Skill legend:
- A- Artist (ability to construct and texture 2D and 3D objects, preferably using Blender for 3D)
- C- Coder (ability to write and debug code in x86 assembly language)
- F- File Hacker (ability to modify RT3 resource files such as *.LCO and *.BCA)
- I- Interpreter (ability to translate text for inclusion in the RT3.LNG file, as well as release notes)
- M- Mapmaker (ability to create new RT3 maps, including rivers and ground cover)
- S- Scenario Writer (ability to write and debug RT3 scenario events)
- T- Tester (ability to note bugs and behavior changes when playing RT3 scenarios
- Hours- 2-48 hours of work
- Days- 2-14 days of work
- Weeks- 2-11 weeks of work
- Months- 2-12 months of work
- Years- it'd be faster to write a new game
AI:
- improve AI's track-laying algorithm (CJNyfalt, milo) [30%,C,weeks] - May require scripted AI
- improve AI's business sense (Grandma Ruth) [30%,C,days] - May require scripted AI
- give player option to freeze AI after company 51% owned (ExpressWorld) [20%,C,days]
- optionally specify goals for AI in scenario (milo) [20%,C,weeks] - Requires scripted AI
- let AI take over/sabotage other companies (milo) [30%,C,days] - May require scripted AI
- fix AI's inability to recover from damaged track (milo) [30%,C,weeks]
- be able to write AI's algorithm using scripting language (milo) [30%,C,weeks] - Requires nearly same work as scripted events; may slow down game
- add specialized stations, or at least cargo-controlled stations (JSS) [50%,ACF,days]
- add cargo types (canis39) [80%,AC?F,days]
- add new maps (canis39, Grandma Ruth) [100%,M,days]
- add new locomotives (canis39) [100%,AF,days]
- add new characters (not just portraits) (ExpressWorld) [80%,CI,days]
- improve building animations (Grandma Ruth) [50%,A,weeks]
- be able to supply patches and assets with scenarios (Gwizz) [30%,C,weeks] - Great idea! Tricky to implement, though - can't patch the executable or add assets while it's running, so it'd take a Civ IV-like restart-after-mod approach.
- fix color washout problem on multiple saves (Grandma Ruth) [40%,C,days]
- fix crashes when deleting track (milo) [60%,C,weeks]
- fix early exits from multiple-factor event loops (milo) [90%,C,hours]
- fix tests for deliveries to/from cities (milo) [50%,C,days]
- fix unimplemented events, such as specialized track counters (milo) [50%,C,days]
- prevent AIs from reusing logos (milo, davey917) [30%,C,hours] - Is it only the 'keystone' that gets reused?
- fix event display in debug window for long scenarios (milo) [30%,C,days]
- fix alignment of custom logos in message lines (davey917) [90%,C,hours]
- fix instabilities after deactivating players (milo) [80%,C,days]
- lower system requirements (Grandma Ruth) [10%,C,months] - If anything, patch will probably require a faster computer - sorry
- be able to turn off planes, non-evented storms, and other incidental fripperies (Grandma Ruth, davey917) [30%,C,weeks]
- add copy+paste to events (JSS, Grandma Ruth, milo) [20%,C,weeks] - May have to settle for event export/import
- be able to delete territories (Grandma Ruth) [40%,C,days]
- add math expressions to events (JSS, Wolverine@MSU, Grandma Ruth, davey917, milo) [30%,C,days] - Requires script support
- add tests for installed assets (JSS) [40%,C,hours]
- event land/water deformation (milo) [40%,C,days]
- event particle source and town creation/destruction (milo) [40%,C,days]
- support event libraries (managers, train robberies, no maintenance, etc) (milo) [30%,C,days] - Requires script support
- support Python extensions to events (milo) [30%,C,months] - Hard, but opens up so many possibilities…
- output subsets of game state to a logfile (Wolverine@MSU) [40%,C,days] - Requires script support
- add industry-only AI companies (JSS) [30%,C,days] - Free if we split up tracklaying rights from industry rights
- be able to run railroad without investing in industry (JSS, CJNyfalt) [90%,C?S,hours] - Probably fixable in scenario - disable industry build/buy, cut price of rails and engines
- add personally-owned industries (JSS, davey917) [20%,C,weeks] - Requires a whole new page in ledger, among other things
- be able to ship at a loss (JSS, dj, Grandma Ruth) [90%,C,hours] - Not sure about side-effects, though
- add option to disable 'any freight'/'any express' consists (dj) [30%,C,days]
- merge maintenance buildings into stations (CJNyfalt, Grandma Ruth, Steve) [70%,C?S,hours] - Fixable in scenario; might need coding to stop AIs building them
- add management overhead related to number of stations (CJNyfalt) [90%,S,hours] - Fixable in scenario
- split track-laying rights from train-running or industry-buying/building (HighVoltage, davey917) [30%,C,weeks] - Requires several new events and possibly more scenario file storage
- reduce industry profits relative to railroad profits (CJNyfalt, Orange46) [90%,S,hours] - Fixable in scenario
- add event for single train annual/lifetime best speed (EPH, milo) [30%,C,weeks] - May slow game down considerably
- add city-to-city or terr-to-terr load delivery tests (Wolverine@MSU) [20%,C,weeks] - Not sure if cargos have individual IDs; may slow down game
- be able to ship cargoes through intervening stations (Grandma Ruth) [80%,C,days] - Probably get this for free when adding 'ship at loss'
- split territories by geographical/eventable rather than visible/invisible (Grandma Ruth) [20%,C,weeks] - I think this might break more scenarios than it would fix
- be able to transfer company/personal wealth through campaign scenarios (Grandma Ruth) [20%,C,days] - Doable… but frankly the problem's often too >much< money, not too little
- disable train arrival notices above certain rate threshold (but permit overriding for 'special' trains) (davey917) [30%,C,days] - Disabling notices is not hard, overriding for special trains is much harder
- add custom newspaper heralds and sidebar headlines (davey917) [30%,AC?F,days] - Not sure how these are stored - but a nifty idea
- support drop-shipping: leave cargo at station for pickup by another train (hawk) [80%,A?CF?,days] - a) Suppress economics around depot b) Construct cargo 'holder' building
- be able to 'reserve' certain amount of cargo in each building (Steve) [60%,CF?,days] - I think this is also one possible implementation for drop-shipping
- support multiple-engine and double-ended trains (ExpressWorld) [50%,A?CF?,days] - Bombardiere already demonstrated one way to do part of this
- add multiple track types: narrow-gauge, maglev, monorail, etc. (ExpressWorld) [10%,ACFS,months] - Requires major changes to game engine
- add signals (ExpressWorld) [10%,ACFS,years] - Requires major changes to game engine
- increase effect of slow delivery on perishable cargos (ExpressWorld) [90%,F,hours]
- bring back rate wars from RT1 (ExpressWorld) [60%,CS,weeks] - more complicated than I thought, but still almost entirely doable through events
- bring back train robberies from RT2 (ExpressWorld) [50%,AC,days] - Probably add as alternative to train crash
- force out stockholders by paying premium (milo) [30%,C,days]
- support express traffic to/from warehouses and ports (milo) [90%,C,hours]
- reduce cargo natural flow rate (Steve) [60%,C,days]
- support 'all except' consists (Steve) [40%,C,weeks]
- add ability to create campaigns (Wolverine@MSU) [40%,CMS,weeks] - Amount of work depends on whether campaigns need videos and 'rail museum' support
- fix railbed and rail-connection graphics (JSS, dj) [70%,AC,days] - Lower bed, maybe fix joint mitering, maybe redraw railbed texture
- avoid showing that all structures are hollow 2D shells (JSS) [30%,C,days] - This probably requires a powerful graphics card… sure you want it?
- add camera that follows direction of train (milo) [50%,C,days] - Would probably have to replace train-locked cam, unfortunately
- slightly increase possible zoom distance to cover huge maps (milo) [80%,C,hours]
- prevent buildings from overlapping rails (JSS) [60%,C,hours] - Cost: harder to place track in towns or around stations
- cut down track 'exclusivity' radius to permit stuff like parallel rails (canis39) [80%,C,hours] - Cost: have to have finer touch to make connections to existing rails
- add cuts and fills when building rail through mountains (dj, milo) [40%,C,days] - Cost: may open some terraforming exploits
- lower bridges and shorten ramps (dj, CJNyfalt) [80%,C,hours] - Cost: overpasses may be too low if they use same code as bridges
- cut down river nonbuildable radius (CJNyfalt) [30%,C,days] - Radius is 1 square; not sure I can cut this without permitting building >in< river
- add manual option for bridges, tunnels, and junctions (bombardiere, Grandma Ruth) [30%,C,weeks] - This needs to be fleshed out more
- cut out terraforming effects under existing rails (ExpressWorld) [60%,C,days] - Cost: new buildings near rails potentially half-buried or suspended in air
- support bridge upgrades (ExpressWorld) [30%,C,weeks]
- add tool to import 3D models from cheap editors (Blender?) (bombardiere) [70%,C,days]
- add tool to import and export heightmaps (?) [90%,C,days] - Halfway done - will finish this before I start patch
- add tool to generate realistic random maps and/or simplify DEM import (milo) [70%,C,weeks]
- make it trivial to submit scenario reviews (EPH) [70%,?,days]
- add tool to import and export events (milo) [70%,C,days]
- 1.06 - contains just quick fixes, to be released within two months; perhaps includes an updated Loco Pack as well
- 1.07 - includes a scripting engine and some set of harder fixes, to be released by the end of 2007 if ever; this is as close to RT4 as we're likely to get
edit 2006/11/26: add ideas from Steve, Wolverine@MSU; correct rate wars estimate
edit 2006/11/28: add idea from Gwizz; add bugfix for player deactivation