Railworks America

Well, it's getting close to being that time of the year, when RSC rolls out their next technological update for RailWorks. (Is the next one going to be RW4?) So, in order to kick things off, let's start the speculations, our hopes & dreams and see which one gets it right in terms of prediction!

What I'd like to see:
AI Dispatch that can handle dark territory. This honestly needs to happen since as indicated by my name I am a huge Shortline/regional railroad fan, and most of the shortline/regional railroad run things by train order, track warrants and radio, no signaling involved.

Improved lighting on locomotives: G-Trax's Amtrak's P42 did the lighting almost perfectly. What I mean by that is that one of the things it had was flashing ditch light as soon as your train started moving and when it came across a grade crossing. I think this happened when the bell was activated or you pushed a button, I'll have to double check it tonight. This should be standard on all American Locomotives as well as a Low and High beam setting.

Improved AI: The AI needs to be smarter. Right now the AI follows a script and it doesn't deviate from that script or else the whole scenario goes ka-put. What I'd like to see is to be able to give the AI a beginning, an end and some stuff to do in the middle, and just let the whole thing run from there. The signal aspect as well as the AI Dispatch will actually matter to both the players and the AI trains. Hopefully this would also lend to AI and players being able to be in the same yard. I'd still like to be able to pull into a busy yard and seeing AI switcher locomotives tearing down and putting together trains.

Multiplayer: I know I ask for this every year, and every year we get something silly like Career Mode (does anyone still use that?) or Relay Play (I haven't even touched that one). However with Run 8, Trainz and now Open Rails using Multiplayer, I think it's safe to say that there is a segment of the Railroading Sim population that likes Multiplayer and RSC is missing the boat by not putting it into RailWorks. I know Multiplayer isn't everyone's cup of tea but I would love to be able to set up an operating session with a few friends on Steam and myself on a route like Marias Pass or Northeast Corridor. Just think, one friend playing Dispatcher, another one is shunting cars, a third is doing local runs in a GP38-2, and you're doing a long mainline haul in an SD-70 and you're all talking via Microphone on RW. I still say that's pretty cool.

So what are y'alls thoughts and opinions?

Ahh, soo close on the P42 statement! look here: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=8659&p=98187&hilit=flashing+ditchlights#p98187

I forgot to add this one, I'd also like to see RailDriver support from RSC.

I agree with all your requests! Multiplayer where you are driving the train and you interact with other player driven trains, is just SO exciting! I really think that this year we will see something big!

There are lots of different wants by lots of different people, however for me turning this into some sort of social event is almost dead last in my world. That is the main reason I quit Flight sim. Every time I got on there some goof wanted to chat about nothing. It got to be even more brainless than CB radio.
I am just really enjoying the creative atmosphere and the enormous strides that the sim and the community have made in the last couple of years and hope it continues.
Rant off.

All I want is better AI, like really interactive. Multiplayer, no interest in at all, other wise I would be using Run8. Physics are not that big of a deal either. They are close enough and getting better with each new items that comes out.

I just want dynamic brakes that don't make my train derail

I noticed that dynamic brakes are working lately...

Dynamic braking has been greatly improved over the past year. I echo the call for improved dispatcher operations, especially over "dark" or unsignalled territories.

About the only things I want in RW is a true multiplayer and content from the 1920's-1950's

FourEightFour wrote:About the only things I want in RW is a true multiplayer and content from the 1920's-1950's

Oh, I would love to see some Norfolk Western stuff!

I noticed when I was looking through files I found fonts and logos for Multiplayer. Hopefully RSC doesn't become like Valve with Half-Life 3.

BigBoyMoon wrote:I noticed when I was looking through files I found fonts and logos for Multiplayer. Hopefully RSC doesn't become like Valve with Half-Life 3.

Nah, RSC already counted up to 3. :P

Really it's still a little early to make a firm speculation on anything. But to just be in the spirit I'm going to say they are leaning towards a functional multiplayer and more graphical improvements.

I want the editor to be easy to use. I use Trainz Railroad Simulator when I want to be unrealistic and make trains look like they are jumping to the other side of the track when a bridge is out by using the invisible track, or other things that are completely unrealistic. The Trainz editor is EXTREMELY easy to use and will let you build a route that will let you do things that are impossible to do in real life or, if you wanted to be realistic, you could easily build a any kind of route you want. In Trainz I made a Polar Express route that included Glacier Gulch and the Ice River in it, and it was easy to do. But, in TS2013, it is really difficult to use the editor. I tried to take track 3 out of the Horseshoe Curve. When I got to CP MG (the crossovers just past the Curve), I tried to connect track 4 to track 3 so I wouldn't have to replace the switches, but when I tried to connect track 3 back to track 4, it wouldn't snap to track. Eventually, I just gave up and stopped trying to take track 3 out. I Trainz, I would have had the section of track done in 2 minutes. I hope RSC will make their editor as easy as the Trainz editor is.