TSW3路线图：2023年6月

TL；DR（太长；未阅读）摘要

对于那些不想通读整篇文章的人来说，这是一个快速的总结。路线图中有更多关于所有这些点的细节。

-Glossop线条细看

-包括深入研究一个全新的场景，在这个场景中，你可以作为警卫行动，以及它的时间表

-Thameslink类700/0的更新

-包括时间表信息！

-特伦顿时间表改进更新

-Just Trains在其未公布路线上的更新

-即将推出的补丁更新

-Linke Rheintrecke、米德兰主线、不来梅-奥尔登堡和铆钉游戏内容——明天到期！（6月7日星期三）

-内部开发

-我们如何制作场景，有些场景没有成功！

路线图

那个月去哪儿了？五月已经过去了，随之而来的是一次大规模的Steam核心更新和《峰林铁路：安伯盖特-钦利和巴克斯顿》的发布，这部电影得到了大家的积极反馈。

我们还刚刚免费赠送了LGV Méditerranée一周，所以我们希望你能尽快加入！我们看到你们很多人跳进去尝试内容，这正是我们所希望的。我们希望你喜欢吃一片法国高速馅饼。祝你胃口好！

本月，我们将深入了解即将推出的Glossop Line，包括时间表中的细节和一些关于场景的独特工作。如果这还不够的话，我们还将对即将推出的Thameslink Class 700/0进行“替代”深入了解（全新的屏幕截图！），对NEC的进一步更新：纽约特伦顿时间表，以及即将推出的补丁的详细信息，包括明天推出的补丁！

在合作伙伴计划角，Just Trains和Skyhook Games都将提供其ong的更新

检票功能

“这取决于玩家将乘客的车票信息与当前服务进行比较。玩家可以选择告诉乘客他们的车票是有效的还是无效的，无效的车票会导致乘客在下一站被从火车上带走。玩家将通过正确决定车票的有效性以及完成其他警卫活动来获得积分ons。” 

为什么我们要为涉及警卫队行动的场景选择这条路线？ 

利亚姆：“我选择这条路线作为警卫场景，是因为有一列带警卫控制的火车和一条有很多乘客停靠站的路线紧密相连。警卫场景是我一段时间以来一直想添加的内容，但在我之前工作的路线上，这样做从来都不对。”。我需要一列在乘客停靠点足够近的路线上配备全套警卫控制的火车，这样玩家就不会在大部分场景中等待火车到达下一个目的地。”

针对这种情况，必须专门创建哪些技术/内容？ 

利亚姆：“就技术而言，323级已经具备了这方面所需的警卫控制装置，这对我来说是一个很大的帮助，因为它可以让我直接进入警卫动作的原型。所需的新技术是一种与乘客互动和检查车票的方式。乘客互动是我之前在创建Rail Fans时就已经做过的事情，但它们仍然在仅限国家。”

“我必须为这些铁路迷创造一种登上、乘坐和离开火车的方式，同时给每个铁路迷一张火车票，这是另一项新技术。这些票是随机生成的，以匹配铁路迷乘坐的火车服务，有些票随机选择无效的旅行日期或目的地，以创建一张无效的票供玩家检查。”

从构思到执行的过程是什么？ 

利亚姆：“这始于一个简单的警卫场景，作为概念的证明，玩家将乘坐323级车的后部，为司机操作车门。一旦掌握了基本知识，我就研究了警卫还能做什么，无论是在火车上还是在车站。我接触到了真正的警卫 323位非常乐于助人的人对当前场景中的内容以及缺失的内容提供了反馈，并就如何使场景更准确地反映现实生活提出了建议。”

“验票是该场景中明显缺少的东西，我们需要让玩家感觉自己是一名真正的警卫。验票游戏最初是一张简单的好票/坏票图形，后来发展成为一种迷你游戏，玩家必须将多个信息与票进行比较，并决定其有效性。正是在这一点上，我们能看到风景

玩家还可以期待其他有趣的场景吗？ 

利亚姆：“我认为这条路线有一些很棒的场景，其中包括一些玩家以前从未见过的有趣的新场景，比如爆裂的管道淹没了赛道，以及玩家可以使用相机的摄影比赛（很快就会有更多关于这条路线的内容！）”

Glossop Line-时间表信息

并简要总结一下你在这个阶段可以从时间表中期待什么。请记住，这一点仍在制定中，未来将提供更多信息。

曼彻斯特至格洛索普的时刻表是323级列车，每小时2列（每小时2英里）。火车通常从曼彻斯特开往格洛索普，然后折返完成开往哈德菲尔德的列车。

车站的时间安排可能相当紧张，尤其是对于Glossop和Hadfield来说，从到达到离开只有3分钟。这些紧凑的时间安排使这条路线几乎可以控制2英里/小时的频率。即使急转弯，下一班火车f

定价

Glossop Line的价格将与平时略有不同：19.99英镑/24.99美元/24.99欧元。

Thameslink 700/0级

700级的工作仍在认真进行，我们有更多的屏幕截图供您使用，并邀请我们的700级常驻爱好者James来为您提供一个稍微的——替代的——更新。

詹姆斯关于700班的最新消息

你想让我谈谈700班吗？现在你有…多久了…？好的，系好安全带！ 

团队一直忙于700级的各个方面，慢慢地将其整合成一辆梦幻般的动车组，我迫不及待地想让大家体验一下！虽然我们离发布还有很长的路要走，但我想我会分享我们的一些最新进展，我最喜欢的细节，以及其他一些有趣的东西。

第一次，看看内部！整个单元的所有最终家具都已到位，包括一流的桌子和臭名昭著的熨板标准级，这些都渴望被Medway的……最优秀的当地人使用。当然，我们在看内部时不能不欣赏现代PIS屏幕——并不是每一个屏幕都实现了，但目的地、呼叫点和下一站示意图是一种享受！ 每节车厢都是一个开放式舷梯，你可以体验到看着火车转弯和S形转弯的催眠感——这几乎让你想在火车的整个长度上做一次愚蠢的步行！

在驾驶室里，屏幕变得栩栩如生，其中包括一些互动，玩起来很有趣。亮度、昼夜模式、驾驶室空调甚至再生制动都是可以切换的选项。现代列车在各个方面都是最先进的，700级甚至可以与您交谈！享受深入的对话，每个回答都是“驱动程序，您已重置DRA，请检查信号”——您最终会明白这意味着什么。有点像格鲁特。

是的，在解密的头等舱发生骚乱之前，我们已经包含了DC和AC功能！虽然我们在TSW没有Thameslink网络的北端，但只要你愿意将700放在其他路线上，你就可以体验到不同的马达声音和物理，我们不会判断你放在哪里… 诚实的

说到放置东西：Daisy，你可能还记得我们伯明翰跨城内容和直播中的她，我们的测试人员和实习编辑用户之一，她展示了自己的创造力，并与团队合作，将所有Thameslink特定的挡板放置在东南高速路线上！由于时间表的工作方式，“停靠”地点是否与这些地点相匹配并不能保证，但她的主要目标是让达特福德和莱纳姆之间的每个车站看起来更适合700人的到来。如果你想知道每一块木板是什么意思，不要害怕，我已经帮你搞定了！

RLU——这是长度缩减单元的挡板（我们正在制造的8辆700/0） 

FLU——这是全长单元的挡板（12辆700/1，虽然不包括在内，而且FLU不提供Rainham服务，但实际上这些挡板仍存在于整个Medway，以备将来使用） 

ALL–这是任何

时间表

很好地转到下一个主题，时间表！  

700级将为东南高速增加80多条服务，填补Rainham和Dartford之间半小时的全站服务。这为海厄姆提供了常规服务，目前海厄姆仅在高峰时段提供东南部服务，这也意味着Rainham P0将全天使用。当然也有一些早晚的ECS移动，享受运行700的乐趣，而不必担心肯特的麻烦制造者。

现在……你们中那些热衷于改装的人已经偷偷地找到了700级的所有服务，但开玩笑的是，我们知道（并私下希望）你会找到它们，但你找不到的是我们最近添加的所有其他服务：

由于人们（也被称为我）不断要求，一个新增加的项目是几次柴油火车之旅，很好地补充了现有的银禧之旅。再说一次，这些都是时间表上的季节性补充，你只会在选定的几个月内将其视为人工智能，但我们根据现实世界的参考，大致列出了一些不同的内容： 

47级列车又回来了，提供了两项服务，这两项服务模仿了久违的为肯特海岸服务的越野服务，在夏季的几个月里，你可以沿着查塔姆主线运行1O99和1S87。在TSW2，这些类似的服务从格雷夫森德开始，但考虑到达特福德的加入和它的繁忙程度，挤在那里的任何其他东西都会让乔哭，所以它现在加入了罗切斯特的路线。

然后我又加了一个，让他哭了。作为一名南部地区的球迷，如果克伦普顿号没有出现，我总是会有点生气——谢天谢地，我的请求被听到了，现在我们有几次33级的短途旅行，耶！Kentish Crompton和The Medway Valley Crompton分别是6人和2人，加在一起，它们几乎涵盖了所有内容（好吧，显然不是HS1，但这不是很棒吗？！铁路旅游规划者请上车！）

还进行了一些额外的调整和人工智能服务，最值得注意的是，我们调整了Strood在早晚高峰时的前向/反向465级折返程序的工作方式，使其更具原型。应我最迫切的要求，受去年Medway Valley Pullman铁路之旅的启发，Strood现在出现了一项冬季季节性人工智能服务。还有一列季节性的静态列车即将进站，我们不会告诉你在哪里、什么时候、什么库存，你只需要拭目以待。。。

关于目前时间表的最后说明；Belle Isle Junction的工程即将结束，因此随着66年代的结束，我们已经投入了所有ECML THAMESLINK AI

最后，因为我没有一整天的时间，Scenario的粉丝们很高兴游戏团队已经进城，又回来了！将包括7个场景的大集合，是的，没错，7个场景，德西罗城的大型行动正在等待，包括一些非常时髦的情况。。。最后，因为我没有一整天的时间，Scenario的粉丝们很高兴游戏团队已经进城，又回来了！将包括7个场景的大集合，是的，没错，7个场景，德西罗城的大型行动正在等待，包括一些非常时髦的情况。。。

我们将在适当的时候带来更多的细节，包括车站在新标志上的外观。

最后要注意的是，由于这还没有经过测试，上述内容可能会发生变化，虽然我们将努力确保所有玩家都能获得这些新增内容，但我们会让玩家知道一些时间表上的新增内容是否仅限于Gen9。

德国机车

德国机车的工作仍在继续——我们将在获得更多信息后进一步更新！

NEC：纽约-特伦顿：更新时间表

在上个月的路线图中，我们谈到了我们最新的美国路线正在进行的工作，以改进其时间表。本月我们将为您提供另一个最新消息，这是由我们自己的乔提供的。

回顾：

《纽约时报》进展顺利！但首先，让我们回顾一下。发布时，我们有：

美铁的完整时间表，包括我们没有正确的车厢的服务。

Acela列车将在特伦顿停靠，因为这些列车是可玩的。否则，超过一半的人将只在纽约宾夕法尼亚大学和纽瓦克大学之间。这些也是我

CSAO ME-02刚刚从Metuchen Yard加入NEC，将改变方向前往泽西大道

但这对《纽约时报》来说意味着什么？CSAO混合使用CSX和NS设备运行列车，特别是具有额外驾驶室内信号的前CR设备*。在TSW中，运行列车的CSX GP38-2需要SPG。尽管如果你拥有马蹄曲线，每列火车有可能有一列或多列是NS GP38-2。这些列车牵引的许多车厢也有中等机会替代其他铁路车厢。例如，我看到CSX与BNSF和CN混合在一起，这很像我用来参考的视频。

这也意味着，每次你玩并看到同一列火车，它看起来总是不同的。轻微的副作用是，ME-02可能会添加一些通常不会添加的奇怪汽车。ME-02也没有CR守车，因为我们目前没有，这可能会使回程服务面临相当大的挑战。

CSAO ME-84向西南方向驶向伊丽莎白，前往Metuchen Yard，而延误的美铁133则前往华盛顿

*小问题是，我们在TSW中没有GP38-2或GP40-2s带有驾驶室内信号。出于这个原因，我仍然不确定这些游戏是否可以玩。我将在有和没有HUD的情况下玩这个游戏，看看HUD是否能够以任何方式帮助NEC发出信号。但问题可能是，你突然面临一个红色信号，而出租车信号会让你减速。这可能超出了我的控制范围，如果太荒谬的话，就必须将其变成人工智能。不管玩不玩，我希望你能像我一样享受这些货运服务！

有了以上所有的变化，我认为《纽约时报》看起来会大不相同。哦，我差点忘了。。。

长岛铁路层

长岛铁路。有史以来请求量最大的一层，（也许）。

好消息。LIRR层。它在里面，它工作。比我想象的要好。这一层增加了500多个

纽约宾夕法尼亚大学现在看起来更忙了。

现在，对于其他一些重要消息：它不会100%准确。具体谈到西区庭院（WSY）。WSY和Penn非常接近，在同一地区共有52个编队的能力。此外，附近的SSY有多达30多条轨道，包括所有移动的列车，你可能会看到该地区多达90个编队。就表现而言，你是在自讨苦吃。

NJT列车离开Sunnyside Yard，而长岛铁路M7从其上空飞过

事实上，这就是我开始制作LIRR层的原因，直到上午9点，我才意识到这是行不通的。因此，WSY将相当安静。如果他们必须在宾夕法尼亚大学转换站台，每小时有几列火车可以到达那里，但不会停留太久。还要考虑的是，从宾夕法尼亚车站本身看不到WSY，这会给它带来更多的麻烦。对于你根本看不到的内容来说，这些都会对性能造成损害！

出于这个原因，许多LIRR列车在早高峰后会在WSY停留几个小时，但它们会返回伍德赛德，就好像它们在其他地方是空的一样。这使得运行该层需要更少的编队，因此，该层在硬件资源上尽可能高效。

清晨晚些时候，一辆LIRR M7经过一个非常繁忙的Sunnyside庭院

好吧，现在就这样，但还有很多事情要做。。。

谢谢你，乔！随着测试接近完成，预计在未来几周内会看到更多更新的时间表。最后要注意的是，与700级一样，由于这还没有经过测试，上述内容可能会发生变化，虽然我们将努力确保所有玩家都可以使用这些添加内容，但我们会让玩家知道一些时间表添加内容是否只会是9代。

训练模拟世界3核心改进和内容补丁

团队正在进行的核心改进的进度摘要。本月，我们将快速更新Add-ons Manager、HST Livery Designer功能、半岛走廊婴儿子弹服务和TSW2 Preservation Crew改进。

插件管理

上个月没有额外的消息-我们仍在测试Xbox附加组件管理器。我们在当前版本中遇到了一些崩溃问题，因此我们的工程师

牵引力也有了重大更新，HST和158级都有所改进。158级已经成为社区的最爱，因此我们与专业工程师和司机一起付出了巨大努力，以进一步增加现实感。总的来说，对158级进行了40多次添加和调整，为模拟带来了严格的标准。

除了新的内容和功能外，我们还解决了100多个报告的问题，从信号到时间表和牵引力修复，团队在整个产品上花费了大量时间，解决了从小细节到罕见故障的所有问题。

我们非常期待你们共同推动补丁和新内容更新的结合，并享受我们相信将增强您MML体验的所有新功能。

Jane Whittaker，天钩游戏

Jane一直在这个帖子上与玩家聊天，所以你可以在这里了解最新动态：https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/midland-mainline-skyhook-feedback.69452/page-28

只是火车

本月，Just Trains团队的Alex向我们介绍了他们路线开发的最新进展。我们有了第一张正在进行的工作屏幕截图！

Just Trains团队继续努力开发我们的第一款Train Sim World产品。我们的路线建设团队已经完成了30英里的高度详细和非常身临其境的风景。创作真的很愉快。我们的3D艺术家继续创造大量的资产，以填充从次要车站到主要车站的路线、外观梦幻的时段信号盒、道路车辆和杂物，但说“杂物”有点像一个通用的、枯燥的词，并不能传达该产品各方面的质量和激情。

关于路线上的车辆，这些车辆都进展顺利，从汽车到货车，从建筑车到我们的铁路车辆，当然，创建这些车辆有时可能有点麻烦！

我们使用该产品的目的是重现英国铁路公司的日子，重点是繁忙而多样的时刻表，提供身临其境的体验，我们的完整时刻表包括乘客、包裹、货运、

铆钉游戏

正如补丁部分所暗示的，我们将收到来自Rivet Games的更新，其中涉及他们的一些旧的《模拟火车世界》内容，包括：

怀特岛：莱德尚克林

数据库BR 204

阿罗萨利尼

1938管坯

西康沃尔当地：彭赞斯-圣奥斯特尔和圣艾夫斯

S-Bahn Zentralschweiz：苏西岛

这将出现在明天（7日星期三）的补丁中

内部开发——制定场景

场景是模拟火车世界体验中非常重要的一部分，提供了一种完全不同的游戏方式。我们采访了我们Gameplay团队的设计师Cameron和Liam，了解更多关于我们如何制作它们的信息，以及一些没有成功的设计师！

为什么我们有场景？ 

Cameron：“我们制作场景是因为我们想为玩家提供一种独特的游戏体验，让他们在时间表上驾驶火车时获得这种体验。” 

利亚姆：“在场景中，我们可以在火车和它们运行的路线上发挥创意，同时提供不同于时间表服务的东西。我们可以让火车运行不寻常的模式，添加新的游戏，设置限制，并给玩家带来挑战。” 

是什么造就了一个伟大的场景？ 

Cameron：“我认为，一个好的场景通常分为一类或全部三类 在提出场景设计时具有–场景是否 提供全新体验？它有一个有趣的前提吗？或者，玩起来很有趣吗？”

“这些都是我们在设计过程中经常考虑的事情，因为我们想给玩家一些他们以前没有经历过的东西，或者对现有的游戏理念或功能进行有趣的改变

在创建场景时，我们必须考虑哪些内部因素？ 

Cameron：“在设计场景时，我们必须始终牢记许可证的外观、游戏的年龄评级和合理性等因素。这些因素密切相关，在设计过程中对我们来说很重要，因为它们通常决定了我们可以包括什么，不能包括什么。”

“举个例子，我们不能将列车脱轨的情况包括在内，因为与我们合作的铁路公司永远不会允许我们描绘他们的列车处于这种状态，尽管这可能是现实生活中发生的事件。合理性是我们在做任何事情时总是考虑的另一个因素。在设计场景时，我们可以有一定程度的灵活性当涉及到在叙事中创造事件时，以及我们可以在多大程度上偏离现实世界的运作。”

“我们总是确保我们写进故事中的内容能够发生在现实生活中，或者已经发生在某个地方

利亚姆：“在为一个群体创建场景时，我们还必须考虑到库存和路线本身。由于我们喜欢让场景接近现实，我们尽最大努力避免在他们不会去的地方运行火车或执行他们永远不会执行的任务。当然，作为一个场景，如果我们能想出一个合理的理由，我们可以发挥创意，改变规则。” 

你会说场景是我们尝试新鲜刺激事物的游乐场吗？ 

Cameron：“当然。场景让我们有机会设计和创建全新类型的游戏，也让我们有能力开发我们知道玩家会喜欢的新系统和功能。开发新场景让我们更有机会构建东西。” 比如可互动的NPC角色，或者能够站在警卫的立场上检票，而不是扮演司机的角色。正是这些版本，甚至是较小的版本，才能真正让场景感觉独特和难忘。” 

利亚姆：“当然。蒂梅塔

为什么我们能够在场景中创建某种体验，但不能将其转化为服务模式？ 

Liam：“服务模式通过运行模拟 24小时时间表基于真实的工作时间表，无需添加脚本。由于这个时刻表是按照准确的时间模拟的，我们无法在上增加或调整列车 这个时刻表没有火车被卡住。相反，对于场景，我们根据场景设定的时间创建了一个较小的时间表，我们可以自由添加和计时列车，以满足该场景的需求。场景还可以添加脚本和场景，使我们能够在驾驶火车之外添加游戏，例如添加火车故障、更改天气和特定时间或添加驾驶火车之外的目标。” 

你和团队在发布的场景中最引以为豪的是什么？ 

利亚姆：“就我个人而言，在我们发布的内容中，我最自豪的是《匹克森林》中的Chinley Gala场景，因为ho

上图为东海岸公路上的“切割关闭”场景

你有没有其他场景的例子没有被发现（为什么）？ 

利亚姆：“我们最终总是会有比每条路线所需更多的场景创意。这些场景创意中的大多数都会在计划中被放弃，转而选择其他更有趣的场景，但有些确实在我们放弃它们之前就已经进入了原型设计阶段。一个有趣的场景是利物浦克鲁，我们不得不在原型设计阶段投入很长时间，在那里球员必须拿起行李箱/包裹可能在玩家手中，并将其装载到车厢中。然后，玩家会在火车出发前关闭火车上的所有车门。还有手推车，玩家可以装载并使用它将多个包裹同时推到车厢上。” 

Cameron：“我们已经为许多从未发布或包含在游戏中的场景制作了原型。” 以下列出了原型，但从未实现： 

猜火车——这是一个场景

行李/包裹装载 - 这是另一个有趣的场景，因为它把你从驾驶座上带出来，换上了警卫的鞋子。这是一个场景，再次适用于利物浦克鲁，球员将前往沿线的每个车站，并装卸乘客的行李。你可以亲自拿起每一件行李，并将其放在BG车厢内。你会得到一个计数器，记录必须装载到火车上的物品数量，以及必须卸载到站台行李架上的数量。一旦行李在一个车站分拣完毕，你就会坐火车去下一个车站，重复一遍，每次都有不同数量的行李要分拣。我知道Gameplay团队的几个人，包括我自己，将来都想重新考虑这个想法，因为这可能是未来Steam时代路线的一个有趣的补充。

原型设计阶段未发布的包裹装载场景 

感谢Liam和Cameron的真知灼见——下个月的《开发背后》，我们将深入研究开发和发布过程的另一个领域，以获得您的阅读乐趣！

火车模拟世界路线图

本月，我们增加了一些指标，以显示路线图上的各个项目的发展进展情况。

下次到达：

我们的下一个版本。预计此内容将在下一篇路线图文章之前发布。

正在开发中：

积极发展；预计这个内容将超过一个月，但不到3个月。

在规划中：

在规划阶段，初步开发已经开始——预计需要3-9个月。

红灯时：

不是在积极开发中，而是我们致力于交付的东西。目前没有预计到达时间。

燕尾游戏发布

这些是即将推出的由Dovetail Games开发的附加组件。如果发布的细节仍在最终确定中，我们将在可能的情况下提供其ID代码。这会让你对预期有一个很好的想法。对于Train Sim World 3，我们已经修改了这些产品代码。要了解这些身份证代码的含义，您可以参阅我们的身份证代码指南。

下次到达：

[3.GBB-R7 04]Glossop生产线-曼彻斯特-哈德菲尔德和Glossop

正在开发中：

[3.GKK-L7 01]Thameslink BR 700/0级

[3.DKK-L7 01]德国机车

合作伙伴计划发布

这些是即将推出的附加组件，由Dovetail Games以外的团队开发。在发布的细节仍在最终确定中的地方，我们将尽可能提供其身份证代码。这会让你对预期有一个很好的想法。要了解这些身份证代码的含义，您可以参阅我们的身份证代码指南。

正在开发中：

[3.GDF-R5 01]英国路线-（由Just Trains开发）

在规划中：

[3.DB-L5 01]DB BR 420电动多功能

核心特征

核心功能是更大的项目。这些可能是重要的新功能或变化，将影响一个或多个不同平台上的玩家。通常需要更多的开发时间，这个列表可能比其他列表移动得更慢。

正在开发中：

[TSW3]附加组件管理器（Xbox、PC）

[TSW3]减载改进（逐路线）

[TSW3]保存游戏改进（逐路线）

[TSW3]性能优化

特殊项目团队和补丁

特别项目小组正在处理的项目。“升级”中的添加或更改将包括以下部分或全部内容：车站发车板、动画交叉口、站台爬升功能、改进的轨道渲染、高峰时段乘客密度和外观、对RailDriver的支持、联系信号员功能、对风景的小修复、对音频的小修复，对游戏的小修复和对菜单项的小修复，Livery Designer兼容性和Scenario Planner扩展。

Next release:

• [TSW3] Linke Rheinstrecke post-release patch

• [TSW3] Bremen-Oldenburg patch

• [TSW3]  New  Rivet Games content patch

• [TSW3] Midland Main Line post-release patch

• [TSW2][TSW3] HST Livery Designer functionality

• [TSW3] Niddertalbahn post-release patch

In development:

• [TSW3] Peninsula Corridor + Oakville Subdivision – access to Baby Bullet services

• [TSW3] NEC: New York – Trenton timetable improvements

• [TSW2] [Tiny] Scottish Commuter 

• [TSW2] [Small] Hauptstrecke Hamburg-Lübeck, including timetable update

• [TSW2] [Medium] Rhein-Ruhr Osten 

• [TSW2] [Small] 2022 Bakerloo timetable (600+services) 

• [TSW2] [Small] Long Island Rail Road 

• [TSW2] [Huge] Peninsula Corridor – NOTE: there are further improvements to come on both games

• [TSW2] [Huge] Oakville Subdivision 

• [TSW2] [Tiny] LGV Mediterrannée  

At a red light:

• [TSW3][TSW2] DB BR 187 Audio improvements

MISCELLANEOUS

Projects that players will notice but don’t fall into one of the other categories.

In planning:

• [TSW2/TSW3] Manual fireman functionality for Steam locomotives

At a red light:

• [TSW2/TSW3] Rush Hour passenger system for London Commuter 

REMOVED FROM ROADMAP

tems that have been removed from the Roadmap. This is either because they have been completed, their status having changed or the project having been suspended.

• [TSW3] Peak Forest Railway: Ambergate – Chinley and Buxton – released

• [TSW3] Spirit of Steam physics improvements – released

• [TSW3] Loco Add-on Bundle 2 post release patch – released

TL;DR (too long; didn’t read) summary

A quick summary for those who don’t want to go through the whole article. There are more details on all these points within the Roadmap.

• A Closer Look at Glossop Line
  Including digging into an all-new Scenario where you can operate as a Guard, and its timetable

• An Update on the Thameslink Class 700/0
  Including timetable information!

• An Update on Trenton Timetable improvements

• Updates from Just Trains on their Unannounced Route

• An Update on Upcoming Patches
  Linke Rheinstrecke, Midland Main Line, Bremen-Oldenburg, and Rivet Games content – which are due tomorrow! (Wednesday 7th June)

• Inside Development
  How we make Scenarios, with some Scenarios that didn’t make it!

The Roadmap

Where has that month gone? May has flown by, and with it, a sizeable Steam core update and the release of Peak Forest: Ambergate – Chinley and Buxton, which has had favourable feedback from you lovely lot.

We’ve also just given away LGV Méditerrannée free for a week, so we hope you were quick and got in there! We saw loads of you jumping in and trying the content, which was exactly what we were hoping. We hope you enjoyed a slice of the French high-speed pie. Bon appetit!

This month, we’ll be taking a deeper dive into the upcoming Glossop Line, including details from the timetable and some unique work on the Scenarios. And if that’s not enough, we’ll also have an ‘alternative’ in-depth look at the upcoming Thameslink Class 700/0 (with all-new screenshots!), a further update on the NEC: New York-Trenton timetable, and details on upcoming patches, including one coming tomorrow!

In Partner Programme corner, both Just Trains and Skyhook Games will provide an update on their ongoing projects.

We also have a really interesting ‘Inside Development’ section from our Gameplay team in which we talk about building our Scenarios – including some information about some that never made it out to you!

Finally, as a follow-up from last month’s Roadmap, we’ll be inviting a new cohort of beta testers in the coming weeks (thank you to everyone who has volunteered!).

Ready to go with a new Roadmap? Well, go on then…

Upcoming Content

Glossop Line – Manchester – Hadfield & Glossop

We expect this fully-complete and self-contained route to release towards the back-end of June, bringing with it the first appearance of Manchester Piccadilly Station, and some really interesting services and scenarios.

If you haven’t already, check out May’s Roadmap for the route map, and some introductory information.

With this route, we’ve tried to get creative with our Scenarios – and the Glossop Line, you can play as a guard!

We spoke to Liam and Cameron, Designers on our Gameplay team, to find out more about it. There is also information about the Glossop timetable below. If you’d like to find out more generally about how we make scenarios (as well as some that didn’t make the cut!), then head to the ‘Inside Development’ section for a deeper look at them!

Tell us more about the Guard scenario – what will the player do?

Liam: "The player will have a variety of guard related tasks in the scenario both on the train and at stations. But the focus is on operating the doors at stations, checking the train is safe to depart and inspecting passenger tickets between stops, something brand new to Train Sim World. When a player interacts with passengers in this scenario, they will be shown the date and the upcoming destinations of the train they are working on along with the passengers' ticket."

"It’s up to the player to compare the information of the passenger's ticket with the current service. The player will be given the option to tell the passenger their ticket is valid or invalid, with an invalid ticket resulting in the passenger be removed from the train at the next stop. The player will earn points by correctly deciding the tickets validity along with completing other guard actions." 

Why did we select this route for a scenario involving Guard operations? 

Liam: "I chose this route for the guard scenario due to a combination of having a train with guard controls and a route with lots of passenger stops close together. A guard scenario is something I’ve been wanting to add for a while, but it never felt right to do on the previous routes I worked on. I needed a train with a full set of guard controls on a route with passenger stops close enough together that the player would not be spending most of the scenario waiting for the train to reach its next destination."

What tech/content had to be created specifically and uniquely for this scenario? 

Liam: "Tech wise, the Class 323 already had the guard controls needed for this so that was a big help as it allowed me to go straight into prototyping the actions of a guard. The new tech needed was a way to interact with the passengers themselves and inspect tickets. Passenger interaction was something I had already worked on before with the creation of the Rail Fans, but they were still for use at stations only."

"I had to create a way for these Rail Fans to board, ride and depart a train along with giving each Rail Fan a train ticket, another new piece of tech. These tickets are randomly generated to match the train service the Rail Fan is riding, with some tickets randomly selecting an invalid travel date or destination to create an invalid ticket for the player to check." 

What was the process undertaken to go from idea to execution? 

Liam: "It started with being a simple guard scenario made as a proof of concept, where the player would ride the back of a Class 323 and operate the doors for the driver. Once the basics were in, I looked at what else a guard could do, both on the train and at the stations. I was in contact with real guards who operate on 323s who were very helpful with their feedback of what was currently in the scenario along with things that were missing and suggestions on how to make the scenario more accurate to real life."

"Ticket inspection was the obvious thing that was missing from the scenario and was something we would need to make the player feel like an actual guard. The ticket inspection gameplay started as a simple graphic of a good/bad ticket and grew to a sort of minigame where the player would have to compare multiple bits of information to the ticket and decide on its validity. It was at this point we could see the scenario would be fun for players wanting to play as a guard, it was just a matter of polishing up the gameplay and adding some extra tasks to help really flesh out the scenario."  

Are there any other interesting scenarios players can look forward to? 

Liam: "I think there’s some great scenarios for this route which include some fun new things players haven’t seen before in scenarios, such as burst pipes flooding the tracks and a photo competition where players get a camera to use (more on this one soon!)"

Glossop Line - Timetable information

And a quick summary of what you can expect from the timetable at this stage. Please bear in mind this is still being developed, with more information available in the future.

The timetable for Manchester to Glossop runs the class 323 at 2 trains per hour (2tph). Trains typically run from Manchester to Glossop, then turning back to complete the run to Hadfield.

Timings can be quite tight at stations and especially for both Glossop and Hadfield with just 3 minutes between arriving and departing. These tight timings are what allows the route to just about manage a 2tph frequency. Even with the quick turnaround, the next train for Hadfield must often wait until the train ahead has left Dinting.

There are some intricate details about this route such as signal GB867, which protects Hyde North junction, will always be red until the Manchester-bound train is ready to depart Newton. This also means that the approach signal for Newton, GB861 will never display a green aspect.

Northern run 323s on a few other lines, such as both lines to Crewe, Stoke-on-Trent and Liverpool Lime Street - Manchester Airport.

As for layers, it's a little early to talk about those just yet. But for now, the EMT 158 will be making an appearance at Manchester for their hourly Liverpool Lime Street - Norwich services. It will be mainly AI, but also have one playable service: an ECS in the early hours to Liverpool that runs via Ashburys.

Pricing

The Glossop Line will be available for a slightly different price than usual: £19.99/$24.99/€24.99.

Thameslink Class 700/0

Work on the Class 700 continues in earnest, and we have some more screenshots for you – as well as bringing our resident Class 700 enthusiast, James, in to give a slightly – alternative – update on what you can expect.

James’ Unhinged Update on the Class 700 

You want me to talk about the Class 700? Now? Well, how long have you got…? Alright strap in! 

The teams have been busy working on all aspects of the Class 700, slowly bringing it together into a fantastic EMU which I can’t wait for all of you to experience! While we’re still quite far off from release, I thought I would share some of our latest progress, my favourite details, plus some other fun bits.

For the first time, behold the interior! All the final furniture has gone in place throughout the unit, including the First Class tables and the infamous Ironing Board standard class, it’s all there raring to be used by Medway’s… finest locals. And of course, we cannot look at the interior without admiring the modern PIS screens – not every single screen has been implemented, but destination, calling points and next stop schematics are a treat to behold! With each coach being an open-ended gangway, you can experience the hypnotic sensation of watching the train go round corners and S bends – it almost makes you want to do a silly walk down the whole length of the train! 

In the cab, the screens are coming to life, and there’s some interactivity included which is fun to play around with. Brightness, Day and Night mode, cab air-con and even regen braking are all options which can be toggled. Modern trains are state-of-the-art in every right, and the Class 700 can even talk to you! Enjoy in-depth conversations where every response is “Driver, you have reset the DRA, please check the signal” – you’ll understand what it means eventually. It’s like Groot, sort of. 

Yes, before a riot kicks off in declassified first class, we have included both DC and AC functionality! While we don’t have the northern end of the Thameslink network in TSW, so long as you’re happy to heinously place the 700 on other routes, you can experience the different motor sounds and physics, and we won’t judge wherever you place it… Honest! 

Speaking of placing things: Daisy, who you might remember from our Birmingham Cross-City content and live stream, one of our testers and trainee Editor users, has flexed her creative muscles, and – working with the team – has had all the Thameslink-specific stopping boards made to be placed into the Southeastern Highspeed route! Due to the way the timetable already works, whether the “stop at” locations match these is not guaranteed, but her main goal is to make each station between Dartford and Rainham look more appropriate for the arrival of the 700. If you’re wondering what each of the boards mean, never fear, I’ve got you covered!

• RLU – this is the stopping board for the Reduced Length Unit (the 8-car 700/0 we’re making) 

• FLU – this is the stopping board for the Full Length Unit (the 12-car 700/1, while this isn’t included, and FLU’s don’t run the Rainham service, the boards are still present throughout Medway in reality for futureproofing) 

• ALL – this is the stopping point for any Class 700 regardless of length 

• SDO – any of the above with “SDO” surrounding its border signifies “selective door opening”, i.e. you are supposed to stop here but some coaches will be hanging off the platform (a bit like JD’s driving) 

• T – this stands for the totem pole-like shrine you see below, no I’m kidding, a T board is a Turnback board, this is the stopping point when the driver needs to change ends, it ensures, for example, that when they move to the other cab, they can still have sight of the starting signal 

The Timetable

Drifting over nicely to the next topic, the TIMETABLE!  

The Class 700 will add a little over 80 services to Southeastern Highspeed, filling out the half-hourly, all-stops service between Rainham and Dartford. This brings a regular service to Higham, which currently only has Southeastern services in the rush hour, and also means Rainham P0 will be used throughout the day. There are also naturally some morning and night ECS moves, enjoy running the 700 without having to worry about Kentish troublemakers.

Now… the keen modders among you have already been sneaky and found all the Class 700’s services, but joke’s on you, we knew (and secretly hoped) you would find them, but what you won’t find is everything else we’ve added recently:

One new addition because people (also known as, me) kept asking for them is a few diesel railtours, nicely complementing the already existing Jubilee tours. Once again, these are seasonal additions to the timetable, you’ll only see them as AI during select months, but we’ve put a few different ones in loosely based on real-world reference: 

The Class 47 is back with a pair of services which mimic the long-lost cross-country services which used serve the Kent Coast, giving you 1O99 and 1S87 to run along the Chatham Main Line in the summer months. In TSW2 these similar services started at Gravesend, however given the addition of Dartford and how busy it is, squeezing anything else in there was going to make Joe cry, so it now joins the route at Rochester.

And then I made him cry anyway with the next addition. Being a Southern Region fan, I was always going to be a bit miffed if the Crompton didn’t make an appearance – thankfully my pleas were heard, and now we have a couple of Class 33 excursions, yay! The Kentish Crompton and The Medway Valley Crompton are a 6-parter and 2-parter respectively, combined they cover pretty much everything (well, not HS1 obviously, but wouldn’t that be awesome?! Railtour planners get on this please!) 

Some additional tweaks and AI services have also gone in, most notably, we’ve adjusted how the Forward/Reverse Class 465 turnback procedures work at Strood in the morning and evening rush to be more prototypical. At my most eager request, a winter seasonal AI service now appears at Strood, inspired by last year’s Medway Valley Pullman railtour. There is also a seasonal static train going in, we’re not telling you where, when, what stock, you’ll just have to wait and see...

The final note on the timetable for now; engineering works at Belle Isle Junction are coming to an end, so with the 66’s out of the way we’ve put in ALL THE ECML THAMESLINK AI

Lastly, because I don’t have all day, Scenario fans rejoice as the gameplay team have gone to town, and back! A bumper collection of 7 scenarios are to be included, yes that’s right, 7 scenarios, mega Desiro City action awaits, including some pretty funky situations...

We’ll bring more details, including how the stations look with their new signs, in due course.

As a final note – as this has not been tested yet, the above is subject to change, and whilst we’ll endeavour to ensure these additions are available for all players, we’ll let players know if some timetable additions will be Gen9-only.

German loco

Work is continuing on the German loco – we’ll update further when we have more information!

NEC: New York – Trenton: Updated timetable

In last month’s Roadmap, we talked about the work being undertaken on our newest U.S. route to improve its timetable. And we have another update for you this month, courtesy of our very own Joe.

A recap:

Progress on the NYT is going well! But first, let's recap. At release we had:

• The full Amtrak timetable, including again services we do not have correct coaches for.

• Acela trains will stop at Trenton for the sake of these being playable. Otherwise more than half would just be between NY Penn and Newark. These also included virtual destinations to many places beyond Trenton & NY Penn, as well as named trains displayed in the PIS.

• For NJT we had ~120 services, not the full timetable and most of which were led by the ML cab car. This was a mix, but not all, of trains 31XX, 32XX, 35XX, 37XX, 38XX, 39XX and 6XXX. All the deadheads do Sunnyside Yard (SSY) were playable, including any of 6XXX, which gave it quite an imbalance between actual passenger services and SSY deadheads.

Progress as of May 2023 roadmap:

• Full Amtrak and Acela as with release. These services may be slightly different now with more delays etc due to the increased NJT traffic.

• Full Electric NJT timetable (see below) is now complete with a few late trains that are being fixed/simulated as I type this.

• Does not include: Arrow III Princeton Junction-Princeton AI or diesel equipment out of Newark Penn/Hoboken and no AI traffic at Secaucus Junction.

However, that wasn't all I wanted to with this timetable. I'm sure you know what I'm thinking...

Addressing the imbalance of ALP-46 and ML lead services

One of the main criticisms of the timetable was of course the imbalance of ALP-46 and ML lead services. Many lines that use push-pull trainsets will usually have the loco always on one end. For example, all Hamburg to Lübeck trains have the loco towards Lübeck Hbf. Another example is RE 1 and RE 9 on KAH will have the loco facing away from Aachen Hbf.

That is not quite the case on the Trenton Line due to the Sunnyside Yard loop. Any train entering Sunnyside Yard will go via the loop, which means it will then face the other way. The difficulty here was trying to strike a close enough balance. I was able to get this balance quite close with just a few more for one than the other. Using the diagrams, each formation that leaves through portals will return facing the correct direction relative to how they left the map.

Trains out of Hoboken, however, follow the typical practice of loco always on one specific end. So, anything to/from Hoboken will always have the loco facing away from Hoboken.

Short NJT Secaucus services

Now for the exciting stuff! I have had a couple of suggestions for extra services, AI and playable. One example is the NJT services from NY Penn towards Newark Broad Street (Numbers 6XXX). Some of these were present at release and as of the last Roadmap they were all included. Though they were all AI, I had a suggestion to make those that stop at Secaucus into playable services. This was not the most straightforward thing to change to make, but that was ultimately successful. So, if you wish to drive short 5-10 minute services, those are there now for you.

The last thing I've been looking at is something quite annoying for many players. Sorting out the NJT service descriptions for NJT services from the NJCL. They would typically say "Drive this train from Trenton to NY Penn." Which is a bit misleading. These have now been corrected based on where you pick up the train from, Rahway, Newark Airport and Newark Penn.

Increasing double loco leading chances on Amtrak Northeast Regional Services

Onto other important things...

Some players have noticed that Amtrak Northeast Regional services have a very low chance to have a double loco leading. It was a very low chance and as many seem to like it, I have increased it slightly.

Freight

American railroads are arguably best-known for their freight. In fact, the freight on the NEC was quite intriguing for me. It was the first service types I began researching back in November before acquiring passenger timetables. Looking through several videos and forums for reference, I found enough information for 4 freight trains: ME-02, ME-47, ME-84 and OI-32. These trains are run by CSAO, which to my best understanding is a settled agreement between CSX and NS after the old CR lines were too complicated to divide up. Please feel free to look up more about them, it's quite interesting.

CSAO ME-02, having just joined the NEC from Metuchen Yard, will change direction and head for Jersey Avenue

But what does that mean for NYT? CSAO run trains with a mix of CSX and NS equipment, specifically the ex-CR equipment that have extra in cab signalling*. In TSW, these will require SPG for the CSX GP38-2s that operate the trains. Though there is a chance that one or multiple per train could be an NS GP38-2, if you own Horseshoe Curve. Many of the cars pulled by these trains also have a medium chance to substitute into other railroad cars. I've seen, for example, CSX mixed with BNSF and then CN, which is quite like the videos I was using for reference.

It also means that each time you play and see the same train, it will always look different. Slight side effect is that ME-02 may have odd cars added that it would not normally have. ME-02 also does not have the CR caboose because we don't currently have one, which may make the return service quite a challenge.

CSAO ME-84 heads Southwest towards Elizabeth on its journey to Metuchen Yard as the delayed Amtrak 133 heads to Washington

*Slight problem is that we do not have GP38-2 or GP40-2s in TSW with in cab signalling. For this reason, I am still unsure if these can be playable. I will be playing this with and without the HUD to see if the HUD is able to help in any way with the NEC signalling. The problem could be though that you're suddenly faced with a red signal which cab signalling would have been slowing you down for. This is likely beyond my control and would have to be made AI if it's too ridiculous. Playable or not though, I hope you can enjoy these freight services as much as I have!

With all the changes above, I think NYT will look vastly different. Oh, I almost forgot...

Long Island Railroad Layer

Long Island Railroad. The most requested layer of all time, (maybe).

The good news. The LIRR layer. It's in, it works. Better than I thought it would. This layer adds a whopping over 500 LIRR services to NY Penn. Non-peak trains run using the north tunnels exclusively and peak trains will use both north and south tunnels. LIRR trains can be seen at NY Penn as far down as track 13. With LIRR, Amtrak and NJT, NY Penn during peak hours is almost non-stop with many simultaneous arrivals and departures, LIRR especially.

LIRR peak trains also run every 3 minutes in each directly so there is plenty of activity passing SSY now. The Long Island Railroad layer for NYT will require just the LIRR route for the M7 AI. Each formation, 6, 8, 10 & 12 have a 20% chance to substitute into a LIRR M3 (of the same length) if you own the LIRR M3 DLC too! So, to be clear, LIRR route is required for ALL services. The M3 only adds variety.

NY Penn looking a lot busier now.

Now, for some other important news: it won't be 100% accurate. Specifically talking about Westside Yard (WSY). WSY and Penn are extremely close and together have the capacity for 52 formations in the same area. Add that the nearby SSY has up to over 30 tracks, include all the moving trains and you could be looking at up to 90 formations in that area. Performance-wise, you're asking for trouble.

NJT train leaving Sunnyside Yard whilst a Long Island Railroad M7 flies over

Actually, this is how I started making the LIRR layer, before getting it to 9am and realising this would not work. So, WSY will be rather quiet. There are a few trains an hour that go there if they have to switch platforms at Penn, but will not stay for too long. Consider also that WSY won't be all that visible from Penn station itself, and it makes it more trouble than its worth. These would provide a detriment to performance, for content you wouldn’t even see!

For this reason, many of the LIRR trains that would end up in WSY for several hours after the morning rush will instead head back towards Woodside as if they're empty to other yards. This gives a bonus of requiring fewer formations to run this layer therefore, this layer is as efficient on hardware resources as it can be.

A LIRR M7 passes a very busy Sunnyside Yard in the late morning

Well, that's it for now, but there are still plenty of things to be done...

Thanks, Joe! Expect to see more on the updated timetable in the coming weeks as it nears completion for testing. As a final note – as with the Class 700, as this has not been tested yet, the above is subject to change, and whilst we’ll endeavour to ensure these additions are available for all players, we’ll let players know if some timetable additions will be Gen9-only.

Train Sim World 3 core improvements and content patches

A progress summary on the core improvements the teams are working on. This month, we have a quick Add-ons Manager update, HST Livery Designer functionality, Peninsula Corridor Baby Bullet Services, and TSW2 Preservation Crew improvements.

Add-ons Manager

No extra news from last month - we’re still in the process of testing Xbox Add-ons Manager. We’ve been experiencing some crashing issues with the current build, so our Engineering team will be taking another look at it.

Once Xbox is out, we’ll turn our attention to PC platforms.

HST Livery Designer Compatibility

It is going through testing now, and we hope to release later into June, alongside some improvements to Great Western Express.

Peninsula Corridor and Oakville Corridor Baby Bullet services

We have a partial improvement for this issue that needs to be tested – if it passes the testing, we’ll be aiming to release it this month alongside another patch.

TSW2 Preservation Crew releases

Nothing further on this one from last month – the team are in the process of collating the updates into one patch, and when we have more for you we’ll let you know.

Patch update

Here’s a quick summary of the contents of the patches released in the past month you may have missed.

May 4 – Steam and Loco Add-on Bundle improvements:

https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/tsw3-update-steam-and-loco-add-on-bundle-2-improvements-4th-may.69919/

May 9 – Spirit of Steam additional Improvements:

https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/update-notes-spirit-of-steam-improvements-2-9th-may-2023.70069/

Upcoming patches

Patch - Wednesday 7th June

(full notes will be provided with the update, these are some of the highlights):

Linke Rheinstrecke

• Various graphical route improvements

• Improved snow build-up

• Vehicles correctly stopping at level crossings

• Various red lights improvements

• BR 103 windscreen wipers will now behave correctly

• Headlight improvements for IC Coaches

Note: physics improvements to the BR 103 will come at a later date.

Bremen-Oldenburg

• Signalling improvements

• Improvements to BR 110 door operation

• BR 425, Laaers, and Tagds 959 physics improvements

Midland Main Line

• Timetable expansion

• Added 89 HST services, particularly between Derby-Leicester

• Added 20 Ivanhoe services between Leicester-Nottingham (including 3 freight services*)

• Added ROG service from Derby-Leicester and Class 375 Blue service*

• Re-enabled Toton HL – Leicester Aggregate freight service*

• Updated Class 66 Railtour to use SHE Class 66, rather than RHTT

• Passengers should no longer get stuck in the doorway – and general improvements to passenger behaviour

• Updated Class 158 physics

• Rain and snow will now wipe away when using wipers

• Updated vehicle coupling and logic

• Remodelled bridges across route

• Numerous environment fixes and updates, including station updates and adding new Derby Roundhouse

• Performance optimisation across route

Note: for tomorrow’s patch, Console players will not receive the additional freight services – this is known, and we’re working on a follow-up patch to add these as soon as possible.

Rivet Games content patch

• Various small quality of life updates for Rivet Games content, including:

• BR 204 (added Contact Signaller and walkie-talkie functionality, Rail Driver support, physics improvements, headlights improvements)

• Isle Of Wight: Ryde-Shanklin (including Class 483 improvements, such as animating guard panel buttons improving headlights, and audio improvements)

• Arosalinie (snow effects on GE 4/4 window, added sparks and snow kick-up, updated running, flange, and whistle audio)

• West Cornwall Local (added sparks and snow kick-up to the Class 150,, including Class 37/5 headlights correctly illuminating surroundings)

• Zentralschweiz Luzern-Sursee (improved rain particles on windscreen of RABe 523,

• 1938 Tube Stock (Player and AI headlights improvements, added full Guard Panel functionality, added sparks)

Peak Forest

• Adjust volume of safeties in 4F to match those of updated Jubilee and 8F

Patch - Expected later in June:

• Niddertalbahn post-release patch

• HST Livery Designer functionality + GWE improvements

As mentioned above, we’re working on a partial fix for the Peninsula Corridor and Oakville missing Baby Bullet services, as well as TSW2 updates – but these don’t have a confirmed release window yet.

Third-Party developer (Partner Programme) update

Updates from some of our Partner Programme developers. This month, we have an update from Skyhook Games after Midland Main Line’s release, and from the team at Just Trains.

Skyhook Games

As the post-release Midland Main Line patch comes ever-closer, we’ve chatted to Jane, Skyhook’s Chief Technical Officer, about their progress, and what you can expect from the update.

All of us at Skyhook would really like to express our appreciation and thanks for everyone who has provided feedback for Midland Mainline. We have been delighted with the response to the route and all the enthusiasm in sharing ideas and feedback with us.

The patch/update is now preparing for release and in addition to addressing issues we have also added as many requested features as we were able for our first patch. This includes a wholly revised timetable, with close to twice as many playable services across the MML network! We have also added some freight services for everyone to enjoy – although, please note that, for the time being, these are only available on PC (we’re working on it!).

Additionally, we have added a wide range of bespoke trackside assets to bring our route closer to the real world. This includes everything from custom bridges along the route to iconic buildings such as the Derby Roundhouse and many others. Station buildings have also received updates for enhanced detail and realism, from canopies to platform clutter.

Traction has had a significant update too, with improvements with both the HST and the Class 158. The Class 158 is already becoming a firm favourite with the community, so we have put in significant effort with professional engineers and drivers to add further to the realism. Overall, there have been over 40 additions and tweaks to the Class 158 bringing exacting standards to the simulation.

In addition to new content and features, we have addressed over 100 reported issues, from signalling, to timetable and traction fixes, with the team spending a considerable amount of time across the entire product, addressing everything from minor details to rare crash bugs.

We are really looking forward to you all driving this combination of patch and new content update and enjoying all the new features that we are confident will enhance your MML experience.

Jane Whittaker, Skyhook Games

Jane has been chatting to players on this thread, so you can get the full low-down here: https://forums.dovetailgames.com/threads/midland-mainline-skyhook-feedback.69452/page-28

Just Trains

This month, Alex from the Just Trains team gives us an update on the progress of their route’s development. And we have our first Work In Progress screenshot!

The Just Trains team continues working hard on our first Train Sim World product. Our route building team have completed 30 miles of highly detailed and very immersive scenery. It really has been a pleasure to create. Our 3D artists continue to create a huge array of assets to populate the route from the minor to major stations, fantastic looking period signal boxes, road vehicles and clutter, but in saying that “clutter” is a bit of a generic, dull word that really does not convey the quality and passion that is going into all aspects of this product.

As regards the vehicles that will be in the route these are all coming along brilliantly, ranging from, cars to vans to construction vehicles to our rail vehicle, although of course creating these can be a bit of a caper sometimes!

Our aim with this product is to recreate the days of British Rail with a focus on a busy and varied timetable providing an immersive experience, with our full timetable featuring passenger, parcels, freight, and shunting operations. When driving our route, you will find that the timetable changes significantly depending on what season you are driving in, thus providing a wealth of possibilities, alongside this, our use of layers which will interact with other Add-ons that you own, will mean you will never be certain on what might turn up, just like the good old days of BR!

Rivet Games

As alluded to in the Patches section, we’ll have an update incoming from Rivet Games that touches some of their older Train Sim World content, including:

• Isle of Wight: Ryde-Shanklin

• DB BR 204

• Arosalinie

• 1938 Tube Stock

• West Cornwall Local: Penzance – St Austell and St. Ives

• S-Bahn Zentralschweiz: Luzern-Sursee

This will come in tomorrow’s (Wednesday 7th) patch

Inside Development – Making Scenarios

Scenarios are a really important part of the Train Sim World experience, and offer a completely different way to play the game. We spoke to Cameron and Liam, Designers in our Gameplay team, for more information about on how we make them, as well as some that didn’t quite make the cut!

Why do we have scenarios? 

Cameron: "We make scenarios because we want to offer players a unique gameplay experience from what they will get when they drive a train in the timetable." 

Liam: "Scenarios are where we can get to be creative with the trains and the routes they run while offering something different from a timetable service. We can make trains run unusual patters, add new gameplay, set restrictions, and create a challenge for the player." 

https://live.dovetailgames.com/live/train-sim-world/articles/article/train-sim-world-roadmap-june-2023