Trainmaster....what comes next.

[nedfumpkin]

Now that al the design and creation stuff with Trainmaster is done, the next steps are first, to sort out any bugs in the Beta version. This is going to require a bit of time since I am finding some minor things now. Anything that is critical to the game will be posted as a patch. Other stuff may either wait, or get posted when it's done, such as large pk4 files.

I have the custom pak for Persian Electric that I am half-way through, and I'll post that with a corrected scenario as soon as it is done.

Next comes developing stuff for the game. Scenarios and campaign maps are first on my list. I converted Black Diamonds to work in the Beta, but I have to completely rewrite the events since I changed my mind. Birth of a Nation needs a few event corrections, then it needs to be painted. A few other campaign scenarios are just ideas right now.

I've also got to finish the CNR express cars. I am 80% finished those. I also want to creat an express set out of the default blue and yellow RT3 cars. Just for nostalgia sake. Then I am going to have to politely prod WP&P to complete his American set. :)

The campaign room graphics are movies for the most part. Not hard to do, but time consuming. I do not expect to have this completed until well into the new year unless I suddenly get inspired and obsessed. :)

Oh, and documentation....should be able to get most of the technical docs relatively quick, but the less prosaic docs will develop over time.

[Hawk]

For whatever it's worth, I've been told I have a good voice for commentary type stuff. If you want I can dig out my microphone and give you an example.

I also dug up 1 or 2 old maps I found that I generated from the Map Builder that I thought I'd give a try at creating a scenario with. They wouldn't be real life historical type maps but they are unedited, plain default green maps at this point, ready for something done to them.

[nedfumpkin]

I may just take you up on the voice offer. But it won't be until well into the new year before I'm at that point.

One of the reasons I brought in the fictional players was because it made more sense for maps that aren't necessarily based on an actual place. Ed's monkeys are a good example of a map where the old barons wouldn't fit in.

[Hawk]

I'll dig out my microphone and record something for you to hear so you an effectively decide. Since you're in no big hurry that will give me some time to find the box it's packed away in.

[El Moichi]

Today I managed my first successful installation of TM and took a first look onto the "Persian Electric" map.

I am totally stunned facing the diversity of the industrial supply/demand features that you brought up into the game.

In my opinion, you should set up some kind of "industry chart" to introduce us to this new world, according to the fact that some of the new features are not completely displayed for some (...or most...) industry buildings.

Tomorrow I will try to run my first trains over this map. I recognized some minor bugs (check out the "tutorial", f.e.), but that´s not important at this point.

Anyway, you brought down the house, Ned... it´s unbelieveable.

[nedfumpkin]

Thanks, although I had a lot of help and couldn't have done it without the help.

Of course, I am expecting to do a new upload tomorrow since I am almost finished the campaign menus...as much as I can do right now, and included with that will be Edbangor's Monkey Business.

I will be making industry charts, but first I wanted to get this stuff done while I have the time. After tomorrow I will be working on documents and maps.

[El Moichi]

I didn´t locate any thread about „Persian Electric“ or „My first impressions of Trainmaster“, so I post my first impressions here. (Hawk, feel free to switch.....).

I´ve been running this map for some hours up to now, without any strategical concept in mind, just exploring the relationships of various industry supply and demand. First, I set up a delta connection between Tehran, Qom and Garmsar. I linked a Farmstead Community at Firuz Khu and made a fine profit by hauling the agricultural products to the three cities. I upgraded it by raising two Hemp BioMass Plantations, then built a paper mill at Garmsar and watched the earnings exploding after delivering chemicals from Mashhad to that mill. The Hemp Plants created three loads per year instead of the announced one load, even at normal economic status.

It´s just my very first impression. So, Ned, what have you done with this game, and what have you done to me…? If I ever got familiar with all this stuff, it will be a hard (…maybe impossible…) way back for me to get back to the “good old RRT3 game”. I think that you never considered this…

Anyway, I am urgently in need some kind of “industry chart”.

This is simply almost stunning. The more time I spend with it, the more it´s just STUNNING.



The download of the new files is in progess by the way.

[nedfumpkin]

Hemp and corn bio mass plantations will produce on their own, but if you throw some fertilizer and machinery into them then they will produce more. More than likely you were supplying with fertilizer.

The industry chart is coming...just be patient. Since I was making so many changes to the industries to get them to do eveything right, it was a waste of time to keep changing the docs.

And I did warn people a while ago that once you start palying Trainmaster, and you get a feel for it, it gets really hard to go back to play RT3. :)

And thanks...I'm glad you found it fun to play. Just so you know, there's no real difference between the Beta 1 with the patches and the Beta 2 as far as the game goes, the changes were all to the campaign stuff....except a couple of adjustments to the exe.

[nedfumpkin]

I should mention that what's there is pretty much Trainmaster. I have no plans to add any more buildings, industries, or make any other changes to the game. What's left now is cosmetic changes such as the campaign menus, and creating maps, car packs, and documentation.

Any other changes to the game would necessarily be fixing something that didn't work.

[Wolverine@MSU]

I should mention that what's there is pretty much Trainmaster. I have no plans to add any more buildings, industries, or make any other changes to the game. What's left now is cosmetic changes such as the campaign menus, and creating maps, car packs, and documentation.

If this is true, send me the final versions of cargo in/out/production/years etc. for the various buildings and I'll start working on updating the documentation.

[El Moichi]

I have spent more time with the “Persian Electric” map and I enjoyed the gameplay like never before. Even I repeat myself, it´s simply stunning.

I tried to meet the scenario goals on Expert. In general, I think this is not as difficult. Matching the 25.000 GWH goal will fit by building a Nuclear Power Plant near the uranium mines (and later upgrade it). The 500 loads of troops will be collected together once the railroad system has expanded and the few military bases are connected. The only problem for me represents the missile plant. I haul electronics, explosives, machinery and aluminium to that factory and it consumes pretty much loads (while generating overhead at a worse level), but shows any considerably production. No matter at which place I built it.

Anyway, I will try to continue tomorrow. I have not installed the latest beta version, as I fear that the current gamesave files would not load again. Nevertheless, I missed the terrain levellers in this first beta version. Regarding P.E., the status reporting in the ledger faded after a while because you test it´s appearance against a changing company variable. I had to fix that in the editor for myself because it´s pretty difficult to meet the goals without this report. And regarding the new industry features by building them into the editor, the game crashes when I select the "Theme Park".

So, I hope to meet the Persian Electric goals for Trainmaster tomorrow by forcing the Missile Plant to produce this one load, then install the new files and have more fun.

I can´t really express my acknowledgment for your work, Ned.

[Blackhawk]

I also had the missile plant issue, although I think Ned said he took care of it in one of the betas of TM. I suppose I should replay the Persion map sometime to see how the changes work out. In order to get my 1 load of missiles in the alpha version, I had to build and upgrade 2 missile plants, and I think I built a machinery plant in the same city with electronics and isotopes not far away. (Of course I sold off the missile plants after upgrading them as I didn't want to continue to lose money) I also used a less significant city and pretty much stopped trains from exporting things from the city to insure that the items required for the missile production where not sent elsewhere.

viewtopic.php?f=73&t=2238&start=45#p21504

[El Moichi]

Aaaaah!

Thank you, Blackhawk, for I didn´t notice that thread before.

Now I will try to build two upgraded missile plants and see what happens.

[nedfumpkin]

The missile plant was fixed in one of the patches. The other patch fixed the problem with the theme park.

If you install the Beta 2 files it resolves both issues, and will not affect the game in play other than to make things work right.

I still have a couple of things to fix on Persian Electric, the ledger problem being one of them. Hopefully I can get to it in the next week.

[El Moichi]

I installed the new files. As you suggested, the missile plant worked fine and I finally got my medal.

I noticed that you have included the RT3.lng for TM as a text file. If the *.lng file is the only place where game language is stored and changed and if you tell me how I can re-transform an edited text file into a working RT3.lng file, I´ll do the translations into german. OR I do the translations and send the translated edition via e-mail.

[nedfumpkin]

There are two language files included. The Rt3.lng file is what is used by the game. The RT3.clr.rtf file is a wordpad rtf file where I have highlighted all the changes I have made in red. This will make it easy to translate into german since you can easily see the changes that were made and just edit a german rt3.lng file.

[El Moichi]

That was also my idea, of course. I re-named a german RT3.lng into RT3.rtf, opened the file successfully, changed one sentence, saved and re-named the file back as RT3.lng. After that, the game didn´t load again.

[nedfumpkin]

make sure you save the rt3.lng file as a md dos text file, not a rich text...I've made the same mistake a few times.

[El Moichi]

It seems not to work this way with using german versions of MS Office, but meanwhile I discovered another way how to edit without re-naming the file and got it successfully back running with the game.

Be sure that I will at the very first step, before translating, edit the common newspaper contents in my own way...

Anyway, there´s little time at the moment because i´m entrapped into some monkey business.

[nedfumpkin]

Take your time...I too am entrapped in some Monkey Business. :)