Train Sim World-Long Island Railroad: A Review
In the last few years, the train simulation community has made somewhat of a comeback powered by Dovetail Games’ Train Simulator franchise (formerly RailWorks), the continuous success of Auran’s Trainz platform, OpenBVE and newcomer OpenRails (a new game engine that allows Microsoft Train Simulator content to run in a more stable environment).
Train Sim World (TSW) was released in 2017 and currently has several add-on routes, including a portion of the Northeast Corridor from Newark Airport to New Rochelle, a part of the Great Western Railway from London Paddington to Reading, a portion of the S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland in Leipzig and others.
As primarily an American and British traction “junkie”, I purchased several of the routes on sale, including the Long Island Rail Road add-on, which includes the LIRR Main Line from both Penn Station and Atlantic Terminal to Hicksville, Belmont Park and Hempstead. Only one type of equipment is included, the ubiquitous Bombardier M7. The graphics of the simulator are near real to life, thanks to a rendering engine that is similar to ones found in first-person shooters.
Outside of some minor detail defects, the M7’s sound similar to their real-life counterparts, with highly detailed cabs and interiors. For a train simulator, the signaling system is highly advanced, with an implementation of the LIRR’s Advanced Speed Control (ASC). While not to real life, door controls are such that the player is required to operate them prior to continuing further in the scenario. Usually that job is left to the conductor. The braking system needs to be charged like with real-life M7’s. Furthermore, going through a stop signal will end your scenario and return the player to the main menu. Although the add-on has a learning curve, that learning curve is worthwhile for the experience.
Almost concurrent with the release of TSW’s Long Island Rail Road route was an add-on for the older Train Simulator. A fairly well detailed version of Metro-North’s Hudson Line for that simulator was released the middle of March. While lacking the bells and whistles of the Train Sim World add-on, the Hudson Line DLC is a much desired add-on for the Train Simulator universe.
The downside to train simulation platforms is the cost, which including add-ons is comparable to model railroading. Thankfully, major software developers have frequent online sales which lower costs as much as 50-60% off full retail cost. If you have the spare time and a computer powerful enough to run the game, Train Sim World and the Long Island Rail Road add-on are worth having.
Below are a few photos from inside the simulator
