While I am writing this blog article, the rest of the team is hardworking to have the new version 1.2 ready for you. I expect it’ll take a week to move it to the stable branch. So before it’s ready, let’s talk about the new features you can look forward to playing. It has been moved to the 🧪 Unstable branch where you can try it. For free, but on your own responsibility ;).

But first, I’d like to take the time to announce the winners of our timetable map contest! I thank all participants (creators as well as voters) and congratulate the winners!

1. Inside the Coachyard, by Eduran
2. Oss Central, by Typerim
3. The Grand Station, by Toby

Be sure to check out the winning “Inside the Coachyard” map and give it a try. I am sure you’ll enjoy it as I did! Or just check Mr. Hellish playing it. And btw. I am a host in his show there:

1.2 – the Contracts Update

Initially, we wanted to focus on one category and make the new content update around that category. But later on, we’ve included much more things into the update, so we somehow left that idea behind. On top of that, the new version features the updated tutorial mentioned in the previous post. And we plan to expand it with future updates even more. I’ll tell you about that plan in one of the forthcoming blog posts.

Contracts Managers

The most significant and most notable feature is the Contract Managers. These new upgrades in the endless mode help you automate the workflow of the contracts management. We find choosing the proper contracts (and declining the others) a core part of the gameplay. But later in the game, you may find yourself in need of a specific contract. And we know that waiting is a little troublesome. Fortunately, with the help of new upgrades, you have the option to configure your expectation. You set up the conditions which contract you’d like to see. And the contracts managers will do the hard job of declining the contracts you don’t want for you!

On top of that, we also increase the number of offered contracts you can have at once. In the beginning, there’s a limit of three offered contracts. But you can increase that number to up to ten offered contracts at once with proper upgrades. There’s also an upgrade for boosting the speed of how often the new contracts are generated.

Endless Cycles

Faster Switches

A new upgrade allows trains to go much faster on switches when not in a straight direction. We hope this will enable you to optimize the traffic even more to your liking. Speaking of this category of upgrades, I am still unsure whether to include a new “what’s straight direction” configuration on every switch. That would bring even more possibilities with traffic optimization. Let me know your points on this topic in the discussion.

Screenshot sizes

And much more

NEW: Story-based tutorial for new player
NEW: Simplified menu for new player
NEW: More Contract Offers upgrade for increasing the offered contracts limit to 10
NEW: Structural Contracts Manager upgrade that allows setting preferred contract types and rejects other offered contracts
NEW: Financial Contracts Manager upgrade that allows setting minimal reward for contracts and rejects offered contracts that do not provide it
NEW: Regional Contracts Manager upgrade that allows setting preferred station contracts should use and rejects offered contracts that do not
NEW: Boosted Contracts upgrade for contracts to generate twice as fast
NEW: Ability to adjust entire train timetable at once
NEW: Cycle Report and score for endless maps
NEW: Display tunnel connector and price during building
NEW: Explaining text displayed when not possible to bulldoze a signal because one of connections is not free
NEW: Maps can be unsubscribed from Workshop ingame
NEW: Research item that raises switch speed limit
NEW: Simple background of loader scene
NEW: Trains UI panel is no longer being highlighted (dose not require attention) when stop at queued auto signal
NEW: When mouse on queued auto signal it will highlight the first destination track
NEW: Zoom on active station when starting endless map

The updated changelog will be with the full version release or on Discord.

The Development Team

Up Next?

There will be a follow-up article about the new sound design, we are putting into the Rail Route, starting with the 1.2 update!

Happy Dispatching!