Wanted to buy Trainz 2012 - disappointed

[jamason56]

I received the latest Trainz newsletter a few days ago and thought I'd check out Trainz 2012. I currently own Trainz Railroad Simulator 2006 and 2009. I emailed Auran asking if there was an upgrade path available for me. I received the following (see below) from N3V. I think it's unfortunate that I would have to pay the same $49.99 (US) as any first-time buyer. I think customer loyalty should be rewarded and I don't see that happening here. Very disappointed.

**************
Good Evening John

We are not currently running any 'upgrade' discount offers for Trainz Simulator 12, nor do we currently have any plans to do so.
We do sometimes run discount offers on items in our store. Any such discounts will be announced in our newsletter.

Regards

Zec Murphy

Customer Support Rep
N3V Games

Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: SOK-313419
Department: Orders & Shop
Priority: Low
Status: Closed

 

[Euphod]

Most businesses that offer loyalty discounts to customers make up the loss in other ways. I don't think N3V is obligated, nor should be expected to offer anything other than the usual sales. Perhaps someone has a discount voucher for 12 that they could send your way?

 

[RRSignal]

Perhaps they should raise the price for everyone just so they can offer a lower-cost cost upgrade version to "loyal" users. Nothing makes more business sense than raising the barrier to new customers.

 

[cascaderailroad]

With a 26% discount voucher it bring it down to:$36.99 AUD

 

[Maxgenesis8]

Or you can do like I did and wait for a birthday sale at Jointed Rail and buy it with the $20 payware voucher. I managed to get it when NS37 turned 30 and only paid around $36. Just my $0.02

 

[rjhowie]

Trainz is not alone in that regard and I don't really have a problem when wanting to go up to a newer version. Note too that many commercial companies producing important things like Virus and other protection don't either? For a youngster it of course is a problem yet again surely parents who are happy to see a sibling involved in something constructive is someowhere in the background? For adults themselves in general it is a reasonable amount for such an ingrossing activity and I am very thankful that I came across Trainz several years ago now by sheer chance. What I have built and presently building I could not have done elsewhere. Indeed when you think what many of us spend on non-essentials (many on on drinks and snacks and such over a year that beats the cost of Trainz)often it is a cheap hobby and in practice an extendable one unlike say a model rail layout. No walls to stop you here?!

Now having this break back to route building before Trainz withdrawal symptoms......

 

[jamason56]

Thanks to everyone for sharing their thoughts.

Of course Auran is not obligated to offer discounts or have a 'loyalty' program. I understand the different points-of-view, however I personally think it makes good business sense.

I'd like to thank Zec, Kris, and Charles from Auran for reaching back to me and offering a 20% voucher for Trainz 2012. I just completed my purchase and am downloading as I type this message.

John

 

[Euphod]

Excellent John! I am unaware of their current policy, but in the past they were kind enough to offer discounts to past customers. I'm glad they chose to extend one to you! You will enjoy 12 very much.

 

[steve123]

I had to pay full price for every version of Trainz, why shouldn't or can't you, why are you so different from the rest of us, i didn't get a 20% voucher for my version,

it seems to be these days people wont everything for near nothing, we all had to pay and so should you.

steve

 

[amigacooke]

we all had to pay and so should you.

steve

I certainly haven't had to pay full price for all versions, because in the past Aran did give a discount to owners of previous versions. In the dim and distant past I believe beta testers were given a copy of the trainz they had tested as a reward for their work.

 

[steve123]

I got discount vouchers as well but not until i had already purchase a Trainz product, and then it would run out of time to use it or you would forget about it,
and so the beta testers should have.

but i was never given a voucher to buy a new copy of Trainz sim what ever version, but good luck to you if you did get one for a new version.
steve

 

[mikemike]

i wanted to get it too, but it's way too overpriced considering that all the work on it's been done in prior releases and done by users for free. and, having just squirreled around trying to get some '09 content into 2010 i really don't think i'll even take the chance. most of the really good work has been dropped, as we've talked about forever, and if there's nothing but modern era power-beasts then what's the point of trying to set up a decent u.s. shortline from the thirties with 2012.

besides, i don't even use trees faster than 2 MPH on my routes : )

hopefully it's going to be like Shogun 2, where it sits on the shelf in the store for a year before they drop the price 20 bucks and i finally felt it was a good deal, having a copy i could upgrade.

 

[RoysTrainz]

good job N3V really good job

My take on this is simple and straight forward.
N3V pricing is already to cheap for what they offer to the community and make things work on their site at the same time!
Nobody complains when they go to a fast food or better restaurant or bar and spent one time more or mutiple of what trainz cost for one license and be able to enjoy many years 24/7 for that same price, not fair but that is the market.
We as a trainz community know better and support N3V where we can and fit and makes things we buy getting better every so many new release they are able to provide as good as they can. Running that business profitable and succesful most people have no clue what it takes so I guess just be happy and enjoy the things we think are all for granted they are not.
John good N3V reached out to you and shows much more than just a company name on a billboard.

have a great trainz weekend

Roy

 

[korikovaVL80]

My take on this is simple and straight forward.
N3V pricing is already to cheap for what they offer to the community and make things work on their site at the same time!
Nobody complains when they go to a fast food or better restaurant or bar and spent one time more or mutiple of what trainz cost for one license and be able to enjoy many years 24/7 for that same price, not fair but that is the market.
We as a trainz community know better and support N3V where we can and fit and makes things we buy getting better every so many new release they are able to provide as good as they can. Running that business profitable and succesful most people have no clue what it takes so I guess just be happy and enjoy the things we think are all for granted they are not.
John good N3V reached out to you and shows much more than just a company name on a billboard.

have a great trainz weekend

Roy

Pretty off topic but, in booth Thailand and Russia 50 USD is pretty much. One time in your country (Hua Hin) I was lucky to find a banknote of 500 baht in the street, then later I found another banknote of 500 baht in the market (my day of luck!) and for 1000 baht, there are many things you can do. Trainz would be very expensive for a regular friend of mine, who live in Bangkok. (And it's already very expensive in Russia if not only Thailand)

 

[jamason56]

I had to pay full price for every version of Trainz, why shouldn't or can't you, why are you so different from the rest of us, i didn't get a 20% voucher for my version,

it seems to be these days people wont everything for near nothing, we all had to pay and so should you.

steve

Steve,

Don't know why you sound so angry. All I did was reach out to Auran and ask. I believe customer loyalty programs are good for the company as well as the customer. I've supported Auran by purchasing 2004, 2006, and 2009. It's customers like us that enable Auran to keep developing their product and stay in business. I did pay. Sorry you didn't ask for a voucher or a discount. That's on you, not me.

While you do get good value with Trainz, $50 (US) is a lot of money for a product like this. Make no doubt, Auran is making money.

In this case, the discount I received ensure I remain a customer and support Auran in the future. I feel good about the way Auran responded to my post here on the forum and that is good both for me and for Auran.

John

 

[cascaderailroad]

Buy MS Flight Simulator in a Gaming store and you will be paying $50 to $70.

Or wait till Dec 22nd 2012, and there may be a discount clearance sale: http://www.mayanlastday.com/
(If you look closely the doomsday clock has a *3 year limited warrantee, *not applicable in the event of an actual doomsday cataclysmic event ... lol).:hehe:

Or wait until the next version of Trainz comes out, then TS12 will be dirt cheap.

 

[mikemike]

i'd pay 20 dollars a year for a subscription to trainz -- just to sustain it, but not 50 dollars for some one-off thing to a company which will probably drop the product in a year because it can't compete. they're playing at trying to out-do rail simulator, and that's just not good business sense: trainz is a model railroad simulator, and they ought to work that angle more -- showing how it's a program for making a model railroad layout -- links to route plans from the model railroad world, things like that.

selling big routes and all is to sell against the beauty-spot game, rail sim, and the auran engine just can't make it up that grade.

 

[rjhowie]

What a thrawn description that is of Trainz using a year as an odd point.The history of Trainz proves otherwise. Indeed there is stil a goodly following for TRS2004 for example and the idea of it being sold just for a year is a daft one. Every so often we get someone on griping about the cost and it is again kind of pointless as it depends on different circumstances and is not some set standard argument. After all the vast majority of members are adults and for them the cost of a hobby at around £32 is not the end of the world and as I pointed out your Trainz edition will last as long as you want so there is a spurious argument here. Certainly a youngster on pocket money will require to save or hope for generous parents but for the adult mainstream it is not challenging price-wise. Many people spend a lot more on a hobby, pastime, meals out whereas this gives you a lengthy, enjoyable interest with only the modest ticket addition and not the repeated cost of a tennis game, golf or whatever else.

For folk who are mad on trains (and trams too!), this is an excellent, modest buy and gives oodles of pleasure and affords even the most least of techies amongst us to build something worthwhile. So those still on that 04 edition have well got their money's worth as we all do and shows how flawed that last opinion is?!

 

[cascaderailroad]

i'd pay 20 dollars a year for a subscription to trainz -- just to sustain it, but not 50 dollars for some one-off thing to a company which will probably drop the product in a year because it can't compete. they're playing at trying to out-do rail simulator, and that's just not good business sense: trainz is a model railroad simulator, and they ought to work that angle more -- showing how it's a program for making a model railroad layout -- links to route plans from the model railroad world, things like that.

selling big routes and all is to sell against the beauty-spot game, rail sim, and the auran engine just can't make it up that grade.

Does this make sence ? Hmmm ... Rail Sim, what is that ? Rail Simulator, What is that ?

If you are talking about Railworks, they have some pretty good graphics, wider FOV view, better lighting ... but they really blew it on the Horseshoe Curve route ... it looks like it was created by someone far away in England, that barely had any knowledge of the area, and the route is vastly un-prototypical.

And some of us have been here running Trainz since the first version came out, @ a decade ago, or more ?
What makes you think N3V and TS12 and the next version(s) won't stick around for another decade ?

Sure ... Microsoft canned MSTS2, and layed off the entire video gaming crew(s) ... but that game is still used by thousands of people, and there are independant download websites, where new assets are still being uploaded, for downloaders.

 

[mikemike]

for me, it's for operations.

'railworks' is called train simulator 2 now, and i have both mstrainsim, kuju trainsim 1 and railworks. i bought trainz immediately when it came out -- comp usa -- and got every new iteration except tc3.

what i want is a good layout maker to sim up an operations oriented railroad model. i don't need pretty -- in fact, i just shoot some color at the base of any buildings and trackwork.

some people are into operations and some people are into scenery. the kuju rail people make a very beautiful product. i haven't run railworks in maybe two years? boring. but, i do work on my room route in trainz at least a lot, if not more when i'm really into it.

again, i don't want a flight-sim with training wheels, i want an active train construction game i can enjoy for more than a passive hour or so going through what are, really and in both games, very toy-like scenery. even the real model railroad routes have garbage for scenery.

so, to keep the game a smart and usable game, one where users can keep adding trainz objects -- remember when the first semaphores came out, how neat that was? -- i'd gladly pay a subscription of 20 or so dollars a year, and then extra for fast-downloading service.

Does this make sence ? Hmmm ... Rail Sim, what is that ? Rail Simulator, What is that ?

If you are talking about Railworks, they have some pretty good graphics, wider FOV view, better lighting ... but they really blew it on the Horseshoe Curve route ... it looks like it was created by someone far away in England, that barely had any knowledge of the area, and the route is vastly un-prototypical.

And some of us have been here running Trainz since the first version came out, @ a decade ago, or more ?
What makes you think N3V and TS12 and the next version(s) won't stick around for another decade ?

Sure ... Microsoft canned MSTS2, and layed off the entire video gaming crew(s) ... but that game is still used by thousands of people, and there are independant download websites, where new assets are still being uploaded, for downloaders.