Since I did not play MSTS back when, I am suddenly discovering the old game and it's content in - in my humble opinion - the most exciting way.The Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN), which comprises of a set of tiny, invasive/non-invasive, light-weight, high-energy-efficient biosensors that monitor human health for early diagnosis and therapy, has lately received a lot of interest from researchers.
Doing this with the Nvidia driver offers much higher quality and a cleaner 'picture' then the ReShade way. Nvidia stopped supporting their "3D Vision", so you will need to use their very last 3D-supporting driver 425.31. and either ReShade (via d3d9.dll), using the "Depth3D" option, or - much better quality - any Nvidia 3D card from the last 10 years. You are passing train stations and buildings, which look like the thing actual 3D model buyers get to play around with.Īll you need for this to work, is a 1950s style red-cyan plastic pair of plastic glasses (1-2 bucks on Amazon?). You suddenly see the quality that went into 3D modelling and are watching 'model trains' running in environments, which now 'really feel' like they are wide distance landscapes. TS20xx works with "VR for poor people" = (color) anaglyph stereoscopic 3D! Yes, you lose the colors, but the Train Sim turns suddenly into an amazing miniature 3D model Disneyland! All the existing 3D model data suddenly pops out and you can actually 'see' the distance, due to the z-buffer. To enhance the uneven assets look (2D Sprites) and wide color range, I injected "ReShade" into it, for tinkering with the visual quality.īut then, I discovered something amazing: My dedicated Railworks 1TB harddrive is filled to the edge with TS20xx assets & routes.
I also enjoy the subtle Force Feedback rumble effects of a gamepad controller (while still using keyboard/mouse too).
It also has the advantage to run on a ultra-widescreen setup and in Surround Sound (has some of the best video game positional sound of ANY PC game, even now). For that, TS20xx since 2012 was my go-to sim. I am the kind of Train Sim player who likes to gaze at the vistas, or get hypnotized by watching the animated Steam loco wheels turn. I came late to the "Train Simming", past my fourties. I prefer to spend my time driving trains rather than trying to de-bug activities for OR. And while OR can run rings around the old MSTS engine now with its ability to have AI couple up to trains, etc., the fact is that the vast bulk of activities written are for MSTS and do not necessarily work out of the box with OR. The other reason is that I like train simming for the activities, and not just running trains and looking at scenery. A really good activity designer is like a really good computer RPG: you get sucked into the action/story and suspend your disbelief for a while. Ever note that older supermodels (of the human kind -) appear in ads photographed from somewhat of a distance, rather than close-up? And with a sort of diffused lens? Same principal! OR's native 32-bit system is of course much clearer and sharper, but it's precisely that sharpness that makes it look somewhat toy-like: you can see that it's a modeled route and that it doesn't really resemble reality. Some older routes - the default Marias Pass with Mike Sinclair's upgrades and DB tracks comes to mind - look better because the focus is diffused. Since I'm aware of all the advantages of OR (and I use it exclusively with Sherman Hill), what could I possibly see in an old 16-bit system, other than, as others have said, the editors?īelieve it or not, the looks.
Well, every poll deserves a dissenting vote so I'll say that I use both MSTS and ORTS relatively equally.