Rating: 
Summary: If you like Trains
Review: If you like trains this is a must have. A few small bugs in the program but sure microsoft will come out with a patch. I give microsoft a A on this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Video Cards
Review: This program did not work with my video card. Buyers are well advised to check the Microsoft site to see if the program will work with their video card. There are a number of them that it won't work with. I couldn't even get the patch to work.
Rating: 
Summary: Trainsim Rocks
Review: I like this game alot (Caution: don't buy if you have the early edition of the Pentium 2) but the wiper's aren't visible in the cockpit and they should also put in some more railroads and locomotives too. Right after I write this review I'm going to go to their website to check for product updates.
Rating: 
Summary: Could have been good, but too many bugs / lack of polish
Review: I found this game to be fun overall, but it could be much more fun if it wasn't for all the bugs and lack of features. It frequently crashes, sending Windows 2000 to a blue screen. There is also a very annoying "coupler broken" bug that prevents you from finishing many of the activities or running through activities of your own. Also, the editor tools are hopelessly buggy. Typical of Microsoft software, it lacks polish and feels like an early beta version. This game could have been so much more, but falls way short of the target. It could use another 6 months of development time.
Rating:
Summary: For real train buffs only..
Review: Train Simulator is an extremely realistic game, the graphics are excellent, sounds extremely believable, and game play probably as close to real life as it could ever get. The only problem is after playing the game for a while, it gets extremely boring. The program comes with an add on program which allows for the user to create new routes, new maps, and new activities (activities are the basis of the game - you have to get x cargo to x place in x time, etc), but it is extremely EXTREMELY rudimentry, and very hard to use/understand its almost like using a CAD program, complete with x and y axis. But according to Microsoft's website, the version which is included with the game is more powerful, and easier to use than what was used to create the actual routes and activites which are included in the game. Hopefully there will be free downloadable updates to the Editor, as well as additional activites, since the game only comes with approximatly 10 for each route. The game also requires an installation onto the hard drive, it cannot be played from a CD, so depending on how many routes you choose to install, it can take up to 1.6 gigabytes of space. Over all its a great game, and I love playing it, but there just comes a time when you get bored playing the same activities over and over again, and sitting there dealing with speed restrictions for an hour at a time is very annoying.
Rating:
Summary: Good, mesmerizing...but be careful
Review: As a late middle age adult who can't afford to learn how to fly *pout* so I love the Microsoft Flight Simulator, I remember the trains waking me up in urban Wisconsin in the 1950s, and the long train rides I took in Europe and India while a young adult. I have, therefore, a soft spot for the rail. So, yeah, I got this program. Oh, for those adults wondering about simulators--will the neighbors think you're adolescent?... The simulators are fun, exciting, etc. There...I got that one out... .... I installed the program on... a computer with more than enough requirement. Nonetheless I had a major problem with the 3-D program. I had to e-mail the company who provided that and they bailed me out right away, but it was disconcerting... Since then, the program works well. I suppose I could get bored with it eventually. Part of the solution to that problem is not to allow it to get TOO mesmerizing. Write a letter. Get some work done. Maybe talk to the wife once in a while. You know, drudgery like that. Aside from that, it's fun, pure and simple. The manual is something like 60 pages long. Run it off if you'd like and learn something you never knew about trains. Or take the line from Washington to Philadelphia and do a good 120 mph. The things to watch out for are: 1) Yes, it does take up an inordinate amount of space on your hard drive. 2) Make sure you have a pretty up-to-date system or you won't be able to run it. Incidentally, it think both 1 and 2 are a consequence of the scenery required to make the program as realistic as possible. 3) There are limited routes. (This is mitigated, I think, by (a) my not using the program all the time, therefore not getting bored to tears with it (b) changing the weather conditions and (c) using different assingments or whatever they're called, presenting different challenges. What's more, the steam engines require a lot of attention (and I haven't even come close to managing them!) Then go and enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: For Train buffs that enjoy sims...
Review: If you enjoy trains and complex computer sims than you should enjoy this game. Since I live in Philadelphia, I can attest that the scenary is not only good looking but accurate. Some of the other reviewers have complained about the hardware requirements for the game. I have a Compaq AMD Athlon 1.2ghz, 128 megs RAM, 32mb TNT2 card computer and the game runs smoothy and well except for the opening video sequence. If you are someone that is seriously (and I heavily emphasize that) into trains, than you will enjoy this game. I only deducted a star because it has too few locomotives in it IMHO (what? No Pennsy GG-1 or any American Steam locomotives!). -Tom
Rating: 
Summary: Not good and no fun
Review: Boring.. waited for this along time and now discover that you cannot control any trip at all.. very unlike the flight sim. just the same old routine again and again.
Rating:
Summary: dead environment
Review: This game does not live up to the standards established by previous Microsoft simulators, such as the popular Flight Simulator series. Think twice before buying this game. The system requirements are pretty high, compared to other sims, such as Microsoft Midtown Madness. This is pretty outrageous, considering that you can do more in the car sim than in the train sim! The game was extremely choppy and crashed often on my PII 400 MHz, 128 MB, 12 MB Diamond Monster II machine. Granted, it's a few years old, but it should handle something as simple as this. The game play was dull and uninteresting, even for a train enthusiast. The scenary is very dull with the same type of objects gliding by mile after mile, 2D trees, and unrealistic placement of the buildings. There are barely any railroad crossings and you can't hear the sounds of the gates as you fly by. When trying passenger runs, the first thing you'll notice is that there are absolutely no passengers standing on the platform waiting for you and there are hardly any other trains or vehicles during the rest of your train ride. Driving through some of the mountains is also boring. I left the game on for 10 minutes and didn't see anything except grass, a few trees, and tunnels. There is hardly a challenge here. In addition, the game crashes quite often, and has many bugs. Outside views of the train are frequently clipped from environment shadows, as a passenger, you can see the train tracks beneath you (as if there's no floor!), and the train signs are hard to read. The controls are not worth much either and you'll spend most of your time fighting with the controls instead of trying to control the train! A great idea, but needs much, much more work to be considered a serious sim.
Rating:
Summary: train simulator
Review: here's a good one. ordered the game 2nd week of july, recieved game the 25th,only thing wrong was it was a game for skateboarding, sent back to lexington, ky.today is 8/11/01 and still don't have anything... maybe your train is good but I can't rate it if I never get it..war is h--- huh
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