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A train simulator (also railroad simulator or railway simulator) is a computer-based simulation of rail transport operations. They are generally large complicated software packages modeling a 3D virtual reality world implemented both as commercial trainers, and consumer computer game software with 'play modes' which lets the user interact by stepping inside the virtual world. Because of the near view modeling, often at speed, train simulator software is generally far more complicated software to write and implement than flight simulator programs.
Like flight simulators, train simulators have been produced for railway training purposes. Driver simulators include those produced by:
Signaller training simulators have been developed by Funkwerk in Germany, [15] [16] The Railway Engineering Company (TRE) in the UK, [17] [18] OpenTrack Railway Technology in Switzerland, [19] [20] and PS Technology in the US. [21]
There are various types of train driving simulators that are adapted to varying training needs and can be combined to meet operators' training needs in the most efficient way.
Similarly to flight simulators, train simulators can be a replica of a full driving cabin, on a one-to-one scale. This type of simulator is opted for when a train operator needs an immersive training tool for particularly effective training sessions. [22]
Certain simulators can uphold a certain level of immersion while optimising the space of a training room. When a certain balance between immersion and scalability is needed, this type of simulator is chosen by instructors. [23]
When a train operator has various training centres, it is sometimes easier and more logical to invest in smaller simulators that can be transported from one centre to another. [24] The company Transurb Simulation was the first to propose such a tool, which has now been adopted by many operators around the world and is becoming of a growing interest for smaller operators.
Many consumer train simulations have been produced, often focusing on different aspects of real-life railways.
Train driving simulation games usually allow a user to have a "driver's view" from the locomotive's cab and operate realistic cab controls such as throttle, brake valve, sand, horn and whistle, lights etc.
Train driving simulation software includes:
The PC game 3D Ultra Lionel Traintown , amongst some others, give a different experience to driving, by being in a 3rd person omniscient perspective, controlling the trains from a bird's eye view.
Peripherals specifically designed for use with driving simulations include RailDriver by US manufacturer P.I. Engineering. RailDriver is a programmable desktop cab controller with throttle, brake lever and switches designed to work with Trainz , TrainMaster, Microsoft Train Simulator and Rail Simulator. There are also numerous Rail simulators on Roblox such as Stepford County Railway and British Rail. [34]
Railroad-themed strategy simulation video games are focused mostly on the economic part of the railroad industry rather than on technical detail. The A-Train series (1985 to present) is an early example. Chris Sawyer's Transport Tycoon (1994) was an influential game in this genre, [35] spawning remakes such as Simutrans (1999 to present), OpenTTD (2004 to present) and Sawyer's own Locomotion (2004). Sid Meier designed two railroad simulations: Railroad Tycoon (1990) and Railroads! (2006). The Railroad Tycoon series itself inspired other rail games such as Rails Across America (2001). [36]
Some rail simulation games focus on railway signalling rather than driving or economics. Examples include The Train Game (1983), SimSig , JBSS BAHN, [37] Train Dispatcher , and the series of signalling simulations produced by PC-Rail Software. [38]
Train simulators are particularly popular in Japan, where rail transport is the primary form of travel for most citizens. [39] Train video games have been developed in Japan since the early 1980s, with Sega's arcade action game Super Locomotive (1982) being an early example, before more realistic train simulators emerged, such as Ongakukan's Train Simulator series (1995 debut) and Taito's Densha de Go series (1996 debut), [39] as well as train business simulations such as the A-Train series (1985 debut). [40] Non-commercial Japanese sims include the freeware BVE, first released in 1996, which was later remade as the free and open-source OpenBVE.
One of the first commercially available train simulators in the West was Southern Belle , released in 1985. The game simulated a journey of the Southern Belle steam passenger train from London Victoria to Brighton, while at the same time the player must comply with speed limits, not to go too fast on curves and keep to the schedule. It was followed with Evening Star in 1987. The first two train simulators to achieve large sales in the West, Microsoft Train Simulator and Trainz , arrived within a few months of one another in 2001. These featured differing design philosophies - Microsoft Train Simulator focused on providing a realistic driving experience, whereas Trainz focused more on the ability of the user to create their own content such as trains and routes.
The developers behind Microsoft Train Simulator, Kuju Entertainment, later released a spiritual successor called Rail Simulator , which was later purchased by a separate company and rereleased as Railworks .
Microsoft Flight Simulator is a series of flight simulator programs for MS-DOS, Classic Mac OS, and Microsoft Windows operating systems. It was an early product in the Microsoft application portfolio and differed significantly from Microsoft's other software, which was largely business-oriented. Microsoft Flight Simulator is Microsoft's longest-running software product line, predating Windows 1.0 by three years, and is one of the longest-running video game series of all time.
Gmax is an application based on Autodesk's 3ds Max application used by professional computer graphics artists. 3ds Max is a comprehensive modeling, animation and rendering package with some secondary post-production and compositing features. Gmax is much more limited due to its singular intended use—game content creation. Infrequently used tools and features, or the ones completely unrelated to creating 3D game models, were removed, leaving the core modeling, texturing, and basic animation rigging and keyframing capabilities. In 2005, the promotional freeware software was discontinued after version 1.2.
Microsoft Train Simulator is a 2001 train simulator game developed by UK-based Kuju Entertainment and published by Microsoft Games for Windows. It was released on June 18, 2001.
BVE Trainsim is a Japanese three-dimensional computer-based train simulator. It is notable for focusing on providing an accurate driving experience as viewed from inside the cab, rather than creating a network of other trains —other trains passed along the route are only displayed as stationary objects. BVE Trainsim was designed and developed by Takashi "Mackoy" Kojima starting in 1996 with the original program name coming from the Japanese 255 series multiple unit trains found in routes in Japan.
Train Simulator is a Japanese train simulation game series produced by Ongakukan. The game is significant as it was one of the earliest of its kind since the series started in 1995. No titles were released outside of Asia until the 2022 title JR East Train Simulator.
SimSig is a mixed donationware and commercial Windows-based train simulator of modern railway signalling systems in Great Britain, from the point of view of a railway signaller. Users have also had success running SimSig on Linux using Wine.
Rail Simulator is a train simulation published by Electronic Arts (EA). It was produced by Kuju Entertainment. After release of the EU version, EA's support and further development of the title was taken over by Rail Simulator Developments Ltd, who continued to provide updates, fixes, official expansion packs and new content to players. RSDL has also released a sequel to the first game called RailWorks.
RailDriver is a desktop cab controller for train simulation software. It replaces keyboard and mouse operation as far as possible to provide a more realistic train driving experience. It is designed to be compatible with Microsoft Train Simulator. N3V's Trainz, BVE Trainsim and World of Subways also support RailDriver. As of December 2020, Dovetail Games' Train Sim World 2 added an open beta for Raildriver on PC. Other software may be controlled using downloadable resources.
N3V Games is an Australian video game developer and publisher based in Helensvale, Queensland, Australia. Auran is now operated as a holding company, with operations and development ceded to N3V Games, a different closely held company.
Microsoft Train Simulator 2 was a train simulation game in development by Microsoft Game Studios on two occasions. Meant to be the successor to Microsoft Train Simulator, it was originally announced in 2003, until being cancelled in 2004. The second attempt at the game was first announced on January 19, 2007, and originally scheduled for release in the last quarter of 2009. It was postponed indefinitely and virtually cancelled due to the closure of Aces Game Studio in 2009.
Vehicle simulation games are a genre of video games which attempt to provide the player with a realistic interpretation of operating various kinds of vehicles. This includes automobiles, aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft, military vehicles, and a variety of other vehicles. The main challenge is to master driving and steering the vehicle from the perspective of the pilot or driver, with most games adding another challenge such as racing or fighting rival vehicles. Games are often divided based on realism, with some games including more realistic physics and challenges such as fuel management.
A train simulator is a computer-based simulation of rail transport operations.
Train Simulator Classic 2024 is a train simulation game developed by Dovetail Games. It is the successor to Rail Simulator, and was released online on 12 June 2009 and in stores on 3 July.
Aces Game Studio (ACES) was an American video game developer based in Redmond, Washington, owned by Microsoft Game Studios. It was founded in 1988 under the name Bruce Artwick Organization Limited at Champaign, Illinois, by Bruce Artwick, creator of Microsoft Flight Simulator, Microsoft Space Simulator and also co-founder of Sublogic.
V-scale, Vscale, or V scale is a scale of model railroading utilizing self-defining three-dimensional models and a compatible graphics engine to create an alternative modeled world. Though it has not been classified or recognized by either the NMRA or MOROP, the term Vscale has gradually taken on widescale de facto use in railfan and model railroading circles. V-scale model railroading was created when Japanese game developer Artdink released A-Train in 1985, but it was not widely popularized until Microsoft released Microsoft Train Simulator and Australia's Auran/N3V Games released the successful family of Trainz railroad simulators, both in 2001. With the ability to enter into the cab of a modeled train consist in a modeled landscape and track system, the 'play' modes of the two simulators gradually established a following among rail enthusiasts.
Dovetail Games (DTG), a trading name of RailSimulator.com Ltd (RSC), is a British simulation video game developer and publisher established in 2008 by former Electronic Arts executive Paul Jackson, Fund4Games backers Tim Gatland and Charlie McMicking, and a development team from Kuju Entertainment.
AirSim is an open-source, cross platform simulator for drones, ground vehicles such as cars and various other objects, built on Epic Games’ proprietary Unreal Engine 4 as a platform for AI research. It is developed by Microsoft and can be used to experiment with deep learning, computer vision and reinforcement learning algorithms for autonomous vehicles. This allows testing of autonomous solutions without worrying about real-world damage.
FAAC Incorporated is an American immersive simulation training company. They began as a military contractor, providing flight and weapons simulation systems to the U.S. Air Force, but have since branched out into transit and transportation simulation, law enforcement, Fire/EMS, research, and human-interaction simulation.
Ongakukan Co., Ltd. is a Japanese company whose main business is music production and the planning, development, and production of commercial simulators. Its head office is located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Kawasaki City, Saiwai Ward.
Since the Cullen Report into the accident at Ladbroke Grove, there has been increased pressure to improve the training of railway signallers. The Railway Engineering Company has responded to this situation by providing comprehensive signaller training systems. These have been installed for all workstations at all the IECC installations on Network Rail.
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: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of December 2024 (link)Boso View Express (BVE) is a freeware 3D train simulator ... under development since 1996. ... nor does it offer dynamic scenery (moving trains). It does feature ... trains that react accurately
BVE ... physics are comparable with the real trains. ... Plenty of routes and trains are available free too!
the trains actually rock back and forth and lean into turns ... has still remained popular due to its superior sound, train handling characteristics, and its easily modifiable components.
BVE is built linearly. There is no opportunity to branch, unless the branched version is treated as a second route. ... BVE routes can also be built using Notepad
BVE is much smaller ... the only view is straight forward through the cab window. There are no outside views
While admittedly inspired by the hit Railroad Tycoon series, Rails Across America takes a broader approach to rail empire building and offers some novel, entertaining features.