Discounting what the addition of steam content may bring with it (and I'm more of a diesel guy anyway), I think there is currently an unfortunate lack of historical/fallen flag American railroad content for TSW. I'd say Clinchfield, while it has it's issues, is my favorite of the current US routes (and in need of some loco DLC too, ahem...). I mean, Dovetail has released fallen flag content for Train Simulator (Rio Grande, Western Pacific etc), so I'm hoping we can expect to see more in the future for TSW as well, not just Clinchfield?
Thinking of possible Fallen Flag routes really opens up a lot of possibilities. In the northeast of the US we could have Reading, CNJ or New Haven. South could be ACL, Seaboard, CofG. West was touched on, with midwest to include IC, Soo, GN or NP.
Agree with OP. Another fallen flag route would be sweet. It would also open up more US passenger opportunities, as you could run in places not currently served by Amtrak. They already created the F7 for Clinchfield, which could be used in a variety of possible routes. Also agree we need loco DLC for Clinchfield!
Given that DTG gave license agts with CSX and Norfolk Southern, between them they account for nearly all the RR that once ran east of the Mississippi. The hitch would be the ones that merged into Conrail, since that ownership line gets complicated; and unfortunately that includes the Pennsylvania and the New York Central But in theory we could have Atlantic Coast Southern Norfolk & Western Nickel Plate Wabash Seaboard Louisville & Nashville Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Virginian Baltimore & Ohio Chesapeake & Ohio Family Lines Chessie System Western Maryland And that’s before we get into the Western RR merged into UP
I always had a soft spot for Burlington Northern but I guess that is still mangled up in licensing issues. I would love to see the Sandpoint to Spokane "Funnel" in BN days @1990 when the SIAM traffic control game was set. Looks fiendishly simple but with everything from Amtrak, through Intermodals to grain train after grain train (and the locals) it was a busy stretch of railroad. There are a couple of others too, the electric route which featured in Trainz and was suggested here: https://forums.dovetailgames.com/th...sion-between-harlowton-mt-and-avery-id.14879/ Also the old New York Central as it ran up through upstate New York from Utica and through Tupper Lake, Malone etc.
While I would love to drive a Rio Grande tunnel motor across the Rockies (a bit of a stretch, I know), but it would depend on how much research Dovetail can find for the right fallen flag for the right route, and how much content can you squeeze in from just 2 locomotives and at least 5-7 different cars to start with (depending on the era).
Which could include MoPac, Southern Pacific, Western Pacific, D& RGW, C&NW etc. So many possibilities, so few routes.
I'd like to see Wisconsin Central make an "official" appearance in TSW. WC's trackage in the Upper peninsula of Michigan (now CN) would make for some interesting and very scenic route design.
Cool idea, but I can see the legal aspects like licensing being a nightmare for defunct railroads, as well as finding accurate information about routes and equipment. Wouldn't surprise me if it were easier to add a new country than an old railroad.
Both CSX and UP are very open with the licensing with their fallen flags, not to mention famous older routes are usually quite well documented either thru old documents, photos, or video.
I bet the Chicago & North Western would make an exciting route. I’d love to see something with their commuter trains and diesel freight trains.
Union Pacific has them too in the form Cotton Belt Southern Pacific. Canadian National Milwaukee and Soo lines but might affect Oakville Subdivision as a result with the passenger train coming in from Caltrain Milwaukee and Soo lines giving steam to Oakville Subdivision. Basically turning that Canadian route into something like Hauptstrecke rhein ruhr with Steam trains using Essen Steele to Mülheim Hbf for Duisburg Oberhausen-Arnhem Railway
I don't know how different things are with TSW vs TS regarding licensing, but there are many routes with fallen flag railroads for TS, from both Dovetail and 3rd party devs. And Clinchfield appeared first in TS before making the "jump" to TSW (like many other routes in TSW). I just find it unfortunate to see them releasing two new US routes now, but both are modern. I would expect that they will continue remaking routes from TS to TSW, so I hope that we could see, for example, Soldier Summit or Feather River Canyon in the future.
Basically, two separate licenses for two different Train Sims (one for TS1, and one for TSW). Plus, there's a lot of routes to be explored with this opportunity than what Dovetail has done from TS1 in the past (and Sandpatch is that example. Not a good one for many, but still). But, never know what's gonna be next on the roadmap after Sherman Hill though. So who knows for sure.
A lot of these fallen flags existed till fairly recently, so they could make use of at least the SD40-2, maybe even the F7 if we went back far enough. Also at least C&NW & SP actually lasted long enough to have fleets of AC4400CW's, not big fleets of them, but they had them.
I mean, the Espee had 279 AC44's, not that small of a fleet (Compared to CNW's 35). Plus a CNW route could use the close cousin, the C44-9W (Which they had 130, compared to Espee's 101).
Given that many of them have lasted this long and are still used today from many railroads (more or less rebuilt). Would not be surprising for these 'reuse' to be used in their original liveries when they came out of the locomotive plant (or years of wear and tear in service). Though just to see for sure: -F7 (Since 1949) -SD40 (Since 1966) -GP38-2 & SD40-2 (Since 1972) -MP15DC (Since 1974) -C40-8W (Since 1989) -AC4400CW (Since 1992) Not to mention a few rebuilds that can be reversed engineered to their original state like the SD40 (though not recommended). The GP9RM (Originally a GP9 since 1954), the F40PH-3C (Originally an F40PH since 1975), plus the F40PH-2CAT (Originally an F40PH-2 since 1985). So yeah, depending on which historic era, I too would not be surprised if they were reused to fit that period of a route in another livery (but that still leaves one new loco to make, however).
Oh, good to know. Thanks for setting me straight. I grew up in a house right next to the C&NW (now Metra) Union Pacific North Line and would love to see that implemented in TSW. It's quite a scenic route, going through some of the wealthier suburbs and the Ravinia Music Festival before ending in Kenosha, WI. Don't know the total mileage offhand, but I don't think it's too long for the game. I unexpectedly saw a Metra train go by recently with the modern loco wearing the old C&NW yellow and green colors. That was good for a double-take.
Not just routes but it would be nice to see some vintage locos other than EMDs. I’m specifically thinking Alcos here, whether S1 or S2 switchers, RS3s or the C420 etc. larger road locomotives.
Yes, Metra has a program to honor it's heritage railroads. I believe there's a Milwaukee Road loco and a Rock Island, too.
Another idea would be to release some fallen-flag freight car packs. Would add a lot of visual variety to existing routes, especially if they could be heavily weathered befitting their age.
Also, people have been asking for a Chessie System pack for Sand Patch Grade for ages. I think it would make a good add-on for that route as a separate timetable thingy, just like Diesel Legends for the GWE.
Investing in research for older eras is something DTG is not doing as often as we would like, sadly. Even if they commit, the route will have to be balanced somehow for putting so much effort into research, as in it will be a very short one for example. For current era routes, there is a lot of corner-cutting already be it with sounds, route fidelity (from catenary to landmark buildings), leaving out important parts (such as the 3rd line on Sheman Hill), rolling stock, etc. It somehow feels like route building has a very similar budget regardless of era or country and adapting to the budget is the goal. Allocating resources in a more appropriate way could return better results. The arrival of steam engines should push them to a new level in this regard, at least this is what I am hoping for. To be fair, research is no easy work. If they can't do it then it's best to first get prepared and then join the game. I hope they are getting prepared, though.
