What's The Next Big Thing Tsw2 Offers Up

Nothing I'd like more. Perhaps you can have a word with DTG and ask them why they still haven't released the fixes and upgrades to the preserved routes?

I share your view although he might be talking about co-op. I think Multiplayer will be abused, look at those flight sim videos with people causing chaos. I'd like to see a guard on the older Trains and you could get buzzed after the all clear.

 

Complain with your wallet!
Not with forum posts.
Not with change.org petitions.
Not with hopium addiction.
With your $$$.

Don't buy anything from them until they fix what they've already made.

 

As Matt has explained, more than once, the current Dispatcher simply cannot cope with random events. Hell, right now it can barely (if that) keep up with a scripted timetable. It would have to become vastly smarter to deal with re-pathing on the fly- the equivalent of a fish suddenly attaining dolphin-level intelligence.

 

I do exactly that. I haven't touch the game in months. I did pick up the 313 for £2.99 but that is all. There are some people that have abandoned TSW2 and gone back to TS1. Maybe more people will do the same I'm not sure.

I disagree with 'Not with forum posts'. How else do you get the word out? Forums are not just for people with brown noses.

 

Multiplayer seems to be misunderstood. In flight sims the real value of multiplayer is the inclusion of real-time weather injection and extensions to allow enthusiasts to act as air traffic control, following ATC directions, as in real life, in real time and with other aircraft interacting with the same ATC. In TSW2 the only equivalent would be train control/despatch, not interaction with other drivers/trains and without major improvements to the Despatcher this will not happen. Also, those situations in flight sim are possible because the more open systems in the sims allow 3rd party extensions and plugins, something we are unlikely to see in TSW2.

 

What happend with hardware (throttle) devices support? It's rather silent on that topic.

 

For me, the most valuable feature would be AI horn/whistle additions. Horns for crossings, direction changes, air brake release. This will make the game world much more lively, and exciting. Currently, we are lacking so much of what makes a railroad (Not just the individual train) exciting.

 

This !
Far more than multiplayer a more lively world with ai horning like hell when you attend at a station and they pass you at high speed

 

Really? wow that is crazy, i didn't remember hearing TrainSim-Matt saying this?

 

Well preservation team is investment. They dont do direct sales but make me/us buy old routes or not. They are pretty important IMO for new players.

 

They are important for us as players since we tend to like fixes and improvements. The preserved crew's effect on sales is minimal if at all present, I'd wager.

 

Direct sales, but thats makes opinion about company better and so on.

simulations tend to be long term hobbies, people are OK for spend time and invest some money in something they belive in, something that has a future.

If DTG would say us, OK guys, we release routes but take them as they are, they will be no improvments or port to New version of the game i would never had buy those older routes...

 

I think now the tilting mechanic has been established and our first Steam route on the horizon, I can foresee these 2 in particular getting alot of focus for future content.

 

I couldn't agree more. If the older routes are not as good then when new players come along and say "Can anyone recommend a route".... on here or Facebook etc people will only tell you what to avoid. Whereas if they are all good, people will recommend and it will generate more revenue you'd like to think of of Adam's team efforts.

 

That's called BUSINESS.
BUSINESS is competitive.
"We had better buy substandard product or else they will go out of business" is not BUSINESS.
If a company fails to deliver, they go out of business.
And another will come and fill the void.
It seems like there's a great deal of you on here who think Train Simulators are an essential service.
I promise you, you will live if they stop making add-ons.

 

The 3rd party devs literally said so much to customer's faces.
"we are not fixing LOVE"

 

You have a very romanticized view of business. Generally the winners are not the ones who make the best products, but the ones who do the best job of convincing customers to buy their stuff even if it's LOVE.

Why do you think Microsoft is worth more than a small nation's GDP?

 

• Monorail
• Maglev
• Anthropomorphised Locomotives

 

Good choices and for a monorail DTG should do the Wuppertal Monorail system parts are in RRO.

 

As long as Ringo Starr does the voiceovers for route introduction, training and scenarios! Did you want to also add a rotund, grumpy railway manager?

 

After spending a bit of time in the new version of Run 8 the last couple of evenings, I would push for joined up routes instead of little jigsaw pieces as a priority. Nothing quite like jumping in an Intermodal at Seligman and knowing you can drive for 400 miles or thereabouts to Bakersfield or LA. The save game works (unlike TSW) and now R8 has “Otto” you don’t need to do the despatching either. Very relaxing.

 

I thought we already had enough of those here on the discussion forums :P

 

if it's monorails I want these two:-

 

Me too! How good is that Run8 and will it expand it's routes to other countries?

 

Run8 is another kettle of fish compared to TSW or TSClassic - it simulates a railway not a route - graphical it is back in MSTS days and more representative of Zusi 3. Very little hand-holding is provided to learn the systems and the control layout for key assignment is a doosey. V3 final has an automatic dispatcher so you do not have to do both dispatching and running your consist. There are nothing like scenarios or tutorials. While they have expanded from the Southwest US and have the CSX A-line Florida/Georgia and CSX Selkirk yard and Mowhawk sub in New York. I doubt they would ever be doing anything other than US routes and most of those are extension to the existing rail networks all ready represented.

Run8 is really more of a railway operations simulations where you can drive trains. I have just started to scratch the surface of Run8 - the learning curve is very steep but from watching YouTube videos it can be extremely realistic. Many other more accomplished Run8 users would better be able to provide insight sine I am still learning tons even with my 9 months in the simulation.

 

Strange thing is though, it's actually easier to set the locos up in Run 8 using the quick start box, as the MU and Cut Out wotsits we have to faff about with in TSW aren't featured. There have been a few graphical improvements in V.3 but nothing remarkable, though the new weather effects are quite good. The main appeal as I mentioned above is once you buy all the route sections, it's over 400 miles from Seligman to Bakersfield or LA and if you buy the last add on from Bakersfield to Fresno probably over 500 miles of continuous railroad.

The save game actually works although you still have to restart from a standstill and now in addition call up and re-engage Otto to handle the despatching. He actually seems to be doing a fair job and might even be a little dynamic, unlike the fixed paths you follow in TSW. gameplay is what you make of it. If you want scenarios where your tasks are proscribed and can only be done in the set order, then TSW will provide. If you want a bit more freedom to indulge whatever aspect of US railroading fascinates you - run an intermodal, operate a local and do some switching the world is yours to play with.

I can see me jumping around between both games depending on what particular challenge I want, well with the exception of Sherman which was a complete waste of money until they fix the optimisation.

 

These are defiantly the best monorails ever

 

I'm unsure about monorails. I hear those things are awfully loud.

 

There's also a chance the track could bend

 

Don't worry, DTG will be doing the sounds

 

It will be difficult to have tutorials narrated by Leonard Nimoy.

anyway, i'd like to have new developments and features to make the experience more imersive. AI beeing able to play horns in key events or even handle high and low headlights would be something. random events and dinamic/real life weather (msfs like) would also be very nice features.

 

*"Real life, offline, extra-echo-chamber view of business."
Likewise, you have a very subjective view of business. Windows has a 70% market share. "LOVE" does not have market dominance regardless of yours or my opinion.*

*music industry notwithstanding.

 

I'm with you here. I can’t get my head round this vs vr. With multiplayer you get someone go for their dinner, block the route and you have what’s effectively the same as a game breaking bug. With Vr you have something that’s not going to get developed because console user base doesn’t support it (technology wise).

In multiplayer what you can you realistically do. Blow a whistle, stand on platform or some other short term task which would probably be more under-utilised

 

To be fair Windows isn't far of being 'LOVE' compare to other operating systems out there, It is only successful as it is because most people use it whether by choice or not.

 

Microsoft achieved market dominance originally with DOS, then Windows 3.1, then Win 95. All three were LOVE (I know- I was an A+-certified tech back then). Windows NT was somewhat better, and NT was the basis for later Windows versions beginning with 2000.

Unix was better, old MacOS was better, the Unix-derived later MacOS was better. Why did M$ achieve market dominance? Because Bill Gates, using family connections, was able to pass off purloined CP/M as his own and sell it to IBM as the exclusive OS for the PC. Nothing about product quality, everything about clever, hardball commercial strategy.

 

If Multiplayer does come, they should give us the option to be able to create our own room where we won't have the problem of interfering with other players, since we create that room ourselves.

They can also give us the option to play with other people around the world. Basically you have the right to choose.

That's how Multiplayer works in the game and other games that have this function, But before that, the most important thing they need to do is be able to have a dispatcher, that actually works. Basically, you as the player can choose to be a dispatcher or a train operator for that run or session.

 

Again, that is subjective. You can't sell "LOVE" that costs as much as Windows does to 70% of desktop/laptop users. It is just as easy to install Linux/BSD or buy a Mac instead. And I say that as someone who only uses Windows for gaming.

 

I'm another one who only uses windows for gaming.
There are more of us out here than you think.

 

That is why in my message I put the word LOVE in speech marks. I use windows myself but it has flaws, others do as well of course but not to the extent to windows imo.

 

So you would concede that Microsoft was not the best, but achieved market dominance all the same. Another example, from bygone days (thank God)- British Leyland, which produced over 80% of the cars sold in Britain.

 

Personally, I believe, out of all operating systems out there, that Windows is the worst of them all. Especially in terms of security. Free/Open BSD destroys them all. But not all their market share are people who are willing to put the work in to configure a system, or hipsters who see electronics as status symbols. But I am quite satisfied with Windows 11, as I was with 7, ME and 95. You make a good point though. I just don't think one has to settle for a Windows system if they don't want to because of the ease of installing Linux or a BSD on the same machine. Some people don't bother because they are satisfied with the OS as it is.

 

Linux for me is a brilliant system and has many, many guises but for me it doesn't have the game support. It is getting better though and I always look in their direction especially how ms has snubbed some windows 10 users that have perfectly capable machines that can run win 11 like mine that can pass all the health checks bar the CPU one. My CPU came out the same year as the 8th gen and it will now cost me lots of lolly as I will have to get new CPU, mobo, mem ETC.

I don't really want a mac, not really an apple fan. So really Windows is the only option. I heard win 11 has got a few problems, is this sorted now?

 

It has been a quiet week in TSW2 eh?

 

Well actually it has gone a bit like that...
They tantalised us with Spirit Of Steam but nothing further has emerged.
The various sales have now finished so everything is pretty much back to full price.
Run 8 V3 came out this week so I expect quite a few of us have been checking that out.
So the TSW2 forum ends up a bit like the second half of an England soccer match, with the score at 0-0 just passing the ball around in their own half without going for goal.

 

They did released a new post on the news section on the website though regarding the upcoming expansion pack stream
https://live.dovetailgames.com/live/train-sim-world/articles/article/tsw2-the-start-of-a-new-journey

 

Well we have Matt and Nat on the stream this week. Cue questions about why preserved updates are taking their time getting though qa. I would say they'll be a tease this week, a couple of hard questions from Nat for us to hear about. mid be very surprised if preserved updates are announced without Adam about.
Hopefully not a kick a can down the road stream

 

Haven't checked the roadmap stream this week but I'm very sad to see that my two favourite routes have dropped down in the priorities list - TVL and NTP

 

I am not sure BL ever had 80% market share, it was more like 40%. The Ford Cortina and then the Escort were the best selling cars in Britain during the 70's and 80's. The Austin/Morris 1100/1300 was the best seller before that, which was a BMC product. However, having had examples of most BL cars over the last few years and having an Cowley build Austin Rover product sitting on my drive, I can say that BL cars were no worse than any of the competitors at the time. Indeed BL and BMC before it were well ahead on the technological front, using FWD, transverse engines, hatchbacks, 5 speed gearboxes and innovative suspensions systems well before many other competitors, it was only really Renault and Citroen who were probably more innovative. BL's main downfall was lack of investment in the right areas and unions who went on strike at the drop of a hat.

If the government hadn't allowed BMW to buy Rover from BAE we would still have a thriving car industry. The collaboration with Honda in the 80's and early 90's was very sucessful and produced market leading cars. Unfortunately BMW only wanted the Mini and 4WD technology and allowed the rest of the range to stagnate and then sold the carcus off and sadly then it was doomed to failure.

I think the beginning of the year is always quiet, I imagine they are still planning for the year ahead. There is a lot less on the roadmap now in terms of up and coming releases so not so much to get excited about I guess.

 

The Mini was also selling well in Japan before BMW got their hands on it and when they did the first thing they did was destroy all the jigs that made the original Mini as they feared the competition. BMC,BL,Austin Rover produce some good cars Rover V8, Mini as well as others, yes they made not so good ones like the Allegro that was reported to go faster backwards but I used to hitchhike to work and sometimes I used to get picked up in an Allegro and sometimes a 2CV and I would take the Allegro everytime over that 2CV.

 

I had two Allegro's fairly recently and they are very underrated, they are like a big mini, fun to drive with safe handling but far more comfortable to ride in. Compared to an equivalent Escort or Chevette they were a far nicer inside and more advanced, they didn't have acres of bare metal. I would love a 2CV but they are silly prices now, the Dyane was a better car though.

Anyway I fear this is very much thread drift!