Train Sim World 2 - A Year On The Rails

Credit where credit is due. In this case slim to none. Claiming it to be a 'fantastic' year in the first sentence just makes a mockery of the community.
And bolding random words does little to help make your point or the situation.

 

RailDriver support carried me pretty much over the year ;-)

 

that's absolutely outrageous

things are broken, which worked before and obvious problems are not fixed sind month...
No, it is not fantastic when DTG cannot even fix a broken lightbulb.
No it was NOT a fantastic year !

 

[removed by Protagonist - needlessly argumentative]

 

That's what you tell people when people offer constructive criticism? Really? SMH.

 

I won't rise to your provocation, needless to say continue to sit on your elbows......

 

Let me remind you of one major fact while you mock those who express there thoughts on the state of tsw2 and it's many continuing issues that still need fixing we all support this game with are dollars/euros/pounds etc,and i know you will say we don't have to keep buying more,well we do because for some of us this is the only train game available,so we put up with the issues for better or worse but that doesn't mean where just going to keep accepting them without saying something we all have are limits and we each have decided when supporting this game no longer worth it,until then all we can do is express are thoughts here hoping they mean something to someone at dtg.

 

Well I can not say I'm all disappointed. I do run the rush hour routes. Sadly, some things went wrong and it's explained in the stream shows. It seems that console players took most of the punches. We PC guys had more luck.

When the wistleboards come up at both direction at Hoo Junction, the DB BR 187 gets fixed with a working AFB, the Rapid Transit 442 get Mode O for PZB and LZB works on all trains where there should be and we get appropiate whistleboards for the american route, then i'll join you DTG Benjamin and others in the celebrating. Keep repairing the routes and all will be well.

 

Just to add, I agree with the vast majority on here that the amount of frustration at times with bugs and crashes has been aplenty - I don't play video games to become more stressed!!! But, I do feel DTG deserve some major credit for improving the offering in comparison to the years before.

While there are issues with bugs, Rush Hour is the standout reason for credit to DTG. With more than 1,400 driveable services and 4,000 AI movements on London Commuter alone justifies this. I've played TSW 2 since it was released on console and in the past, I remembered playing a lot of the older routes wishing there was at least some AI traffic and more gameplay variety offered. Rush Hour has set the benchmark for how much DTG can deliver, and if this trend can continue, minus the bugs, then we have much to look forward to.

You have to remember that a route with 1,400 driveable services and 4,000 AI traffic movements, this wasn't going to be simple. I think it would be a lot worse if there was busy platforms and no trains! Hopefully, DTG will implement Rush Hour passengers soon, then it will be worth the wait to have the best of both.

 

Well, it's been great for you guys the more DLC you put out the more money you make. For the community, to put it simply it's been a rollercoaster for the majority of the second half of the year.

IMO there's only been a hand full of top tier DLC minus all the bugs, crashes and glitches. I'm desperately hoping next year will be better in terms of quality assurance as most of the problems seem to be missed there.

 

I'm sure everyone thinking that for 2022...But we don't always get what we want...It's gonna take a lot more they hope at this point.

 

It is not for me to tell you how enthusiastic you need to be.
But I will tell you that the DTG itself has to apologise frequently for many things that don't turn out the way they would like. If everything was fantastic as you say, they wouldn't have to do it, don't you think?
And another thing, I will also tell you that they are always asking for our feedback and constructive criticism, because according to them it helps them a lot.
So I don't think DTG wants or needs anyone to [edit by Protagonist - colourful way of saying "heap praise"]

 

Personally 2021 has been fine for me and I have had a great time with the content such as SEHS, BR465, Clinchfield, NEC: Boston & London-Brighton.

I can appreciate many had issues though (in particular the console peeps with the 4.26 upgrade); so it is not surprising the reactions here.

 

Well I'm not a person for superlatives, no fantastic and no bad and even worser than bad...

For me, what the year brought on positives have been
All in all 19 DLC-releases which almost doubled the content for TSW.
A quite amout of third party releases, who took their first steps in UE/Simugraph programming etc and with more and more experiences releases get better.
The invention of new features.
The shown will of DTG to explore borders they haven't touched before.
Establishing a team that is solely there for revising old routes, polish these, bringing them to the actual state of the art and fixing long standing bugs.
that all of this haven't been a smooth moonwalk through the jungle of computer programming, well, no one should be surprised about.that. Bugs happen and they would be even in a far future. Sometimes, somehow, there will be some kiind of bad luck, for example DTG launching a PS5 version of the game and after htaking the first steps into it, Sony saying 'Now, we're limiting the number of trophies and the amount of GB DLCs could have, shouldn't be a problem for the ones that release PS-content.,..

Would everyone be happier, if they haven't released London Commuter? Would SEHS would have been more enjoyable, if they would have released it in June, cancelling Cathcart? I don't think so, I think they're quite on a right way, even with all the shortcomings that have been and will be there. BUtr at least it's better to have something to aim for than just going the save way, not changing anything and just stay where they always have been.

 

I think the key thing here in my mind is as follows.
The game has its challenges, we're all passionate about it which is why we disagree with the article.

We likely all like the game enough to be frustrated with things , let's be honest we'd all clear off silently elsewhere if we wasn't. There's plenty of other games out there.

There have been some great things this year, rush hour to me worked and was good, yes there are bits missing , we know this, I'm confident DTG do too.

After a year with a few apology streams, difficult streams in fact for the team to deliver (ps5 issues, rush hour issues, 187 sound issues, no gates at Reigate, features in older routes bizarrely left out in newer ones) the article was entirely tone deaf. Let's be honest, it's a sales article, not a review of the year one.
Make the game look good and more shall come, more revenue is made and hopefully things get better.

If the article was titled (and they haven't )

"We had a ship year" , well we'd have less to enjoy next year as the revenue would drop

 

Maybe the only way to financially survive selling this kind of niche games is through DLC? That could explain the focus on new stuff instead of fixing bugs.

Because from my perspective that's the issue. You get the feeling you are supported a cash cow instead of a company just trying to survive while making some mistakes in the process.

They need to find the right balance. I am really hoping they do because it seems a lot of people here do want to support them.

 

Support for modders is better than dozens of DLC's... unfortunately, no support here from DTG and DTG keep creating buggy DLC's (for example, Arosa, locomotive isn't fixed since it has been released, I mean 0.5 speed on wheel from the start or landscape in that DLC).

I don't know why you don't create support for that like other simulators like MSFS or ETS2/ATS2, I thing you main only on money and not for the community.

 

In your opinion. I think that centralised software that works is better than a decentralised mess of competing styles and development ethos as is shown by the TSC "community"
Unfortunately DTG haven't got to the point of their software working yet

 

But community creates mods with heart and for their happiness, not strictly for the money, look on MSFS and ETS2...

Railworks too, but there is engine limitation, without modders, Railworks is already that.

 

A subscription like model could work. It would assure them of income while we (can) get more value for our money. And it forces them more to fix stuff because new stuff won't necessarily sell on it's own because a lot of people already have access due to their 'season pass'.

 

I play MSFS too, on Xbox. The support of modders is far more limited on this platform because MS controls access over the marketplace. And being a billion dollar company also helps.

 

I'm not really sure I'd be a fan of a subscription model, sure, it's a nice sustainable source of income towards continued development but I think in this niche it'll put a lot of people off of the game and many will label it as a way to squeeze more money out of the players.

I definitely don't want to be paying for a massive amount of content I have no interest in either, I'm only really interested in British content, I don't want to be paying for all the American and German stuff I'll barely touch if at all.

 

My words are forced to PC platform... not for consoles, consoles are always limited...

 

It seems to me that PC modding is not what it once was either, driving/racing sims for example the highly moddable platforms of Assetto Corsa and Automobilista for example have seen their newer editions be far less mod friendly. Even the first Assetto Corsa saw official mod support be somewhat withdrawn over time which I heard was a result of certain brands being less willing to work with a company that openly supported modding.

It's somewhat saddening but I do believe the golden age of modding is behind us and it will only become more difficult in the future.

 

And why? Because of money...

 

Lol, there is no doubt that you are good public relations
Thank you for your sense of humour.

 

I have to admit I didn't read all opinions in this thread.

For me the past year has been one of ups and downs. I feel like there are places where DTG makes mistakes. For example the Dresden branch announcement, which was a small PR disaster, and made me feel alienated as a player. That however is something they seem to have learned from. The scope of a route at the point of announcement is narrower now. Think of Dresden - Chemnitz, wich recently had two locos added to it's content, one of which from an exciting new operator. Keeping those things for later made them happy little surprises that drive up the hype and shows that DTG definetely has learned.

Then there's the HBK dosto issue. DTG recognises this isue, having noted it on streams after getting feedback. There hasn't been that much sign of learning from it though, but that's partly because they haven't had the chance (reusing slightly altered and updated rolling stock is correct for Riesa - Dresden, and arguably justifiable for Dresden - Chemnitz, plus the fact that these routes were already decided upon when HBK was released). I do hope though, that at the next chance, DTG shows us some new rolling stock on a route that isn't a low entry 4th gen Dosto, where this is accurate.

And that ties into a bigger issue: variety. With Dresden - Chemnitz set to introduce the first German DMU this issue is starting to be worked on, but there is so much more variety I as a player want to see. The past year had a staggering amount of releases, but some of them feel same-ish. Hamburg - Lübeck felt like just another double track mainline with Dostos, with nothing much to set it apart, even though it's quite a well made route with a very strong timetable. Other releases like the BR 101, Cathcart circle and Clinchfield did offer new experiences (though I do not own the latter two, yet...) which I greatly welcome. Sadly it feels like especially German content still lags behind in variety, and some vintage routes or diesel lines would greatly help that. Im addition to that, seeing more countries represented would be absolutely fantastic. I am a great fan of seeing the Netherlands especially, but also Austria, Sweden, Norway, Italy, the Czech Republic and more of Switzerland and France in game. In the end of year Q&A thread variety was also brought up a lot. Recently Matt commentrd no new countries should be expected, as it would be unsatisfying to see just one route from that country and then have to wait years for the next one. I hope however that the feedback on this and the call for more variety will make DTG reconsider this position.

Another way for more variety is 3rd party developers. Something we've seen with Rivet, that even though there have been serious bumps, have introduced Switzerland to the game. Skyhook is set to introduce Norfolk Southern, and has already created a scenic branch with Cane Creek. TSG has mostly worked behind the scenes, helping DTG releases such as the stunning BR 101, which are also great sources of variety and show amazing quality. TSG's first solo release has also introduced a magnificent and unique shunter, with a clever way of timetabling services to create a 'story', with many unique moves such as a failed loco pickup adding even more variety. It truly has been great to see these 3rd parties get into the game and bring variety, even though there are bumps, which have taken or are still taking more time than I'd have liked to sort out (I really want a BR 187, but cant justify buying it in it's current state for example).

However, seeing the enhancement these 3rd parties bring, has made me hope to see more. I think they could be the perfect solution to the variety issue facing the game. However, over the year, no new ones have come forwards, and upon asking quite a few indicate that TSW is just to difficult to get into with DTG seeming uninclined to get more 3rd partied on board and no real editor being available to them. I really, really hope this changes, as I feel like it's essential to the games longevity, and the variety is one of the things that made TS so great. So please do more to get third parties on board DTG, it's neccesary.


Those were kind of my thoughts and feedback on the past year, I hope they can be of use .

 

I agree it only works if the company has genuinely good intentions.

And for me it's the same content wise, I have no interest in British or USA content but I like the German and Swiss (and hopefully Dutch) content. I would pay an annual fee to have, for example, unlimited access to the German content. While I would never buy all of the current available German DLC. But if that annual fee would be very steep to include everything that's currently available and upcoming, I wouldn't buy it.

 

This year has been another year where DTG are as inconsistent as ever.

We've had some great DLC, the 101, 465, Dresden to name a few, but we've also had some of the worst we've seen since the start of TSW.

Bring the poor products up to the same quality and the moaning will reduce...

 

Being a subscription model would be the death knell for the product. Being a niche product, it is doubtful many but the most dedicated to the simulation would participate, I am sure I would not since I detest the concept of subscriptions for software. And for a subscription based “service” to be profitable, you need to have a very large target audience,

I feel confident that many, if they did subscribe would drop that subscription because the hue of the paint scheme is off or the headlights are too close. It probably wouldn’t do anything to affect quality since the pace of new releases would have to increase to keep new content rolling out to entice people to keep their subscriptions.

It would also be a deterrent to third party companies developing content because the way the simulation is being monetized, how would they make a profit - who would pay for a product that only worked on base software that is dependent on maintaining a subscription. Nor could I imagine a equitable sharing of the subscription fee amongst 3rd party developers.

No, I am afraid I can’t see how going to a subscription based program would be of any benefit

 

100% agree with Leadcatcher. I can’t see any benefit to a subscription. So far I have all of the DTG DLC but I won’t keep doing that as I’ve found I don’t like US stuff. I’m happy to pay for the parts I want. I can choose to buy some of them for PC and others for PS5. Make it a subscription where I never actually own the DLC and lose it the moment I stop paying and I’ll no longer be a customer.

 

Well, no, not entirely. Part of the dynamic is that software is getting ever more complex, meaning there are ever more ways for mods to break it.

 

My take on this thread and the vituperation spewed forth? DTG may need to consider PR training for some of the staff. There is plenty to boast about and more than a little to apologize for and a more balanced statement would have been productive. As it is, along with some reasonable comments, they just kicked off the crazies who love to put the boot in.

 

It's been a mixed bag really, more lows than highs, Rush hour didn't launch well, routes broken and bugged. London Commuter is in a poor state, I'm sure Dovetail will sort it eventually but its got to the point where you expect any new DLC to be broken now. The PS5 limit I can deal with although it's not ideal, I can spend more time on a smaller selection of Routes. However, I feel that Rivet have improved a lot with their content, with West Cornwall and the RHB Anniversary has made me play on the Arosa Line a lot more. Hopefully this will be the first of more Livery packs to come, it's a start anyway. I can't comment on the American routes as I mainly play UK and German but overall I hope 2022 will be a lot better. As we all know, a lot of improvements are needed for all formats.

 

If we are to judge how DTG has done over the year you have to look at all the platforms and every platform has issues some worse than others. I would say the PC has come out the better but is still affected, But the issues on the consoles is dire. I would be surprised DTG has lost custom there especially from the old Gen and especially the ones who cannot afford to upgrade to the new consoles who also have game breaking issues themselves.

For me over the year it has been disappointing, even dire at times. There should have been a much larger gap between the 4.26 core update and Rush Hour as a few of us pointed out at the time. You keep hearing this anal argument 'DTG has to release DLC to make money so can't release fixes' If DTG keep dragging their knuckles over fixes (important fixes Leadcatcher) they will lose revenue as the gamers will move on to something that works better.

That 4 up stream made me laugh when Sam's train disappeared into the ether, not a good advert for the 38 stock. But he then went on to say would not be able to replicate this, really? Matt had the same thing done to him earlier in the same stream and then Mike said it happened to him earlier and they also have what happened to Matt and Sam on Film! Who would on seeing that buy it?

I will say there has been some good releases, I only buy UK routes but I can appreciate good work in other routes outside the UK but imo the good work is undermined by the lack of fixes.

I'm the complete opposite, because of the lack of RD support I have stopped playing the game, it all depends on whether your routes are supported or not.

 

I think there is a tenancy from some to treat it is an either/or situation where they believe DTG is only doing one thing at a time and therefore are not working on fixes if they are working on DLC, which is obviously not the case, these happen alongside each other and we can see that with the patch releases.

Similarly people only really pay attention to the problems they experience and it shouldn't be unexpected that people do this. It certainly doesn't feel like progress is being made if other issues are being resolved by the one's you have are not. There is a tendancy by some exaggerate a lack bug fixing by DTG because of this I think.

That being said, I will echo what I said earlier today. From where I'm sitting at least, DTG's main shortcoming has been in the testing phase and that it is here where the most improvements need to be made. One of the most commonly uttered phrases on the streams seems to be 'we're waiting for it to be tested' which from the player perspective is rather unsatisfying to hear.

I certainly hope to hear that this is one of the focuses for DTG over the next year, to refine the testing process to alleviate the bottleneck of various items and fixes needing to go through testing.

To put things in a metaphorical sense, I would say that DTG have all the ingredients to make the perfect cake, but haven't quite got the hang of the icing at the end to get it spot on.

 

And that's rather a cleft stick: to make QA both faster AND more comprehensive?

 

Perhaps it could be possible if they got more people in the qa team maybe

 

It's a rather difficult situation isn't it. How do you speed up the process with compromising quality? Or how to make testing more effective without slowing things down?

If you miss things people will complain that the testing isn't good enough, if you take too long people will complain the updates aren't quick enough. I don't envy the folks trying to solve this conundrum even without taking into consideration other demands.

More people is the obvious solution but that can get expensive real quick and large scale player beta testing isn't really possible on console for a released title.

This game development thing sounds really damned difficult sometimes and I think communities can be very unforgiving and often fail to appreciate just how difficult a process it can be. I've seen it elsewhere and I do moderate on the official forums and discord server for another game and it's often my job to be the one to respond to it. Everything always seems so much simpler when looking at the process as the end user.

 

You have some valid points indeed. Also how to deal with people who already invested in a lot of DLC?

 

From the testing/QA at the moment I think Quality is lacking at times. I think if the whole process was seen to be thorough and actually succeed in it's attempt I think DTG would be forgiven. As it is the team is far too small.

I wonder if it would be possible to have remote testing with DTG having an Army of Beta testers. Obviously things have to be put in place to protect DTG, nda's and the like. I wonder if DTG could have a remote server so their software could not be pinched?

 

From a gameplay point of view, I think TSW2 made great strides last year. It wasn’t too long ago that it was quite difficult to find an adverse signal in a service mode run. Now, routes such as DRA and BML are loaded with them.

Time tables have gotten much more complex and, in my opinion, made routes much more interesting. Dynamic dispatching has also made some strides with the holy grail of dynamic pathing getting closer.

Regardless of the issues discussed here, my enduring 2021TSW2 memory will be the first time I spawned on to the Boston Back Bay platform and was amazed at the number of passengers and the endless parade of trains.

 

On the first view we got a lot of new intersting routes and trains.

The 3 big problems are:

1. An UE update again. With the first last year it caused sound issues and made some MSB services unplayable. This time it brings performance issues.

2. To many content in to short development time. We saw it with the canceled airport part in DRA and the cancelation of track 3 in SMH.

3. Last gen consoles owners are not so happy. I think DTG had the expectation, that 1 year after releasing of next generation consoles that consoles would be easily available. So it would not be a problem to offer content for them, that would be more easy to make than for last gen consoles. In that planned scenario you could easy say to last gen owners: If you want the full experience than upgrade to next gen. On the other side that would be connected with the economic advantage of not so hard optimization work for DTG for next gen machines.

But over 1 year after release next gen machines for average people, that dont work in botnets and are not willing to finance scalpers, are practicaly not available.

So for that customers, and there are a lot of them, it is not nice to hear "For full experience upgrade to next gen".

To make that people more confident in TSW, there is a need for more memory and simugraph optimization and shorter timetables for last gen to offer the full loco variety there. I think a first step would be to have 50 car timetable mode trains like in SPG and not 40 only like on SMH and CRR at last gen.

With that improvements last gen customers, that are the overwhelming majority of the console customers, would be much more satisfied customers from you.

 

I agree that dtg needs to improve optimization for last gen users but that will take time. Heck, current gen consoles could also use some memory optimization improvements. Still surprises me that london commuter crashes and has lag on current gen consoles around London Victoria. There are some that will be quick to say upgrade to a current gen console. People can't be saying that because current gen consoles are nearly impossible to find. I remember one of my friends trying to get a Xbox Series X from Walmart a few weeks ago as part of a promotion for some exclusive customers program (forgot the name) and once it went live, all the consoles sold out quicker than Sonic The Hedgehog when boosting. Sure makes me glad I got mines last year lol.

The only real way to get a current gen console is to go on aftermarket sites like StockX or Ebay and spend $250, $300 or even $600 over standard retail price and that's before shipping costs and sales tax. People aren't willing to give scalpers all that extra cash. Frankly at those prices your better off buying a gaming laptop or a pc at that point so it wouldn't be worth it. This is why I feel sympathy for last gen users who are getting the short end of the stick.

With the shortage of Current Gen consoles expected to last until early 2023, this is why many game developers are not committed to make their games current gen only because current gen consoles are nearly impossible to find unless you pay more to scalpers which many aren't willing to do. So I hope dtg will be able to bridge the gap in terms of layers for last gen users since they do make up the majority of users through optimization. It would make them much happier. It's ridiculous when some say "if you want a full experience of layers, upgrade to next gen" when people who want to simply can't sadly.

 

I also think, that DTG should improve the game for next gen. In addition they should do something for last gen what is definitely possible.

An example from the past:

When DTG released TSW for consoles, they said SPG will not be available on that platforms, because it needs to much memory for consoles. 2 years later SPG came out for consoles. That means with a bit more effort DTG could build a nice bridge in time for last gen users till next gen consoles are available for average middle class people.

On the other side Sony and MS could do much more against scalpers. A very simple solution would be to sell that consoles in stationary shops only and not in online shops. That would make the business model for scalpers unattractive. It would cause them to much effort to drive in shops and ask if they have a console and so on. The botnetworks that they use at onlineshops are much more easy to manage for them.

 

I agree that it dtg can make it possible. In the video game industry anything is.

As for scalpers, I don't see why Microsoft or Sony would really do anything if they are technically making money from scalpers unfortunately. Your solution would be viable but it wouldn't happen. I wish it would though

 

Sure as long scalpers help by holding the offer of next gen short, Sony and MS can hold the prices of that consoles high.

On the other side they will not sell so much games with so many consoles scalpers hort in their stores. And normally MS and Sony make the most money with the games and not with the console. But who knows. Hopefully the situation becomes better. If Sony and MS begin to float the market with the consoles the business model of the scalpers will crash. Fingers crossed.

 

What did the year look like for me? It began quite normally. But then it became clear that the quantity of DLC was more important to DTG than its quality. In addition, they could hardly keep up with fixing the bugs, because the next DLC already had to be released and again had bugs that had to be fixed. Then came the summer update and also native support for my Xbox Series X and since then it went even more downhill. More and more frequent crashes of the game, at some point it simply did not recognize several DLC and today we are in the status that the game only works in offline mode of the console. "Online" it only crashes.
In addition, one continues to find errors and one is already considering whether it is even worth it to submit them. I had already pointed out several things at the end of 2020, which make journeys partly not lockable. That was not fixed until today.
The way you as DTG deal with it, leads to the loss of confidence of the players in the product and in the company. It gives me the feeling that quick profit is more important than customer satisfaction.
It would have been a sign of reconciliation to give something comparable to the Arosa DLC with Christmas decoration for free to the customers who have endured all this stuff over the year. Unfortunately, this chance was not taken.
It seems like a bad joke to talk about "exciting add-ons" and "an incredible year" as if nothing had happened.
In this way, for the time being, I will not buy anything until I can see that this attitude towards the customer changes.

(Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator)

 

This year was so good on tsw2 let's hope we have a good year on Tsw2 hope we have a better add-ons in 2022