MSTS S&D ROUTE

[kieranhardy]

To me a price tag of £25+ for an MSTS add on is quite expensive. The quality and quantity may be worth it but its a lot of money when the sim is the age it is. I would expect higher priced add ons with new simulators but not for one that's 9 years old...

I don't really understand 3DTS's logic with making the add ons only available abroad either. They have stated there are people in the UK making the UK based products so what is the issue stopping a limited amount of products being made available within the UK, for example available via UKTS, specially when it seems the original version is created in the UK. I wouldn't mind owning cambrian 2 but i am put off by ordering overseas. Many will say it's a simple process which is safe, may be so but i don't really want too. I see little point in making a UK based product that's only available in another country.

if previous releases are anything to go by, come with loads of stock.

That may be so with cambrian 2, but cambrian 1 was different with just 1 driveable prairie in 3 different liveries and one DMU with the same with a choice of wagons. The original Swanage product was the same with just driveable versions of Port Line, Eddystone, M7 & DMU with a choice of wagons and coaches. Compare that to SVR which had a very varied choice of steam locomotives, a couple of diesels and a variety of wagons and coaching stock. Then of course more money had to be paid for the add pack to get driveable versions of the standard 4's and 257 Squadron which were previously undriveable with the addition of a driveable class 33 & 08 and a few more wagons, coaches and a couple more undriveable models. I will grant the activities were varied. $32.05 + $24.05 is quite expensive for an add on that's around 12 miles long with just 9 driveable engines.

I think 3DTS addons are great, but i have to say i don't agree with the pricing system or the way they are sold.

[lateagain]

Hi Kieran,

Whilst it may seem odd that a UK based route is produced by a publisher in the US it's hardly a unique situation in the bigger picture? After Wisconsin owned EWS and arguably revitalised UK rail freight, DB are now the owners? The company that empties the bins in Westminster is (or was?) French! Nowadays The World is either a "global village" or "a multinational hell" depending on your take on such things

I believe I'm right in saying that the 3DTS-UK team have contributed to the 3DTS US stuff as well? If you work with a team and it works you're bound to stick with it? I also believe there have been issues in the past with a UK distributor but I don't have the facts on that?

I've bought stuff online from Hong Kong, Australia, Germany the US, Canada etc.etc. and with the exception of a parcel that arrived from Scotland yesterday (woefully inadequately packed and smashed to pieces on arrival!) I've always had excellent service and sound packaging. 3DTS usually ship to the UK in CD single type cases fitted tightly into strong plain envelopes. This IMHO has to the best way to send discs. All too often DVD cased disks come loose in transit and can get damaged.

But that doesn't help the folk for whom the price is just too rich . I know being on benefit is tough, but many are on minimum wage too and not that much better off. We're in a situation where there are jobs that can pay less than benefit! Whoever gets in today I seriously doubt that the lot of folk at that end of the society will get much help and may even suffer more I've always voted to support those who need most, but funnily enough that doesn't seemed to have helped them much!!

I guess you have to philosophical? How many hours of entertainment/pleasure do I get for my £1 compared to renting a DVD? Buying a pint? etc.

I know that might sound crass, but we all have to work out what's value for money whatever our income. When I was poorest, as a student, we begged, borrowed and scoured jumble sales for life's essentials and the odd luxury. Yes we got a grant in those days but we had to pay for EVERYTHING from that grant including all the things that I've been paying for ever since as an adult. Life's moved on and some things have become relatively cheaper (believe it or not!) but for a start I'd point out we didn't have mobile phones. My daughters generation spends £'s on a mobile as if they'd die without one! They wouldn't. Folk didn't die for lack of them before we had them. We lead full and happy social lives without mobiles, facebook, e-mail etc.etc. Further more they'd be a lot better off financially if they didn't spend money on them ...but it's their choice?

As for the comments about the age of the Sim? Well I refer you to 3DTS's item on what they did for the new sims and why they won't be developing for them at the present time. Newest isn't necessarily best?

Geoff
PS Just to point out that I have no interest in 3DTS other than having bought and enjoyed some of their titles.

[rufuskins]

As I understand it a typical 3DTS disc costs $32 which is some £22 at current exchange rates. That compares quite well with a number of commercial products, and UKTS prices are not dissimilar for commercial products.

The nub of this reply is that all things are relative. One thing is obvious is that prices will change dramatically over the next year or two, as it is highly likely that the pound will be devalued in order to devalue the national debt.

Ruf

PS Don't forget that a lot of our energy suppliers are also owned by overseas companies; e.g E-On and EDF ( owned by the French government!).

[casperdog]

Hi Michael

So I'm hopeing Clive carries on with his version which I'm sure will be popular if his BTB route is any thing to go by.
If I want get the S&D if Clive decides not to carry I might splash out £13.00 for a brand new Railworks Simulation seeing as Amazon are chargeing that price.
Michael

I will be carrying on and hopefully about this time next year it will be finished.The marker file is made, everything is demex'd and i've now got the signalling diagrams so i should start making progress.Track is laid to Midford with Bath scenery pretty much finished including a 'new' station and Midford station nearly finished. Like BTB, i won't be posting screenshots or threads just in case route editor does a wobbly and everything goes in the bin.
cheers
Clive

[SDtrains]

Hi Clive,
Will your version of the S&D co-exist with B2B?
Regards

[michaelhendle]

Hi,

Just to put the Price right for Cambrian 2 the Route is $48.00 it's the expansion pack that's $32.00 the original Cambrian is $35.00.

It will be interesting to see how much S&D will be after all there is a vast difference between $35.00 and $48.00.

Michael

[casperdog]

Hi,

Hi Clive,
Will your version of the S&D co-exist with B2B?
Regards

No its going to be a seperate route but obviously the same era.The Green Park track layout is pretty much the same as BTB. My 1st thought was to use BTB and extend south but it would end up too big as eventually i want to extend BTB a little to link Ashchurch to Worcester and Barnt Green and maybe Camp Hill into New Street
cheers
clive

[aj52mdy]

Have had a look at the 3D Trains website and cannot find any reference whatsoever to The Somerset and Dorset.
Their UK section has Cambrian, Cambrian 2, Swanage, plus several add ons but defently No Somerset and Dorset.
Is there another link that my search engine is not picking up?

Cheers

Andy

[kieranhardy]

See here:

http://www.3dtrainstuff.com/press.html

Then go to the January 6th post.

[J94Fan]

I look forward to this product. My first train sim was "Evening Star" by Hewson Consultants .. on the ZX Spectrum +2 . It featured the S&D route in its entirety!

[aj52mdy]

Hello Kieran

Yes I did open that page last night but was rather tired,Too many early shifts, I was looking for pictures etc
and didn't read the text.
Thanks anyway.

cheers

Andy

See here:

http://www.3dtrainstuff.com/press.html

Then go to the January 6th post.

[kieranhardy]

Hello Kieran

Yes I did open that page last night but was rather tired,Too many early shifts, I was looking for pictures etc
and didn't read the text.
Thanks anyway.

No problem, have yet to see any shots of the route, hopefully it wont be too long till we see some!

[lateagain]

Hi,

Just to put the Price right for Cambrian 2 the Route is $48.00 it's the expansion pack that's $32.00 the original Cambrian is $35.00.

It will be interesting to see how much S&D will be after all there is a vast difference between $35.00 and $48.00.

Michael

Hi Michael,

There's a lot more in Cambrian 2 than the original Cambrian, both in stock and the area and lines covered. Both routes have stock and I think I'm right in saying that stock is under development for the S&D so unlike the latest 3DTS US route that contains no stock or activities (These being available seperately from Diesels West) the price may well be higher than that route.

Unfortunately since this thread started the price of Cambrian2 has already increased to £33.80 due to the recent downturn in the £/$ rate Still by release that may be changed and the average rate is 1.6 so anything around that would make Cambrian 2 £24.35 which IMHO isn't bad for a pack like that at 3DTS(UK)'s level of quality?

EB's ECE Parts 1&2 plus loco pack plus 2 activity packs comes to over £56 and that's for downloads.

I know what I've got ....and what I won't buy

Geoff

[michaelhendle]

Hi Geoff,

I know that I bought Canmbrian 2 and the expansion pack at the original price I might be able to scrape £24.00 up but nearly an extra £10.00 will put it past my limit,maybe if my pension had gone up I might have been able to buy it, but due to inflation being below zero when it was set it hasn't gone up this year,even though every thing else has.

And it now looks like there might be a vat increase from 17.5% to 20% which is going to put every thing up even more, god knows what petrol/diesel going to cost us soon.Because of my disability I need a car as I cannot walk half a mile to the bus stop,so the money I would have had will now have to go on petrol/diesel instead of buying games.

Personaly I can't see it coming out in May or June otherwise I think they would have started to show some screen shots of it by now,to get us interested.

Michael

[lateagain]

Hi Michael,

Indeed, useless as my vote turned out to be last week (except in our local elections ), there was no way we were going to escape tax increases. I'll have some money on with your's that the 20% VAT increase is far from being "down the list" of hikes Trouble is that despite the rantings of the UK media, blaming this party or that policy, I think the £'s value has more to do with our links with Europe and the economic crisis in at least two other countries as well as Greece and that's what's holding the € & £ down against the $. Interesting comments in the papers today about what the CONDEM's are proposing on State Pensions but that'll be next year anyway. Diesel? Well that hits everything because everything is delivered in vans nowadays so the higher it goes the higher prices go. All you and I have going for us is the patience that age brings? We won't die if we don't get it in the first posting and we can wait for a favourable exchange rate to buy from across the pond?

The good news is that there are now so many excellent freeware models of stock that ran over the S&D that I'm sure there will be loads of activities written using those.

Until there's a release date and a price it's all speculation really.

Geoff