Upcoming Release Tsw5 First Look - West Coast Main Line

Are you surprised?

 

No I was just stating

 

Haven’t watched yet but going from above comments & the earlier LNWR bombshell, I’m guessing WCML:S in TSW is going to begin its life with the same reputation that it got in TSC.

Have hand it to DTG, they’re great at talking a community down into thinking nothing is their fault, but my god they’re predictably disappointing.

 

I'd have been surprised if it was busy lol

 

Wel apparently not much, it's always "We found a problem last minute so won't be day one" then needing months of waiting for it to actually arrive.

 

Over hype and under deliver, when it should always be the other way round.

 

More like do they even take testers feedback into account?

 

Matt has to resign

 

First impressions....im impressed, great scenery and lots of ai, feels busy. Need to buy that 390 though, it features heavily!

 

the pendolino looks awesome

 

390 does not have original traction sound... apparently the team needed a long time to make it sound good. Why not just buy the sounds from Armstrong Powerhouse? Might be easier and cheaper at the end of the day.

 

Oh heck, I have just got back and thought I'd look at the forums before watching the stream and it seems like it is going to be interesting viewing. Anyone got a bingo card?

 

The licensing issue is unfortunate but those station signs are going to have to be redone or it will just look odd with the text offset to the right, leaving the left blank where the logo would have been. Needs the textures updating to centre the text.

Not watched the stream but from what I can pick up sounds like the Class 350 might have been aliased to the 380 for sound?

And the Pendolino using synthesised sounds rather than proper recordings? I mean come on guys you are selling this as an extra for the route, either as a percentage of the £20 price difference between the Standard and Deluxe or £14.99 on its own.

Really not feeling the love for this anymore.

 

The stream looks really solid, just a huuuge shame about the branding removal. I hadn’t read the article beforehand, so it caught me by surprise. Having it taken away last minute is a huge setback, I’m assuming there must have been some sort of misunderstanding about the licensing agreement I guess. This is genuinely a huge dealbreaker for me because it takes away much of the immersion, especially also with all the removed branding at the stations. Big big shame…

 

350/380/700 all had/have mixes from the same set, I think the 700 was just test run.

Regarding the 390, I agree it’s rubbed me the wrong way not getting AP sounds where they couldn’t get their own. On the other hand though, it sounds more alive than the 801 does.

Overall though, between all the caveats I’ve seen, DTG have brought me right back down to earth on this route.

What an utter shame.

 

Think I’m going to sleep on how to proceed. Do I really want to part with £54 for this or just put it on the back burner, take the free update and wait for the first sale discounts, which could easily be as soon as Christmas.

 

I'd also be keen to understand why there seems to have been a recent change in this policy?

Using unbranded content isn't a complete deal breaker for me, but it does reduce the value of content in my view as it detracts from the authenticity and realism of the simulator.

I'm hoping that we're not about to see a notable increase in the use of unbranded content and I don't doubt I'm the only one who'd appreciate a comment from DTG around whether there has been a change of policy so we understand what to expect moving forward.

In the meantime I've cancelled my pre-order of the deluxe edition as the WCML + Pendolino was the main sell for me, but as I've said above the lack of LNWR branding means that I no longer feel it's worth full price and I'll instead pick up the free upgrade then wait for the WCML and Pendolino to be discounted in a sale. Seeing subsequent comments about what was seen on stream - notably regarding the suspension and Class 390 sounds - has given me even greater confidence that seeking a refund and waiting for a sale is the right move.

 

I’m on the same fence, too much is going wrong already. ‘Last minute’ issues, will come in a later update, no that’s not included, no plans for that, hasn’t been fixed. All the usual bingo card sayings.

DTG really need to pull some money back from all the marketing & overly flashy editing. QA, testing & engineering teams all clearly need help.

 

In saying that though, if you are on a PC, then i suppose the Train Sim Community might pop up with mods to fix these issues. However, the players shouldn't have to fix their issues as they should be ironed out, especially since this is a core route.

 

Watford station is busier than London Euston

 

The Timetable is pretty Bad
And there was no AI 710 to Euston

 

For what?

 

The redemption could be if the German and American route are okay but even then, I have loads of German route already in TSW as it stands and as regards the US, well I’m currently trotting along the Alhambra Sub in Run 8 enjoying the night lighting and have over 1000 miles of route to play in that sim. So another short stretch of commuter track using two recycled trains also does not seem great value for money.

 

Although some disappoints have come to light on the stream (branding, sound of 390 etc.), I still think the route looks good and busy enough. Guard mode acutally looks fun. Will be having a go at that, for sure. Are the amount of services about right for the route? Was something around 600.

Frankfurt-Fulda is the big one for me anyway. WCML south is a bonus.

 

Given the stutter fest that was WCML, I’m not at all hopeful for performance on a route featuring Frankfurt.

Gameplay I suspect will be decent & may save it, but the problem is that I’ve long given certain content a pass because something else was good. I was really excited for WCML, my main focus in a train simulator is UK content. I’m not sure I can carry on supporting TSW, on the basis that German content is decent so that excuses the state of other regions.

The US line wasn’t ever going to be a purchasing factor for me, it’s become so basic & undercooked that I can’t get excited for it at all, it’s so bad I’m not even disappointed by whatever duplicated experience they’re bringing for NA.

 

It was there... Look again and you spot it

 

Some feedback from the stream:
- The class 350 is decent overall, the lack of LNWR branding wasn't as jarring as I expected, though the situation still isn't ideal.
- There was no AI guard, nor did the driver buzz back when in guard mode, which is a bit of a letdown
- Most 350 services were 4 coaches, when most if not all are 8 in reality.
- The section that was in the bakerloo line is considerably less high-quality, which creates a contrast with the rest of the route (which looked excellent)
- Lighting was a bit dodgy in some areas, though I'm hoping that will be sorted for release.
- The modelling for the class 390 is great
- The passing sounds for the 390 are not (too low pitched)
- The Watford DC line looks very fun to drive
- Night lighting wasn't anything to write home about (Though it was said it was being worked on)

Overall it was fairly decent, despite all the issues, this route should still be quite fun.

 

There was definitely something amiss with the lighting at Euston in the live stream and I can only hope that it won’t be like that at release although we have had some routes released with obvious light bake issues in the past. They generally don’t get fixed either.

It is a shame about the branding being removed but there’s very little DTG can do about that now.

There seems to be quite a lot of positives about the route but I have a feeling the German offering is going to be the headline act for TSW5.

 

I did think the 390 sounds did a very good job of representing the real thing.. the running sounds are very distinctive for me having been on them extensively, and felt they were well represented to my ear

 

I can give as tip... Do not focus to much on what you have seen tonight... Its 2 weeks before release and let be fair they never shows Route that early on normal releases and watch the Ambassador streams they have the release build.

 

Thanks for the Stream DTG. This makes sure that I will only buy the German route, unless the preview for Frankfurt Fulda will be as disappointing as this one.

Btw. it is a joke that the suspension will not be included in the initial release. I heard something similar one year ago for TSW4, where it is still not fully implemented as it was promised a year ago. Why always repeat mistakes and present features and announce them weeks before release when it is clear they are never gonna make it to the release version?

Xander1986
Really? You are on this train long enough to know better...

 

It’s pretty cool that we’ve got a line with four completely different passenger trains on it all carrying out their own services (Bakerloo, Overground layer, 350, Pendolino). This wasn’t possible when I started playing TSW a few years back. I love that. And that isn’t really comparable with the German routes because many of these trains are… red and not really discernible unless you know what’s going on. Here we have completely different passenger trains, plus freight! The above-ground section of the Bakerloo is my favorite part, so being able to ride that with up to date TOD etc. is great. I just gotta find a way to get the Suffragette line on sale ASAP so I can get the most out of the route.

Edit: One thing I just remembered, didn’t they add some Lioness line destinations to the 710 back when it came out? Now we know why

 

A couple of suggested tweaks to WCML:

1) Most/all of the Pendos I saw on the stream had first class facing north. FC almost always faces Euston
2) The departure board for Daisy’s Glasgow Pendo had the destination as MKC. Fixable?

 

There won't be much if any changes made in the next 2 weeks.
What we have seen tonight is what we are getting.
It's been like this time and time again since TSW2 streams, people defend that changes will be made within 2 weeks and it never if ever happens.

All you and we can hope for are patches within a few months of release.

 

No

 

Still excited for this although as ever the usual 'this won't be ready for release' farce of new features is a little disappointing, and there were definitely some odd lighting glitches going on, acknowledging it isn't the final product yet.

The fact all the 350s seem to be four cars is a little annoying though, even in the stream they talked about 8 cars being rare and 12 not being used which is just completely incorrect, and stuck out more to me as weird than the lack of LNR branding on the trains themselves.

 

I never claimed that.... If you read my previous posts than you know this that i copied Matt his excuse.

And in text that you copied here is i give an advise to check a stream and not that i written there we get updates at all

 

DTG Matt Where all the 710 Services?

11:28 Watford and then 12:58 again is a joke when they Drive every 15 Minute each Hour

 

Doesn't look like TSW5 is ready for launch tbh.

No suspension at TSW5 launch, which was supposed to be a TSW4 core feature is really just inexcusable IMO. Like, really, ya'll?

Route Hopping is already being limited in scope.

Another licensing screw-up means one of the 3 launch routes lost much of its luster. What other licensing shoes still remain to drop?

At what point does a change in leadership become necessary?

It's maddening because there have been significant improvements over the past couple of years, but DTG are consistently their own worst enemy.

 

Simply put they can’t handle the current release schedule. And the product suffers.

Look at this route. 3/4 of the issues we saw on the stream are things that are easy to fix and almost certainly will be post release. No suspension on release. No station markers. Light baking incomplete. No off map destinations.

These are all easily fixed. But they have to miss the finishing touches because the release schedule is too much.

 

The Beta testers all had their keys took from them because of some idiot in the beta team who leaked the images

 

Timetable needs fixing. Massively. Based on how bad it is and the lack of off map destinations I’m guessing Rivet had a hand in that.

 

This not being centered will annoy me no end lol

 

I just checked with the real timetable when they go through the 350 services. All looks legit. They start 2 minutes earlier on TSW because of train prep time.

 

After watching the stream and my earlier comment about unbranded trains, this does not seem so bad.

I would hope that they are trying to possibly get that decision reversed, but the complete silence on the LWNR issue and just a link being posted in the comments on the stream to this thread really doesn't sound promising.

I still don't like the unbranded feature and if the route didn't have branding on the 390, 1972 Stock, Southern, and the 710 I would be not be interested one bit.

I'm still against the unbranded trains and routes.

 

Totally agree, and perhaps the silence on it was optimism they could get it reversed? Otherwise I think it’s really poor it wasn’t called out prominently in the marketing, beyond the statement today.

the route and rest of the content looks ace, so there’s enough there to still make me keep my pre-order, but would love for them to be able to restore the LNWR branding at some point

 

In the first roadmap stream suspension was announced on all TS5 locos and moving forward. Now that's changed. Thinking of cancelling the preorder on Playstation, which I have never done before so have to work out how. Just use the free update to TSW5 and wait till promised features are done. Getting tired of games in general advertising things yet they undeliver, it's not just DTG but the industry overall. I was very excited on this and jumped on a preorder for the Deluxe, now things are coming out of the closet which makes all the excitement go away.

 

Typical DTG. Get people’s hopes up and then dash them against the rocks.

 

No LNWR livery due to license issue, wrong PIS display, a timetable with many missing timetables, lighting issue, only 390 can get suspension on the day one and maybe there are more hidden issues and bugs. Some issues like no off-route destinations for PIS shouldn't appear at the latest TSW game. The scenery ( beside bakerloo line section) and the 390 looks good, but WCMLS is still far from a good product.

 

The fact that half of the Lioness line timetable is missing is a bit concerning, isn't it supposed to be every 15 mins off-peak?