Before the health crisis hit us hard, my favorite means of transportation was by air for obvious reasons. You get to where you need to be fast and smooth (hopefully!), and with a minimum investment. Lately though, I’ve been craving for some train traveling, something that I almost forgot exists if not for the occasional commutes between cities during my European vacations.
I’m fairly certain that it’s not just the nostalgia that hit me. Traveling by train has been a Zen experience, even on shorter routes, but that highly depends on the quality of the company operating the line.
Train Life – A Railway Simulator is a brand-new game that is trying to quench my thirst for train travel. Well, it’s a slightly different experience since you’re actually driving the train, but due to the rather simple controls, I think it still counts as traveling.
If you’ve played Train Sim World, you’ll feel right at home playing Train Life – A Railway Simulator. However, Simteract’s game offers some twists to the railroad simulation, such as the fact that you can be both the driver and company director. That’s quite obvious right from the start since you’re prompted to create your company’s visual identity.
You start small with just a single locomotive (Salzgitter 6) and try to build your railroad empire by taking contracts, buying new locomotives, as well as managing passenger and freight activities. You can accept delivery contracts from various cities in the UK, France, Belgium, and Germany, and you’re paid very well, depending on the distance.
Photo: autoevolution
I’ll have to warn you, though: traveling from one side of the map to the other for a delivery contract may even take several hours. My first contract took me through the UK, France, and Germany, but it did pay me around €200.000, a huge amount considering that you start the game with just €40.000. Of course, by the time I reached my destination, my finances were in the red since I had to pay more than €40.000 in fines.
Some of these fines could have been avoided if I had paid more attention to what track my train actually uses, but I also blame developers for at least half of them. I crashed my train twice due to wrong signaling and track selection. Also, I didn’t know that I have to ask permission before driving through a station. Luckily, I learned my lesson fast, and I only had to pay one fine for not abiding by the rules.
In Trail Life – A Railway Simulator, you’ll have to pay attention to the signals before switching tracks. Trains coming from the opposite direction might use the block track you’re using, and by the time you realize that, it will be too late to avoid a crash. The good news is you can get away with a €10.000 fine in case you’re crashing your train, which isn’t that high considering how much money you can make from contracts.
There are several locomotives you can purchase, but they will only unlock after you upgrade your driving skills. Something easy to achieve if you’re driving a lot. The only weird thing I found is that there’s a speed limit of 120km per hour, and some of the more powerful locomotives can achieve 160km per hour, so I don’t see the reason to upgrade to such a locomotive.
Visually, Train Life – A Railway Simulator doesn’t really stand out. The scenery seems bland due to the lack of any sort of animations, so if you’re hoping to see some nice landscapes while driving your train, you’ll probably be disappointed.
Photo: autoevolution
Conclusion
Train Life – A Railway Simulator is trying to offer the same train simulation experience as other similar titles, but with a twist. The management aspect is a nice change from the driving part and certainly makes the game stand out.
However, the game is not quite there yet, especially when it comes to the driving experience. The signaling system is a bit of a mess, and the railroad layout had me confused quite a lot during my travels. I also have to mention the occasional lag while driving the train. The good news is Train Life – A Railway Simulator is still in Early Access, which means it’s a work in progress. Many of the issues reported by players since the game’s launch have been addressed, but the most important ones are yet to be fixed.
I do think Train Life – A Railway Simulator has a lot of potential, so if all these problems are ironed out, we might have a winner. For now, let’s just say that I like some aspects of the game and loathe others.
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