AnnouncingTrainz™ Simulator 2009 & Trainz™ Simulator X

[Tony_Hilliam]

Thanks for the kind wishes all.

Axe - good to see you are still around.

Louise - I was going to write a response to let you know some more background about Fury/Auran/Trainz etc, but focusing on the future will get us much further than looking back at the past. We live and learn from our mistakes. Luckily I have 5 years of very active Trainz heritage and I believe a good understanding of what the community are looking for in their next version of Trainz.

Amigacooke - Trainz Classics is not dead, but it needs to find a way to replicate faster (more at rabbit speed than elephant speed) if it is going to be profitable. (Btw, X or 2010 is not being released this year - misread or mistype?)

Colprice - DLS could do with a very good scrub . Content compatibility i key to ease of use. Ease of use is key to contented customers.

Lewisner - I painted a 10m wide ballast today (5m radius brush) through a 10m wide cutting (at the bottom). I redid it at 20m (old scale) and it is, as you say, worth the price of admission! Videos coming soon (once we make the track appear again ). Technically it is four times the detail or twice the resolution.

Electro - moving people fell off the short list (not literally) for 2009. We hope to get new animated industries, but the whole platform/streetside walking is a big task and beyond this edition.

Others - consider Trainz Sim X a working title and not to be confused with Train Sim X or 2. Also note our careful use of (TM) wherever possible. We are Trainz first and foremost. We have evolved and will continue to evolve. For anyone who hasn't run through Trainz V1 or 1.3 lately, or even UTC, it is a real nostalgia trip. I am preparing a feature comparison which also makes interesting reading. (SP1 - now supports Direct X 7. lol).

S301 - this is the key to why N3V are supporting two new editions and not just one. TS2009 will be the most complete version ever, but 2010 will have a whole years worth of content creation magic to take advantage of so it will be even better. The way things have evolved, hardware improvements will lengthen the life cycle of the game engine dramatically. Hardly any of the Jet 2 features are in wide use as yet, and updated exporters will ensure new bump amps, normal maps, specular highlights and more will help show off all the additional polys that can be displayed on today's hardware.

Tony Hilliam
CEO, Auran Games

 

[psycho_aussie]

Even though I have little interest in designing layouts, I am rather interested in the finer scale of the baseboard grid. I would love to see what people like Nathan (natvander) could do with that. The detail would be amazing.

I'm also glad to hear that Trainz still has a life after TC3. Now I just have to wait for the TC3 pre-orders

Chris

 

[Sourdough]

Thanks for the info....something to look forward to...and for some, to whine about...

 

[Joe_T]

Thanks for the kind wishes all.

Louise - I was going to write a response to let you know some more background about Fury/Auran/Trainz etc, but focusing on the future will get us much further than looking back at the past. We live and learn from our mistakes. Luckily I have 5 years of very active Trainz heritage and I believe a good understanding of what the community are looking for in their next version of Trainz.

Tony Hilliam
CEO, Auran Games

Tony the main reason for my comments about Fury/Auran was mainly about the way money was pumped hand over fist into something that everyone knew was going to be a flop but this is not the time nor the place for that disscussion if you wish to talk to me further on that one you have my email address

The fact that Auran is now willing to listen to what the *CUSTOMER* wants is a good thing and what makes a profitable business so keep up the good work from now on in. I can see where people are coming from about the name TSX Dunno what to come up with on the name front though but give me a few days am sure i could think of something good

 

[amigacooke]

Amigacooke - Trainz Classics is not dead, but it needs to find a way to replicate faster (more at rabbit speed than elephant speed) if it is going to be profitable. (Btw, X or 2010 is not being released this year - misread or mistype?)

Therefore whilst TS2009 will be a big step up from previous releases, we are even more excited about celebrating the 10th anniversary of the beginning of Trainz with the release of Trainz™ Simulator X. This release is scheduled for the end of 2009 and we can’t wait to talk about the big new features we have planned.

Sorry, I assumed 'This release' referred to the last release you had spoken about, that is TRS X, but presumably you meant TRS2009. I don't think I mentioned 2008 in my posts at all?

On the DLS I think you'll need rather more regular uploading as well as cleansing to have contented customers. Finally, from your comments about Jet2 I assume Trainz will continue to use this technology.

 

[Tony_Hilliam]

Looks like I missed a few while answering the others...

insulfrog - absolutely. Rob Shaw has been moving house the past few weeks and is back online. He will be leading the 3rd party content creation and beta testing efforts. The TrainzDev site is the key in making sure everyone knows what is going on. It is early days but that will be where people can keep track of what is going on and by making things open and transparent we will be able to enlist far greater numbers of talented creators and hopefully co-ordinate the best quality routes and content ever.

willblunden - I prefer to think that we work very hard behind the scenes and try to point our limited efforts towards maximizing impact. Sadly helping a single person with their problem takes as long as writing this post which will be reads by hundreds or thousands of people. TS2009 introduces a new browser help system that hopefully will allow people to find answers to their problems in-game and remove the costly one on one support that we cannot justify. For instance, solving a typical help desk query costs a minimum of $5. We receive, on average, around $5 per game sold through retail. Diverting resources to answering helpdesk means less content, less features, less marketing etc. I realize it is our duty to help our customers, but it is also a requirement that we make a profit. The second requirement precedes the first in terms of importance to ensure longevity of the product.

Also (you touched two raw nerves) the whole idea of TS2009 is to avoid making the same mistakes as we have in the past. Every release of Trainz to date has been under-tested and under-polished. This time around, we have 3 years of dev time (including the Classics releases) to add features and I believe we now have the experience to not ibte off more than we can chew and to polish the release version. Hopefully we will create a version that will convince you to change your mind and support Trainz for a few more years at least.

Barry - CMP is a beast - we will tame it and it will be a puppy in your hands.

Lost - I never give up! Trainz will succeed - it's that simple.

 

[misterchugg]

hi
does this mean that someone will be answering my emails to the helpdesk from january onwards?

ron

 

[IsambardKingdomBrunel]

post deleted

 

[lewisner]

It would be quite amusing if TRS - X and MSTS2 came out at the same time and TRS-X blew MSTS2 out of the water

 

[Barry]

Hi Tony trouble is I live in the age of the dinosaur with dial-up and with cmp locking up it left the sailing ships and barges in the world of maritime trainz stranded on the sandbanks with many unhappy sailors

Barry

 

[Sourdough]

......my comments about Fury/Auran was mainly about the way money was pumped hand over fist into something that everyone knew was going to be a flop ......

The truth be known, not everyone knew that Fury was going to be a flop.....it's easy to say that when hind sight is 20-20. We, on this side of the pond, call that armchair quarterbacking....sit back, watch the play develop, then assess the results as if we actually had fore knowledge of what those results would be.....

 

[Tony_Hilliam]

Good to see life in the old dog still...

Bit disappointed to find out we have to wait untill august 23rd for TC3

cheers,
Mike.

Good to see so many old dogs still around. Not sure where the Aug 23 thing came from - I think it is a data entry error on the website. We have been moving things around today so couldn't fix it, but the GM is with the printer so TC3 will be out this month!!!

Mr Chugg - we will be sending out emails (hopefully next week) to all unanswered helpdesk enquiries asking them to resubmit (since many will have solved their problems through forums, upgrades, reading the manual or trail and error).

Barry the Boating Dinosaur - that would be a good signature change

 

[moggy]

Things looking up again at long last.. .

moggy

 

[Electro]

RE Things looking up again at long last.. .


Hmmm or is it thats the Question :hehe:

 

[lesley]

They called the 2nd MSTS MSTSX as it is made by the same studio as FSX. Not sure whats with the X though (Why didn't they keep the years going?? )

Tom

 

[Kelly88]

Hello to a new age
I only started with Trainz on the 2006 issue
I have 2006 TC & 2008
I have tried several of the other railway sims available and trainz still has its head out in front
We are told that the new version will be polished up a bit to make it more user orintated, and thats good

One of the big stumbling block at the moment in Trainz is the amount of resources required to keep it running with good frame rates

therefore I think that the acutal sim ( driver ) should be shut off from the rest of the utilities ( no internet checking )
it needs a good support for the iPort and if possible playable across a network (LAN/WLAN) connection,
as for the rest,
content is not a problem ( there is plenty ) and new stuff will always be upcoming
support, well thats a sore point, I know it cost money, and eats into profits, but it is needed always, maybe a small annual charge would make people more self helping ( just an idear)

the other thing I would like to see is an update on the GMax side
most people have Max6 or Max8 now so a new converter wouldnt go amiss

anyway full steam ahead, you have my support , keep all informed, and most important keep your ears open to users wishes

rgds
mike

 

[lesley]

They called the 2nd MSTS MSTSX as it is made by the same studio as FSX. Not sure whats with the X though (Why didn't they keep the years going?? )

Tom

Oops my bad. I should really read the topic in-depth before I post (I thought you said Microsoft Tran Simulator, not Trainz Simulator X).

Tom

 

[IsambardKingdomBrunel]

post deleted

 

[maxandfeeze]

i hope the thing dont crapily GO TROU EACH OTHER cuz that would suck im keepin my fingers crossed that physics are more realistick

 

[collinsl]

Sitting here listening to some of the best music in the world (HM Band of the Royal Marines), driving a UP consist across the Chillicothe sub (?spelling?), feeling that warm inner glow that comes from a good lunch and knowing that there is going to be some very good software coming soon, all makes me glad that I got into trainz at this age so I can enjoy it for life!

WELL DONE AURAN!