Hi guys, i wanted to touch on this topic and i wasn’t sure wether to put this in the discussion thread or the suggestion thread so i’m just gonna plonk it here. Anyways, i wanted to talk a little bit about depots and their levels of detail. Me personally, i really enjoy shunting and walking around depots, as well as doing ECS runs to and from them. One thing i feel is somewhat lacking in the game is the level of detail in depots meaning they sort of feel like tracks have just been placed down, the odd gantry here and there and the odd train shed. Let’s take gillingham depot on the Southeastern Highspeed extended route for example. Starting with the entry/exit roads to and from the depot, in game it feels extremely empty. In real life there’s walking routes layered out with concrete slabs and lamps in between the two tracks to add light to the area. Theres also a fair amount of clutter around the area, which is somewhat seen in the game. Here’s a comparison photo below of in TSW vs irl. Then moving onto the main stabling sidings, the gantry’s are there which is good, however there’s no raised walking routes as per reality, meaning in game you sort of have to walk across the tracks randomly rather than on a dedicated path. These walkways are raised up by the stabling sidings with stairs at the ends so they are level with the train. Here’s another comparison photo below of irl vs in game. Now for the train shed, in game it is simply just the outside shed with nothing else but that. no lights, no shutters or walking routes, meaning it feels extremely empty and almost unfinished inside. Adding these simple things to the depot would bring it to life and make it look so much better, again a comparison photo below. Last but not least, there’s the sidings at tucked away at the back which are sandwiched between the train shed and a residential area. In game, these are simply just 3 tracks with some buffers at the end. In real life, there’s raised walking platforms next to the trackside for ease of access to the trains. I’ve also added another comparison below. Overall, i feel as though depots and stabling sidings just need a little more love in game, with the simple additions of clutter, lighting in sheds and most importantly dedicated walkways and platforms. An example of a nicely modelled depot in game is ashford, although it does still lack walkways around the sidings. Let me know what you think on this topic below
