PC This New Hud….

The new HUD is actually very good but please, for all of our sanity, put the distance to go back where it belongs. I’d happily lose the gradient information and replace it with a numerical distance remaining information block if that were the only option. Either way, there has to be a numerical readout visual to the player that isn’t a marker.

As a design choice I’m struggling to see how this could be seen as a gameplay ‘improvement’? Surely the idea was to present the information we had in a better, cleaner way, not remove something so fundamental to the game entirely? If the above isn’t possible then there needs to be a depiction of each station with a separate marker to delineate your next stop on the look ahead element.

It’s easy to say ‘turn it off, go back to the old HUD’ but that now looks clunky and old fashioned by comparison. The new one is so close, a bit of tweaking and it will be pretty much perfect.

 

I think it’s a definite improvement, it’s just that that critical bit of info that is now missing. I was surprised how overbearing the old hud felt when I reverted to it.

Would it be possible to mark stations as a green circle and stops as a red circle on the look ahead part of the hud or something similar? The barbers pole just isn’t sufficient when barrelling along at 125mph.

 

I would love to see everything currently shown on the old dial HUD made available as a little box at the top on the minimal hud, a digital number showing current speed is pretty much essential, but I would also love to be able to add the distance to next stop, current power/brake position, AFB target speed, AWS light etc. Basically I want it all, but in digital form rather than a dial and all at the top of the screen, all individually selectable.

I also agree a next objective marker would be a great addition to the 2km tracker, or even add it alongside the old style next signal and next speed limit display, that way it could appear a bit sooner than 2km out.

 

DTG Matt,

Don’t get me wrong, I think the new HUD is almost perfect (for the way I play, which is pretty much everything off). All I need is the distance to my next stop and I’m happy.

 

I agree. Distance to next station is critical if you don’t know the route, a rotating barber poll is useless. Just get rid of gradient and replace with distance to objective, please

 

Or even split that data field horizontally to show both the gradient and the distance to go. Wherever it is It just needs to be somewhere.

 

same with speed, current speed over speed limit would look great.

 

The one thing missing from the previous HUD-less setup was the current speed limit which we now have a nice representation of, except the distance info has gone. Pleased to hear it’s been looked at, it’s important it’s there.

 

Forgive me if its been mentioned, but I think it'd be really cool if the distance readouts were intergrated with the same HUD section as the signal and speed limits. Perhaps some kind of design that includes all three pieces of information?

 

I am in favour of both of the suggestions above:
- add the stops into the new hud, to stop me failing scenarios when I shoot past the stop (I accept that track knowledge is a factor)
- add current vehicle speed to allow me to leave the cab. This is most useful in shunting scenarios where you are typically using the 2 or 3 cameras and have no idea how fast you are going.

Overall, I like the new hud and it just needs a couple of slight adjustments.

 

I would also like the accelerometer display to be included somehow that I get a clear indication of how hard I am braking or accelerating.

I also like the new HUD design its much less intrusive with a modern cleaner look.

Perhaps the HUD could be done as a full screen width "info bar" while giving the user the option to position at the top or bottom of the screen. Whilst containing the same info we have now in the original HUD.

Maybe this thread needs moving to the Player Feedback Forum.

 

The new hud template is great, IMO they need to scrap the old one completely & make variations on the new one.

There’s plenty of space to do stuff, with it, could even let us pick what goes where.

In any case, glad to see it’s being looked at, DTG has something great here so it’s time to run with it. I just hope it’s not months/years for an improvement to arrive.

 

Coming in 2024, TSW5?
I mean, it took y'all one year to figure out that gray is not the right choice for the selected option.

 

Yes, I’d go for that, although on the old HUD I only use the distance objective and the signal ( no aspect), but I could live with it if it meant we got the distance back. Good suggestion buddy.

 

One other point to note is that steam engines don’t really work with the new HUD. The steam chest, blowers and other information just isn’t in the new hud, even when you are in the cab, so the only option is to run with the old hud.

 

For me, the TSC F3 HUD is perfect. Everything you need to know, track monitor showing gradients and stations, easily readable, and opacity is adjustable so I can dim it down on night drives. In TSW, I am missing rpm information on many Diesels.

 

@DTG Matt , will it be Possible to get more Positions of the new mini Hud ?

I got a Screen Resolution of 3440 x 1440 Pixels , and would like it , when the Hud could be in the
Center of the Screen ( same High , but in the middle ) . Here a Screenshot , to show what i mean .

I have to look everytime in the left corner of my big screen , so that i pass signals or other Informations
on the Track just for looking "short" at the HUD . If it could get a center position , it would be a more
smoother experience for Users with bigger Screens .

 

I'm liking the new HUD my only issue is when you have it in minimal you can't drive properly with the UK safety systems on because the audio is so quiet and there is no HUD or in cab visual to go by apart from the AWS.

 

Awesome to hear! I think the new HUD is great and am also loving the new scenery and enjoying the external cameras. Problem is to drive from external view im forced to use the old HUD to know what speed I’m going. The current speed in or next to the speed limit box would mean the new HUD is usable for external view driving.

The accelerometer is also missed as with no way to “feel” the g force, this is a massive help. To make space, the gradient could be visualised on the upcoming signals line chart by having the hozizontal line rise and fall with upcoming gradient

 

Good idea. Find out players reactions to the new HUD then tweak it as appropriate. Then carry out the process a few more times to get it really good.

 

Why scrap the old completely? I prefer the old. I’m annoyed at the moment because I can’t turn the track monitor off on PS5. Keep the old and develop the new as an alternative.

 

yea I definitely agree do not get rid of the old, theirs no reason to and should stay for those who prefer it.

personally I think the new is too small with too much information on to be able to notice quickly enough to react. I feel like I have to take quite the moment away from the train controls to read about what’s going on with the upcoming signals and work out what to do for upcoming speed changes.

I know I don’t want it to block the screen but having it in the top right corner means all my vision has to move to only that when looking at it.

I also don’t think it’s very noticeable as much as the older one particularly with the countdown and larger speed number and larger light colour that the old had to be able to notice when it suddenly changes.

 

Im saying keep the information from the old hud, but implement it into the new layout. There’s so much wasted space on the old hud, even if you have everything on, the black bar in the top right reaches the middle of your screen & never contains any useful info.

I can see how the track monitor isn’t wanted if you have signals & speeds turned on, but this just goes back to my original point that over a quarter of your total screen space just isn’t needed for all the HUD info.

I really don’t see the point in DTG maintaining 2 different HUD’s, when one is far superior in layout & could just have player customisation & various layouts, ranging from all the assists, down to none.

 

theirs no harm in leaving the older system aswell, same goes for on immersion or classic controls.

the new hud can’t be used with the old information when it’s the new hud that can cause problems for those who don’t favour it.

seeing it as far superior is of your opinion and not everyone else’s, it’s not a question of fact or not on being superior or inferior, it’s subjective and can’t be used as a way to dismiss the old or the new.

quite frankly and I don’t mean this as a criticism to the development work on the new one, but I have missed speed limits and gone through red lights very much thanks to the changes of the hud, going through red lights is something I haven’t done to my memory in at least over a year.

 

Like I said, all the info could be available in the new HUD, which really is the entire point of the thread.

I just switched back to the old full hud now & that black bar takes up 2 thirds of the screen, even though only 1 third of it is used.

If you made absolutely no other change, other than putting the very same information inside the same size box as the new hud, you’ve just got a large chunk of screen space back.

In any case though you needn’t be so panicked, DTG won’t remove the old hud, this is all a hypothetical.

 

I agree about the box, I don’t understand why they never shortened it. About 50% i see is never needed

though the stuff on the right side is more what I was referring to (speed limits, lights) and bottom right speedometer and other

edit: I know one change I need to revert myself I changed is removing away the AP as it’s made the speed limit and signal go out of my horizon of sight by moving up into the older space, would be nice if that didn’t move to the top corner as I was rather liking not having AP but seems I need to keep it.

 

Please don't get rid of the gradient as this is useful information. I rather the barber pole be replaced with something simple that tells you when the passengers are loaded and along with a distance to next stop readout.

 

i think TSC's HUD is gold standard. yes, it looks old, but much easier to recognize. i'd rather choose center-bottom collectively located position than stuck in every single corner located position.

using simplified HUD function and newely added track HUD a lot though. they are great

 

The easiest way to avoid going through reds is to simply look at the signals and drive accordingly. Obviously if someone is colourblind that changes things, but for everyone else that has to be the obvious solution.

 

I think some thought needs to be given as to how steam loco data, also brake pressures can be incorporated in the new HUD. Maybe an additional small box at the bottom of the screen, optional of course. Vital for locos where you can’t see the gauges or where you have to operate in head out view.

 

Agreed, I loved the TSC F3 HUD and I think more features from TSC F3 HUD should be implemented into TSW HUD.

 

before and now I did exactly that, as said I’ve never had an issue with it. But

 

That’s fair enough. I guess that’s going to come down to personal preference. I really like the fact that the new hud is smaller and less opaque than the old one. I never really felt that there was an issue with the old one, but it now feels significantly over-sized and oppressive compared to the new version. I really think the new one is a big step forward and a genuine improvement, it just needs tweaking.

I wonder if, within the confines of the existing box in the top left, it could have an adjustable layout and configurable data fields so everyone can set it up to their own liking. That would be the perfect solution for all. For now (from my personal point of view) it’s almost there, it just needs this distance countdown adding.

 

Widgets... now that is a good idea.

 

The new hud is great. I like not having my speed showing as it forces me to actually look at the gauges in the loco. I play with the stop marker showing to get the distance, but it would be nice to turn it off. Maybe if the barbers pole was changed to 3km/2.5 miles with stops marked on the signal map thingy it would make it a bit easier.

I agree with what Matt said about the old hud. I hadn't realised until he mentioned it but I was basically sat on the sofa watching a train on the screen and counting down the numbers until I needed to press a button. Now I'm monitoring gauges a lot more I find the game way more immersive. We just need the R3 button fixed on PS5 so I can quickly nip back to the cab to check my speed when I'm in helicopter view!

 

1000% agree with this, would love an option for the previous distance numerical number to return. Maybe like it use to be the bar changes back to a number when CTRL+1. That or maybe station additions to the new map would also be an alternative, which can also be toggleable.

I also 100% agree with this also. would be nice to get a 'sunflower' notification also when the safety system is going off as its not easy to see in the cabs with the current lighting.


It also needs an option for medium/very small sizes to again further enhance the experience. I like the way its going and glad to see feedback is being received and considered!

 

I also like the new hud but that progress bar in its current state is surely inadequate.
I was driving the 5-car azuma and approaching Grantham from south at 115mph. The bar did not change until I entered the final straight track section into the station. I applied full brake and ended up only with the last car on the platform. This is when I was already slowing down for seeing the 100mph speed limit. I measured on google earth and that distance was like 1.5km at most, an unavoidable overshoot.
I wonder why this short notice issue was never discovered by testing, or probably just like most issues, they were noticed but determined not important enough to delay or change anything.
And here're some improvement suggestions:
1. Make the bar flash for a while (30~60s) before the actual braking period begins.
2. Braking time/distance should be calculated based on current train speed. A simple linear function could be used with a little added redundancy.
3. Allow players to choose what we want in the notice area.

 

Yep, the new HUD is great but a change is like to see is the distance bar being dynamic and changing depending on your speed, is that possible? It works fine at lower speeds but as the comment above spoke about it’s not helpful when you're approaching a station at a high speed like on ecml, I've found myself frequently looking at the map to judge my breaking distance. Have that or bring back the distance count down in numbers.

 

[EDIT - Jan - Language]
I've spent a lot of money with you Matt - and I mean a lot - and I never dreamed I'd have a problem, as I love these Sims. But when we're told "This is at the top of the fix list" only to still be waiting for stuff a year later, it's pretty difficult to believe anything, which renders these entire forums pointless. You're not blind to people's gripes, I know you aren't, which only mans one thing and that is the opinions of the end-user count for zilch. My problem isn't with TSW4 being out less than a year after the previous iteration, it's with the constant let downs and empty promises. Honestly, if I ran my own business the same way, I'd be out of work. I'm not a negative person by nature and I'd love to see DTG be what I know they can be. This means actually listening, as opposed to the 'Copy/Paste' type answers to users, such as "We're looking into..." because people aren't stupid, and they know that just means what I said above. Sorry I'm not a happy camper, but I refuse to pretend after spending £358 with you.

 

Well to be fair, if the new HUD doesn’t quite work for your particular situation you can switch back and forth between the new and old. For example driving the steam loco the old HUD works best.

What I do think is this is one area where DTG could have done some customer/user focus on a new or revised HUD and not just a closed play/beta test group.

I do hope that DTG are indeed listening on this, though of course the problem is the more we put back in it will end up as distracting as the old one.

 

And that kinda highlights the problem. Community has been asking for more HUD customization, but all DTG offers are a number of presets. There's no way to combine elements from the miniHUD with elements from the other HUD presets. There's no option to toggle between a distance counter or a barber pole. You either pick a preset that has a distance counter, or you pick a preset which has a barber pole.

 

The distance left to the next station needs to be doubled in order to make the new hud usable. There is no way you are going to stop using normal braking after finding out suddenly that the station is coming in 1km while going 140-200 km/h. Add some rain or snow and it gets even worse. If distance counter cannot be in digits i am fine, but at least make that bar start counting down from 2km away. That way you have time to properly react and slow down regardless of the type of train you are driving.

 

Sounds perfect.

 

Only thing to be aware of with that is, same as MSTS or TSC where you get several speed restrictions in quick succession they are overlapping. Departing Peterborough on The Fact Controller I didn't pick up there was a 20 MPH crossing back over to the Down Main as it was jumbled up with all the other numbers. So in that situation might even need to go to a larger scale, say 500 metres to differentiate the numbers.

Oh and Matt, just in case you didn't see it in the FS feedback thread, the consist on Fact Controller has no brake vehicle in the formation. Not checked the other charter runs but that obviously needs sorting along with any others having the same error.

 

I’ve just put a ticket in as I can’t seem to remove track manager no matter what I try. I’ve gone back to using the old hud system but it still appears despite turning it off and saving the change, it just automatically defaults back to on.

 

I'd like to thank everyone who paid extra to beta test this so it'll be better by the time I get around to buying it.
You truly are saints.

 

Yes, I agree with the 1/2/4 distance thing - not all of us want a specific distance countdown, though some people certainly do. For me, I very much want to drive from the train gauges and by trying to locate the stop markers in platforms. Overlooking the fact those stop markers are not all there in all routes, one thing I do have a problem with is the barber pole's execution. There seems to be a disconnect between when the last of the yellow empties out of the barber pole and the distance remaining to the objective marker, which I have disabled by default. I wouldn't mind that disconnect so much if we weren't graded on the accuracy of our stops. Is it possible to get it so that when the last of the yellow leaves, we are within 10 yards/equivalent metric of that objective marker? I just finished an ECML scenario where I popped the objective marker on momentarily to see I was still 96 yards away.

I've also found resolution to be an issue - specifically, train gauges too small or not clear enough to read. I'm in my 60's and playing on a laptop. Since we can't adjust cab chair height and position, I'm forced into a Hobson's choice of either zooming in, thus restricting my ability to see signals, or else staying zoomed out and straining to see what speed I'm doing. And I mean really straining at times, blinking rapidly in succession or wiping my eyes to try and get a momentary clear view of a tiny number.

One final thing - I'm someone that likes to position the camera right on the nose of the train for some good old external-view driving on occasion. I used to do this exclusively, but thanks to the mini-HUD about 80-90% of my time I'm now in cab view. When I do pop out, though, I'm suddenly blind to the speed I'm doing. Is it possible to make it so either speed shows up on the mini-HUD whenever one changes to an external view, or else give me a keybind option to turn on the normal (or simple) HUD whenever I exit the cab view? I choose external because there is some seriously breathtaking scenery out there - but I do like to still be able to manage my speed while viewing it.

Overall, loving TSW4 and can't wait to get my old familiar routes back tomorrow.

 

Whatever happens, please don’t drop the gradient from the mini-hud. It’s the only thing I actually need when I’m trying to simulate real world conditions. I do however agree that the distance to next destination should be incorporated so I don’t have to keep pressing control-1 to see where I am.