Virtual New Haven RR, a WIP project for RW

[ozinoz]

Excellent street scape. Wouldn't want to be stuck living (or working) behind one of those billboards of the day (not that the view from my office window overlooking our showroom is anything to write home about

for sharing

[ozinoz]

That is filling in beautifully. I am stoked and counting the minutes till I get impatient and ask when will it be out

Thanks so much for keeping us updated.



Grant

[CARex]

Downtown Hartford IN SIM test shots.
Please disregard the 'sinking' mailbox in the last screenshot.

working_141030_HrtBlox01.jpg

working_141030_HrtBlox02.jpg

working_141030_HrtBlox03.jpg

working_141030_HrtBlox04.jpg

[OldProf]

I agree that the street-scape shots look great, but will anyone driving a train ever see them? If not, do they serve any purpose other than making the download longer and stuffing our RSC installations? I'm not being ornery or facetious, just curious.

[GreatNortherner]

will anyone driving a train ever see them?

Yes, you will see those buildings up close, even from the cabview. The Springfield Line runs straight through downtown Hartford, the old Freight House complex ended facing downtown, and along the riverfront is another NH line.

See this map of modern Hartford for a better illustration (Union Station on the left): http://binged.it/1wOGlns
Now imagine it with more downtown buildings where the highway system is today, and this is what we're trying to do in the sim.

Cheers
Michael

[philmoberg]

... Yes, you will see those buildings up close, even from the cabview. The Springfield Line runs straight through downtown Hartford, the old Freight House complex ended facing downtown, and along the riverfront is another NH line. ...

Before I91 and I-84, before all the glass boxes, the convention center and the Founders Bridge, there was a grand boulevard (Commerce Street, IIRC) along the river, with the northern end of the old Valley Division running parallel to it, which had it's own classic passenger station standing at State Street until early-'55. The Travelers Tower was the tallest building, by far, followed by G. Fox and Sage Allen, if memory serves. You could see all the way up to the Old State House with an unobstructed view, unlike now; an past that you could see the first couple of blocks of Pearl Street, taking you halfway to Hartford Union Station. At the northern end of Commerce Street, the Bulkeley Bridge was still a local street to and from East Hartford, while north of there, Meadow Street was replaced, in 1952, by a divided road grandly dubbed the North Meadows Expressway, which took you to about the Windsor town line.

Conversely, riding over the viaduct at Union Station, you would get glimpses of this from the other direction down Pearl Street and a couple of others. There is no real waste effort here, nor are there wasted polys, particularly if you want to zoom out to an aerial shot. Hartford was a compact and vibrant center of commerce and industry in those days, and they're doing an excellent job of evoking it in virtual reality.

[ozinoz]

Those streetscapes are just magical, the night views particularly - thanks so much for sharing. We could dispense with the RR and just explore the city

&

Grant

[GreatNortherner]

Hi,

Hartford is coming along nicely now. We've even stopped playing Citybuilders for a while and returned to working on railroad related stuff. Here is a new in-game screenshot of Meadows Yard, three more new screenshots are on our blog.



Cheers
Michael

[ozinoz]

I am hesitant to look at any new update - it is almost like pouring lemon juice on a paper cut or death by a thousand cuts - the wait is getting tougher by the day and by the update.
Just kidding - bring the updates on, and thanks for sharing them...

[CSX5202]

Oh boy,
Can't wait to run this RR!

[ozinoz]

Oh boy,
Can't wait to run this RR!

What he said I am continually blown away by the night streetscapes.

[ozinoz]

Thanks for new update - I am in awe of route builders. It shows great vision and imagination. It is coming along...

[ozinoz]

Thanks for spoiling us with yet another update. Not sure if I am the only one following this great project, but I do appreciate every glimpse of the world being created...

[CARex]

Grant,

Unless your hitting the blog 700+/- times a month and the thread a couple dozen times a week... take care in knowing you are not alone.
However, we sincerely appreciate your support and enthusiasm. Hang in there. There has been a lot of progress lately...still some to go, but we're getting close. 'Course neither of us can define close as yet.

Meanwhile, here's a sneak peek at the just completed (circa 50's) Aetna Insurance Building that one passes after departing southbound from Union Station.

aetna 1.jpg

[GreatNortherner]

I just uploaded this video of a full mainline run (Springfield - Hartford) to Youtube. Basic scenery is in place on the entire mainline now, the 1.0 segment has been upgraded and tweaked quite a lot too. Some areas still need some more attention, a final "clutter pass" still needs to happen on much of the 2.0 trackside scenery, some buildings are still missing, and there is still a lot to be done around Hartford. But we're getting there and, as Bob just said, lately at a good pace too.


(Budd RDC trip from Springfield to Hartford. Please ignore my bad driving skills. )

Cheers
Michael