My question is how long does it take DTG to release a route starting at decision making and planning to BETA testing and release? I know it varies between different lengths of routes and where it is located but an average time would be good. I thought that for TS once production starts it takes maybe 2-3 months on an average sized route but I’m not DTG so I don’t know. Maybe Jay you can give us some insight. Thanks!
Probably about a year They need footage of the route to work from that could take a month to get permission and film etc depending on what's required, maybe going in sheds yards etc Then maybe 3 months to create the elements and scenery Maybe another 3 months plotting the scenery in exactly the right places Then some bug testing, making sure loco fits through tunnels, clearance between platforms gantries etc Then there's gonna be a few months to create scenarios, signalling systems and making the right responses with noises etc I'd say around a year. After all, the whole team isn't going to drop everything and work on one route, there's going to be ongoing stuff for other things as well
Well it’s definitely not a year. For a US, UK, or German route it’s much shorter then others because those are the 3 biggest markets. Those probably only take 3-5 months. Maybe something like a Chinese route could take a longer time, but a year is too long. Remember DTG isn’t a small group, they are a large team with many divisions and 2 offices in the UK, it’s not like they’re a a group of 4 or 5.
Well, you specifically say "starting at decision making" and as the big deal company DTG thinks it is, they plan things out for a fiscal year in advance. Route plans definitely come at least a year before the release, and even then, work on the route research as an informal side project that sounds interesting must start even before the plan is made, as DTG needs to know whats interesting in order to make a plan for it. Yeah the actual track laying and editor work is probably only around 4 months, but that's not the question you are asking in the original post.
Well the main question was developing it and releasing it. Sorry for the confusion, but my main question is after they made a decision how long does it take to develop and release?
So the initial planning on routes starts with lots of analysis which starts roughly around 8 months from the start of the next financial year (which runs from April to March). From here the final selection is chosen for the entire financial year, roughly 6 months before the start of the financial year. From here, research commences on the route and we carry out a survey of the actual route roughly 8 months ahead of the assigned release date. Development begins shortly after the survey around 6 to 7 months ahead of release. Obviously there are numerous caveats to this in that the actual timings can vary wildly depending on route length, complexity, number of trains included, rolling stock, availability of access to the real route and trains (if any), agreements with the licensors (DB, British Government, Amtrak, etc) and whether they're due to expire any time within the development period and the country in which the routes are based. Best, Steve
I get the impression that DTG is trying to use the same TS1 style schedule for TSW routes...but with the increased workload of a TSW route that doesn't seem to be going well.
