New Scenario Released! - Railworks 3

Another new scenario has been released that requires nothing more than default or freeware stock! Grab it now at DPSimulation.

Two New Scenarios Released! - Railworks 3

Two new scenarios have been released for Railworks 3 that require nothing but default or freeware stock! Grab them now at DPSimulation.

InterCity Swallow Mk3 - Loco Hauled - Railworks 3

In addition to the previous announcement regarding scenarios that utilise default/freeware stock, I have released a modified version of the InterCity Mk3 provided with Railworks 3 which will feature in the upcoming scenarios. This sits alongside the default HST Mk3 but has a modified .bin file to enable other locomotives such as the Class 47 to haul them. This is a fairly adequate workaround to compensate for what is not available as default/freeware.

It can be download from the reskins section of my website.

Upcoming Freeware Scenarios - Railworks 3

Although I tend to release a fair few scenarios, the vast majority utilise large amounts of payware, simply for my aim to be as realistic as possible and because they generally start out life as ones for personal use.

However, with the recent Steam sale, coupled with Christmas and a lot of new users coming on board, I have decided to complete the vast array of scenarios I had lying around, modifying accordingly to only use either default, or freely available stock. With the first batch based around the mid 90's era, this does not affect realism in any way, with real timetabled services from the period served by prototypical stock and reskins. Utilising new and old features, including scenario specific scenery and temporary speed restrictions, hopefully these scenarios should provide enjoyment for both new and veteran Railworks users.

Here are a couple of screenshots depicting one of the scenarios, "Inbound Commute".

The Crabenmore Branch - Railworks 3

Quite often new routes are released that receive no fanfare or slip under the radar without being even noticed by the majority of users. One such route has appeared in the Uktrainsim download library and I only noticed because someone reported it on the forum! (Cheers Rob)

Called the "Crabenmore Branch", it's a fictional highland line set in the 1950's/60's and features very impressive detail along with stunning terrain. The following is taken from the author description of the route which can be downloaded from here.

A fictional branch line set in the heart of the highlands of Scotland. Built as a light railway from Glenait to Crabenmore in 1875, the railway was extended to the fishing town of Portdornoch in 1887 including a ferry peir at Kilbrachan. Though now in BR hands and set during the 50s/60s, the main traffic includes fish from portdornoch, export from Crabenmore Distillery, as well as the local passenger service.

REQUIRES

- (Payware) RSDL Falmouth Branch expansion pack available from steam
- UK Buildings pack 1 (Free from steam)

4 standard scenarios and 2 free roam scenarios are included with the following assets required:

- (Payware) Digital Traction Class 4MT expansion
- (Payware) RSDL Class 101 expansion from steam
- UKTS 27433: 'Ivatt Class 2 2-6-0 tender loco for TSX2012' by Kevin Martin
- UKTS 27347: 'Mk1 Maroon Pack' by adburgess1992
- UKTS 24309: 'BR 16T Mineral Wagon - Grey rusty' by rocky291
- UKTS 26443: 'Digital Tractions Brake Vans' uploaded by 67025

Use railworks package manager to install.

Armstrong Powerhouse - Christmas Sale - Railworks 3

The following is taken from the Armstrong Powerhouse website.

We at Armstrong Powerhouse would like to wish you a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. To celebrate, we are holding a week-long sale with a massive 40% off most of our products. Take a look around our well acclaimed packs and treat yourself this Christmas. We also recommend checking out the 'Train Simulator 2012 Compatibility Document' above to see which of our products have been fully tested for use in Train Simulator 2012.

This sale will end at 23:59 GMT on Sunday 1st January 2012.

Fastline Simulation - ZCA Sea Urchins Released! - Railworks 3

Fastline Simulation have announced the latest relese in their line of quality products for Train Simulator 2012. The ZCA Sea Urchin addon comes with both of the main body variants, on two different chassis styles and painted in Engineers grey and yellow 'Dutch' livery. Priced at only £3 including VAT, this is a very attractive package at a very competetive price. The following is taken from the website where you can view and purchase this pack.

To complete the year in style we're pleased to announce the release of our ZCA Sea Urchins addon for RailWorks Train Simulator 2012 based on the chassis of our highly successful VDA vans stock pack.

Featuring both of the main body variants, on two different chassis styles and painted in Engineers grey and yellow 'Dutch' livery this RailWorks addon also contains loaded versions of the wagon with four different ballast and aggregate loads, an empty version and rear versions of all of these with a BR mk1battery, flashing tail lamp.

The enclosed scenario allows you take your new wagons for a late evening spin behind a class 37 from Acton to Hinksey Yard near Oxford for loading in preparation for engineering works during the coming weekend.

As a bonus, and to improve scenario realism, a set of battery powered temporary speed restriction signs and portable AWS magnet are included in the pack and used in the enclosed scenario.

At a stupidly reasonable £3.00 including VAT can your simulator really feel complete without this add-on?

WCML North - "The Cumbrian Explorer" - Scenario Released - Railworks 3

A new scenario entitled "The Cumbrian Explorer" has been released. Download it now at DPSimulation.

Lavender Line Released! - Railworks 3

A labour of love lasting over two years, the Lavender Line by Geoff Potter has now been released. Although a short line, the attention to detail is absolutely stunning, with dozens of custom assets made specifically to complement the route. The following is taken from the download page for the route.

The Lavender Line comprises of about a mile of track running from Isfield Station to the disused bridge over the River Ouse. It was originally anticipated that this route would not take very long to build as with only about a mile of track, there seemed nothing particularly difficult about it. In fact it has taken over two years to complete mainly due to other projects distracting me and also my decision part way through the project to use this as a opportunity to experiment and improve my modelling and route building skills. Now that it is finished, there is still not very much track to play with, but the route is full of models and features that each have their own story to tell.

Included is a base free roam scenario with nothing in it except the route itself. You can use this as a template to create your own scenarios or perhaps to access the route to make changes. There are four included standard scenarios which are designed to demonstrate the way in which the seasons can be used to good effect on a small route like this and also how scenario specific scenery can add to the enjoyment of a scenario without altering the route itself.

More information and a link to download the route is here.

Iron Horse House - Scenario Creation Tutorial - Railworks 3

I wasn't actually aware of this until today, an excellent "start to finish" tutorial complete with voice commentary that covers the main areas of scenario creation which should be invaluable to any new user that wants to start dabbling in making their own.

Armstrong Powerhouse - Class 86/87 Sound Pack - Railworks 3

Armstrong Powerhouse have today announced the latest release in their range of quality soundpacks for Railworks 3. With the majority of the sounds recorded exclusively at Willesden depot, this pack promises to be of the highest quality.

More information on this latest sound pack along with details on how to purchase can be found here.

Below is a video of the pack in action.

Iron Horse House - DP2 Released! - Railworks 3

Iron Horse House have now released the latest in their range of quality addons, the DP2 (Diesel Prototype Number 2). Built using the base of a Class 55 bodyshell and similar to the legendary Deltic in initial appearance, there were quite a number of apparent differences between the two. This can be purchased at IHH here.

More information can be found about this interesting project on the Wikipedia page by clicking here.

Class 70 - Coming Early in 2012! - Railworks 3

A locomotive that certainly divides opinion amongst enthusiasts, development of the General Electric Class 70 has been announced by RailSimulator.com and is to be released in early 2012. The following is taken from the website.

Coming to Train Simulator 2012 early next year! The Class 70 is not only one of the most distinctive locomotives on the UK scene today, but also one of the most advanced. Built by General Electric for UK operator Freightliner in Erie, Pennsylvania, the Class 70's diesel engine produces an impressive 3,690 horsepower but still meets the latest EU emissions regulations for locomotives. The driver's cab has also been designed with more thought towards crew comfort and safety in the event of a crash. The class 70 for Train Simulator 2012 looks set to be a great addition for fans of modern UK stock - just watch out for cranes..... Available early-2012.

Freight At Night - Work In Progress - Railworks

Just a quick couple of WIP screenshots of the next major project I am currently working on.

Just Trains Christmas Sale

The Christmas Sale is now underway at Just Trains and Just Flight with 20% off all addons. All you have to do is enter the code "XMAS11" in the shopping cart to get the discount.

Visit here for more details and to browse the range of products.

PRR K4 - Available January! - Railworks 3

RailSimulator.com have announced the exciting news that an iconic North American steam locomotive is now in development. The following is taken from their website.

The classic PRR K4 is coming to Train Simulator 2012 in January! From 1914 right through to the end of Pennsy steam in 1957, K4s were the Pennsylvania Railroad’s premier passenger locomotive and were familiar to passengers across the northeast United States. The K4 soon proved its worth and a grand total of 425 examples were produced by PRR and the Baldwin Locomotive Works.

Despite the large number built, only two K4s have survived into preservation - however, rail fans all over the world will be able to enjoy the sights and sounds of this glorious steam loco in Train Simulator 2012. Available to download from Steam in January 2012.

"Railworks USA" Value Pack - Railworks 3

RailSimulator.com have announced a new value package for Railworks 3, the "Railworks US" Value Package.

This limited offer includes four of the recently released USA packages:

Northeast Corridor Expansion Pack
Horseshoe Pass Expansion Pack
Donner Pass - Southern Pacific
General Electric GG1 Locomotive

Sold seperately, the normal retail price for this bundle would be nearly £82, but can ba bought as part of this package for only £49.99, a saving of over £30.

More information and purchase details can be found by clicking here.

WCML North - "Under The Wires" - Scenario Released - Railworks 3

A new scenario "Under The Wires" for WCML North has been released. Download it now at DPSimulation.

"The Cumbrian Explorer" - Video - Railworks 3

"The Cumbrian Explorer", one of my upcoming scenarios that is currently in final testing, Manuel (msdejesus) has made this stunning video to give a small preview of what is on offer.

It is well worth watching directly on Youtube, in HD and full screen with the sound turned up. Fantastic.

General Electric GG1 - Available Now! - Railworks 3

The all new General Electric GG1 locomotive has now been released via Steam. The product page can be found here.

The following information is taken from the RailSimulator.com website.

The GG1 electric locomotive is a true icon of North American railroading, and now you can drive this impressive loco in Train Simulator 2012!

The fantastic, futuristic shape of the GG1 has been instantly recognizable to rail fans around the world since it first rolled out onto the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1935. The GG1 (so named because it ran on an articulated pair of 4-6-0 frames, or ‘G’ frames in PRR terminology) was built by General Electric to run on 11,000 volts AC supplied by overhead power lines. It had twin crew cabs positioned some distance from either end of the loco with small windows for forward vision, giving a driving compartment much like conventional steam locomotives. The GG1 was a truly impressive locomotive, measuring over 79 feet long and weighing in at 475,000 pounds (215 metric tons), and capable of 100mph on lines like the Northeast Corridor. 140 were built for the PRR, eventually passing into new ownership and continuing to work for Amtrak, Conrail and Penn Central with several remaining in preservation today. PLEASE NOTE the GG1 Add-On requires the Northeast Corridor Expansion Pack (available separately) in order to run.

Waggonz - Dynamic Passengers - Railworks 3

Another piece of news from Waggonz is the development of dynamic passengers for default stock. The following explanation is taken from the Waggonz website and screenshots are provided below to demonstrate this feature.

Trains that fill up and empty with different passengers in different seats as you stop at stations. Standing passengers appear when theres no more seats available.

Waggonz - Class 142 - Railworks 3

Following their recent releases of both the HIA Hopper and 80' Container Flat, Waggonz are now working on a Class 142 DMU for Railworks 3. More information can be found on the development page here and as you can see from the screenshots below, this is shaping up to be a very impressive model.

Creative Rail - East Coast - Railworks 3

Unless you weren't aware, Creative Rail, creators of the excellent "China Clay for Export" are working hard on their next release, the first stage of a 3 part "East Coast" project for Railworks 3. The following is taken from their website, and more information along with regular development updates can be found by clicking here.

We are pleased to announce that an ambitious project has been launched to recreate part of Britain's premier route - East Coast Main Line.

Our aim is to reproduce this ever popular iconic route in stunning detail, to which CreativeRail are renown for. Having said that, the performance of the route will be a major consideration to ensure that everyone has a good experience of using it.

With so much detail involved, it means that our intended main line run from Peterborough to York will be divided into 3 seperate releases comprising: Peterborough - Newark, Newark - Doncaster and Doncaster - York.

The time period chosen is 1980. A time when loco-hauled services still dominated the railway scene, but also when the decline began to set in for the diesel classes first introduced to replace steam.

With more modern traction enthusiasts in mind, it is hoped that an electrified version can also be produced to enable an authentic run for Inter-City 225 sets.

Armstrong Powerhouse - Scenario Pack Updates - Railworks 3

Following the recent release of the updated WCML North, and the forewarning that existing scenarios may need to be amended, Armstrong Powerhouse have just released updates to both the AP12 & AP13 packs. The following is taken from their website.

As many of you will know, the excellent WCML North route was recently upgraded to TS2012 standard but in the process, broke the scenarios in our two dedicated scenario packs for this route, AP12 & AP13. We are pleased to say though that these packs have now been fixed and are fully compatible with the new version of this route. For existing customers, you can obtain this update by simply re-downloading both the scenario pack(s) and extra stock pack(s). For new customers, we have discounted both of these packs to only £2.99 for a limited period. So what are you waiting for? Bring your copy of this route into the 21st century and grab your copy of these packs today!

Sealink Mk1 Coaches - Railworks 3

Should hopefully be released soon, enough work has been done on them.

Iron Horse House - Class 40 Upgrade - Railworks 3

Iron Horse House have announced the next of their stock upgrades to take account of TS2012 technology, the Class 33 pack. It has also been announced that the price has been lowered, permanently, to £9.99 + VAT.

This excellent package now comes with 12 livery variations and five scenarios as well as being built to the usual high standard associated with IHH. More information can be found here.

WCML North - Upcoming Scenarios - Railworks 3

Always one to have the odd scenario on the go, there are currently several for WCML North that need testing and will be released soon. Here is a small taster of what will be available.

Steam - Railworks 3 - 50% Off Any Product

Thanks to Charles over at UKTrainsim for bringing this to the attention of myself and fellow users.

All Railworks 3 users should now have a 50% off coupon residing in their inventory on Steam. This can be used to grab any Railworks 3 product for half price, including the base product (for any new users of course). Instructions are as follows...

Simply open your Steam browser and click on "community" at the top. This should then have a screen on which when scrolling down, will show a blue 50% off coupon. Alternatively, if there is a "Steam (1)" tab present, click that to view the coupon. To the bottom right, simply click "view applicable games" and this will bring up a list of Railworks DLC. If you want to purchase something using the coupon, simply click "add to cart" and the discount will automatically be applied.

Help for 32-bit Operating Systems - Railworks 3

Just stumbled across this earlier and it is worth making people aware of, especially for those struggling to run longer results that occasionally result in an SBHH (Something Bad Has Happened) error. This could be especially relevant for a route such as WCML North. As with any file modifications, take care and backup before making an attempt should you do it wrong.

The following text is taken directly from the original post which can be found here. It is also worth taking a look at the thread itself to see the feedback and results of other users performing this modification, the results seem very impressive for all so far. A big thanks to John (Jarmstro) for researching and making this information available.

I posted this in another thread but I thought it might merit a thread of it own as it will help lots of people with 32 bit OS's. For it to do any good you must have 4GB RAM.


"Those running a 32 bit Operating System with the full 4GB of RAM with at least 500MB VRam and getting freezes, SBHH and ctd's could well benefit from using the so called "3GB Switch". I run Win7 32bit and do not get any problems.

This basically lifts the 2GB program memory limit set by all Win 32bit OS's. The system still can't use more than 4GB but it will stop the OOM errors. The downside is that you really need to make sure you have not got any other other big memory using programs running at the same time as RW3 and its probably better to switch it off when you are not gaming.

At your own risk please but worth a try:


For Windows Vista and Windows 7:
- Create a Restore Point
- Proceed to start -> run and type: cmd (or: You must run CMD as Administrator so alternarively right click the CMD icon etc)
- In opened window type command: bcdedit /set IncreaseUserVa 3072 (You dont need to go the whole hog and could try say 2500)
- Restart PC

For Windows XP:
- Right-click My Computer. Click Properties.
- In the System Properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab.
- On the Advanced tab, under Startup and Recovery, click Settings.
- In the Startup and Recovery dialog box, under System startup, click Edit. The Windows boot.ini file will be opened in Microsoft Notepad.
- Create a backup copy of the boot.ini file. Note: Boot.ini files may vary from computer to computer.
Select the following line in the boot.ini file:

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Micro soft Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect
Note: Do not overwrite any existing lines.

Press Ctrl+C to copy the line and then press Ctrl+V to paste it immediately below the original line.
Note: Your text string may be different from the text string in this solution, so be sure to copy the text string from your boot.ini file, and not the text string included here.

Modify the copied line to include " /3GB", as shown in the following example:

multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(2)\WINDOWS="Micro soft Windows XP Professional 3GB" /3GB /fastdetect
Note: Do not overwrite any existing lines.

- Save and close the boot.ini file.
- Click OK to close each dialog box.
- Restart your computer.
- During startup, select the 3GB option. If you do not select the 3GB option, the system will default to the 2GB total memory setting.

Note: If problems occur during startup, you may need to update some of your drivers.

Hope this helps

John A"

Donner Pass: Southern Pacific - Update Tonight - Railworks 3

Following the recent, well documented issues surrounding the initial release of the Donner Pass route, RailSimulator.com have today announced that the first in a series of patches will be released tonight in order to rectify the problems. The following was posted earlier:

Tonight we are releasing the first of a number of patches designed to address the issues raised by our customers about the Donner Pass. While this patch addresses many of the glitches and terrain issues it by no means solves all the issues raised. We will let you all know when the next patch is ready in the near future. We would like to apologise sincerely for any disappointment caused by issues with the Donner Pass. After the patch is released this evening you may need to verify your cache. If you need to know how to do this, please email support@railsimulator.com

Fix List:
• Fixed Floating Scenery at Truckee
• Fixed Floating Scenery at Colfax
• Fixed Tunnel Mouths around Donner Summit
• Cascade Bridge fine tuning
• Emirgrants Gap Improvements
• Added Casino / Arcade Signs to Reno area
• Checked all tunnels have correct cutting through terrain
• Fixed Floating buildings at Verdi
• Fixed gap in scenery north of Truckee
• More detail added to scenery south of Truckee
• Removed trees over roads near Donner Summit
• Added a missing bridge
• Added more weeds near Tunnel 29
• Improved scenery between Tunnel 28 - 23
• Added missing bridge at Auburn
• Fixed floating scenery at Auburn
• Improved Newcastle tunnel mouths
• Fixed floating scenery at Newcastle
• Added more scenery north of Tunnel 1
• Fixed floating scenery in the Rocklin area
• Improved Rocklin station area
• Fixed floating buildings east of Roseville Yard

Fastline Simulation - Scenario Packs - Railworks 3

Fastline Simulation have recently announced that they are currently developing a series of scenario packs. If you have recently bought any of their rolling stock products, you will already know that the scenarios included were very engaging and of a very high quality, making this announcement very good news indeed.

The following is taken from their website.

A dedicated gallery for sccenario screenshots has been set up by Fastline Simulation here.

Ages of the Train is a phrase we've been punting around for a few weeks now and we're pleased to formally announce that it is the name of our new range of scenario packs for RailWorks Train Simulator along with an announcement of the first pack in the range.
Fastline Simulation - Ages of the Train: A class 40 working 8L81 1240 Tyne Yard - Healey Mills.

Building on the ethos of the scenarios included with our stock packs each scenario pack will contain five prototypical scenarios for one route with a common theme from a logical period of railway history. Actual periods that have been defined at this time are: 1968 - 1972, 1973 - 1986 and 1987 - 1994.

Each scenario features actual train formations and motive power (where known) for the individual services and prototypical routing where possible.

Rolling stock and routes will be drawn from our own and a range of other commercial products including Iron Horse House - our preferred motive power provider.
Ages of the Train 01: ECML Freight 1973 - 1986

The first release in the range features a selection of Goods Trains from what many consider the classic Diesel and Electric era of British Rail on the default Newcastle to York route.

WCML North - Update Now Released - Railworks 3

The update to the WCML North route has now been released via Steam. Providing you are running the Steam client, and are not playing Railworks or any other Steam game, it should automatically download.

Also updated are the Class 86 locomotive which is included in the WCML North package to include TS2012 features such as rain as well as the Class 86 pack which is available as a seperate purchase on Steam.

Class 82 Electric Locomotive - Released Tonight! - Railworks 3

In further WCML related news from Iron Horse House, they are to release the Class 82 electric locomotive tonight! Another top quality model, it features four prototypical liveries. More information can be found here.

Please note, this has been designed and due to be released with the WCML package in mind, and therefore does require the WCML North package due to cab and sound aliasing with the Class 86, however, it is very competitively priced at only £5.99 + VAT.

WCML North - Special Discount Package - Railworks 3

Just a heads up for those who don't know. As well as the release of the Class 325 EMU, there is a heavily discounted package available from Steam which includes the following:-

Class 325 EMU
Class 390 EMU
WCML North

This is all available for a limited time at just £29.99, a saving of nearly £19.00 when bought seperately. Given both the Class 390 and WCML North route are to also be upgraded with TS2012 features this evening, this is a very good deal, especially for newer users of the program. Couple to that the fact that the Class 325 package has a set of bonus scenarios specifically for the WCML route, it adds even more value to the deal.

More information and purchase details here.

Class 325 EMU - Available Now! - Railworks 3

The Class 325 EMU for Railworks 3 has now been released. For more information and details on how to purchase, click here.

WCML North - Update Tonight!

Months of work, all undertaken in his spare time for the benefit of the community will finally come to fruition later today with the impending release of the WCML North update from Keith Ross. The following information has previously been released by Keith to give an understanding of the features included.

The update has built upon the original release and, after several months of additional development, provides additional track mileage, new stations, scenery improvement, revised signalling and, of course, the benefits of TSX technology and TS2012 features. Time has been taken to address issues within the route that needed some improvement including rationalisation of scenery in order to reduce the number and density of distant objects and thereby improve performance. Signalling and other track related markers have been overhauled with prototypical signal numbering and approach control set up as well as accurately named track markers and new operational markers added.

The scope of the route is now even more extensive and represents the ambition as originally planned. The northern extremity of the electrified West Coast Main Line is now included with the extension of the route to Coatbridge and its Freightliner Terminal. The Strathclyde commuter network is also extended with the addition of the Carmyle line from Coatbridge linking back to the mainline at Rutherglen, the branch to the terminus at Larkhall and extension of the low level lines from Bridgeton as far as Glasgow Central Low Level. In total the update includes nearly 20 additional route miles to explore.

Things to look forward to;

• 20 miles of new route; Mossend to Coatbridge, Coatbridge to Rutherglen, Hamilton to Larkhall, Dalmarnock to Glasgow Central.
• 11 new stations.
• New Coatbridge Freightliner Terminal.
• Improvements to Shieldmuir Royal Mail Terminal including postal platform asset.
• All stations upgraded with new signage, platform objects and lighting.
• All signalling updated with prototypical numbering and approach control setup with signals added to reflect the real layout.
• Lineside scenery and overhead electrification infrastructure improved with the addition of neutral section locations and other features.
• Track markers updated with correct references and additional destinations and portals.
• Multiple fixes to track properties including the addition of TS2012 track unevenness feature.
• Multiple fixes to scenery including floating objects and terrain issues.
• Rationalisation of scenery in dense areas to improve performance.
• Addition of TSX lighting to all areas; ambient lighting to urban areas and feature lighting alongside the track.
• New TS2012 sky dome and weather patterns with accurate seasonal day/night lighting cycle.
• New Inter City Executive liveried BG/NE brake vehicle to accompany Class 86 and Mk3a coaches.
• Class 86 tap changer physics update and the addition of TS2012 locomotive lighting and windscreen effects.
• Existing scenarios revised to operate on the updated route.
• 5 new scenarios incorporating new sections of the route.