When the next sale comes along, i am fully set on buying a passenger route based in the United States, and now i have both LIRR and Caltrain in my sights. Asking the community here, what are the merits of the 2 routes? Why should i consider one route over the other?
Well, the previous sale (May madness) is still active on the DTG website. So you have until June 8 to buy it there. Take advantage of. Personally, I prefer Peninsula Corridor, but its Baby bullet add-on is very necessary, it brings a lot of traffic and variety. By the way, the LOCO DLC is also on sale. Greetings.
Caltrain without a doubt, decent length end to end stations, great rolling stock and an extensive timetable if you get baby bullet and mp15, the shunter adds a lot of playability with varying services such as shunting, ballast runs, single engine run, adding a special service with a double f40 loco train (first you assemble it, run it to san fran then running empty back to depot and then splitting it up with the mp15) and you have the gp38 for some freight work. Cons of this route, i have 2 main issues (which hopefully adam's team will resolve) weird uv mapping lighting on the desk of the baby bullet and the gp38 its headlights don't cast any light, they shine but don't light up anything.
The good news is that whatever option you go for, you will get a really good route. And they both have variety, in different ways: - LIRR is passenger only, is metro style (although quite fast at times - 90mph maybe...), and the route has a network feel with two central terninii, with the main trunk of the route route heading out to a number of spurs. It also has two central stabling points, plus some decent depot working. And the trains are quite chilled out (M7 with the route, M3 as further DLC), and are easy to drive. The route also has a reasonable amount of AI, and you will get to enjoy some immersive runs, including genuinely decent scenarios. The route has just been given a refresh, with PIS, etc. So, more route options, but less trains. - San Fran/San Jose has a more express feel (max speed 79 mph...) with bi-level passenger cars. By default you get a lapped loco, and a cab car, plus the GP 38-2 for a small set of maintenance/freight services. And you get the Caltrain depot, with some interaction there, including washing facilities. Then there's the DLC DLC, which includes the lovely Baby Bullet (plus another cab car), and/or you could get the switcher/shunter DLC, which brings even more variety on top of the GP 38-2 (including some extra passengers services). There is only really one trunk route here though, so in summary, this one has less route options than LIRR, but it has many more trains (including four passenger cabs, a freight cab, and a switcher cab, if you buy all of the DLC). LOL - I would get both, plus all of the DLC for both..... ;-) (seriously, they are both very good)
I would go for Peninsula Corridor as well. I found the scenery to look good, it changes a few times along the way which is nice. You run massive locos that are quite challenging to master your breaking with. The baby bullet dlc is worth it just because the train drives differently, it is actually easier to stop with the baby bullet than with the f40. Best to me is though that the baby bullet cab looks like an airplane cockpit somewhat and it feels great to sit in there. Mp15 is absolutely a must buy if like shunting, you get a good amount of that plus extra services. And if you want to change it up a bit, the UP Gp38 is included in the route as well and let's you do some freight runs, which sometimes have interactive sections (in terms of that you might have to stop at a siding to drop some wagons ND then proceed). The route was not hit that hard with sound issues after the port to Tsw2, so that is also a plus. Overall I found few bugs only, but the biggest issue is, that there are some services when driving from San Jose back to to San Francisco in the control car, some ai trains block the entrance to SF. Which is absolutely frustrating given that it takes between 1 to 1 1/2 hours to get there. This is why I only ever do loco runs from SF to SJ, never had problems that way. Lirr is great, I like it alot and play it alot as well, but even with recent reserved crew focus, I feel you will get less enjoyment out of it compared to Peninsula Corridor.
I forgot to mention - if you can find a copy of TSW 2020 Deluxe on sale, that will include a copy of both LIRR and San Fran/San Jose.... plus NTP and MSB (both of which are also quite excellent in their own ways), plus GWE as the pack's base route, as shown here (although you should be able to find all of this for aboout £15, when on sale): https://store.steampowered.com/sub/377757/ LIRR is also included in the standard three-pack (currently about £10), although I would not recommend using the Dovetail Store (wait for a sale on Steam, or get a key from a reputable key supplier) https://store.dovetailgames.com/uk/product/571182/train-sim-world-2020 NB: You will get a TSW 2 version of a DLC if you buy TSW 2020 versions (assuming you also have the TSW 2020 base game licensed). Both of the above packs would work. There is also a Collector's edition - so do check out the options if you have time, and you want to save some money - here's an example for £19, including SFJ (Caltrain), LIRR, MSB, NTP, RSN, GWE and CSX HH: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Train-Sim-...2&sprefix=train+sim+wor;d+2020,aps,227&sr=8-1
Considering you are a new player, Caltrain with the F40PH (the loco given with the route for all passenger services) might be a bit of a learning curve considering the fact that the loco does not have self lapping brakes, this means the brake can't be set between 0 and 100% but you have an "apply" "hold" and "release" position so you if you want X pressure of braking force you have to put the handle to apply until you get to that pressure than you put it hold (I'm oversimplifiyng a bit if any F40PH Ace looks at this). The Baby Bullet loco DLC (MP36) does have easier brakes but it's 13.99€ LIRR is a pretty easy route, with some decent variety between medium/high-ish speed running (70/80mph) togheter with some slower more urban like sections. It has some faults (mainly ATC is a bit strange, the sounds are not top notch) and there is not as much traffic as you would expect from an extremely busy suburban DLC. All in all I'd say for a new player LIRR is the better option, it's decent enough and pretty fun to drive even if hasn't the same quality standards as newer releases. I've also heard that the M3 is quite a different experience from the M7 so if you ever decide to buy that some day you'll get some replay value as well.
Problem i have with lirr it feels quite dead, due to a problem with signaling they couldn't add more trains, if it was busier i'd probably play it a lot more
I gotta recommend the Peninsula Corridor here. The F40PH-2CAT can be a very enjoyable train to drive once you learn how to use the manually lapped brakes. The cab car is similar, and does a lot more shaking around. The GP38-2, while nothing fancy, brings some really good Union Pacific freight services, such as switching and dropping off hoppers. The passenger timetable has less variety than the LIRR, but there’s a great selection of local, limited, and Baby Bullet express services. If you have an hour and a half (average time for an on-time full stops service), a run on the Peninsula Corridor is definitely worth it, because it’s such a great route to speed through. I’d say it’s the better US passenger route in TSW.
Well i used the May Madness sale to buy this game and some initial DLC of course thus the rationale for planning for the next sale, which i'm anticipating to be the Steam Summer Sale (unless otherwise?)
Between this and SEHS's Class 375 and 465 (the Javelin maybe counts for when they run on the classic lines but i digress), what would be their differences overall seeing as they both are suburban commuter routes? (coincidentally lirr and sehs both are using third rail)
Peninsula Corridor with it's two DLC locomotives is the way to go, much more varied services than the LIRR in my opinion.
The route itself is not hugely different, on LIRR you get a bit more high speed running compared to SEHS's 465 and 375 services, the M7 performs better as well, having a bit higher acceleration and braking capabilities, making the route feel a bit faster overall (also max speed on LIRR is 80 vs 70 of the 465), in theory on SEHS you could go faster if you pick the Faversham services with the 375. The main difference is operating the M7 (which is a lot different from british rolling stock) and being in a different part of the world.
Wait for the next Steam sale and buy TSW2020 Deluxe Edition. Then you can have both (and a myriad of additional routes) for less than $20. That would be my recommendation. Cheers
Peninsula Corridor is rather boring in itself, despite the few freight runs. If you go that way, buy the switcher and baby bullet as well. Then you have a decent pack. I like LIRR, for reasons I do not really understand., but I did not buy the M3 DLC. It is just nice and feels more dynamic that Peninsula Corridor, probably because braking is much faster and it is more metro line. Both routes are nice but not a very high priority.
If I were you go for the Long Island Railroad because you have 80-90 mph sections that is Jamaica to Floral Park but the switch speed is wrong due to it being 15 mph in reality it's actually 80 mph. The downside to this is the Atlantic Terminal approach which is 5 mph but automatic speed control sees it as 15 mph. M7 speed control panel is also your brakes
I find Caltrain to become boring after a while. Its a long run from SF to San Jose. The advantage for me is used to live here and know the route pretty well. I've ridden LIRR a few times when visiting NYC but can't really claim to know it at all. From a driving perspective, I find the LIRR M7 a whole lot more fun. It accelerates and brakes really well - Caltrain is well, slow - both ways . I know people complain about the traffic on LIRR as its nowhere near reality but it is still pretty busy, you will see plenty of other trains. Turn on ATC and you get a whole lot of intensity that Caltrain just cannot generate for me. Drive hudless on LIRR with ATC turned on and its even more fun. Paul
Has to be Caltrain. Both routes are fairly busy commuter lines, however the Peninsula Corridor accomplishes the feeling of a busy line much better IMO, NY Penn for example is supposed to be this huge high traffic station, but there’s like one other train there usually, where as if you load into San Francisco or San Jose, there’s always 2/3 trains and then yours waiting. Peninsula Corridor also has better diversity of services, you can run commuter all stop runs, limited stop runs, or express runs and then even Freight, all with the base DLC, you can then choose to add in Shunting services with extra DLC, aswell as adding in another loco and cabcar for your passenger services. The 2 biggest advantages that PC has however, are the trains, and the fact that the route is self contained. When Comparing the F40 to the M7, the F40 sounds better, and has way more for you to do as a player, the brake system will seem complicated at first but you’ll get used to it, and it keeps you engaged, where as the M7 is a basic multiple unit combined power and brake lever. LIRR does offer end to end runs, but the main bulk of the services are not, where as on PC the majority of all your services are end station to end station, so you get to stay with your train. For me PC just gives you a much better sense of immersion, with great rolling stock and service options, whereas LIRR just feels empty and the trains aren’t very fun to drive, mostly because it’s straight line running followed by having to leave the train after so long because the full route isn’t there, all while having poor train sounds.
