Starting from 29 October, the videogame market has been enriched with a new title of simulative genre, let's talk about TramSim, the latest work developed by ViewApp and published by Aerosoft GmbH, which allows us to immerse ourselves in the shoes of a Austrian tram driver and to travel along the streets and stops of a Vienna tram line. After trying this title for PC we could only ask ourselves how the game will be able to evolve over time, for example with the presence of DLC not yet announced. The fact is that, after putting our hands on the current full version of the product, we are here to tell you about our in-depth proof of the work.
Therefore, since it is a simulator, it is good to specify that the playful experiences made available to the player are not particularly varied (we are not talking about an action or adventure title) and it is therefore obvious to say that, in the long run, it may turn out to be repetitive and monotonous (also for some aspects that we will analyze in the next lines).
Let's take the first steps on TramSim
Once we start TramSim on our computer, we will be faced (only for the first time) with a illustrative video, to explain how to take the first steps in selecting the our treats, from passenger arrangements toarrival. After having taken these first steps, simple and intuitive at first glance, we can see that, as regards the selection of passengers, it is possible to choose whether to play with the "Covid mode”Active (we will therefore notice that these will wear a mask) or not. This can be considered an interesting additional factor, which tries to make the player more empathize with a '360 degree simulation experience.
After setting up our route and choosing the game modes that will accompany us during our simulation experience, we will find ourselves inside the control cabin, having a console full of buttons in front of us. Most of these keys, once pressed, will be used to perform certain actions in the game (such as theopening and closing of doors o the switching on and off of the lights of our tram). Here, however, there is a first defect, some commands do not carry out any type of action in play, thus proving useless for the course of the route and being only useful as an aesthetic factor.
On a graphic level, the title offers some successful glimpses, so we can define it as pleasant to wander through the streets of Vienna and see buildings and landscapes with excellent graphic details. But unfortunately, there are still many bugs, some of the most relevant concern precisely the npc who stop in front of the tram (once they arrive at the stop) and, for some reason, they decide not to go up, starting to walk up and down the platform. Another problem certainly not indifferent concerns vehicles entering the tram lane, thus leaving the player in the benefit of the doubt whether he will collide with them or not.
Analyzing the tutorial, it should be noted that it is composed of one series of illustrative videos which explains (and does not allow the player to interact in the meantime) the use of various commands and various game mechanics. This therefore entails, in the early stages of the game, the need to pause your game to go and find out more about what is the actual list of commands. A further flaw is that all the writings on the TramSim console are in German and, unless you have a very good knowledge of the language, it will be very difficult to understand at first what action each button will perform.
Everyone in a carriage
We currently have a portion of the city of Vienna, the representation of line 1 and the related “Flexity” trams, the most recent and modern available to the Austrian capital. Obviously the work to recreate all the maps in 3D is not at all small and therefore, the developer's choice to start with a single line, could prove to be the most suitable choice to be implemented. Obviously the title needs several revisions in order to fix all the bugs present and, nothing excludes the fact that, in the future, it will be possible to run on more tram lines or even expand one's career with additional content (DLC) that will take players not only within the city of Vienna, but also to other Austrian cities.
