Favorite Scenario(s)?

[proudcanadian]

While I was going over the 200+ RT3 scenarios I've got on my computer, I was just wondering what scenarios were people's favorites. I don't mean to make any scenario creator feel inferior if one of their scenarios isn't mentioned in this thread, I'm just curious to see what kind of maps people like.

[Czar Mohab]

I don't have one by name right now; just don't think I've found a "Favorite" yet. I'll list some general likes and dislikes of scenarios I've played, both player made and game installed.

-I personally dislike the track limiting scenarios, the ones where either you have to stay connected or have limited numbers, or both. Sometimes I like to connect a random city or three then eventually connect it to the main line.

-Love watching cities grow over time, 1/4 star towns making it to 3+, yeah, that's an ego stroker. On the flip side, maps with low growth rates...

-Challenges: Not so many, not so difficult, not too out-of-this-world... those are nice. Haul 8000 of product X to city Y before 19XX? Too much.

-City locations: Don't bunch the cities too close (I like to have Large Stations whenever possible, and not so many overlaps), and don't make them too crazy to connect into (almost every map, at least one city/town has one stupid house that will either make me bulldoze and loose my undo, or makes the track AI do something resembling "@". Not always the mapper's fault, most times the AI decides, "Hey! You know what'd look good here? No, not a station and rails, silly. One tiny, measly little house!!").

-I don't mind the mountains. I can usually find a way through without tunneling. Please, don't make me waste 1-3 hours doing it, though. And if at all possible, please limit the number of 12%+ grades through the only obvious pass.

-If I'm forced into playing with AI's, then please force ALL of them to actually start companies (5 Great Lakes comes to mind, couple of play throughs and only 3 or 4 would actually start something, the other 4 or 3 would sit back and do nothing) or sit out entirely.

-Really dislike pre-laid track. I like to put down track in my own way. I understand that sometimes it is a must, and in some it is only a few chunks, but it usually doesn't work for me.

-Not that anyone can fix this, but to go with the above, I really hate when the AI has a HUGE bottle neck and instead of using track I laid to help make the problem better (if I could donate the track I would), continues to use his own, 30+ stuck train lines. This, in turn, slows my poor compy down. Alot. Which is why I try to help. And usually end up buying him out, canning all those stuck trains, rebuilding the lines and finally, replacing his empire of 30+ trains with 6. Maybe 8.

Czar "I think that's all for now" Mohab, who intends to find "The Perfect Map" one day; or, barring that, make his own.

[CeeBee]

I agree with almost all of Czar Mohabs list.
My biggest dislikes are prebuilt track and AI's with prebuilt track, AI's in general, High PNW goals, unrealistic(IMO) goals like a billion of anything or 10,000 loads hauled or some other such goal with numbers beyond my comprehension ,too many cities too close together coupled with connect a miilion cities goals or connect every dot on the map goals, and industry profit goals that are out of wack with RR type goals so I might as well be an industry tycoon.
Thank god theres a nice editor so I can go in and change goals which I am doing on occasion when I find a really nice looking map that is absolutely no fun for me to play but I want to play in the worst way.
BTW, I do have some likes.
I like maps with goals that make sense to me and fit the map. I like hauling cargo goals, especially if there is good variety and realistic amounts. I like maps that allow me to come close to a medal or actually get one with using 40 or 50 trains, not 200. I like maps that start in a more modern era or run longer mostly becasue most maps start in the early 1800's and I never get to run the really cool engines if the game is over by 1860. I like maps the let me build my company and track the way I want to. I'm a builder and I like watching trains run. I like my railroad to make sense and therefore I usually don't like mountains unless they are designed properly with actually usable passes and such. I'm sure I'm in the minority judging by the hundred or so maps I've downloaded and tried but with the editor and some time I'm finding enough to keep me busy so thanks to all the mapmakers because it's giving me lots to mess around with.

[KevinL]

Czar and CeeBee have it pretty much nailed. The only thing I dont like about "must build connected track" is it wont let me place a station where I want it to grab the most buildings. I have to build the track first and then hope I did it right. Otherwise I dont mind them if it makes sense to the story.

Mountains with no way around them or thru them I dont like. Especially in the 1800's when trains with more than 1 car will crawl up them. They're not as bad in the 1950+'s.

I prefer "must earn so much profit" scenerios slightly more than "must haul X loads", but I play both. The profit goal scenerios just allow me more freedom to set up the rails and turn the trains loose to haul whatever makes the most money.

I also like historical scenerios based on actual events. They're fun AND educational!

[AZ Rail Rat]

Czar and CeeBee have it pretty much nailed. The only thing I dont like about "must build connected track" is it wont let me place a station where I want it to grab the most buildings. I have to build the track first and then hope I did it right. Otherwise I dont mind them if it makes sense to the story.

That's why in AZRR I had no track laying limitations except by territory and in NAZRR I had limited track segments available until each new station got built, but you could build anywhere in a territory once it became available (unconnected track OFF) so stations could be placed first.

[Wolverine@MSU]

The only thing I dont like about "must build connected track" is it wont let me place a station where I want it to grab the most buildings. I have to build the track first and then hope I did it right.

In these situations, I always save the game immediately before laying the track/station. I grab the station laying tool, move the station around until I see where I want it to go, then put my finger on the screen over the little track piece. Then I pick up the track laying tool and make sure I lay track right under my finger. Then I can go back and place the station. It works most of the time; only when it's a really tight squeeze for the station do I have to be extra careful about laying the track. Best part is, if I screw up, I can always reload the saved game and start over again.

[Canadian Viking]

I was going over the 200+ RT3 scenarios I've got on my computer

Wow! That is way more than I have. But then my "to play" list is already very long. I've spent most of my RT3 time in the last 10 months developing my own scenarios. Consequently, I've played very few others.

My favorite so far has to be Great Northern. Apart from my own games (which require a great deal of play-testing), that is the one I've played more than any other. It has several of the major things I like:
- an interesting historical situation (there are many good ones still untapped), with appropriate goals;
- multiple ways to play the game, so you can play it several times and have a completely different experience each time;
- other railroads (even though it is hard to get good performance from the AI's in RT3, having the entire map to yourself is usually very unrealistic);
- challenging connection goals followed up with reasonable haulage goals (not in the 100's) so that you have to build useable track, not just burn track that is useless for railroading;
- limited track building (laying 400 miles of mainline in one year was a stupendous achievement, regardless of how much money the company had to spend);
- a scenic map that represents well the real topography of the region, and offers achieveable routes if care is taken in construction;
- it puts the emphasis on railroading, not buying industries (some scenarios could more accurately be named Industrial Tycoon );
- you can't make huge profits with the first 2 or 3 cities you link.

I also like scenarios that have a little educational component, so I learn something while having fun. I recently played Transcontinental for the first time and will definitely play it again; it had some very innovative ideas. I've just started Civil War, which looks interesting. So this post is not a knock on any scenario (many of which I haven't tried yet); almost all of them are fun to play once or twice. I'm just answering proudcanadian's question.

In the campaign that came with the game, my favorite scenarios were Central Pacific, Orient Express, and Rhodes Unfinished.

[wsherrick]

It's really hard for me to pick a favorite, different games suit me at various times because my mood changes. I play all of them because I want to be better at designing scenarios. The four that I have done so far have each been learning experiences. Out of the four I personally like Big Valley and Blue Streak the best. I know that a map without other companies maybe isn't realistic, but this a game and sometimes AI's get in the way of the game's goals, AI's are fine if they fit in with what the game is about. I think I enjoy scenarios that have historic or educational information in them with the emphasis on building and operating your railroad the best. I'm not too good at financial monkey shines.
What I really don't like are maps that are out of proportion and have extremely rough terrain, have towns too close to the rivers where your bridge ramp makes it impossible to put the station where it belongs. I really enjoy scenic maps that have a good feeling of space and distance. That's what I tried to achieve in Big Valley and Blue Streak.
I can't single any one out because everyone has a distinct style of scenario making and unique creative touch. I'm not trying to skirt the question, I really can't answer it honestly.
I know I can speak for others as well as myself when someone takes the time to discuss one's scenario, compliment it or make constructive critiques for improvements it makes it worth the effort. I would like to encourage everyone here to comment on all the scenario's that are in the Review Section as well as post new reviews, and post your favorite strategies in that section also. It takes little effort and MEANS SO MUCH to people who put countless hours into making maps and scenarios. It only encourages people to keep creating, and we all benefit from that. I hope that you all agree.

[EPH]

I love Chicago to New York, just because you get to build over the Appalachians. Orient Express can be fun but I prefer Baghdad Railway; Guatemala is another nice little gem.

Rhodes Unfinished is fun tho a little easy and Spanish Mainline is a good small-map scenario. Michigan 1830 is well crafted as well as being educational.

Of my own I prefer Japanese Miracle and Farewell to Steam.

[wsherrick]

Hi EPH It is good to hear from you. You have been missed. I agree that Michigan 1830 is a supurb scenario and all of yours are excellent as well. Don't be modest. And don't stay away so long.

[JayEff]

Great Northern (#1), Chicago to New York, Brazil (I liked it enough to auto-translate it). I also like Baghdad Railway and Japanese Miracle. GN and JM are masterpieces for using the map and coding to tell the history and make a nice game of it.

My favourites of the smaller simpler maps are Modern Heart of Africa (for the implied ironic humour), Mexico, Spanish Mainline and Tendance au Rechauffement / Warming Trend.

Some maps that I like but don't play as much are American Civil War, Michigan 1830, Getaway Special, Guatemala and Burma.

I would really like to see English versions of Deutsch Suid West Afrika and Money, Money, Money. Also if someone could take Jeremy MacDonald's map and make a Cape to Cairo scenario that would be really nice. There is a lot of room for some more African and Asian scenarios.

I would also like to say that anything more complicated than Great Northern is a risky venture because you can get tied up in debugging. There are bugs in Canada Bound and Of Men and Seals that I have never been able to resolve, and now I have to put in a bit of effort with Athabasca 1905. I like Denver and Western, and Trans-Siberian but they are both buggy too. Colonial India needs an economy or density fix or something, otherwise it could be a good scenario.

[Wolverine@MSU]

I wouldn't call it my favorite, but one of the most interesting scenarios I've played is called "Hexum" or "Hexsum". You start out at ground level, and have to gain access to subsequent levels by meeting certain goals. The diffuculty in attaining rights to the next level increases geometrically: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 23, 64 etc. Take a lot of planning and strategy to complete.

[Hawk]

Where would one find this 'Hexum' scenario? I don't remember seeing it anywhere.

[proudcanadian]

I've seen it and downloaded it. It's available at RailroadTycoon.info and from Molse's site

[low_grade]

Was just wondering about favorite scenarios so thought I'd bring this dead topic back to life.

I still have most of them yet to play, but of the 30 or so scenarios I've given a good go, half a dozen stand out in my memory.

I really enjoyed some of the scenarios from the Poptop campaign, notably Orient Express, which gave me the biggest headaches of any game so far and took me 3-5 attempts to develop a good strategy and then maintain the express speed (last attempt had it almost double requirement I seem to remember), the one where you cross the Alps from Italy into Germany was nice, and the early Britain campaign is still pretty vivid.

I enjoyed the Caucasus scenario because it was so challenging early on, and required me to be innovative with my strategy, for instance running "trash trains" around loops to the recycling centers so I could have resources to work with besides oil and diesel. Unfortunately the end game was not so captivating as making the final connections across thousands of miles was done without any kind of consideration of economic reality or intentions to use the rail.

Japanese Miracle, Big Valley, Green Diamond, and the one about early Canada where you have to try to win Canada territory by meeting hauling requirements, and help with the American Civil War by hauling down to Boston, were all stand out scenario's too.

Just thought it might be nice to have a compilation of scenarios to definitely try for folks who are searching the site for recommendations. With hundreds to choose from, but limited time to play, one might only ever get to play a small fraction of them.

Wish I could try Bagdad but it keeps crashing on my system as soon as the first train delivers its cargo!

[OilCan]

Just thought it might be nice to have a compilation of scenarios to definitely try for folks who are searching the site for recommendations. With hundreds to choose from, but limited time to play, one might only ever get to play a small fraction of them.

By late August the database of all the games in the map archive, plus Poptop's games, will be complete. One will be able to search for a game by goals, game author, year, continent, AI presence and/or RT3 version. In other words, one can sift through the 220+ games for ones that suit their taste. This will all be on a spreadsheet which can be downloaded. IF anyone is adept at coding a webpage for a searchable web database, then let Hawk know. It would be great to have that click and search option attached to the map archive and not have to download a spreadsheet.

[Hawk]

I just ordered a book that I hope will teach me just that. If all goes well when I get it I should be able to set up a MySQL database and access it with php.

[low_grade]

Well, not to ask too much of you, but it would be nice if forum members could track what games they've played, on what level, what their highest medal result was, and leave a zero though five star rating or one to ten, etc., plus comments. Then when somebody is searching the database, they can filter by their preferences and sort by rating to get the list of scenarios they should try in order. Plus in the list include a link to comments, and include them at the bottom of the screen when viewing a scenario. Also maybe then you could include a played by field on the screed which views scenarios, so members could see who all has played a scenario, not just how many have downloaded it.

[Grandma Ruth]

Well, not to ask too much of you,

Good grief, low_grade!

[Gwizz]

I found ranking a map is like ranking a movie.

I've watched 5 star movies that were not worth a rating of a 1 for me.
But I have watched movies or played maps that I thought were outstanding, while others felt just the opposite.

We are all different and like different things.

Building a tool that classifies each map by its' parts was a good idea and worth doing.