What Would It Take To Start A 3rd Party Studio? (just Asking, No Serious Plans)

Hey all,

I'll keep it short.

I've always really really wanted Dutch content for Train SIm World and I'm convinced that there's a genuine gap in the market of (modern) train simulators for Dutch content.

That said, despite the very active unofficial 3rd party creators on Train Sim Classic throwing out top notch content both on the route and rolling stock end of things, proving to me the value of Dutch content, no official development team has yet to even touch Dutch content.

Personally, I'm tired of waiting, and there's definitely a part of me that's just screaming "Fine. I'll do it myself".

Problem is though, I have no experience managing a project or team, no skills in programming or game development, no resources to bring life into such a project, and no network that would be able to work with me or to pitch in on any of these issues. Let alone on where to even get advice on the legal side of things.

Is it even allowed like that? Because essentially I'd be running a development team that's entirely dependent on the product of another studio.

So, my question. Purely hypothetically. Suppose someday I decided I can't bear the wait anymore. Other than a concrete idea of what we'd be making. What would it even take to start my/our own 3rd party development studio?

Again, please don't read too much into it. There are no plans for it, and frankly, at the current moment, I don't even have the time and energy for it even if I wanted to.

I'm just curious to all your advice and ideas on this

Thank y'all in advance.

 

The short, and harsh answer is, you don't. You have no skills to contribute to such team, nor do you have any monetary means to support such team. So what exactly would the team gain by having you? Or why would people follow your vision of dutch content, if you cannot pay their wages?

The best thing you can inho do is to stop even thinking about a 3rd party studio, and download the TSW editor and start thinkering in it. It is hard and complicated, but it is basically the best way to build some kind of skillset. But it will most likely take atleast a year of work for you to be proficient enough to be a junior team member of such team...

 

It is an interesting question.

As a person who has about as much experience as you, I would imagine you would need a minimum of:

1 person for timetables
2 for loco modelling
1 loco sound engineer
1 loco physics engineer
5 for route-building
maybe 1 for creator's club tools?
3 beta testers
1 accountant
1 marketing director
3 people who decide what to make next, one of whom would be you as the CEO, another from the route-building team, and the third from the loco-building team.
You would probably need one person to lead the loco team, one to lead the route team, another to lead the beta team, and one more to lead the leaders I just mentioned.

I have definitely missed someone, and it would be interesting to see what an actual studio is made of.

 

Essentially, get started with a strong idea, get the TSW4 public editor and learn the job. Ask friends to help and don't make it to big. A regional line with one train type, a few stations could do the job. You probably need excellent management skills, because the members in the Dutch trainsim community are not always easy to deal with. I think that is the main thing excellent communication and organizing skills and a strong but idea that is not to complicated. Planning skills help to set targets for a short period of time, say max 1 month.

 

First off, you need a strong business case for it. Should include what you aim to achieve within a few years, some thorough market research, and some capital to get started.

 

Way more patience than you are able to achieve atm as it seems

 

In MSTS days I was part of two small commercial teams building routes. It can be quite challenging as you can end up with conflicting views over many aspects and it breaks down somewhat. Something as simple as asking the 3D modeller for an item but then waiting weeks for it to arrive. And if you’re doing it for money, forget it. The rewards were tiny compared to the amount of hours put in and for months the complete removal from my “gaming” life of anything other than sat in front of the PC looking at the MSTS route editor. Then there were the added tax complications of having to declare the small amount of additional income I eventually got from the royalties on top of my proper full time job salary.

And you actually need to find willing people who aren’t time wasters. When I built my Blackpool Tramway for Railworks/TSC I posted an appeal on UK Trainsim for anyone who could help make custom buildings for the unique seafront. But apart from the excellent Mike Whiteley who made the trams and some of the 3D items and Adam from RSC/DTG (now at Skyhook), not one person came forward to help. Oh I got the usual leeches offering to beta test it but that was all.

 

Wonder how much of those rivet have lol

 

The short answer to the question is bloody big balls, nerves of steel and an excuses bucket deeper than the pacific ocean, because if you can't take and then calm the inevitable criticism then you'll be getting nowhere.

 

Whilst I’m not convinced that the reasoning behind starting up a 3rd party company to get the routes that you wanna see is any way good idea.

But anyways talking TSW third party a few first basic steps I see is;

I think the first thing you need is a lot programming and probably business experience, second is knowing how to implement that development stuff into unreal engine

third is DTG permission

Fourth is a business plan on how to ensure its viable, going back to my original point it seems you want to approach this from a I enjoy playing TSW view, doesn’t sound like you will enjoy making harder decisions on getting content out the door to ensure you don’t go under with costs

fifth is probably some decent amount of cash to ensure you can set up, companies cost money to run and you yourself need money to live to survive whilst you actually make content before selling it, possibly need to hire employees if you can’t handle the single developer route.

 

I think the simple answer is that if you have to ask such a broad question, you most likely don't have the means.

The complex answer is that there absolutely were third-party project made by solo developers (like Alan Thomson) but these guys had extensive knowledge comparable to indie game developers and most likely made at least their first piece of paid content in their free time while working a regular job.

As for running a studio, I always imagined is as throwing a bunch of money into something over a period of several months or even years and hoping that the final payout will make it all back. So yeah, I don't think anyone had the money to start like that.

I think your best bet if you are subject-matter expert (preferably an experienced train driver, security equipment technician or a technician working on rail vehicles) would be to approach an existing third-party developer and offer your knowledge. Preferably also find someone from the other mentioned professions as the devs will need all three of them for a good result. Be sure to make the best possible offer and more importantly, make sure all of you can commit to it throughout the whole thing.