Game world and track construction

Update June 9, 2014: Please find answers to questions asked here.

The following video gives an overview about the game world and demonstrates railroad track construction. As always, please note that graphics and the user interface are not final.

The first part of the video shows a typical (large) random map. Such a map is generated each time the player starts a new game. Maps can be up to 256 square kilometers large and have a horizontal resolution of 1 meter. Towns, industries, hills, rivers, lakes, forest etc. spread across the map.

The second part of the video is about track construction, probably the most important task of the player. The video demonstrates the simple yet powerful construction interface. Bridges, tunnels, level crossings, switches, parallel tracks etc. can all be built by simply dragging and releasing the mouse. Finally, the video shows two Swiss Re 450 train compositions running on the tracks just built.

Signals are not shown in the video but will be demonstrated soon. Train Fever will support path signals which you may know from the OpenTTD project.

More information on railroad tracks can be found in this previous update.

Finally, an update for those of you interested in the (closed) beta test: It’s currently scheduled for end of June and more information on this will be announced on this website.

58 thoughts on “Game world and track construction

  1. Impressive track construction, dynamic yet simple to do . nice that the road crossing is done automatically now not manually like in the first gameplay video it helps especially for high speed trains that need a straight track . it feels so long till late summer – autumn when the game will be released. Good job guys !

      • Where I live, they are unfortunately VERY done (UK). There are three road crossings through a 110 mph stretch in my village. Horrible really, but yes, done rather a lot here.

        • 110mph isn’t high speed. High speed is minimum 124mph for upgraded track and even 155mph for designated track. (according to wikipedia)
          Maybe the speed is limited to 110mph because of the road crossings.

  2. Woow! Its so great to the trains i see everday passing in front of my window coming in this game! Please hurry, i can’t wait anymore! You’re doing great!

  3. Great update! I have to say that the game looks fantastic!

    A few questions came to my mind while watching the videos:
    – How is track destruction handled? Can we delete arbitrary stretches of track?
    – In the video, sometimes there is an elevation selector and sometimes there isn’t. Is this an automatic mode that can be activated?
    – Will there be level crossings with barriers?
    – In the shot where the trains meet the radius of the curve seems unrealistically small (notice the angle between the carriages). Is it possible to add information about the radius to the construction GUI?

    But again: very good effort and I am really looking forward to let these Re450 run commuter services in-game! 🙂

  4. Look great, can’t wait to play it!

    I understand that you’re not done with all the foliage yet, but it looks like the normals of the flat planes are wrong, making the lighting look a bit off.

    Take a look at http://wiki.polycount.com/VertexNormal (examples of trees with incorrect normals and how to fix it)

  5. Impressive map size (+detail) and track building mechanics, looking forward to see signalling at work. 🙂

    Even though we have very limited amount of information, I already love this game. I will surely apply for the closed beta.

    Watching the video and the screenshots made me realize that I don’t know anything about ingame AI. Not competition but e.g. AI driven cars. It is possible that I missed the info on this subject somehow, but could you please tell me if there will be any in the game?
    Looking forward for more updates! 🙂

    • I just realized I’m an idiot, forget what I said about the AI. I was so focused on the track building I didn’t even notice the cars driving around! 😀
      Epic fail which should be an example of how one is supposed to bring shame on himself ^_^
      Anyway, I still look forward to hear some more on the AI. 🙂

  6. I must say, your track building system is great! It gets the job done and keeps things simple, nice!

    I especially like tat you don’t need to exit the construction interface to do landscaping, build tunnels and bridges, etc; it makes it so much easier to build tracks than in most other games.

    Train Fever is shaping up well; I highly anticipate the beta, release in Q3, and future expansions to the game, keep up the good work! 😉

  7. Excellent job guys ! it looks pretty amazing !! Hope my old PC will run your game, I am staying tuned …

  8. Looks amazing. The graphics are great, the maps are huge and the tracks construction is quite complex. I’m really looking forward to it.

  9. Very very nice guys. Looks likes a winner to me!

    One missing thing that I would really like to see is more realistic grade crossing activity – flashing lights, lowering gates, etc. Trains blasting across unprotected roads is just a bit too simplistic for the amount of detail you have created.

  10. Thanks for this great update. The track construction seems to be really easy to handle and also quite usefull for creating realistic track layout, I like the possibility to create level crossings in curves. The only thing I’m still missing are crossing tracks and slip switches.

    Will it also be possible to stitch tracks next to roads like it is sometimes done in reality?

    For the generated maps: Shouldn’t there be more settlement next to rivers and lakes as a natural source of food, water and basic transportation?

  11. Great job … it looks fantastic.

    One thing that has me worried is the 250 km map sizes. But I’m sure this is just a first pass and things will change over time. I’m also hoping there will be modding tools so we can create maps. Do that and this will live on for far longer.

    Again, great job !!

    • While bigger maps are better (for this kind of game), I think 16 x 16km will be sufficiënt.

      This means you could make a diagonal high speed track of about 20 km (22,6 km corner to corner) and it would take a 320km/h train almost 4 minutes!, just count 240 seconds and you know it’s longer than you’ld think. It may not be realistic, but do you really want to wait 15 minutes before your train reaches the next station?

      • Actually, yes I do want that. I want large scale maps, with long tracks, and a challenging environment where the straight line is not the best route.

        When you have 15 trains, you really dont have to wait much.

        Also, in Transport Tycoon, time want too fast. I loved the unofficial time patch of open ttd, slowing the time down, but it messed a little with the earnings.

        I first played TT on a wery old computer, and the game actually ran a little slower there. I used to have the computer running trough the night to earn money.

        Funny thing, the original game does not handle more than about 4 000 000 000, not sure of the zeros here, cash in the bank, and will at that point change the amount to negative numbers, making your company bankrupt.

        Dont do the same misstake as CimCity. Maps are way to small to really invest time in a single playtrough. I see no points in starting new games because I win or outbuild the map all the time.

  12. I work for the railroad and am curious, could you recreate real life territories with this? Like shape the land and put in signals and what not?

  13. I hope, when you are about to construct rail (or road or anything) that is about to demolish a house, that the house will be coloured in red. For example when making a tunnel, that will cause landscaping some distance away from the rail that may demolish a building.

    I think that is a major problem in Cities in Motions II that cause me to put down that game after accidentally demolishing an important building that leaves an ugly gap as their town growth algorithm is not good enough to really re-build or grow cities in a nice looking way.

  14. I am already really really looking forward to this.
    This reminds me a very lot of Trails & Tracks back in the early 2000s and that game wasn’t even finished and still good. And this game looks just as good even though it is not even finished yet and gaaah, I can barely hold back my excitement for this!

    This is going to be so great!

  15. The tracks building looks amazing, looking forward for the real game

  16. The video looks awesome.
    I hope the game will be great from the start and whatever is missing will be added afterwards. I surely need to buy it.

  17. The track layout tools/rules look amazing so far. Great work!

    I’d like to suggest, at least as a difficulty option, having severe speed/acceleration penalties placed on sections of track with tight curve radii/steep grades. Even have it so that depending on the train model/weight, etc, some slopes can’t actually be climed.

    If this was combined with very high costs for tunnels/bridges, and fairly high costs for earth-moving, it would make the route planning an even more fundamental challenge, as you’d have to really plan your routes to make best use of the contours around hills while still keeping the curves wide enough to allow the trains to run at high speeds.

  18. Looking great guys, keep up the hard work 🙂
    Love the ease of track building, especially the new crossing feature instead of the early one.
    I will also apply for the beta.
    I think the poster above meant “Trains and Trucks Tycoon” An original copy I still have and played two weeks ago 🙂
    Phil

  19. Looks great!

    The track building system looks easy-to-use, I’m glad about that.
    Though I hope you found an easy way to destroy crossings without having to destroy all of the tracks, that has always anoyed me in train-tycoon games.

    The only thing that I really want to know about the tracks is how the signals are going to work, since I could never quite work out how they worked in similar games.

  20. In the video the trains pass by in left-hand and in right-hand traffic. Am I able to plan my routes whereever I want?

    • The devs compare the yet-to-be-introduced signal system to the one in TTD, where signals defined which side the trains use. They also mentioned waypoints. These most likely mean that you can change sides one way or another. 🙂
      Taking the train type shown in the video into consideration (used in the UK), we can assume that left hand side traffic will be implemented in the game.
      Please note that as far as I know, this is not confirmed by the devs (yet).

      • I have something in my mind, i read something about left-hand traffic because it’s standart in Switzerland, where the developers come from. I would be sad if it’s the only way, because I really would play with right-hand traffic.But when I hear this, I can hope. :p

        • In Switzerland, they drive on the right side. I belive this will be the standard in the game as well. 🙂

          • Nope, trains drive on the left side in Switzerland 😉 and they are using the signaling in OpenTTD, not TTD.. OpenTTD has a far better path finding siganling than TTD, so i’m happy to hear that they are going to imply something like that!

            Overall, the footage looks promising!

          • Oh, trains on the left? I didn’t know that, sorry ^_^
            And I was also unaware og the fact that OTTD and TTD have different signalling system. These two always confused me since they have so many versions. Thanks for correcting me Leendert! 🙂

    • Maybe they’re driving on the left to their destination and on the right if they go back.

  21. Looks like this game is going to be a real masterpiece! I am so impressed to see the progress!

    Well, I am very glad to hear that the signal system will be close to what we know from OTTD and with waypoints, and am really curious to see it in action. Will it be possible to make our own signals for specific countries/regions?

    I have been waiting a decade or more for a game of this kind, which has great and flexible gameplay, polished 3D-look instead of the grid based isometric view and is making excessive use of modern hardware. I guess, you Guys will fulfill the dreams of many people who love this type of game!
    And when I see that you are listening to the voice of the Community and keep the game open and well documented for Modders from all around the world, I have the feeling that Train-Fever has true potential to become the next milestone in the transport simulation genre!

    Keep up the good work, do not let anything overcome your passion for this game and have an eye on how not to do things (e.g. SimCity)! :O)
    ( Needless to say that since the day I found your website, the most expected email in my inbox is the one about the date when pre-ordering of my (Linux-flavoured) copy will be possible… )

  22. Cheers for the update.
    Looking good, and looking forward to game!

  23. The closed beta test will be for people which subscribe or for people which payed?

  24. Again, many interesting questions have been asked! Please find answers below:

    In the video, sometimes there is an elevation selector and sometimes there isn’t. Is this an automatic mode that can be activated?

    By default, elevation is set automatically, i.e. tracks align to the terrain. The user can switch to manual mode by clicking on the label which displays the current elevation.

    How is track destruction handled? Can we delete arbitrary stretches of track?

    Though I hope you found an easy way to destroy crossings without having to destroy all of the tracks?

    At the moment, destruction is only possible for whole segments built by the player. This is something we are thinking about to improve.

    Will there be level crossings with barriers?

    One missing thing that I would really like to see is more realistic grade crossing activity – flashing lights, lowering gates, etc.?

    At least there are barriers. They are simply not shown in the video. More details are not planned at the moment.

    In the shot where the trains meet the radius of the curve seems unrealistically small (notice the angle between the carriages). Is it possible to add information about the radius to the construction GUI?

    Yes, radius and the corresponding speed limit will most likely be displayed in the release version.

    Could you please tell me if there will be Ai driven cars in the game?

    Yes, after the year 1900, town inhabitants start to own cars and can use them to reach their work, shopping and leisure places. Cars are a competition for the transport lines of the player of course. Towards the year 2000, almost every inhabitant owns a car.

    Will it also be possible to stitch tracks next to roads like it is sometimes done in reality?

    That’s one thing we still want to implement, but it’s not yet sure if we can make it until release.

    For the generated maps: Shouldn’t there be more settlement next to rivers and lakes as a natural source of food, water and basic transportation?

    We consider the current settlement distribution as rather realistic, but it could be done even better of course.

    I work for the railroad and am curious, could you recreate real life territories with this?

    Since we want to support modding, it might be possible to recreate real scenes to some degree. However, since the game contains simplifications (as every game), the degree of realism might still be limited.

    I hope, when you are about to construct rail (or road or anything) that is about to demolish a house, that the house will be coloured in red? I think that is a major problem in Cities in Motions II.

    Yes, buildings which need to be demolished are colored in red. At the moment, buildings are even not demolished automatically, i.e. they need to be demolished manually.

    I’d like to suggest, at least as a difficulty option, having severe speed/acceleration penalties placed on sections of track with tight curve radii/steep grades. Even have it so that depending on the train model/weight, etc., some slopes can’t actually be climbed?

    That’s how it works. Radius and slope limit the maximal speed. Also, train speed dependent on power and weight etc. is realistically simulated.

    If this was combined with very high costs for tunnels/bridges, and fairly high costs for earth-moving, it would make the route planning an even more fundamental challenge?

    As you suggest, tunnels and bridges are really expensive. Also, terrain modifications are very expensive.

    In the video the trains pass by in left-hand and in right-hand traffic. Am I able to plan my routes where ever I want?

    They also mentioned waypoints. These most likely mean that you can change sides one way or another?

    Yes, signals and waypoints allow to control the direction (left-hand or right-hand traffic).

    Will it be possible to make our own signals for specific countries/regions?

    That’s not planned at the moment. Again, since we want to support modding, that could be easily achieved in the future.

    The closed beta test will be for people which subscribe or for people which payed?

    More details about the beta test will be announced at a later point in time.

    Thanks for your interest and best wishes,

    Basil Weber
    Urban Games

    • Thank you for taking the time to answer all these questions!
      Interesting details, looking forward to future updates! 🙂

    • Thanks Basil for the above answers. Anxiously awaiting my next new game!

    • “…
      That’s how it works. Radius and slope limit the maximal speed. Also, train speed dependent on power and weight etc. is realistically simulated.

      As you suggest, tunnels and bridges are really expensive. Also, terrain modifications are very expensive.”

      – Fantastic, thanks for your responses. It really sounds like your focus is in exactly the right place for my personal tastes!
      Now, to make the prohibitive-cost thing work, it’s going to need a tight, aggressive economy so that you never end up in the Transport Tycoon position of having a few billion sitting idle in the bank. It has to be entirely possible to run at a loss if a line isn’t carefully planned for optimal speed and cost.
      I have no idea how best to go about that… economy models seem horrendously difficult to balance, if not just to conceive in the first place. Best of luck to you guys, I can’t wait to play the end result. This has become my #1 most eagerly awaited release 🙂

      • “Now, to make the prohibitive-cost thing work, it’s going to need a tight, aggressive economy so that you never end up in the Transport Tycoon position of having a few billion sitting idle in the bank.”

        I agree, I would also like a “hardmode” of sorts that would balance the game in a way that allows you to earn enough money to build a transport comany, but does something to take care of the massive amounts of extra money that could potentially be earned.

        There are plenty of ways this could be achieved, specifically, it would probably be best if the player could choose cost multipliers on anything before starting the game, similar to what the Base Costs mod in OpenTTD does. And, of course, if the devs are not willing to do this right away, it would probably be an easy mod to create, anyway.

        Just another bit of my 2 cents worth. 😉

  25. Will there be a rail yards to keep goods and unused trains rather than having them disappear unless old stock to be scrape.

  26. Hi,
    it is possible to make to the signals, the routes visible? So, as a small Gimik option.

    Besteht die Möglichkeit, an den Signalen die Fahrstraßen sichtbar zu machen? So, als kleine Gimik-Option.

    Greetings
    Sonny

  27. Will this game be multi-platform (no pun intended) and run on different operating systems (SteamOS/Linux for example)?

  28. I’m looking forward to see the final product.

    Some questions:
    – Do you plan to add more information to the structures we are building or to allow the use of “construction filters”? Examples: It would be really great if we could see the possible maximum speed in a curve we are building. When starting to build something we could limited the minimum speed (so it doesn’t allow curves/slopes that would make it slower – on slopes we would need to set the combined weight/power of what we want to use said tracks)
    – Do you plan to add a big “draft” method for building? It would be great if we could plan big projects instead of small parts (like in the video). Before completing we would have some data about the project (total cost, speed, noise?).

    Cheers

  29. Will you have 2 or 3 different price tags dependant on what stage of testing your on? …. eg Alpha £5.99, Beta £9.99 and full release £14.99.

    • According to the informations released, the game is currently in beta and there will be a closed beta soon. By the looks of it there will only be a “full” release sometime later this year and future development. I don’t know about price tags.

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