add layers to existing routes. The main reason I bought it though was to thank DTG for the Cathcart Remaster. Anything I can do to encourage DTG to remaster routes and help keep them up to date is important to me. I don’t want to be controversial but I know a lot of people, including myself, were upset that you could only play Blackpool Branches if you had TSW4. I wanted to support Just Trains but only had TSW3. I however discovered it was possible to go into the Xbox store directly (not from within the game) and purchase Blackpool Branches even though I did not have TSW4. As I knew I would eventually purchase TSW4 I bought this and the Class 323 pack before I owned TSW4 to support the two developers. I appreciate not everybody can afford to follow my approach but I just wanted to share it.
such thing as DTG Germany doesn't exist, you mean Train Sim Germany (TSG) who is an entirely different developer, making 3rd party content for TSW.
Unfortunately DTG seems to prefer modern trains and routes above vintage, apparently it’s down to the console generation. I don’t know what the sales figures are for each route, I’d of thought Blackpool sold very well, or maybe it’s just that modern stuff is all samey and easy to do, more cost effective.
So we've gone from blaming consoles for short routes to blames consoles and its players for the abundance of modern trains? Where’s really going on is clearly modern content is much more appealing to the wider TSW audience, obviously a mixture of content is what we on the forums all want but there’s nothing we can do if DTG say the vast majority of people prefer modern stock, they’re gonna make what gets them the most money and what the majority of people enjoy and that unfortunately means less diesels and locos and more EMUs.
[QUOTE="Trainiac, post: 861857, member: 11794"Where’s really going on is clearly modern content is much more appealing to the wider TSW audience, obviously a mixture of content is what we on the forums all want but there’s nothing we can do if DTG say the vast majority of people prefer modern stock, they’re gonna make what gets them the most money and what the majority of people enjoy and that unfortunately means less diesels and locos and more EMUs.[/QUOTE] I think you are probably right Trainiac and there is nothing wrong with people enjoying modern content. I enjoy some of the modern stuff myself. I just feel if I want more of the content I really enjoy then I need to put my money where my mouth is and support the developers who do make locos and period stock/ routes. Luckily with more third party developers joining TSW hopefully we will all be able to enjoy more of the trains/ content that appeals to us.
I think that people are generally more likely to like the trains they're familiar with, there's a certain novelty to being able to drive the trains you usually ride or see regularly at crossings or stations near where you live. There's also a certain niche of exoticism to say, steam, which we all grew up with media featuring, but which was for many of us long since phased out by the time we were able to appreciate trains, though it featured heavily no doubt in many of our childhood train sets and storybooks. Those of us old enough to remember the older BR era, or the likes of German diesels or classic US stuff like the F7 will find those routes a draw for the nostalgia factor, but likely, as with steam, it's niche enough that it pales next to the people looking at the "oh, neat" factor of driving on the same routes and rolling stock they commute on. I know when I stream for friends, that's always the biggest draw, with my Scottish friends being super into Fife Circle, and some of my continental friends having German routes they have a fondness for due to having regularly used those stations.
Well it’s fairly obvious really if you compare the TS catalogue with the TSW one - loads of vintage stuff regularly released on TS. Console players don’t have access to TS (thank goodness!). It’s DTG themselves that blame poor TSW vintage and steam loco sales on players buying habits. So what other conclusion is there?
By that logic, console players are the only reason we have a game with full timetables (thank goodness!).
Sorry but it's nothing to do with my logic, it's what Matt and others at DTG have said on streams; that vintage routes and steam don't sell well on TSW. I'll leave you to work out the difference in buyers platforms use between TS and TSW. There is only one logical conclusion, like it or not.
TS only shipping with 6 or 7 scenarios for a £20 route was one of the reasons I stopped playing it. I hated the excuse of "You can make your own content" that seemed to be an exscuse for not supplying more.
A lot of users on this forum wouldn’t support this as they clearly prefer to wait for a sale. I can’t point fingers though, as I tend to purchase new routes 50% of the time (Day one). UK routes are an instant purchase, German 50/50 and Us routes I rarely buy day one. Haven’t even bought the upgraded LIRR yet.
Consoles have absolutely nothing to do with the decision behind more modern stock being developed. Regardless of the platform, be it PC or Xbox or whatever, people want to see what is most familiar to them, as others have said. Whilst there are TSW players of a slightly older nature who grew up during British Rail Era, Video games, particularly one of this nature tend to appeal considerably more to a younger audience, which obviously that means more interest in modern content. Those “Console Players” you place the blame on are not responsible, and comparing TSW to TS Classic is also irrelevant. TS Classic has been out significantly longer, and there are also a lot more Third Party developers for TS Classic providing much more variety than there is currently for TSW.
Whether something is a Day One purchase is very subjective. A TSW West Highland or Kyle Line set in the 70's with a Class 26 or 27 would have me camped outside DTG Towers, never mind Day One. As would a 1980's Bergenbahn or Andalsnes branch or something 1960's NYC upstate in the Adirondacks. Even a 1970's North London Line with Broad Street and Class 501's would stir my juices. But sadly with the honourable exception of the DB Class 218, most recent releases for TSW are wait for a sale, if at all in the case of Rivetjunk.
Surely you would prefer West Highland with 156 and full PIS over the challenge of 1 27 on the down Sleeper in the Autumn. The 218 hasn't half made me wish as much attention was paid to BR diesels. The 37 needs looking at Sounds and shape are slightly off imo. But the ROG one was the last incarnation of the engine that gets all generations of enthusiasts excited en masse
UK stuff I'll often buy one day one, but the Centro liveried 323 and Suffragette line I didn't buy for weeks as they didn't appeal to me.
I've long ago realized that I can no longer expect anything in my wheelhouse from DTG. I will have to rely on 3rd party content for anything other than very modern plastic toy trains. As for US/NA content, who knows where that will come from, if it comes at all. The only thing on the far horizon is HIS, which could be 1 or 2 years away. I don't see any day one purchases in my future, unless JT or Simtrack comes through with some older stock or something miraculous happens with NTP, TVL or SPG.
Unfortunately, though, if this future content is locked behind successive versions of TSW, then supporting those projects Day 1 could become harder. Based on Blackpool Branches, I'd have no issue supporting JT's next project. But I'm not buying TSW5 (or 6) at anything close to full price just to play JT's next route. At some point, I think TSW will be forced to move to the TSC model of yearly free core updates (unless the way consoles work is standing in the way of that), because surely it doesn't benefit the third-party devs to have their projects fragmented over several different (and separate) iterations of the game?
Nah, should they do the WHL, DTG will create one of those bland Class 73 conversions which sound like a butterfly fluttering its wings!
I wouldn’t mind a Class 92 to pull the sleepers, though obviously that wouldn’t be much use for the West Highland. If it was modern day though, an MTU Class 73 would be infinitely preferable to the GB Railfreight Class 66 they would probably try to give us!
Going back in terms of the original post on this thread - whether I buy something on release day entirely depends. I mean for the large part, the DLC doesn’t actually go anywhere so there’s no particular rush to buy it as soon as. Aside from pre-ordering TSW4 which was the first time I have preordered anything, the only DLC I can think of off the top of my head that I have bought on release day is the Class 380. I honestly don’t think “Day 1 Purchases” actually mean anything. In my opinion all those numbers / statistics show is the anticipation for a certain product. The total number of sales over a period of time is more likely to have an impact on content DTG decide to develop in the future
Unless seriously discounted, previous experiences with DLC released by DTG full of bugs have led me to abstain from day one purchases. I'll rather let the gullible with large pockets take the risk and participate in quarelling here with the developers over whether it is a bug or rather a feature ....
I disagree. Anticipation of a product is a very large part of game development. In fact, anticipation puts the A in LAMPOIL for DTG, and I wouldn't be surprised if immediate purchases played a significant part in what future content DTG makes.
Perhaps it is, and does DTG take Steam Refunds into account? I've refunded many a full price purchase in the past when some more QA oriented first day buyers discovered major bugs and defects in DTG's latest all dancing, all flying, ultra realistic locomotive or trainset. Nowadays, a DLC's lifecycle is such most will be discounted within 6 months after release. A game studio wants to earn their accumulated costs back within a fortnight from Day 0, I believe is the business' practice. Any trickle full price sales after that period add to the coffers. Whether profits are still made at 50% or more discount? Some ill fated DLC won't even sell at 90% off to go by the frequency it appears in the sales.
Before purchasing I often check dlc on YouTube for issues, used to be easier years ago when they did the streams on console, now I can’t trust preview streams due to the differences in PC version and Console, preview streams are now for gameplay finding outs only.
Two possibilities. 1) DTG do take it into account 2) DTG don't have the data, so can't take it into account (Steam may not pay them until after the refund window passes)
I used to buy on day one but nowadays I only ever buy in sales. That is purely down to my thought process being that if DTG can't be bothered to release a product in it's best possible shape then I can't be bothered to pay full price and I am by no means a "rivet counter"
yea I often divide between good and poor, if i found it good (minimum bugs aswell) worth the price I’d pick it up then. not naming names but dlc that came through like they’ve never been seen by a reasonable eye get put on the list of see if they improve in a couple of months or pretend they never released
