Recent reviews by Jules

Although I've only got 8 hours on steam, I've played hundreds of hours outside of steam. Here's what I have to say:

Although this game shows its age, it's an awesome transport/city management game, with a surprising amount of depth, especially when combined with NewGRFs or a patch pack! With so much user-made content available in the game, you can pretty much make any transport system you want. My personal favourite is the Japan Set, with some of the local subway trains, but there are sets for the majority of countries

If you enjoy the Transport Fever games, then you should definitely give this a try

I've played this game on and off through a decent chunk of its development, and I must say, it's the best puzzle game I've played, and also one of my favourite games in recent years. Here's why:

This game is difficult. Not just for the first 5 mins. Its a challenging, yet rewarding experience throughout the whole game. Most games like this will be hard until you get set up, when almost all difficulty goes away, but this game gets the balance just right. Not too hard that you keep losing, but not so easy that once you get going there's no challenge.

But its not impossible. The game paces the introduction of features. Your first station will only use the core mechanics of the game, but as you progress, you are gradually introduced to overheating, shopping ranges, criminals, and a wide range of other game-enhancing features.

The thing that really sealed the deal on this being one of my favourite games in the last few years, though, is the events. When I first got this game, events didn't exist, and this is probably the biggest change in my opinion. The events create loads of unique challenges, and if you can't deal with them, your station reputation can take a massive turn for the worse. Again, it just keeps you on your toes and focused for the whole game.

There are a couple of things you should understand to make your experience more enjoyable.

Some features of this game can be a bit confusing until you realise they are set up that way as deliberate limitations. A great example of this is how you can only build on one floor in any one place. No tunnelling under other walkways, or bridging over the top. No intersecting platforms on different levels. At first, this seems like a limitation of the game. However, I came to realise that in reality, its a deliberate feature which in my opinion adds a HUGE amount of depth to this game. It forces you to be creative and resourceful with your station construction.

Another 'limitation': Wall mounted objects. While initially I was frustrated there were too many things to fit on the walls, I actually found myself really enjoying the tough choices this created. Do I use my walls to generate income? Do I use my walls to cool down my station? How can I create more wall spaces? Having got used to the game, I can now see how great these features actually are.

All in all, I would highly recommend this game, whether you're a puzzler, city builder, or even just someone who likes trains... :P

with over 1000 hours in this game, I can safely say that it is a great game. yes, it does have problems, like the matchmaker, but if you look past those, you find an absolute gem of a game that offers content for enthusiasts and gamers alike, not to mention the level of beauty on the models AND the maps