Which version should I buy?

Hello!

I am a n00b. A few years ago, I saw Trainz Driver Edition in the $10 rack at Target. Seemed like a good deal, so I snatched it up. It turns out that this is the 2006 version, and is also labelled "North American Edition".

And then it got put in a box somewhere when we moved, and forgotten about.

I recently rediscovered it, and have been playing it with my 5-year-old son, who is obsessed with anything large and mechanical that has wheels. And we've both been having a good time.

I have some Amazon gift cards from Christmas, and it occurs to me that one way I could use them would be to buy a more recent version of Trainz. But I'm not sure which one to get, and I'm a little confused and confounded by the numerous options available to me.

I am looking for the version that provides the most content for the price. Preferably a version which would allow me to download 3rd-party content from others, like fan-made rolling stock or fan-made scenarios.

Any suggestions or information would be greatly appreciated.

A brief review of my Amazon options indicates that Trainz 2010 is not yet available in a boxed retail set here in North America. Any idea when they will be releasing the North American boxed retail set?

I would imagine that it would be in the next couple of months, though you can buy a boxed copy direct from Auran's online shop. I think they have an agent in North America who posts them out (they certainly do in Europe).

I'd definitely recommend TS2010, though it may take another service pack to get it as stable as some of the older versions. It certainly has more routes than any other edition, and the ability to run them more smoothly than any other version.

All versions other than the 'Driver' versions have the ability to download add-ons (there are MANY thousands available free, on the Download Station and other sites), and built your own routes and sessions.

Paul

paulzmay said:

I would imagine that it would be in the next couple of months, though you can buy a boxed copy direct from Auran's online shop. I think they have an agent in North America who posts them out (they certainly do in Europe).

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Alas, I can't afford to buy it any other way except via the Amazon gift cards I got for Christmas. So I guess I'll need to wait until they release it in North America.

Thanks for the reply.

Hi Extreme,
If you don't want to wait and if you look around you can find Trainz Railwayz pretty cheap. I have it as well as 2009 and bang for your buck its a great deal. My version is by Merscom and it comes with TRS2006 with SP1 installed and Trainz Classics 1 & 2, basically two full working versions of Trainz. Not a bad deal for the $15 I paid for it, average price is around $20 to $25. May be worth it while you wait for 2010.

The idea was to load TC and copy all the content from 2006 that TC lacked. I also have Driver and copied all the content from it into TC as well, making it possible to edit scenarios on the Marias Pass route.

Just be advised to read around here about 2009 and 2010. A lot of older content such as trees will only work in compatibility mode and some will not work at all without learning how to repair it. Not putting down the newer versions at all but just suggesting a little research to be prepared so as not to be blind sided. Its not as daunting a task as it sounds if you're ready for it and goes pretty quickly once you get the hang of it.

Despite the negative sounding reply I would get 2010 if starting over. 2009 runs much smoother for me than any previous versions and 2010 is supposedly better. Also all the built in content has been modified to run in native mode as well. Its only the third party downloads that will need to be repaired if needed at all.

Hope I didn't confuse you and good luck.

Dave.......

ExtremeUnction said:

Alas, I can't afford to buy it any other way except via the Amazon gift cards I got for Christmas. So I guess I'll need to wait until they release it in North America.

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Have you thought about giving the Amazon gift cards to someone else in your neighborhood who is just about to buy stuff from Amazon? You might get some real money back in exchange ...

After some poking around on Amazon, I have discovered that they are selling a Trainz: The Complete Collection. This apparently contains:

• Trainz 2004
• Trainz 2006
• Trainz Routes 1
• Trainz Routes 2
• Trainz Routes 3
• Trainz Routes 4
• Trainz Ultimate Collection
• Trainz Paintshed

I am not entirely clear on what "Trainz Ultimate Collection" is, but apparently these are full versions of Trainz 2004 and Trainz 2006, along with several different routes. So it sounds like a great deal.

Can anyone clue me in on what "Trainz Ultimate Collection" is?

Also: Do the Route packs also come with additional locos, rolling stock, and/or sessions?

And thanks much for the replies so far!

ExtremeUnction said:

I am not entirely clear on what "Trainz Ultimate Collection" is, but apparently these are full versions of Trainz 2004 and Trainz 2006, along with several different routes. So it sounds like a great deal.

Can anyone clue me in on what "Trainz Ultimate Collection" is?

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"Trainz Ultimate Collection" (also referred to as UTC) is the release before Trainz 2004.

Phil

Trainz Ultimate Collection is an old version of Trainz, which came out before Trainz 2004.

EDIT: I've just noticed that there is another reply.

from another newbie: I couldn't be more pleased with TS2010. I did a digital download.

http://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?t=50974

Cheerio John

The advantage of "trains complete" is that it adds 20 routes (and their assets) to the 20+ included with ts2006. So, from the start you have 40+ routes. In contrast, "railways" includes both ts2006 and "trains classics 1&2" (essentially ts2007); but TC1&2 does not add many new features and only adds two routes. Not sure which is the better option.