Quick Play was a feature I was really interested in upon the launch of TSW3. It had the promise of putting you into a varying service/scenario that you have not completed. This all sounded like a great idea at that point. Since the game released the users have found out: The game was forcing people to play through all the trainings if choosing the short route option. Thankfully this got a toggle in the settings after a few updates. Until then the feature was useless for most of us, who skip the n-th tutorial for driving a Dosto cabcar or yet another Traxx. In the short 15-30 min timeslot the game routinely offers freight services that on the American routes extend well over the interval selected. There is still a priority for scenarios over timetable runs. This leads to an intresting proposition. There are two scenarios in the US freight routes that are mostly freeroam style yard shunting, namely Cumberland Switchback and Barstow-away. These are seemingly categorized as short runs of the respective route. These two scenarios take priority over anything else after completing all other short scenarios from the various DLC and simply make the feature unusable again. One can argue to uninstall the relevant DLC, however that is not a solution if one just wants to avoid a certain scenario not the route itself. Sometimes messing with the enable tutorials flag helps randomize in a timetable run, but quickly returns to offering Cumberland Switchback again the next time. There is a large stutter/unresponsive period after clicking the Quick Play button, before the two options pop up. This is there since release, I am assuming some database is being built or some index files are accessed every time that button is clicked. Substitution of locomotives. It is always cool to get a different rolling stock than the in box one. But this is sometimes not performing just as well. I was stuck for 20 minutes in a DRA 185 on SKW due to the wheelslip at standstill with no power bug after stopping for a red signal. Now for the constructive part: I think it should be reassessed to give the player more flexibility in the style of services offered. I recall they did not really want to add too many settings as that would be the point of the feature, to click a button and drive a train. It still makes sense Enable/disable scenarios, allow passenger/freight/both preference at least. Maybe allow/disallow substitution for the player train. The settings can be hidden in the gameplay menu but should be offered as an OOBE style popup on accessing the Quick Play feature the first time. Most players probably will never go into settings after making the initial choice, but they are still available in case. If there will always be a loading of index/database before offering the available options, please introduce some kind of a loading indicator. Not expecting a progress bar, anything is better than a frozen screen
Should have another option - "I don't use it." At least not until any timetable runs you complete that are part of the Journey mode get ticked off as done.
I used it today for the first time and I like it. Don't have to decide on route or loco. Just click e.g. short service and one is delivered ready to go.
Until I can have an option for it to only select uncompleted journey services and scenarios (on routes Ive not yet finished all the chapters) and that they count towards my totals, I wont be using it.
It doesn't really work, certainly not as advertised. It was supposed to present you with an option to either accept its service choice or "roll again," as it were. In practice it throws you right into whatever selection it has made, and you have to exit back to the menu if you don't like it. Yes the training sessions were removed, thankfully, but as mentioned it will almost always select a scenario if you have any unfinished ones. Recently in another thread I mentioned that I had only one unfinished scenario under 30 minutes, and it kept getting selected in Quick Play, to the exclusion of everything else, until I finally played it. Eventually I finished all my scenarios, but then Quick Play placed me into a service that I had already completed, although it supposedly was intended to only choose ones that you have not yet played. Plus, as also mentioned, there is a possibility that it will select a journey service for you, but you won't get the credit for completing the journey service if you play it through Quick Play. So, even if Quick Play otherwise worked as advertised, if you were interested in completing the journey you would most likely have to get it done before playing any Quick Play services for that route; this would finish your scenarios as well and get the feature as close to "working" as possible. Previously Matt has replied that he is aware of at least some of these issues and that they are getting looked at. For now the state of Quick Play is quite poor and for me unusable.
It often selects a long 1 hour plus run on cajon pass when I’ve opted for the under 30 minute option…. if it worked more often, I’d like an option for up to 45 minutes. Sometimes 30 is too short and an hour too long.
It is useless, because it loads extremely slow (minutes!!!). Maybe nice if you own a few DLC but I have most DLC and simply does not work properly.
Now that tutorials are out, and it includes timetables as well as scenarios, I like it a lot. It could however do with a "roll again" button if you don't like what it gives you.
It is still relevant. If quick play gives me a timetable run as opposed to selecting it in Journey, then it's a wasted run. Ergo my answer, no QD does not live up to my expectations.
Oh I agree... Would suggest they should unlock in sequence, but then we get the inevitable one that doesn't work and you end up stuck. That digression aside, for whatever reason I haven't really used Quick Play that much. Used it a couple of times while the save game was AWOL but TBH when I load the game up, I generally have a fair idea of what I want to do. This evening probably a quick Oakville, followed by thrashing a Peak over NTP. Tomorrow, assuming the Steam sale delivers it will be Harlem and maybe HSC.
I've had HSC for quite a while, but I'm just getting into it. While it doesn't compare with the TSC version in terms of locos and rolling stock, for gameplay it's really pretty good. I'm thoroughly enjoying it and I would recommend it. Especially if you get a good sale price. Harlem works on a certain level. The trains are pretty good. But, for me, for a number of reasons, it just doesn't feel like the New York City I know.
Yep, after watching the Schnauzahpowahz YT review it has kind of a toy/model look to it, reminds me of a route I saw in Kalmbach Great Model Railroads many years ago. Very short too, but the M3's sound quite good just have to ignore the obstacle deflector dragging through the railhead!
Me too. I use it, if I have little time and don't want to choose a particular journey. I mostly use the up to 30 minutes version.
The 30 minute option usually gives me a timetable service which is pretty fun but the longer one keeps giving me scenarios for WSR, as much as I love the WSR timetable mode the scenarios are tedious. So I'm undecided.
I still think this feature was well intended, but just got the usual treatment of implementing the minimum necessary to make it work and then focusing on something else. The poll results clearly incline towards consumers being not convinced by what was delivered. My thanks go to the guys who expressed their opinion either by voting or via the comments. I was hoping that the thread gets actually noticed by DTG as well and we get a hint if there are at least some future changes considered to make the experience more enjoyable for everyone.
