No, i don't think it, i know it After doing lots of work for it i should be able to say that. TSWs SimuGraph (what is the physics simulation system) is extremely complex and powerful. You can build nearly everything you can imagine. Just try the Expert 101 and you maybe get the idea how complex and accurate the traction and brake systems can get. Of course, it needs lots of time and work for doing such a complex recreation with TSW, so it wont be present on every vehicle, but it is possible. But even the lowest level of complexity in TSW is way more complex than on other train sims.
There's quite a bit more modelled behind the scenes in TSW beyond "push for forwards or backwards, and then press these buttons in order to apply more speed or less", but that much should probably be apparent to anyone who has loaded in with an underpowered consist on Sand Patch Grade, or made the inevitable rookie mistakes with braking on Sherman Hill, rather than their experience primarily being with the Holiday Express, or Thomas..
Steam traction does say “Hi”, though. It seems that TSC or MSTS via Open Rails if you like retro are the only options available at present. And while acknowledging your expertise, are we really dismissing the physics of Run 8, Zusi 2/3 and SimRail as being inferior to what Simugraph can generate in TSW?
Ok so how do you explain routes that run exactly the same on the older gen consoles? Ok so you say the expert trains are quite demanding but I’m talking about the actual world itself. It’s a mixture of reused assets for the most part and some basic geometry (with the exception of the new mountains which are not on every route). So if the route runs on gen 8, surely it means it should be far superior on gen 9 and on pc? I played s bahn on pc at a mates house - I didn’t think the route was that busy apart from Frankfurt obviously which you drive on for approximately two to three minutes, otherwise it felt like any other route, in fact the new kiln Aachen timetable and London commuter felt more alive. I did a run on san Bernardino last night, I’ve hardly touched that route since it came out but you can’t help but notice that along the route there’s lots of generic and basic buildings, roads and other assets that’s simply don’t look like they should be demanding performance on a linear route with minimal traffic, yet I still had glitches, broken road traffic, disappearing cars, cars on the tracks and other errors including some wild and crazy black graphic spikes like trees expanded and taking over the screen. It feels like a legacy product that’s mired in technical debt that’s going to take too long to fix and so they’ve just left it and it’s hit and miss what happened next.
IMHO one of the dreariest routes in TSW. Oh there’s a few gradients but the F125 on 4 or 5 coaches doesn’t need much power to keep going. The first few miles, after that tedious 12 MPH drag out of LAUPT, are not too bad apart from the poorly done freeways (still no big rig trucks) but then it’s basically a straight as a die run to the other tedious 15 or is it 10 MPH approach to SB. On a recent run I had cars basically spawning out of nowhere on level crossings so some excellent vehicle spawner placement there. Whole thing doesn’t look much better than Run 8 around LA.
Just to be clear, i wasn't talking about scenery at all. I would say TSW can still do better steam physics that all those others. But steam is not really a market and so (i assume) DTG dropped that. And i personally als would not do any steam loco yet. The amount of work going into steam is to much for the expected revenues. I'm sure, the few bugs in the steam simulation can be fixed somehow, but not by a 3rd party. We can't change or add simugraph functionality. This would need engine core developers from DTG what is not available easily.
I have a similar issue, I don't have space for a PS5 on my desk. Of course, my PC is smaller than the PS5
All the issues in TSW can’t be blamed on the game’s complexity and on hardware limits. For example your company consistently produces DLC that is noticeably better quality than the stock routes and the add-ons sold by a certain other third party developer. And the bugs, performance issues and broken add-ons (e.g. BR 187) that never get fixed are not specific to consoles. These forums are full of players on all platforms commenting on the issues with the game and the drop in quality over the years, not to mention the greedflation. As a developer you know much more about the internal workings of TSW and I can accept that perhaps in some areas I expect too much from the game. On the other hand you have a business relationship with DTG and of course you are not going to criticize them in public. If DTG took some effort to fix their broken add-ons, started taking quality control seriously, and stopped playing ridiculous word games to justify charging full-price for a hobbled DLC, I am willing to bet their customers would be more forgiving of reduced timetables and even be happier to pay the higher prices for actual premium quality DLC.
