WARNING: This article contains a rather large proportion of speculation!!

Background

As documented in my review of MSTS, the success of Train Simulator led Microsoft to commission Kuju Entertainment to start development of a sequel - Train Simulator 2. The programme got to the stage of being demonstrated at the Spring 2003 E3 trade show but something went awry as later that same year Kuju announced they had handed back the project to Microsoft (to this day, the reason has never been made public and remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of train sim lore). Initially it looked as if Microsoft were going to step in and continue work themselves on MSTS2 but in Spring 2004 came the half expected but nevertheless disappointing news that the project had been shelved in a review of the company's game development activity.

All that changed again in early 2007 when Microsoft announced plans to once more commence development on a sequel to Train Simulator. This is an all new product, partly based on the technology used for Flight Sim X (FSX), being developed "in house" by Aces Studios and is understood not to be in any way connected to any of the previous work done on MSTS or the original MSTS2. When first announced, the programme was known as MSTS-X in deference to the connection with FSX, but has subsequently being given the working title of Train Simulator 2.

Information To Date

Microsoft have released enough information about Train Simulator 2 to excite and whet the appetites of the community. The screenshots you see on this site are official MS publicity images which are "In Game Prototype Visual and Asset Renders"; in English what they expect Train Simulator 2 will look like on your PC screen. These have been reduced in quality and resized for this article but it has to be said these depict a virtual world more lifelike than anything seen to date. In short, they take my breath away. Before going further, I'll just reproduce below what Microsoft themselves are saying about Train Simulator 2.

Key Features:

• World of Rails (WoR)— “Train Simulator 2” will deliver an entire world of railroad experiences, along with tools to customize, extend and share user created content. “Train Simulator 2” uses world wide data processing to model nearly all routes in the world and a toolset to build your own routes providing endless options to customize and share content.

• Most realistic train simulation experience ever— TS2 will offer the truest simulation experience to those who love trains, with highly accurate locomotives and rolling stock from its look to the roar of its engine, hand-authored high accuracy routes from present and past, and core track, signal and physics systems.

• Hi-Definition Living World— “Train Simulator 2” brings users closer to the world around them with greater detail and greater interaction. Terrain is highly detailed, passengers and train crews can be seen interacting with their environment, and sophisticated dispatching and train AI creates a depth of realism. Users will be able to share their experience or their hand authored routes with others via Games for Windows Live.
  Simulation Legacy— Designed and developed by Microsoft’s Aces Studio, with over 25 Years of expertise developing best-in-class simulations.

• Games for Windows franchise— “Train Simulator 2” will ship as a Games for Windows title with easier installation, reliability standards and support for key features of Windows Vista®, including the Games Explorer and Parental Controls

End Quote.

What Does It All Mean?

Well Microsoft haven't announced a release date as yet but the short odds seem to be on Autumn 2008, which means we should be getting a pretty darn cool train simulation when that happens. Release date will be a day of days, for the train sim community. Of course before getting too overwhelmed and carried away with this there are a couple of important caveats to acknowledge. The first is that no information on system requirements has been made available yet, probably because Microsoft don't know themselves. However it's probably fair to conclude you are going to need a state of the art system to get the results shown in the prototype screenshots. The other issue for many will be Vista only. At the time of writing this article, although my PC is fairly up to date hardware wise I'm still running XP SP2. I like the OS, it's relatively stable and it runs all my hardware and software with very little trouble. I have no need or great desire to run Vista. It looks as if Microsoft are holding the line on this one so I guess it will be a case of each individual making their own decision when the time comes. ****Update**** It appears MS have relented a little and are planning to make Train Sim 2 compatible with both Vista and XP. Hurrah!

Of course a fairly major incentive in this is the "World of Rails" concept. Microsoft have confirmed on the forums they really do intend for Train Simulator 2 to ship with many 1000's of miles of real world routes right out the box.

No need to hope that one day someone might build that route or more likely a very small section of it, in fact route building as we know it may very well be a thing of the past in Train Simulator 2. Instead the emphasis will be on detailing and expanding what is already there and sharing the scenery as happens now with Flight Simulator. No more progressing at 1km a day placing the main line then going back over with trees and houses or painting the terrain (unless you really want to).

****Update****

MS have confirmed two of their high detail routes for Train Simulator 2:
USA: Horseshoe Curve from Altoona to Johnstown in Pennsylvannia.
Europe: Part of the Swiss Bern-Lotchsberg-Simplon in Switzerland, specifically Thun to Brig and the branch from Spiez to Interlaken.

Community

The other key difference this time round is that Microsoft are engaging with the train-sim community. While I was privileged to receive some sneak previews and behind the scenes visits while MSTS was under development, there was a certain amount of coyness about the whole thing, It was certainly unheard of for Microsoft to publically comment on forums regarding their products. For Train Simulator 2, however, key members of the team are posting about and discussing the product on forums and maintaining public blogs about the development process and progress. An excellent step and one which will benefit developer and customer alike. At the same time it is vital that the community return this new openess and treat the folks from MS and Aces with respect, restraint and courtesy. By all means ask searching questions but keep it civil and be mindful that not all the answers may be what you want to hear.

Conclusions

Although there's still a long road ahead, it's no understatement to report I am highly excited by Microsoft Train Simulator 2. On a scale of 1 to 10, well it's off the scale, actually. If it turns out to be as good as the early profile suggests then all other considerations of hardware and operating system will become secondary. This is one simulation that will be worth every penny of any upgrade needed to run it. This preview feature will be updated as and when there are any developments of significance to report.