Making MSTS Routes Rail sim routes

[rfranken]

I've been thinking of making some of my favorite old MSTS routes Rail sim routes. Has anyone out there come up with any little shortcut to possibly avoiding remaking the route from scratch?

Thanks,
Robert

[keber]

You can use existing scenery object, if you convert them from original source file, but that more or less everything about shortcuts. MSTS and RS are not compatible in route building in any way.

[nwallace]

No one has yet produced a converter to translate MSTS route files into the appropriate format for RS.

Since tools have been made available that can produce route maps from MSTS routes I don't see why similar to create the appropriate format for track in RS would not be possible, similar could be done with translating scenery locations between formats.

While it is possible, I doubt anyone would bother particularly since most routes used 3rd party objects and that would mean getting permission from all authors to do an S to IGS (and then compile) conversion.
Another reason such a utility is unlikely to be produced is many route authors would not want unauthorised route conversions published.

[bigvern]

Probably the most you could convert would be the track and road database, together with the terrain. Although there are overtones of the MSTS Route Editor in the KRS Editors we have to assume the code and algorithms for doing things is totally different. As most route builders will tell you, the track and roads is only the half of it - placing buildings, trees and texturing terrain etc. is what takes the time.

There may be differences in the world projection between MSTS and KRS which would preclude a direct transfer of the world details.

Assuming such a tool existed and that it could be enhanced by an object "replacer" (from the KRS stock items) then the first check (for me) is that many of my early MSTS routes featured hand crafted terrain, to an approximation off the mapping references. The DEM data now available is far superior but that's not going to match the track, roads, etc. from the existing MSTS route.

All in all I think you're just going to have to hope if you have a favourite route from MSTS, that someone is prepared to do it from scratch in KRS.

[mikesimpson]

RS_Tools will convert your MSTS marker files into RS markers, so if you have the DEM data for the route, you can lay out your terrain and place your track fairly easily. However once that is done, you are on your own placing scenery and building models.