PlayStation Dedicated Afb Buttons

Discussion in 'TSW General Discussion' started by Mattty May, Oct 24, 2020.

  1. Mattty May

    Mattty May Guest

    We definitely need dedicated AFB buttons on PlayStation. Buttons to turn on/off AFB and buttons to increase/decrease AFB target speed.

    Faffing with the screen on the ICE 3 and ICE 3M is too immersion breaking as it’s not easy to select the buttons on the MFD using the control pad and your eyes are off the view ahead for too long. Triggered PZB far too much on HMA today as my eyes were not looking ahead.

    This is my biggest gripe with TSW 2 at the moment. It really is spoiling things.
     
  2. forteanjo

    forteanjo Active Member

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    Might need to start mapping controls to a second controller at this rate!! :D
     
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  3. Maxrom

    Maxrom Active Member

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    It would be great if you could press and hold a button to lock your view to the MFD and then use the dpad to navigate the buttons and options. It would solve the super sensitive analogue sticks that make it a pain to select anything.
     
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  4. Slemcer

    Slemcer Well-Known Member

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    And when AFB is activated this may trigger a swap for the R1/R2 buttons, because you'd want to control the AFB speed with them rather than the normal throttle.

    DTG Natster Can this topic and the proposed methods please be forwarded to the development team to see if it's possible.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2020
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  5. Kobebeef

    Kobebeef Active Member

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    A keyboard helps
     
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  6. xblackwolf90

    xblackwolf90 Well-Known Member

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    I think it comes down to preference as to what buttons would be ideal.

    I'd personally rather keep the R1 and L1 buttons as over-braking would be difficult to correct, if you couldn't quickly release the brake. For me, I'd be happy with manually controlling the reverser, and having the up and down keys for AFB when active.

    Mappable buttons would be great. I think this has been mentioned on streams in the past, requires a UI artist and quite a bit of work, so not something I'll be expecting on the roadmap any time soon.
     
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  7. Lenwigg

    Lenwigg Well-Known Member

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    What are the buttons on a keyboard for this please?
     
  8. Railmaster

    Railmaster Well-Known Member

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    If you switch on the AFB on the DB BR-143, R1 / R2 is automatically connected to the AFB. So it wouldn't be a problem for DTG ... ;-)

    The keys depend on your keymap. Depends on your localization.
     
  9. Mattty May

    Mattty May Guest

    The throttle and AFB ideally need to be controlled by separate buttons. On the 143 the throttle leaver is AFB, but it doesn’t work exactly the same way as regular AFB.
     
  10. Lenwigg

    Lenwigg Well-Known Member

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    I am in the UK
     
  11. Lamplight

    Lamplight Well-Known Member

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    That‘s not exactly true. From what I picked up from documentaries and interviews over the years (as I‘m not a real train driver) you wouldn‘t use AFB for slowing down for example - especially for passenger trains - as it brakes quite hard. You‘d do that by braking manually.
    I‘m perfectly willing to be corrected if you have more real life information but from what I know you still very much want to control the throttle when you‘re using AFB.
     
  12. stujoy

    stujoy Well-Known Member

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    Throttle control is needed when AFB is used as you still control how much power you apply by the throttle, and you need to throttle down and up again after a stop. It’s not a good idea just to whack the throttle up to full power when starting off, so you need full throttle control.

    In the BR143 the AFB is the main control so is mapped to the controller but there’s a little control for the power percentage (essentially the throttle) which is handy but that has to be changed manually, like the similar control in the BR155.

    For everything else, a keyboard is used for AFB, R to increase F fo decrease and CTRL R to activate it.

    If AFB goes onto the controller, something else has to come off, so keyboard is going to remain the option for not looking at the control in the cab, methinks. The standard controls that relate to the most trains are what will remain on the controller by default. Some players will never use AFB. I hardly ever use it, as I prefer to control the speed manually, but there are people who don’t drive the German trains at all. So, it’s a tricky one, as it’s not universally used.

    Of course, fully mappable controller is the answer to all issues and preferences.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2020
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  13. Slemcer

    Slemcer Well-Known Member

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    I wasn't talking about swapping L1/L2 (used for the brakes) but only about R1/R2. You'd never use these for braking. And when AFB is activated the normal throttle will be at 100% anyway, or at least it should be. Slowing down will not be done by AFB alone, but it has to be set accordingly, the throttle remains untouched. At least this is how it works in the game. I'm not a train driver in RL, so someone with RL experience might correct me.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2020
  14. Lamplight

    Lamplight Well-Known Member

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    I‘ve been using a keyboard since the launch of TSW 2 (on PS4). Had to get one to activate the alerter in the AC4400CW but I mostly use it for German trains now. Having AFB and Sifa / PZB dedicated buttons is a true joy but I don‘t see how you could fit all that on a controller.

    You should put the throttle to 0 before applying brakes. And you do want to control the throttle position because it shouldn‘t always be at 100%. Passenger trains need to stop (as discussed). And you should not start again with the throttle at 100%. Freight trains might need to be manually controlled going uphill in which case you put the AFB higher than allowed and control the throttle manually. There are tons of instances in which you need manual control of the throttle while using AFB. Taking away the throttle control is not a good idea to my mind.
     
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  15. Slemcer

    Slemcer Well-Known Member

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    With AFB activated just this is not necessary, you'd have to do it without AFB though. Also during the start the power will be controlled by AFB and not by the throttle, otherwise AFB would be useless.
    I wouldn't want it to be taken away, but it had to be controlled manually and not via the controller. Maybe I wasn't quite clear before.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2020
  16. Lamplight

    Lamplight Well-Known Member

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    First off, I‘m talking about trying to drive as realistically as possible. Sure you technically don‘t need to put the throttle to zero to apply brakes (not even without AFB BTW) but would you do that in real life? I don‘t think so.
    AFB applies as much power as you allow it. If you put your AFB to 40 (while satnding still) and have the throttle on 100% then it will apply 100% power which you don‘t want. Only way around that (with throttle on 100%) would be to put AFB to 10, wait, then 20, wait, etc. at which point I‘d like to ask why you‘re not using the throttle in the first place?
    AFB is not supposed to drive the train for you (with rare exceptions like the Br 143). If so then we‘d already have autonomous trains guided by LZB. AFB is supposed to help you hold a speed like cruise control.

    Again I‘m not talking about what‘s strictly necessary in the game but about what you‘d do to drive realistically.
     
  17. Slemcer

    Slemcer Well-Known Member

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    I'd think the engineers that constructed AFB have found a solution for this. Again, if you'd have to control both (AFB and throttle) there wouldn't be any benefit. Keeping the speed steady is too small a task as to build AFB just for it. Maybe a RL train driver or railway engineer can shed some light on this.
     
  18. Lamplight

    Lamplight Well-Known Member

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    That is its purpose though. In an interview in a documentary I saw some years ago an engineer said that they usually just put AFB to what what PZB allows them (or the track if it’s always lower like RSN for example) and do everything else manually. In this case it‘s simply used as a safeguard against overspeeding.
    Keeping the same speed is far more difficult than one thinks. Remember that you don‘t have the ability to see the current acceleration and the exact gradient which you can see thanks to the HUD. Having a tool for keeping the same speed is a powerful aid in a real train.
     
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  19. Trainzdriver328

    Trainzdriver328 Active Member

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    I have a video on my YouTube channel that was a live stream. I drove the BR 143 based on the realistic control.
     
  20. OnlyMe1909

    OnlyMe1909 Well-Known Member

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    Controlling AFB target speed while not having to look away from the track ahead is probably the main reason why I still use the classic controls. I change the cursor into the moveable crosshairs, move them onto the AFB lever and that way I can change AFB speed by holding down x button and moving left stick up or down while still looking out the front window
     
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  21. Railmaster

    Railmaster Well-Known Member

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    It's not right or realistic like that.

    Whenever the maximum speed is not required, it is sufficient to set the throttle to 70-80%. This ensures a smoother start-up, especially and in terms of adhesion.

    In some locomotives it is also possible to adjust the ratio of the pulling and braking force. This is particularly useful when there are frequent changes in speed and gradients.

    In general, it is not absurd to set a starting speed of 100 km / h with AFB, but to regulate this gradually with the throttle. After all, AFB not only takes into account the acceleration via the throttle, but also any pull- / braking force that has been set. The throttle is only used to adjust to 70-80% or even 100% if maximum speed is required.

    This is how it is handled in practice and TSW depicts it quite well. It is therefore worth experimenting a little with these settings and finding the appropriate settings depending on the train, route and service.

    Either way is an ext. Keyboard recommended at TSW, it makes a lot easier. It's available for little money and makes using AFB more convenient.
     
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