Neckartalbahn: Heidelberg - Neckarelz From Tsg Discussion Thread

Return of steam

 

STEAM IS BACK FROM THE DEAD!

 

It should be worth mentioning that DTG still sees Steam as dead (unless I have missed something), it is just once again the 3rd parties doing the right choices.

 

DTG: "Steam is dead"

"who decided that?"

DTG: "no plans for working GSMR"

"who decided that?"


Third parties are doing what DTG has said is not possible.

 

Thats maybe why DTG does not Invest in such things. They let an open window for 3rd parties to build that. I guess DTG has to make decisions to prevent double DLC creations. There are now many projects build by 3rd party creators that DTG can do a step back.

 

Also i think it will be a great route because TSG has made it and it brings back steam.

 

yes, so much so that the only projects currently being undertaken by dtg are the ny-stamford route and the DB BR 147 loco

 

Players: We want more (insert route/traction/era/equipment) please.

DTG: There's no market for it, we have no plans to do more.

Third Parties: That's absolute nonsense, we'll do it instead.

 

We have next week an another reveal so i guess that will be the DTG one

 

and its not a uk Steam locomotive its German.

 

Mixed traction certainly broadens the appeal of the route

 

Will definitely be getting this. I love TSG products and I imagine this will be a great addition.

I also hope it spurs a UK third party to look at steam, or even DTG, although that's less likely.

I wonder what electric traction might be included. The crocodile I presume?

 

Day. One.

 

All rest on what the core improvements to steam simulation actually entail. If they actually include manual firing and coal and water simulation I will buy day one at full price.

 

100% this.

I admit I suspected something along these lines. If any studio were brave enough to tackle "steam 2.0", it would be TSG in my eyes. And they didn't let me down
The setting of 1974 is a genius move, this way a lot of existing rolling stock can halfway realistically be used, like the Umbauwagen and Mittenwald's n-Wagen. Also I like what I see behind the BR 23 loco in the screenshots very much
In Germany, steam traction was very much on its way out in 1974, but a bunch of BR 23 locos were still in use in this very region.

Also, we will get period-appropriate electric traction! My guess is a backdated 140, just like TSG already did with the 218 for the Linke Rheinstrecke timetable. Plus most likely the E94 of course.

For me, this announcement will be hard to top next week

 

UNBELIEVABLE! This is soooo great! Cannot wait for it. I travelled with 23 058 two years ago—what a nice loco the BR 23 is. And the route is the home route of one of my best friends. TLDR: that's just great! Thank you TSG!

 

STOKED!!!!!!

Totally a Day One, and I never buy Day One. But TSG products are the exception, because I know they'll be done right..

 

Worth noting that the Class 23s were some of the last steam engines ever built, and accordingly some of the most sophisticated, rivaled only by some of the last-gen US "superpower" monsters.

 

German steam, developed by TSG? Is this real? Am I to wake up? .... I'm sooo hyped

 

There will be no further Season Of Reveals 2025 next Monday.

There are only three Season Of Reveals 2025, the first on 1 December, the second on 8 December, and the last one was today, 15 December.

 

Mind you, the Silberlinge really should get a frame recolor. Few if any of them were repainted in 1974, the first year of Ozeanblau. The good news, and I speak from experience, is that swapping blue for anthracite grey is trivially easy.

 

"
So... What's Next Week?
Whilst the Season of Reveals is drawing to a close, we do have a quick update on the GWE Remaster before we finish for the year.
Next week, we'll be sharing some first gameplay as a final festive treat for you. We're very excited to be bringing you this early in 2026!
A smaller, final article will be shared on Monday, December 22nd 2025, a little later in the evening than usual, as our final update for the year."

So yes there is something next week

 

Really glad to see that TSG have picked up the baton on steam with this one! This one really needed a good 3P who are known for their care and attention to sort steam out!

I haven't bought any German content at all, this is about to change. I really can't wait to see what TSG come up with for this one!

I hope the improvements lead to support for the Tallynn line that was on the editor or perhaps a reprieve for Victory Works. I guess only time will tell!

 

The reveal of German steam was expected, based on the hints Lukas gave close to the launch of Mittenwaldbahn, but the route and locomotive choice are definitely a surprise. The model of the BR 23 in the first screenshot looks really good.
Given the choice of the BR 23 and the sales performance of the DLC, might we see a steam railtour pack with 23 058? Something similar to what we got with the E94 doesn’t sound too far-fetched to me.

 

Ah, I totally forgot that... thought it were four reveal days. Nevermind, I got enough stuff to wait for as it is

I can live with blue-frame n-Wagen in 1974 as a compromise, just as I can live with all the mint green and orient red in the E94 timetable on Linke Rheinstrecke. As long as the right feeling comes across, I'm fine!

Speaking of the E94 timetable: TSG, you would make me very, very, very happy if we could see some of those coaches from those screenshots there too... they would be a perfect fit

The route really is a surprise for me, I was banking on Donaueschingen-Singen-Konstanz due to some eastereggs on Mittenwaldbahn. It's not the worst choice by a longshot, but thinking about the scenery it might feel a bit like Ruhr-Sieg-Nord 2.0... topography and "feel" of the route are rather similar. Let's see how it will turn out.

I think we can expect something like that. There are not many 23's still around to take sound samples from, I wouldn't be suprised if TSG were pulling off something similar again. Might not necessarily be 23 058, but could also be 23 042 or 105.

 

Absofrickin'lutely! That has been the missing link- you simply can't do the Bundesbahn without m-Wagen

 

Yeah, not with the cab housing shown in the screenshots it won't be either of those. The cab house from the screenshots only fits engines up to 23 023. The integrated ventilation cabs would fit those still in preservation with an active boiler ticket, as shown here:

They have to keep an eye on numbering, should they only build one of the many variants of the 23.
As much as I wish they'd build more than just one specific variant, the sheer number of variants with the 23 is not feasable for one DLC I'm afraid.

 

My only slightly less positive thought about this one, is could it herald the first £39.99/Euro 44.99/US$49.99 price level add on DLC?

 

That's true. But two variants isn't outside the realm of possibility, given what they did with the 194 and the 218.

 

I would really hope not, I'd pay mid £30's though especially if it's up to TSG's usual standards. But then if it's done well I'd really want to support steam content in general. We'll have to wait and see what TSG come up with I suppose!

 

If it only was that simple with the 23. Thanks to Friedrich Witte, construction was a cluster-swearword. I do hope for more than one variant, but what will it cost in additional time to finish the DLC?
I honestly don't care about the pricing with this one, I'll buy it anyway, but from the looks of the screenshots, the route does not appear to be in its early stages but rather advanced and as much as I appreciate devs taking the time they need to deliver a finished product, TSW has been suffering from DLC that were announced way too ealy and are still not finished yet.

 

On a different note, without firing it up, am I right in thinking that all or part of this route is in Zusi 3? I'm convincing myself looking at some of the station names I've driven across there.

 

In the Netherlands 2 are regularly on the mainline.

 

Unexpected surprise!!!!
Nice move TSG, bringing steam back on one of the "classic" German routes!
Beautiful scenery and right stock selection. Speaking of what might work here:

Electrics
- E10 (Br 110).
- E94 (Br 194).
Diesels
- V200 (Br 220).
- V160 (Br 218).

So excited about this one .

 

While a V200 would be an amazing addition and surely fun to drive, I don't think we'll get one this time... The BR 23 is clearly the star of this route

I still think the "supporting cast" will be:

• A period-accurate 140 (green) since it can be used for both freight and passenger services easily, and the ingame model is more modern than the 110. It would fit well with the n-Wagen, Umbauwagen and UIC-X. Also, it could retroactively find its way into both Linke Rheinstrecke timetables.
• The 194 would be a good fit for heavy freight duty, perhaps even some passenger services.
• Perhaps the blue/beige 218 will make some guest appearances. It's not totally accurate, having PZB and all, but I'd call that a good compromise to liven up the route.
• The 365 might be there for shunting duties (hope we'll see a lot of them). It could use a bit of work though, like removal of the automatic couplers and the radio control equipment... if even to differentiate it a bit more from the 363.

 

Maybe we can drive the 23 from a cab car. With this cylinder in the cab, the loco is capable of

 

Great find, I didn't catch that! Would also mean we'll get a cab car of the era

 

I would rather say 'we could get'
But I would love to see a 'Hasenkasten' n-Wagen or yl-Wagen cabcar

 

Also, paint it Altrot! I can't find any 261 painted blue earlier than 1977.

 

While I'd find a steam cab car with Hagenuk telegraph for example very enticing, it doesn't fit the mid 1970s anymore since the V100 and V160 were already available.

Also the regulator closing automat doesn't necessarily mean it's fit for push pull operation, that came with Indusi as well.

Also yet again only 16 engines were even fitted with the appropriate equipment.

 

Would've liked a faded orient red on on SHB, but we got a traffic red one. So my hopes aren't high since we already have 10.000.000.000 blue beige ones, none fit any route they came with except for Niddertalbahn and Mittenwaldbahn.
I also fear that, even if we get an altrot one, the cab won't get backdated and we're stuck with the anachronistic joystick at a time where the only things that came with joysticks were state-of-the-art fighter jets and not even video games.

 

Did I pick up in the thread we are getting some UIC corridor Am232/Bm232 or similar stock with this?

Excellent if true and at last we can replicate those long journeys sat on a plastic “cushion” and backrest that only reached up to your hips (and unwielding firm head rest).

 

23 071 and 23 076 are local to me and pass the mainline railway near my house a few days each year (and on those days, multiple times a day). The video you posted was of last weekend's timetable (an hourly service between Nijmegen and Arnhem).

The BR 23 071 on one end of the train, and the BR 23 076 on the other end, taking turns in pulling the train back and forth between NS Koplopers, VIRMms, DDZs, SNGs and Flirt3s.

But 071 and 076 are not the only BR 23's in the Netherlands. 23 023 is owned by Stoomstichting Nederland in Rotterdam and can be seen on the mainline tracks quite often.

 

Yes Vern, we are getting UIC X coaches (üm/m).

 

The BR23 058, was also in the Netherlands but returned. The orginasation didn't get the finance together.

Here is a nice website with a nice lsit with al the differences of the BR23.
https://www-bundesbahnzeit-de.trans..._sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=nl&_x_tr_pto=wapp

 

But if the steam physics are not improved are we in a better position with more steam content?

 

Excellent! I will have to replace my upholstered computer chair with a hard dining chair to emulate the experience!

 

Nice announcement. I think TSG will do a great job.

The timeframe is particularly well chosen, as it allows for the use of all traction types (steam, diesel, electric).

 

I noticed something which might confirm the 363/365 being used on the route in some way:

This small non-electrified branch line from Neckarsteinach to Schönau has been closed for passenger traffic in 1969. It still had some decent freight services, operated by V60 (which is the older designation of our 363/365) locos, until 1974. After the last regular customer quit, there were only occasional on-demand transports happening along this branch, until it was abandoned completely in 1981.

 

It will surely create a wonderful sense of impending doom on this branch line when it loses its last major freight customer in the same year (1974).

I'm looking forward to it.