Tracks & Trains

P1SIM is a commercial game under development featuring traffic, logistics, city building and more.
minecraftfan
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by minecraftfan »

Will there be an all purpose track that diesel, 3rd rail and panto graph locomotives can all use?
Also, will track extras be placed as a separate path (TTD) or placed on pre-built track (LoMo)?
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smallfly
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by smallfly »

minecraftfan wrote:Will there be an all purpose track that diesel, 3rd rail and panto graph locomotives can all use?
there will be no special "all purpose track". but the tracks are compatible. thus just use a diesel engine. it can use all tracks. (if you use electric engines you need pantograph or for special engines like underground you need 3rd rail)

Also, will track extras be placed as a separate path (TTD) or placed on pre-built track (LoMo)?[/quote]
placed on (better: close to) pre-built tracks
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robo
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by robo »

smallfly wrote: I installed locomotion to test it. I think it looks quite ugly since the gaps between the tracks are different.
The attachment comparison_locomotion_preview.png is no longer available
I think diagonal tracks look always a bit ugly in dimetric perspective and can look better in topdown view.
I took a look at catrain.org today, which looks a bit like openttd in topdown view ;-). It has a quite intuitiv and relativ comfortable but slow way to build diagonal tracks.
I played it only for a short time, but there are a lot of things I like. For example, you can change between automatic and construction modus, and the "game" automatically stops. The system works quite good if you like to play on smaller maps, which could be connected to a larger, fictiv world map, but it's different to games like locomotion or openttd with complete automation on larger maps.
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glenjimen
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by glenjimen »

Hey, I was wondering about how the module editor would work with tracks. Besides being able to construct custom turns, what will you be able to do?
Can you build switches, road crossings or stations in different configurations?

Also will there be any way to break blocked sections of track into separate blocks in compact situations such as this : (see attached picture)
There are 5 blocks in this example, but real railroads separate the middle block (#5) to allow both trains on the mainline to pass in opposite directions. This wouldn't be path-dependent-routing, just placing a signal in a tight location.
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smallfly
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by smallfly »

glenjimen wrote:Can you build switches, road crossings or stations in different configurations?
You can easily build switches and road crossings with the module editor (see picture). The way how stations work is not decided yet. But stations wont be modules. Stations are more like a region. Inside this region trains can load/unload cargo.
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glenjimen wrote:Also will there be any way to break blocked sections of track into separate blocks in compact situations
Each logistics node with more than two outgoing or incoming path starts a new block. Automatically.
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glenjimen
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by glenjimen »

smallfly wrote: Stations are more like a region. Inside this region trains can load/unload cargo.
That is a really cool idea. What are you planning to allow in these station/regions? (curves, switches, signals, crossings, etc. )

smallfly wrote: Each logistics node with more than two outgoing or incoming path starts a new block. Automatically.
This seems like path-dependent-routing, which is awesome!

I'm assuming you plan to let only one train exist in a block, which is protected by signals the player places. Do you plan to allow signals to be placed at a logistics node or between two logistics nodes, that is, along the path.

Or am I way off in trying to understand you. :?
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robo
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by robo »

What I like is that you have fixed pieces for switches like catrain, because most railroad games don't have switches. What I liked in Sidmeiers railroads is that trains can load one waggon after another (train advances to load the next waggon).
You could take a look a lego track geometry or factorio. The signaling system and pathfinding in factorio is quite good too, maybe not trivial to program.
There was a mod in locomotion to prevent trains from turning magically the direction (CLW engine flipper), which would be better if trains could (de-) couple.
That automated decoupling is possible (if locomotives and waggons have the same length) shows a mod for factorio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQAgWssR2aY
If you could combine these elements with a more or less intelligent system for distribution of goods like industry giant 2 (or better), you would have enough elements for a good game ;-) in my opinion.
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by Chrill »

robo wrote:(..)you would have enough elements for a good game
There are definitely enough elements for a good game, but it's been five years since we started seeing development of this. I'm still hoping, but I am pretty unsure, if this will ever come together. What's missing for smallfly is really available time, not more ideas! :wink:
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smallfly
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by smallfly »

Chrill wrote:What's missing for smallfly is really available time, not more ideas! :wink:
Despite the fact that you are absolute right, there is no need to stop new ideas. Who knows, perhaps someone grabs all those ideas and makes a similiar game faster than me. I dont need to be the one who codes a game like P1SIM. I just want the game (or a very similiar one) to exist :-)
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eekee
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Re: Tracks & Trains

Post by eekee »

Tossing in another idea. :) It's quite different to laying pre-rendered track pieces. How about track laying works like making a spline curve in a vector graphics program? That is, the player marks points and the computer produces a spline curve fitting those points. Extra points could be added afterward to re-shape the track. If a curve is too tight, it would be displayed in red and the game would refuse to finalize (build) it. The same for crossing water.

I'm not sure about the technical details, I guess you'd need a spline library for Unity, unless it has one already. How would it be drawn? Perhaps the spline library would have a feature to fit a texture to a spline (path), but that would make the rail ties tapered. O.o Perhaps ties could be drawn roughly evenly along the chosen spline curve, (no need to be too exact, but I don't know how hard even inexact calculations might be,) then the rails drawn as parallel splines. I can't quite think how to make it meet existing track smoothly. Perhaps a too-sharp angle could simply be marked in red so the player can fix it by adding a point.

I'm just making all this up, I've never played a rail game with smooth curves. :)
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