Not that I’m excited for it, as are lots of people as this game seems to be on the downhill recently, but despite that we will still be getting 3 new routes this summer and there isn’t much concrete evidence for what any of them could be. Tsw5 was easier to predict; it seemed that WCML south was the only uk route that would’ve been done thanks to the demand, an ICE-T had been highly requested, and been put in a route out of Frankfurt, another popular choice, and we already knew about San Bernardino before tsw5. But I genuinely can’t think of any routes that I’m certain will be in tsw5, but I think they will be: Metropolitan Line: Aldgate- Uxbridge and Watford, S8 stock Hamburg S3: Neugraben- Pinneberg, DB BR 474 US: not a clue. Genuinely no idea and I’ll be surprised if we even get one
Some speculate a GWR route as that license is back in play. Personally, I'm hoping for more ECML - Ncl to Yrk specifically
For the UK, it has got to be something GWR now they got the licence back, probably with an IET. It doesn't look like they will extend on Paddington to Reading so as previously discussed favourite could be something like Swindon to Bristol TM and Cardiff (including Filton Bank), or given the TfW stuff in Cardiff Networks could layer in, maybe Bristol Parkway to Swansea. Germany - well we just got a commuter route with Frankfurt S-Bahn so possibly something more Inter City. Hamburg to Hannover perhaps (though fairly boring in TSC) though the grail would be something around, out of or through Berlin. North America is a bit of a grey area, maybe something scenic like the Moffat Road from Denver up to Granby but that's a wild card.
GEML and SWML are yet to be in game so I reckon one of the two will make an appearance this year. Greater Anglia and SWR are coming under the DfT this year, with SWR being imminent. Thinking over it I feel like DTG will seize the chance to include SWR in TSW, it seems like a popular request in the suggestions section of the forums. It works quite nicely for DTG as well if they are pursuing it - the 450 is essentially a DC only 350 so all they really need to do it slightly modify the cab, remove the pantograph, modify the underframe and redo the interior. I'm assuming that the 350 and 450 have pretty much the same performance on DC so that saves them time on doing the physics (as I believe they have included DC physics on the 350, haven't driven it on DC though so I can't say). This gives then the great opportunity to model the 444, which (apart from being longer than the 450) is slightly thinner than the 450 so may need a modified cab. This also gives us the awesome opportunity to finally get all the 455 subclasses in game!!! With the rollout of the 701s starting to pick up the pace, the 455s don't have long left - IIRC the lease for the 455s has been extended to 2028 but SWR/DfT only need to give 1 months notice to remove a 455 from service and retire them when needed. I think now would be a better time than ever to finally include the 455s in-game, as to my knowledge no Southern 455s have survived. They could use the AP sounds, which has the bonus of having different recording for different sub-classes. If I had to hazard a guess where DTG would run the route (based on last year's WCML:South), it would be Waterloo to Woking, maybe pushing it to Guildford if lucky. I hope if they make the route they would also include the commuter lines, it would provide some nice playability.
I fear that you may be correct. We may be looking at the end of an era. And to think that TSW launched with a US route. But there's no room for sentiment in DTG's current business plan. ( my added emphasis )
I personally think the SWML would be a great choice but not from Waterloo. I think we've seen the game struggle enough with large terminus and few signs of that improving. Plus it would need to show part of the BML which would no doubt look empty, making for a poor comparison to the original route in the game. Rather, I think a route from Woking to bournemouth would work much better, allowing for a variation of services to Southampton and Basingstoke. Plus, for the future, woking to waterloo has some branches that would still make it a route worth doing on its own, or they could make a portsmouth direct line with it instead. I think a backdated route with slamdoors would be the icing on the cake and make it truly stand out, but modern era would be great aswell.
I truly hope to see some more US content, and I’m very hopeful NJ Transit/Amtrak will be the focus as they have the rights (seemingly so anyway) for their use. I could also see New Haven being a possibility along with maybe DC/Baltimore but of course that’s a stretch as they would need to create MARC content: but NJ transit lines are often NJ Transit only other than NE Corridor so that may not be as good as say New Haven which could use MTA and Amtrak. Also a highly requested route would be Surfliner.
My money would be the Great Eastern Main Line/Greater Anglia for the UK Core route. It will run from Liverpool Street to Colchester featuring the Class 720 and 745. Class 710's will represent London Overground AI traffic at Liverpool Street alongside additional Class 720's and 745's for West Anglia Main Line AI traffic (Liverpool Street will be very busy!). Class 345's for Elizabeth Line services will be sold separately as a DLC featuring a run from Stratford and Shenfield. The reason why I'm placing this bet is for the following reasons: 1. We as of currently don't have an East Anglian Route. This one will be the first step and having Greater Anglia featured in the game will not only kick start representation, but also opening up further opportunities for future route development. 2. JT releasing the Class 86 can pave way for the loco to be part a rail tour add on, bit somewhat like Flying Scotsman on the ECML. I believe these locos formally used to run on the line forming intercity services between Liverpool Street and Norwich.
My guess for the UK route is the Riviera Line... Sadly though, I reckon DTG will waste this route and take the less interesting option of setting it in current day with trains commonly seen on other areas of the network... that's not a true Western experience. Steam set in the days of the real GWR or BR Western Region Hydraulics are the best options, Western route with proper Western stock. Though BR Blue era with a Class 50 would be perfectly acceptable too. I imagine the UK route will be a Rivet Games production disguised as a DTG product, like WCML South and Cardiff. For Germany, I'd like to see a TSW Hamburg - Hannover. For US, another historical freight route like Clinchfield is long overdue, but I really don't see that happening.
Im always in for Hamburg but i think if the Sbahn would be in a core route then it probably be either Hamburg to Kiel with the Sbahn lines in between or Hamburg to either Hannover or Bremen with the lines in this direction. The complete S3 is not possible atm because of the city tunnel and the effort to light bake it being too high. I think you can tell why i wish for a 474.
My prediction for Germany: Stuttgart-Ulm including Schnellfahrstrecke Wendlingen-Ulm. With ICE 4 and Vectron in ELL livery with the fast regional cars. Layers include ICE, IC, and TGV services. Why? Don't know, but could be as well as any other route.
I’ve not a clue for US and Germany but my guess for UK is either Plymouth to Exeter with a cucumber or if gen 8 is finally dropped then ECMLS with a 91.
I wonder if the question about route sizes on the most recent (or one before that) survey could be an indicator. I could see this being the first release with two slightly more substantial routes closer to Frankfurt S-Bahn in size (probably UK and Austria/Germany), as opposed to three 'smaller' ones.
For me its simple…GEML. Why? Look at the other routes already in the game….a fair few are routes that the EP has a connection to. GEML is the last remaining one…
UK. Something around the Plymouth area I feel. US. Some boring freight heavy route. Or Chicago metro. Germany. Surely has to be somewhere around Berlin.
UK: Probably GWR route as the license has been renewed German : I don't know the country well enough to predict a route. US: We don't even hear about the US anymore (except the Santa Fe gameplay pack recently), I doubt a little there will be a core route there, who knows, another country will take its place. Anyway, in my personal case, I'm not a fan of the US route except LIRR and Peninsula Corridor
Didn't we already have a thread somewhere about this? Anyway, they'll either take advantage of the renewed GWR license, or one of the TOCs that is to be nationalised. Probably.
Shouldn't this thread be rather called 'guess' instead of 'prediction'? Because there isn't a single clue out there what the routes could be. So it could be literally any route. Doesn't sound like something you could base a prediction on.
Being told about the GWE license seems pretty innocent at first, but perhaps it’s to loosely hint at the next core route, and therefore quell the anticipation that could lead to another leak again. Is May typically a time that a license is sought, if a route has already been decided upon for a late summer release? Does the timing align with the development of a possible GWR route? If so, then there’s only one ‘must have’ for the modern GWR, with maybe a Bristol, Bath, Weston, Severn Beach, Newport and Cardiff network-style option being something I’d like to see!
Like i said i would be completely ok with unbranded US routes its opens the Door to so much, like METRA
I'd be (pleasantly) surprised if we got Woking to Bournemouth. We only got Southampton to Bournemouth in TSC (extended to Eastleigh if counting the JT WESSEX route), how long would that be mileage wise? I share your sentiment on the slammers though, they would be an absolute dream to drive (and we finally get a good set of 4VEP/CIGs).
For the US, I personally am hoping for either the New Haven Line or Hudson Line of the Metro North Railroad. Or even another NJT line or LIRR branch featuring the diesels/dual modes
Given what DTG has said a few times in the past the US route is kind of doesn't have any signs of what it could be, just what it probably wont be. -Not US freight, no access to locos from Class 1's plus they don't sell well to the general player base. There was mention of CSX in Florida awhile ago IIRC, but I doubt it. -Not vintage, again no reliable access for recording equipment at the correct speeds, not to mention the extra work DTG would have to do to set the scenery in the correct era. -Not Southern California, with the last 3 core routes being based in SoCal (Cajon, Antelope and San Bernardino) I believe it was stated from Matt they wanted to take a break from the area for now, so I don't see a 4th in a row core route from that area. -Not Northeast, like above, I think DTG waned to take a break from that area too. Basically you really cant predict anything for the US at this point, there is not really enough going on to point in a certain direction. Granted DTG could pull out a new license from someone and that can be it (Like how they pulled the Metrolink License out of nowhere for AVL), but we really cant make guesses for that at this point.
One handle to rule them all. Electrified, dull, wrong sounds, Class 66 and a Hollywood produced marketing spin movie full of camera angles and 000.5 millisecond shots of the actual product......
At this point, I would not be surprised if there were a US route as a core, if there were more in the future. Otherwise, it would be pointless to have a core route in a different country that feels pretty similar to UK or German routes, which would mostly involve passengers, honestly. Though as Killer said, what it is is pretty much unpredictable to guess with all the limitations that DTG has to work with these days, and it ain't gonna get any better by the looks of it.
My German dream Route would take us back to Dresden, but this time in the other direction, to Bad Schandau, Schöna, and if DTG wants it that way, maybe even to Decin in the Czech Republic. It's a beautiful Route, and in some places, even comparable to the Linke Rheinstrecke.
Yes, like those “Paradise” detective shows on BBC, we need a whiteboard with what we do know rather than it turning into a wishlist. Well over arching we know from what Matt said in another thread, the survey results and pressure from the bean counters means that modern is “in” and classic or historical is “out”. They’re not going to break that paradigm for the three keynote releases of the year. For the UK. Well as mentioned the rapprochement with GWR is a fairly key indicator. There has been no indication the moratorium on south of England third rail routes has been lifted. It is probably too early for DTG to approach the fledgling “GBR” renationalised organisation as regards its operations. Routes with significant underground portions or sub surface stations are off the menu due to light baking complexity. Europe or more specifically Germany is the hardest to predict. We know the DB licence is still sound and it’s also possible DTG might want to make further use of the OBB licence. SBB for main line Switzerland remains dead which leaves the possibility of a RhB route but even something like the Albula Line maybe not iconic enough for the “big one”. SNCF and France also remain dead so nothing to expect from there. Another Dutch route? I would say no as work on the big three likely to have started before Zwolle etc. released and they wouldn’t bet the farm on an unknown quantity. No indication at this time DTG have approached any other countries such as Czech Republic, Poland etc. USA (assuming Canada out out of the question). Well we know the big freight railroads while most are happy to licence, they are not prepared to grant close up access for research. They still have the Metrolink, MBTA, LIRR, Metro North and Amtrak passenger licences they could exploit, on a route with freight as an afterthought. However, the audience might not take kindly to a Metrolink route three years in a row. LIRR brings the baggage of mandatory safety systems. MBTA not long had the Worcester route. Which leaves Metro North and Amtrak. All a bit abstract but perhaps sets more of a groundwork on which to base the guesses rather than wild speculation!
A route with ten miles of track and two trains going past several construction diggers on a straight track. Just to be safe.
Apparently it works out to be around 70 miles with full length journey times being around 1 hour 23 mins. A long route for sure, but definitely within the realms of possibility especially without a main terminus.
Thinking about how the TSW5 routes got revealed, I wonder if the next JT route will be revealed at the inevitable Dovetail direct as well? WCML Shap’s reveal overshadowed WCML South. They really should’ve just made Shap the core route in retrospect, it was the more interesting of the two and the better product. JT has more than earned to have the spotlight route for a TSW title. Whatever BR experience they do next will definitely be more interesting than what modern tedium DTG are making anyway
I doubt it because Wendlingen-Ulm uses ETCS and I am pretty sure at this stage DTG is not wiling to implement an entirely new safety system. For a long time I thought SFS Köln-Rhein/Main given its popularity was the call but since DTG have reaffirmed a few times in the preview streams of S-Bahn Frankfurt they will not revisit Frankfurt (Hbf at least) before the performance issues have been solved. Only possibility I see is that they make the route but only to the Fernbahnhof (which would be a shame because the Hbf is a much better terminus). Realistically now I expect a route around Berlin or Hamburg but whichever it is I expect (and hope) that it includes the ICE 4
I hoping for 50% of the Stourbridge Town branch........................starting from Town station, of course, to simplify the track modelling
For UK, I'm going a GWR route too, probably Cardiff to Newport lol, though wouldn't mind Bristol > Swansea or Bristol > Reading, Riviera line would be nice though
We already have etcs (albeit a very bad version) in tsw, and dovetail made ATB recently so there’s no reason they can’t make another system. Besides, many railways are going to transition to etcs over the next few years so it’s inevitable that we get it at some point
Well a comprehensive TTTE package including an Isle Of Sodor route would actually have a broader appeal than what we got already. But I don’t see DTG having the brass nerve to make it the keynote TSW6 UK route release. And yes, I haven’t bought TTTE nor will I be buying the reskin pack, just as I’m being much more selective in what I buy for the game going forward, for reasons I’ve stated elsewhere.
I can only guess the UK route as I don't know enough about other countries to have a guess but I think UK: St Pancras to Bedford. An outside bet admittedly but I can see them doing it, featuring the EMT HST and 222. With a 387 providing local services.
For UK routes I expect a modern GWR route - maybe something like Swindon to Cardiff / Bristol with 800s - tied in to the Railway 200 celebrations. I think a new JT route will follow as first DLC, possibly an ECML route with 1990s Class 91 sets given the very high demand for these.
Also don’t forget to predict what the “secondary” DLC might be. Last year for Germany it was the Flixtrain Vectron and green coaches. UK it was the Class 390 Pendolino. USA, er nothing. But you either had to buy the Deluxe package to get them bundled or buy separately to get the full experience of the new routes. So going with my earlier GWR prediction, the supplemental train most likely to be a Class 165 particularly if set around the Bristol area. Germany, couldn’t really say. Anyhow I bet DTG Matt is having a quiet chuckle over his morning coffee that all the guesses are completely wide of the mark…
UK: ECML South: London Kings Cross to Peterborough (with help from Johannes Hartmann and Rivet Games) Germany: Munich to Nuremberg USA: Washington DC to Baltimore Deluxe Addition offerings: Class 91 and BR 420
Delighted if Johannes is involved. If RG are involved, I do hope more care is taken this time and bugs are promptly fixed - if this bit gets trashed, I'd be very frustrated. Probably their involvement may make it a wait and see rather than day 1 purchase
