Hey, train engineers! I’m happy to present Update 17, dedicated to new locations and the implementation of NPCs into the game. This has been the longest and most technically complex update in the game’s history. I had no plans to drag out development this long, but it was necessary to implement a large amount of new content and complex features simultaneously, as the integrity of the story would have fallen apart if these features were added gradually or separately.
But let’s go step by step. The main addition of this update is 2 new locations with a new prairie biome. The first location is a transitional zone from the swamp biome and currently contains no points of interest for the player. Such locations will now appear regularly, as they allow players to enjoy the journey and scenery from the window. In the future, players will also be able to hunt animals (which will be abundant), collect herbs for brewing drinks, and even fish — if I manage to implement that feature.
The second location already includes a survivor base and other interesting places that we will visit as part of the story, receiving tasks from NPCs. According to the lore, the base survived due to serious fortifications, but the residents suffered heavy losses and need your help. For now, we can interact with key NPCs to receive quests or general information aimed at explaining the events after the major zombie attack and partially before it. In the future, I will try to make the remaining base residents interactive to improve immersion. I’ve also tried to create a sense of life on the base: NPCs follow schedules, go to their workplaces, and return to their apartments at night. Non-quest NPCs engage in specific activities, from guarding the perimeter and repairing equipment to caring for the wounded in the local hospital.
With the introduction of NPC-given quests, a quest log has been added, where descriptions of current quests appear alongside small map images and other elements designed to simplify the completion of each task.
Given all the above, completing quests would be extremely challenging without a detailed map showing key points. The map has long been a popular request, but now it has become a necessity. By default, the player and locomotive are not displayed on the map, but you can enable this option in the difficulty settings.
As tradition dictates, the new location includes new types of firearms and melee weapons, firearm upgrades, new outfits, a collectible figurine, and soundtrack vinyls.
Starting with this update, I plan to maintain 100% localization for most of the most popular languages. As before, if your language is not supported, you can assist with localization using a dedicated tool — I’ll greatly appreciate your help, as localization is a crucial part of the game.
CHANGELOG
Improvements
Added 2 new locations.
In one of the new locations, at the survivor base, NPCs have been implemented with whom the player can interact and receive quests. Completing these quests will reveal the story and allow the player to progress further in the plot.
Battle scenes between humans and zombies have been set up in all old locations.
Hunger, thirst, and sleep indicators are now displayed above the quick slots.
Added a map with the option to enable player and train display in the difficulty menu. By default, it is activated with the M key.
Each map now displays its name.
Added a quest log. By default, it is activated with the J key.
100% localization for the following languages: German, Dutch, French, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Russian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Turkish.
The state of open or closed doors is saved when loading the game.
Broken doors do not restore after loading a save.
New models of railway track dead ends have been implemented.
Farm tractors have been added to farms in the swamps.
Added 3 new music themes: 2 daytime themes and 1 theme for the train.
Colliders have been implemented under cars in the supermarket parking lot with a Boss to reduce the chance of the lever getting stuck under cars.
Reduced the volume of opening wooden crates.
Reduced the volume of the smelting furnace sound.
Reduced the number and volume of crow cries.
Increased the initial fuel in the locomotive's tank from 326 to 396. This should reduce instances of running out of fuel before reaching a refueling station.
Several bottles of water have been added to the kitchen of the first location to ease survival in the early stages of the game.
More sand piles have been placed in the first location for resource gathering.
The resource of each sand pile has been increased by 100%.
Beaches with sand piles have been added for the airplane location, and beaches have also been implemented for new locations.
Added several text triggers in the first location intended to further reveal the story and the player's future tasks, as well as a mini stealth tutorial.
Character dialogue voiceovers have been removed and replaced with sound effects.
Key models have been improved.
Changes
All workbenches are now automatic.
Renamed text slots on storage from E to Q.
Changing the run key from Shift does not remove item splitting in the inventory from this key.
Bug Fixes
Fixed melee weapon aiming after switching from firearms.
Fixed a bug where text colliders overlapping part of the wagon prevented workbenches from being placed.
Removed grass from some houses in the swamp location.
Plans for Future Updates
I rushed the release a bit to catch an important themed sale, so most of the bug fixes accumulated from the previous version and other improvements will be implemented in small updates dedicated to version 17. I also plan to devote significant time to optimizing the game, as many objects without LOD were identified. A major effort to implement LOD in all game objects will begin for the 17 update but may extend into the 18 update. The 18 update will focus on redesigning the locomotive and implementing a system for installing armor and other upgrades for the locomotive. This update is planned to be small and should be completed in a month or slightly more.
Open testing of game version 17
Hey, train engineers! This is the final test update—I’m starting preparations for the official release. Estimated release time: 2-3 days.
CHANGELOG
Fixed a bug where door states were not saved in the first locations.
Fixed melee weapon aiming after switching from firearms.
Visiting the church before accepting the quest no longer requires revisiting it after obtaining the quest.
The map no longer shifts beyond its boundaries.
Added smooth map zoom.
Removed character dialogue voice-over; replaced with sound effects.
Terrain now extends when approaching the edge of new locations.
Open testing of game version 17
CHANGELOG
Fixed a bug preventing players from reversing out of the new location back to the previous one.
Implemented 100% localization for German, Dutch, Spanish, and Simplified Chinese.
Added more sand piles for resource gathering in the first location.
Resources per sand pile increased by 100%.
Added beaches with sand piles to the airplane location and more sand piles in new locations.
Reworked NPC death animations.
Added text triggers to the first location to expand the plot, clarify player objectives, and introduce a mini stealth tutorial.
Open testing of game version 17
Hey, train drivers! I'm happy to announce the start of the open testing phase for version 17 of the game. Thanks to the closed testing, all critical bugs have been fixed, and the game is almost ready for release. However, I’d still like to conduct a large-scale open test to try and uncover any issues that might not have appeared during the closed testing.
I strongly recommend backing up your current saves before starting the testing.
The password to access the testing branch: RQNElNUMmCP0Bm
Right-click on the game title.
Click "Properties".
Select the "Betas" tab.
Enter the access code for the test.
From the drop-down menu, choose the test version.
CHANGELOG
Improvements
Added 2 new locations
In one of the new locations at the survivors' base, NPCs have been implemented—players can interact with them, receive quests, and uncover the story, allowing them to progress further in the plot
Designed battle scenes between humans and zombies in all old locations
Hunger, thirst, and sleep indicators have been placed above the quick slots
Added a map with the option to display the player and train in the difficulty menu (default key: M)
Map names are now displayed on each map
Added a quest log (default key: J)
Door states (open/closed) are now saved when loading the game
Broken doors no longer reset after loading a save
Implemented new models for dead-end railway tracks
Added farm tractors to the swamp farms
Added 4 new music tracks: 2 daytime themes and 2 train themes
Added colliders under cars in the supermarket boss parking lot to reduce the chance of the lever getting stuck under vehicles
Reduced the volume of wooden crate openings
Reduced the volume of the smelting furnace sound
Decreased the number and volume of crow caws
Increased the initial fuel in the locomotive’s tank from 326 to 396 to reduce fuel depletion before players reach a refueling point
Removed grass from the floors in some houses in the urban location
Added several water bottles to the kitchen in the first location to ease survival in the early game
Changes
All workbenches are now automatic
Renamed text prompts on storage containers from E to Q
Changing the sprint key from Shift no longer affects item splitting in the inventory
Fixed Bugs
Removed grass from some houses in the swamp location
Day of Toilet Zombie Heads.
Hey, drivers! In the Halloween event, I wrote that I would try to periodically spoil players with new events. The last big update is a good reason to pamper you again, so I'm announcing a one-day but very important event, the day of toilet zombie heads. Destroy 30 toilet zombie heads and receive an incredible, useful and rare item that can be crafted in one of the workbenches.
The event will start at 12 am in your time zone.
Version 17 update news
Hey, machinists! Work on the update is nearing completion and I decided to share the work done. The last news was dedicated to the characters, and this news will affect the environment.
This time, all events will take place in the steppe zone. I studied the existing cities in this zone to try to recreate the atmosphere as close to the real one as possible.
I also decided to create completely new buildings for this zone, from public buildings to private residential buildings. I have long been dissatisfied with the overly simplified buildings in the game and decided to start changing the approach to their creation. In the future, at least, residential buildings will be finalized to varying degrees in all old locations.
A trifle, but it has long been suggested to create a letter base for creating signs for the name of a building, for example, to indicate a police station or other buildings. Finally, this was implemented in the upcoming update.
BEWARE OF SPOILERS! Below will be presented multiple screenshots of the future location. If you want to keep the look of the survivor base and its surroundings a secret, you should stop here.
Christmas decor elements
Hey, drivers! Happy Christmas to all and good luck next year! During these Christmas days, until the end of the sale, themed decorations and decor items will be available to create a festive mood on your train.
Update 16.5 Alpha
CHANGELOG
Improvements
Reduced the brightness of the environment for tunnels and basements by 50%.
Implemented support for monitors with an aspect ratio of 4:3.
The Y-axis invert setting has been replaced with a checkbox.
100% Japanese localization.
100% German localization.
100% Spanish localization.
100% Polish localization.
100% Ukrainian localization.
Bug fixes
Localization of slider values is applied immediately.
Fixed the blocking of the robot when entering the supermarket gate in the city location.
Halloween event
Hey, drivers! I invite you to take part in a small Halloween event.
Smash Halloween pumpkins to reveal themed decorations for your train. You will also find some content and memes dedicated to Halloween.
Redesign of the Locomotive and release of the soundtrack.
Hey, drivers! A few months ago, a player Arling wrote to me with a proposal to model a new improved train and create modifications for it. In the process of discussing the redesign of the train and its improvements, I realized that Arling has an incredible imagination for unusual technical solutions for various equipment. Some technical changes were made to the old locomotive, the interior was completely redesigned, as well as improvements and full armoring of the hull. You can see the result of our work below.
We plan to extend our cooperation. In the plans, at least a redesign of the car platform and all game workbenches, and then we'll see. The probable time of implementation of this locomotive is the 18th version of the game.
I am also glad to announce that today the soundtrack for the game was released. If you liked the music from the recent update and want to support the development, this is a good way to do it.
