So, Dovetail have announced a new 'game' that is in fact just a standalone DLC bundle for Train Simulator. Why? They're talking about how realistic it is in the Dovetail Live article (I thought Train Sim World was their flagship) yet it includes Settle to Carlisle (I'm still waiting for a fix for the headlights on the Class 158)... I don't see the need to hype it up at all. I can barely understand why it exists at all. The last TV show you could think of that requires a video game adaptation is Great British Railway Journeys!
i could understand people that like British railway would buy that. if dtg looking at tv shows to make train bundles i guess discovery channel mighty trains is next lol. oh and for that comment on headlights on the Class 158 sorry to say but it won't get fixed....
It isn't a bad thing to have more collections of routes available - they're a useful way for people to get routes at a relative discount. But the choice of routes seems pretty arbitrary and I'm not sure who the branding is going to sell to. (What follows is uninformed speculation from someone who hasn't actually watched the program, so could be completely wrong). Settle-Carlisle seems like a suitable choice of route, but is really pretty dated by now. If they'd used it as an excuse to give it an update I could have seen the point. London-Portsmouth I could just about believe might have been featured as a interesting journey. Maybe. London-Peterborough I could believe being skimmed over at the start of an episode. I quite like the TS route, but beyond King's Cross it's hardly the most scenic bit of the east coast mainline. And the other two seem like the TS routes are fine, but I can't believe they're a journey that'd be televised. It seems like one of the Riviera line versions and Fort-William to Mallaig (which I know is 3rd party, so probably couldn't be included) might have been more fitting choices. ------------ I guess the point might be to find out if the branding does help it sell. Sometimes you probably just have to try to see if there's a market, and if there isn't they won't do it again.
Settle-Carlisle is an older route but it has worn well- I do think it just sort of peters out at the southern end. I suppose the idea was to have routes that look fairly contemporary otherwise The Weardale and Teesdale seems like an obvious inclusion. There simply isn't a purpose built modern railway with a longer history.
I really don't understand that logic with the route choice. Sure the ECML is historic but it isn't a real "journey." The Medway Valley Line is a good route but it isn't a particularly scenic one. I know 3rd party routes wouldn't work out too well for this one, but if I chose the routes it would be Ft. William-Mallaig, Original Woodhead Line, Riviera Line in the 50s, GEML (which is already included) and either South Wales Coastal (just for some Welsh stuff) or the Wherry Lines. I have no idea if the routes I listed were featured on the show, but the routes DTG chose may have some history but certainly don't facilitate the grand, sweeping journeys that I'd think of with a title like "Great British Railway Journeys."
I really love Great British Railway Journeys, however I don't see much point in purchasing this bundle unless it comes with a discount for the routes that I already own... I hope that's the case otherwise it's really poor value.
I doubt they'll discount it. If they sell it for like $30 and you don't have all the routes it's a steal though.
One more thought on this: people are generally pretty scathing about tie-in games when it turns out they're just re-packaged old content with little link to product it's tied to. If I was a fan of the TV series, hadn't played Train Sim before, and bought this, then I think I'd feel pretty unimpressed to get five barely-related routes where the only link to the series was the picture on the cover. Unless there's something in there beyond what the description says, I wonder if it's just going to lead to people feeling ripped-off/misled, which may be worse than not selling it at all.
In my view the TV series is very good actually. It is not just about the scenery - it is about the impact of the railways and more, so I doubt this 'game' would cover that. What I do not know is is it a stand alone game or a DLC bundle?
Well, that was answered from twitter saying; "This is both a standalone game and a bundle offer. If you already own Train Simulator any routes from this you don't own will be added to your collection there to use as well."
I really don't think this will bring anything new to the table to I'll have to agree with you on the whole "unimpressive" thing.
A lot depends on what is actually delivered. If it's just a set of standard TS routes it will fall very flat for existing owners like us, though it may bring in others that DTG haven't sold to yet. If it does properly tie in with the series it could be attractive to me. New career scenarios that recreate the journeys actually filmed would be good. The inclusion of a new Michael Portillo and TV crew scenery objects would be neat and also add interest to any new scenarios. Lastly, since the actual show is as much a travel show as it is about railways the inclusion of facts along the way, or even photos/video clips of the sites to see along the routes would be relevant and interest me. Finally, the Settle and Carlisle is to my mind the single most important and relevant route to include, as it was Michael Portillo when he was Minister of State for Transport who stopped British Rail closing it back in the 90s. I've read that he's more proud of that than anything else in his political life.
I actually think that you lot are missing the point I would suspect that DTG is doing this to entice new people who don't own TS2020 into the game. I didn't watch the series as to me it was more to do with the area and it's surroundings than to do with trains. I prefer the train journeys that Chris Tarrant did. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Tarrant:_Extreme_Railways
DTG are trying to get people OUT of Train Simulator! They're breaking their own policies at this point...
I actually agree with you on that. They give it less attention in favor in TSW, so it seems like they're trying to kill it. To be fair though, 3rd party developers will keep it alive anyway.
Every time you stop at a station you have to watch a clip of Portillo getting off the train and saying "My Bradshaw Guide"
From what I gather from the manual images and how it is a seperate SteamID it is scaled down version of the full Train Simulator 2020. It lacks Workshop support, DTG Live integration, an in-game store, no 'build' menu and features a different colour style UI. It almost feels like a 'beginner' Train Simulator version which is locked down. I gather that this version is going to be linked to the different DLC of TS2020 or not being linked at all and the routes mentioned included in the game itself and people can 'upgrade' to the full TS2020 later on for a reduced price. As for player who doesn't have those routes, it will 'detect' TS2020 and just adds the relevant DLC into the steam account. It can be a good starting point for people who don't have it and are only interested in these routes. But DTG could have done it the same way as with the 'Count of Monster Disco', that is also a 'standalone' version of the game with only the Academy and that route. The menu could be changed with a 'overlay' DLC (remember the TS2016 Overlay DLC, which is now a empty depot). DTG could then bring back those older menu's from TS2014, TS2015 as an option. I still miss that gray version of TS2015, was so much better.
Was that the menu that just had a grey background with the logo? I never got that (unless it was in the settings and I missed it)...
So it came out, and despite being a dumbed-down version of Train Simulator, it's £35! I do have a light sense of 'what were they thinking?'
I mean if you already own TS and you're just buying this as a bundle it's actually a good deal but if you're buying it standalone it's kinda silly. If this game's really dumbed down then there's basically no reason to buy it. Do we know what exactly is different?