Classic, German, main line diesel traction comes to Train Sim World for the first time! The DB BR 218, developed by TSG is out now!
The Story So Far...
If this is the first time you're hearing the news, it's been a few months since we revealed this locomotive in our Roadmap and since then TSG has been keeping us up to speed with the development process:
- First reveal in April Roadmap
- Introduction from TSG in May Roadmap
- Screenshots + TSG Q&A in June Roadmap
- First Look Video
- Timetable Overview Article
Locomotive & Rolling Stock Compatibility
The DB BR 218 has origins in the 1960s and hauled both passenger and freight trains throughout Germany before the wider introduction of both DMUs and electric locomotives across an increasingly electrified network.
In Train Sim World 4, the locomotive has all the nuances and features typical of diesel traction, including the careful management of gear setting and brakes across the different types of consist and formation that the 218 would operate with.
Double-headed and 'top-and-tailed' formations are possible with freight and passenger trains using stock from within the routes that it layers into, including variants of both n-Wagen and Dostos passenger cars.
When using the DB BR 218 in both Formation Designer or Free Roam, it's important to remember that the n-Wagen set included in the release features cab control specific to diesel locomotive operation. Alternative versions of the n-Wagen (such as in Bremen - Oldenburg) will not operate correctly.
Equally, the Dostos featured in Maintalbahn feature the correct setup for working with this type of diesel locomotive, including the door controls. Dostos from other German route Add-ons may operate differently.
Route Add-ons:
Hamburg - Lübeck & Maintalbahn
The primary route for the DB BR 218 loco Add-on is the Train Sim World Compatible Hauptstrecke Hamburg – Lübeck route Add-on. Here players can operate the 218 in timetable mode across 29 services.
Read the full timetable breakdown in our previous article.
Four Scenarios are also included for this route covering both passenger and freight operations:
- Early Bird: A simple run from Hamburg (in the 218 with Dostos) bringing a chartered early morning train to Lübeck.
- Late Picker: A late running train from Lübeck to Hamburg (in the Dosto cab car pushed by a 218), gathering passengers from each station. The schedule it tight and the train gets heavy!
- To The Rescue: Double-headed 218s going to Bargteheide to bring back a broken down train to Rothenburgsort yard.
- Foul Weather Freight: A slightly heavy train with a double formation of 218s from Rothenburgsort to Lübeck yard in challenging conditions with some overtaking and wait times.
Players with both Hamburg - Lübeck and Maintalbahn will be able to operate additional services on the more recent Maintalbahn route Add-on. This is to represent a period between December 2017 and 2018 where Westfrankenbahn required additional traction to replace a DB BR 642 that had been allocated elsewhere. A DB BR 218 was provided.
Free Roam will no doubt be a popular way to experience this free-to-roam diesel locomotive across many of the German route Add-ons available for Train Sim World 4... no overhead wires required!
As a note, the BR 218 comes with a variant of the n-Wagen compatible with diesel traction - the n-Wagens with Bremen-Oldenburg and Linke Rheinstrecke ae designed for electric traction and may not function in the same way in free roam and formation designer.
Train Sim World 4: DB BR 218 loco Add-on will be available from 25th June for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Epic Games Store, and Steam for £14.99/€17.99/$17.99
Just yesterday, we also released our latest TSW4 core update, focusing on German and Asutrian related add-on fixes and improvements. This included a set of patch notes for Hauptstrecke Hamburg – Lübeck:
- Added missing thumbnails and descriptions to Journey Mode chapters
- Added several new AI services for the BR 628
- Added Railpool Vectron substitution
You can find the full changelog on our June 24th Game Update thread.
Join the Railfan TV team on Twitch and YouTube for a post-release showcase stream of the loco Add-on in action at 18:00 UTC / 19:00 BST on Thursday, 27th June!
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