The recent Metrolink DLC being Gen-9 (and PC) only has now been added to with the newly-announced Frankfurt S-Bahn route, and the BR 420 loco add-on, being announced as the exact same. Is the end, finally, near for Gen 8?
Seems to be nearing that stage. With more and more games becoming gen9 only. It’s only a matter of time before this game follows suit. the gen8 consoles simply can’t keep up with the amount of memory current routes have. And thus. They will be cut off overtime. I think it is the end. Gen8 won’t last for the next game in the summer, that’s for sure.
It can't be a bad thing. I know it's been discussed to death by cor blimey the Gen8 consoles are 12 years old now. People can't expect to be catered for forever!
Honestly, those on gen8 should be glad it has been supported this long. There was a time when developers stopped developing for a certain console once another became available.
At the moment TSW5 struggles on Gen 9 consoles, so it‘s no suprise to see Gen 8 getting phased out slowly.
It only struggles because it’s not optimised properly. Not a case of the machines being sub-par, but a case of dtg not properly investing in separate versions to cater to each console
Taken long enough, but finally we are here. PS6 is rumoured to launch in 2027 and the beginning of 2026 PS4 supports ends. It all makes sense for DTG to drop support also.
Very true. But because of that poor optimisation, Gen 8 really is a lost case for TSW5. Probably should never have been released for those systems.
I suppose with longer and more detailed routes with TOD4 and multiple layers, I can see Gen8 consoles leaving soon. I don't want it to happen - I'm not sure why anyone would considering it's been said many times before that Gen 8 isn't holding the game back. However, the change has been slow and gradual (As far as I can remember, it started with Rush Hour layers back in 2021 and went from there, slowly building up to a lack of DLC and lower quality textures), so I guess we can be grateful for that? It seems TSW6 will probably not be available for PS4 or Xbox One. On the bright side, if PS4 and Xbox 1 players do decided to upgrade their consoles, their collection will come with them (on PlayStation I don't believe progress transfers).
What a load of unpleasantness, not to mention the schadenfreude. Celebrating other people's misfortune says a lot about someone's character.
My concern is that with Sony pumping out new PSs all the time, each might not last very long in terms of DTG support - the costs stack up! DTG really need to somehow make it so progress transfers, and ideally DLC can transfer between platforms too! If they could transfer, nothing stopping transfers to PC when certain consoles are obsolete. If the game performs better on PC, as many claim, less people would be complaining about performance - which can only be a positive for DTG.
Gen 8 is definitely starting to show its age. We are in 2025 now. It’s had a very good run I would say.
Normally a PlayStation’s life cycle is about 6 years, yet the PS4 has had that extended to 13 years (support ending in 2026). It’s a had a good run, but time to put dev time to better use. PS5 fits into that category of the 6 year window, but not the PS5 Pro. It’s one of the reason’s I won’t buy one, as if speculations are true from media websites we could be seeing the PS6 in 2027. I’d rather use my money for that instead of buying an overpriced small upgrade. I sometimes play TSW on PC and tbh there’s a minor difference from when I play it on my PS5. Maybe there is slightly better performance on PC, but I don’t notice it. Still get lag spikes frequently like I do on console. That’s just how the game is designed. Yeah I would like to see that too. Being able to seemingly transfer your account and progress between platforms. My main platform is my PS5 as I own around 90% of all dlc on it, but I do have an account for steam and my series x. It would be nice if I was only using my one main profile instead of three.
I think gen10 consoles will have very high cost, PS5 is 400/450 euros 5 years after launch, the pro version is for those who have money to waste
I wouldn't say that the 10th generation will be more expensive than the current generation, because the point is to sell or pre-order as many consoles as possible. If something is too expensive, people would rather wait and keep playing PS5. According to so-called analysts, a future PS6 will be cheaper than the currently available PS5 Pro. Makes sense somehow. Sony doesn't make money by selling consoles (production costs can be even higher but are not passed on to customers), but through software, i.e. games and subscriptions like PS Plus. It's similar with Microsoft, whose console sales are far behind those of Sony, but the Game Pass is a hit because it can also be used across platforms on the PC.
I know there are people out there that won’t be able to afford new consoles, and can’t get them for one reason or another. But we have to face it, Gen 8 needs to be dropped. The only reason i can see that DTG is clinging on to it is because there is still a large player base there. But supporting the old consoles is dragging down gen 9 and PC.
I look forward to reading all the posts from you and others when and if DTG stops supporting gen 8 consoles. If you're expecting a great improvement in gen 9 and PC performance with longer and better routes, you're in for a rude awakening.
There won't be any performance gains if and when gen 8 Is dropped. As far as I'm aware tsw is ported from pc to console and the graphics settings are reduced for both generations of console. And the timetable reduced for gen 8. On pc you can mess with the ini file to squeeze some more quality out of the graphics and take a hit on performance. Not gain anything. I think it's pretty obvious by now that tsw just don't perform well at all. It never will. As new features are added it's only going to get worse.
And Microsoft are planning to release a new console too: Next Xbox Console: Everything We Know So Far About Microsoft's Next-Gen System | Pure Xbox So hopefully this is THE final nail in the railroad tie for Gen8 consoles and TSW
To be fair, they haven't sold them in 5 years and it's been 13 years since they came out. That's about how long you can have a computer before it goes obsolete and can't play the latest games. And consoles are cheaper than PCs. Developers are given a choice.... stop making more powerful games or drop the lower performing consoles. I know the people with 10+ year old consoles on the forum are complaining about it, but you got a good run out of it. Upgrading benefits YOU as well as everyone else because the games get BETTER and you can enjoy them, rather than have the gaming industry stagnate around 2012 technology.
I hope it’s not the end for Gen 8. As an aging pensioner l bought an Xbox One just to play TSW, l have no interest in buying any other game and don’t want to pay for an 9th Gen xbox just for future TSW releases. I don’t think my wife would welcome that expense.
I have a gen 9.5 console Playstation Pro and it still falls over its own feet when it comes to TSW and I am sure there players with even more powerful PCs than that and I am sure they have problems as well. TSW is simply not efficient.
I know it probably won’t change, but you can’t deny a lot of time is clearly being spent catering for the Gen 8 people. Get rid of that and dev time can be spent somewhere else
I would say a little bit of time is being spent catering for Gen 8, not a lot. Certainly, I don't believe it is enough to increase route length or performance. While it is possible we may get release about a week earlier, it is likely Gen 8 optimisation gets done in parallel with another task, and since dropping gen 8 won't make that other task get done any faster, we likely won't see any change. It is also possible that Generation 8 consoles were helping keep the game reasonably well optimised. While I seriously doubt that DTG will go out of control with the game's performance, we will lose the benchmark that is Gen 8.
Lower performance isn't the same thing as optimization. Saying we "need Gen 8 consoles" is like saying we need 1960s gas guzzlers on the road to "improve fuel economy."
There are a lot of people who are hoping or thinking that if DTG drops gen 8 that it will free up resources, but if DTG drop gen 8 then they lose gen 8 money which pays for such resources in the first place? As a business, DTG might choose to slimline its operation to save money and we are back to square one.
So the people that are too poor to afford a new console are supposed to be splurging on most of the new content? I'm gonna guess the person who is "too poor" is only buying in heavily discount sales.
Would be reasonable to assume that someone has £30 spare every other month, as opposed to £400. In any case I find it in bad taste to be discussing what the ‘poors’ as you so tastefully described gen8 users as, spend their money on.
My point is people think if DTG drop gen 8 consoles, they will free up that team to work on shiney new content for gen 9 and PC, but DTG could just decide they don't need such a big team now. The poor statement you made is, how can I say worded wrong. Some gamers like their gen 8 consoles and don't want to give them up, others might have a family to raise so more important stuff to pay for in life, so they only have a small gaming budget, some might have an other half who hold the purse strings, some could have bought themselves a brand new BMW and have high monthly payments, some could be saving to buy a house. Some might like to buy a fancy wardrobe, have a collection of Nike trainers, there are also people who are cautious with their money (tight). We are all gamers, we all love TSW when it goes right, it is the one place there is no class system.
My point remains... if you are too poor to afford games... then you are too poor to afford games. The game as a whole will keep getting bigger and more power intensive, so Gen 8 is unsustainable long term. Those people who like Gen 8 will still be able to play TSW 3,4,5.... but they won't be playing TSW 6 if it doesn't support Gen 8 which is perfectly because a lot of games aren't ported to the newer consoles. As long as you have the game still on your Gen 8 console, you can just keep playing it until the console dies of old age. It doesn't however require that the newest game is downgraded to keep Gen 8 in it. The amount of revenue from Gen 8 consoles is low and decreasing as they are self-described as poor and only buying on sale to begin with... IF they buy anything. By definition poor people don't buy much and especially not first day. Otherwise they wouldn't be poor. And if they are poor or just "game poor" (as you said choosing to spend on other things) that's effectively the same thing. Just let Gen 8 be supported on TSW 5 with all the content they've accumulated up to that point. It should be a huge library, especially as they are looking for "sale" items anyway and that stuff will be on sale more often than the latest stuff. It's the best solution for everyone. When they decide to prioritize TSW in their lives (or their console dies and forces their hand) TSW 6 will still be there for them to upgrade to. At that point there will be Xbox X/S will be pretty cheap as the new ones are coming out soon. It's already possible to find a 4-5 year old one for a couple hundred used.
That- Actually, that's a very good analogy. Well done! I retract my remark about Gen 8 helping keep the game optimised. I maintain, however, that dropping Gen 8 will not improve the game for the other platforms.
It won't improve the current game no. However, it takes the "limiter" off a bit. I'll give you an example with XBox since that's what I have. For people with the S (as opposed to the original Xbox One), not much improvement because that's maybe 7-10% more performance from a an overclocked graphics card. However, the X is another 30% improvement over that from a better processor. So people with the "S" will still be in pretty much the same boat as the old "One" people from Gen 8 since it's mroe like a generation "8.5." However, for the X the 30-40% more capability is quite a bit. I know it's not an exact science, but 30-40% more fps framerate IS noticeable in game. That translates directly into smoother performance and less "stutter." Also no need to scale back on what layers you can have in game because consoles "can't handle it." Note that this doesn't happen until at least TSW 6, so everything up to then will STILL be available for people with Gen 8 platforms. It's only the DLC after that (say July-August) that will be out of reach for the Gen 8s. So that means you "only" have 9 years of content and well over 100 DLC (it's way over that, but I know I have about that many, and I know I don't have them all) Hey, I can see people wanting to hang onto what they have. They don't want to invest much in the game just enjoy what they have had for years. I get it. However, many of the "TSW issues" like low framerates and stuttering are mostly on the older consoles too, and even without pushing the 30-40% increase in power.... that will make even the existing game "pay better" if someone gets a newer system. Now imagine there are people who still want to add MORE features and content which will demand more power from the consoles. More NPCs.. more advanced NPCs, new animations, new physics, etc. I don't see a reason you can't still allow Gen 8 people to PLAY TSW 6 and later... but there needs to be a huge caveat that they aren't specifically "supported" and it's "not recommended" because the later routes will play even more like LOVE than usual. As for marketing, I dunno. I know on Steam for example it's up to you to know what your system can run, but for Microsoft and SONY it's more a matter of what THEY want to support on THEIR networks. I don't know how much it's DTG's call or SONY/Microsoft's.
I’m not twisting anything, he’s implying that if someone can buy DLC’s, they should be able to buy new hardware.
It's a matter of personal investment, and not just money. What you spend money on is where you put your priorities in life. Doesn't mean you have the money or not in your bank account. It's how you choose to spend it. The richest person who doesn't think upgrading is worth it is also not going to benefit from a better system. They just don't prioritize it in life. As I said before (and people keep ignoring) is that it's FINE to prioritize other things besides video games. Just be honest and admit that you are putting other things first. It's a GOOD thing if you want to spend money on kids or sport or a new car or whatever. It just means you aren't spending it on TSW. It's a choice. If the cost of having access to the newest stuff is to have an upgraded console, then that's the cost. It's no different than any other game where you can choose to play the newer version... or keep playing the older version. It's your choice. That's why I said it's not a bad thing to keep playing TSW 4. There's YEARS of content there. By all means keep using it for free. At some point however, a 12+ year old console is going to die and you're going to be forced to replace it. That's a rare thing since most only last at most 5 years on average so just consider yourself lucky it's still running. But, you have to understand that like anything it will wear out and you will have to choose to reinvest in another one. Just like a car, refrigerator or new clothes. TSW too has a choice. TSW could very well just keep the current level of technology, not improve and keep the fewer and fewer Gen 8 owners happy.... angering the people who want "newer" and "better" stuff.... or they can move forward and make the "newer stuff" people happy and anger the older console players. Considering the "newer stuff" people will buy more and the Gen 8 people will eventually have to upgrade when their consoles wear our....their decision makes sense. They did the math. I'm sorry if the logic interferes with your emotion.
Again, you’re just banging on about personal investment & choices. Those are none of your business. You’re just dis-illusioned with the concept of gen8 being the bogeyman behind TSW’s problems.
You implied he’d said all Gen8 users were poor, which was not what he said, so in that sense you misrepresented his words
It's not my business we're talking about... it's TSW's business. Which IS literally a business. Why are you shocked when a business makes business decisions? I'm simply explaining the "why" from a business perspective because fear and anger often comes from misunderstanding and lack of knowledge. You are free to disagree and take it personal for some reason, but nothing personal was mentioned. That's you internalizing an abstract discussion. If you'd like to disagree, why don't you present a better business model for TSW and be constructive? It'd accomplish more than just acting needlessly offended by everything. Explain to me how the market for older content on sale is more profitable than the market for newer, full priced stuff. Or are you going to try to make the case that someone who is piniching pennies is going to immediately buy everything at full price and not wait for a sale? On the other hand, people springing for a new gaming console are going to reasonably buy new games for it since they are already committing to that new console. That's just common sense. But, feel free to present the opposite case.
I don't mind gen 8 being dropped, but it's not going to make the game better if it is dropped. The game is also poorly optimized on current gen consoles
Gen 8 being dropped is fine. Can't wait for the same people spamming endless "Gen 9 is holding TSW back!" forum threads in a few months time, as soon as they realize that game performance hasn't changed at all... I feel sorry for all the people who bought a 4090 just for TSW, thinking DTG actually gave a toss about optimization.
