Friends,
I would like to initiate a dialog regarding the merits of the new Run 8 simulator compared to what is in store for Open Rails in the coming versions. I presume most of you are familiar with Run 8 and if you aren't, there are several lengthy threads about it in the "General" section of these forums. I have been following it fairly closely and the other night I watched the three videos that have been put out by the Run 8 development team. Right now I have mixed emotions as to whether I like it or not. Several things about it are the cat's meow while others leave me totally cold.
On the plus side, there's no doubt that the physics are far and above anything that MSTS or Open Rails is capable of at the present time. The trains actually perform like the real ones do. Also, the sounds are absolutely sensational! You can't believe how good they are. Once in the cab, you find that the displays actually function, displaying the length, weight, number of units, hp/ton, and all sorts of other cool information. And, when you pass a detector the counter actually counts! The horn appears to be responsive to how long you hold down the horn button and you can "look around" the entire cab using the mouse. These are just a few of the interesting features I noted while watching the videos. There are probably more, which will be evident once folks start running this after August 17, when it goes on sale.
But - there are a number of things that I found lacking as well. I guess the biggest two are the lackluster scenery & rolling stock and the closed architecture.
To be honest, the scenery texture is very disappointing compared to what you find on MSTS routes today, both payware and free. And the track texture is terrible. It resembles the level of expertise one found in MSTS routes 7-8 years ago. Yes, the team at Run 8 says that they are more interested in prototypical operation that they are in "eye candy", but nonetheless, why wouldn't a company as knowledgeable and talented as 3D Train Stuff want to show that they are as capable with graphics as SLI or the multitude of premier free route builders here in the MSTS world. Yes, accurate physics is sorely needed, but at the expense of good graphics? I would think that if they are going to show what they are capable of, why release a product that has only half of what people want?
The same goes for the rolling stock as well. Almost any offering from the MSTS vendors and volunteers puts what I saw in the videos to shame. The locomotives looked considerably better than the cars, but I wasn't able to see them up close with a lot of detail, so I really can't comment. If Scott Steele at Diesels West is collaborating with them on the motive power like one post leads me to believe might be happening, then I'm confident that this area will be up to the current MSTS standards. The cars, weren't any better than the ones they released on their Cajon Pass route how many years ago.
John G. keeps saying that you can't compare this to MSTS, that it isn't the same. But, aren't they both train simulators? Just because Run 8 lets you play dispatcher and can accommodate multiple players shouldn't excuse it from being right up there with the rest of the sims when it comes to realism and accuracy of scenery.
The second thing I found to be overly disappointing was the fact that for the first several years at least, Run 8 will be a closed architecture, meaning no repaints, no 3rd party offerings, nothing but what 3DTS deems appropriate to release to us. John implies that he doesn't want others to corrupt his baby with sub-par offerings, but I personally wonder if it isn't more a matter of dollars and cents. To me, this seems like a totally wrong approach. One of the main reasons MSTS is alive and kicking today is because so many people enjoy creating content for it and putting it out there so others can benefit. A perfect example of this is Diesels West and SLI. I think we can all agree that as far as quality goes, Scott's offerings can't be beat, yet because of his no repaint policy, SLI gets a lot more notice - and probably a lot of sales that would otherwise go to Scott. I think Run 8's policy of no open architecture is going to hurt them and keep a lot of potential customers leaning towards MSTS and Open Rails. If the talented folks in the MSTS world keep supplying the exceptional content they currently are offering, and if it can be used on Open Rails, but can't run on Run 8, that's going to go a long way towards how I spend my money.
OK, folks, I'll step off my soapbox now and relinquish the floor to someone else. Anybody out there have any comments or opinions? Anybody willing to stick their neck out and indicate where Open Rails is going with respect to the new features Run 8 is tempting us with? Am I going to buy it when it comes out August 17th? To be truthful, I really don't know.
I would like to initiate a dialog regarding the merits of the new Run 8 simulator compared to what is in store for Open Rails in the coming versions. I presume most of you are familiar with Run 8 and if you aren't, there are several lengthy threads about it in the "General" section of these forums. I have been following it fairly closely and the other night I watched the three videos that have been put out by the Run 8 development team. Right now I have mixed emotions as to whether I like it or not. Several things about it are the cat's meow while others leave me totally cold.
On the plus side, there's no doubt that the physics are far and above anything that MSTS or Open Rails is capable of at the present time. The trains actually perform like the real ones do. Also, the sounds are absolutely sensational! You can't believe how good they are. Once in the cab, you find that the displays actually function, displaying the length, weight, number of units, hp/ton, and all sorts of other cool information. And, when you pass a detector the counter actually counts! The horn appears to be responsive to how long you hold down the horn button and you can "look around" the entire cab using the mouse. These are just a few of the interesting features I noted while watching the videos. There are probably more, which will be evident once folks start running this after August 17, when it goes on sale.
But - there are a number of things that I found lacking as well. I guess the biggest two are the lackluster scenery & rolling stock and the closed architecture.
To be honest, the scenery texture is very disappointing compared to what you find on MSTS routes today, both payware and free. And the track texture is terrible. It resembles the level of expertise one found in MSTS routes 7-8 years ago. Yes, the team at Run 8 says that they are more interested in prototypical operation that they are in "eye candy", but nonetheless, why wouldn't a company as knowledgeable and talented as 3D Train Stuff want to show that they are as capable with graphics as SLI or the multitude of premier free route builders here in the MSTS world. Yes, accurate physics is sorely needed, but at the expense of good graphics? I would think that if they are going to show what they are capable of, why release a product that has only half of what people want?
The same goes for the rolling stock as well. Almost any offering from the MSTS vendors and volunteers puts what I saw in the videos to shame. The locomotives looked considerably better than the cars, but I wasn't able to see them up close with a lot of detail, so I really can't comment. If Scott Steele at Diesels West is collaborating with them on the motive power like one post leads me to believe might be happening, then I'm confident that this area will be up to the current MSTS standards. The cars, weren't any better than the ones they released on their Cajon Pass route how many years ago.
John G. keeps saying that you can't compare this to MSTS, that it isn't the same. But, aren't they both train simulators? Just because Run 8 lets you play dispatcher and can accommodate multiple players shouldn't excuse it from being right up there with the rest of the sims when it comes to realism and accuracy of scenery.
The second thing I found to be overly disappointing was the fact that for the first several years at least, Run 8 will be a closed architecture, meaning no repaints, no 3rd party offerings, nothing but what 3DTS deems appropriate to release to us. John implies that he doesn't want others to corrupt his baby with sub-par offerings, but I personally wonder if it isn't more a matter of dollars and cents. To me, this seems like a totally wrong approach. One of the main reasons MSTS is alive and kicking today is because so many people enjoy creating content for it and putting it out there so others can benefit. A perfect example of this is Diesels West and SLI. I think we can all agree that as far as quality goes, Scott's offerings can't be beat, yet because of his no repaint policy, SLI gets a lot more notice - and probably a lot of sales that would otherwise go to Scott. I think Run 8's policy of no open architecture is going to hurt them and keep a lot of potential customers leaning towards MSTS and Open Rails. If the talented folks in the MSTS world keep supplying the exceptional content they currently are offering, and if it can be used on Open Rails, but can't run on Run 8, that's going to go a long way towards how I spend my money.
OK, folks, I'll step off my soapbox now and relinquish the floor to someone else. Anybody out there have any comments or opinions? Anybody willing to stick their neck out and indicate where Open Rails is going with respect to the new features Run 8 is tempting us with? Am I going to buy it when it comes out August 17th? To be truthful, I really don't know.
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