Advantages: slow enjoyment
Disadvantages: no fast kicks

...This game was released in 2001.Some people did not give it much hope. After all it was a game about driving trains. Yet here we are at the end of 2004 and it is still there. For the technology of the time it was quite good. But it could run slowly on some PC's. The hard drive requirement was large and there was no immediate adrenaline rush that you get with some games. This could only apply for a small specialised corner of the game market. After all, how difficult could it be driving a train. O.K. so you had to follow the tutorial to learn how to start a train, and you learned how to stop one. They are not like driving cars. Especially Steam Engines. Electric or diesels are easier, Take of the brakes, put into drive, apply power and away you go. What people do not realise is that a train can weigh in at hundreds of tons... Read review

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Advantages: Great graphics
Disadvantages: Slow moving and tedious

...but a little low on the excitement side, at least for my tastes. For anyone with even a slight interest in trains, Train Simulator will provide a great way to get inside the world of railroading, at least from an engineer's perspective. People who are nuts about trains -- you know who you are -- will find Train Sim to be the most in-depth and enjoyable train simulator on the market. Nevermind that it's the only one out there -- it's still the best. 8/10... Read review

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Advantages: Absorbing simulation not just for trainspotters!
Disadvantages: None

...Firstly I am not a trainspotter wearing a dirty anorak ;) Secondly I am not a spotty kid going through a funny spell (I'm 39) Thirdly I am not mad. I point this out as Trainz (or Trainz Railroad Simulator 2004 as it is called in it's current version) is the only "game" that has remained on my PC year after year without file with me getting every version upon launch. This review and the features below are based on this latest version. Before using this program I was not even particularly interested in trains. But Trainz, developed by Australian company Auran, is more than a Train Simulation. Much more. To appreciate it you have to spend more than a few days playing around with the different features of the program. How about these for some choices? 1. Build a train layout as large as you wish for any region... Read review

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Advantages: Crystal clear graphics.
Disadvantages: Difficult at times.

..., it was inevitable that the game would take an eternity to install. It didn't disappoint, it took bloody ages. If you have nothing better to do while the installation is happening, you can watch the screen as it gives a basic tutorial on the game followed by advertising. One word of advice though. Don't set the installation away and then leave the computer altogether as it asks for disc 2 after around 28% of installation. When you finally get the game started you will come to the `home` screen. As you would expect with this type of screen it is just a band of menus. These range from your basic options to your tutorials and the main game itself. I strongly advise that you take the tutorial option first as you won't have a clue how to operate the train otherwise. Me, being the `jump straight in` type, tried to drive a train straight away and just couldn... Read review

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Advantages: see opinion
Disadvantages: see opinion

...Question- How can you tell when a train spotter reaches orgasm? Answer- He drops his notebook and binoculars. That puerile little aside is the sort of thing that I would have said up until a few months ago. However, something that happened to me over the intervening weeks has caused me to re-assess my cynicism. I have become an ardent 'Train-Simmer'. Now this does not mean that I boil on the East Coast Mainline (is it possible to boil on an English train? I heard that when it's cold Connex put a candle in each carriage, and when it's -15 degrees they even light it!). I have been given a copy of Microsoft's Train Simulator, and I have, quite simply become addicted. To start with I had better give you the minimum spec it will accept: Pentium II 266 4MB 3D Hardware accelerator Win 95/98/Me 32MB Ram 500 MB Hard Disk... Read review

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Advantages: Superb graphics, sound and realism
Disadvantages: Lack of route mileage and activities

...Step back to a time when the UK rail system was the envy of the world. Rail Simulator allows you to drive some of the greatest diesel, electric and steam locomotives ever built. If you're familiar with Microsoft Train Simulator then let me tell you that Rail Simulator beats it hands down with superior sound quality, blistering graphics and realistic train handling. The controls are also very similar to those of MSTS meaning you can begin driving as soon as the software is installed. My only complaint is that the developers have focused so much on the fine detail of the four routes included on the disc, that they have neglected to include route mileage. The number of activities provided is also quite low, but you'll find many more on the Official Expansion Pack and the UK Train Sim website. Definitely one to purchase... Read review

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Advantages: very realistic, detailed
Disadvantages: needs high spec PC

...I don’t usually write reviews on games, but Microsoft Train Simulator is just so exceptional I thought I must. I’m not even particularly interested in trains. I’ve never been train spotting and I’ve never taken an interest in how a locomotive works. However, when I saw Microsoft Train Simulator advertised, I thought, “I’ve just got to have it.” The first thing being, it’s just such an unusual product. Yeah sure, you can get flight simulators and racing simulators, but who’s ever heard of a train simulator? On buying Train Simulator I was a bit apprehensive. What would it be like? The read-ups had all said that you need a high-spec PC to run it. Mine’s not exactly high-spec, but it’s not too bad either, at a speed of 950MHz. However, my graphics card is definitely not something to shout about – just an old ATI Rage 98 16MB... Read review

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Advantages: Can be fun
Disadvantages: Lack of street cred

...somewhere in the middle. There's miles of open space where you have little to do, and painstakingly slow sections of track where speed limits have been imposed. Have a cup of tea or 10 while you're playing this game, or better still watch TV at the same time. It can get boring, very boring infact, but at other times it can be rather fun, and you get an awesome sense of fulfilment when you do something well. Microsoft have produced this game as well as a Train Simulator could be hoped to do. Apart from the frame rate, which is more than likely limited to my PC, my only other fault would be that the tracks are very linear, going from A to B rather than being a network of tracks spanning a large area. Apart from that, there's not a lot of room for improvement, the simple fact is that trains just aren't going to make a world class title. So... Read review

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Advantages: None that i can think of
Disadvantages: graphics

...into buying this, I didn’t really think about the game content when I got it. I mean who pays £50 to drive a computer-simulated train up a track, stopping at a few stations, and maybe causing a derailment. Its one of those things that you buy and use for a few days, and then never use it again. Luckily the shop I got it from gives refunds if you don’t like the games. The moral of the story is don’t look at the back of a computer game box and expect the graphics to look anything like what the box shows, they are always worse! Well if this doesn’t put you off from buying it, I will go ahead and tell you what features to expect. 9 trains to drive, including the Flying Scotsman. About 600 miles of track to drive on (how boring), including a Scottish track. Expandable software allowing you to create your own tracks... Read review

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Advantages: good
Disadvantages: nothing

...Hello dear readers and reader! I was gladly as I finally the points fully having 10,000. With which provider in the Internet I would not like to say however with another Meinungsportal(will no schleichwerbung to operate). To select I could now between some things, but I decided to hesitate immediately without for a PC play. After long considering and some PC magazines rolls fell my selection on the play Train simulator from the house Microsoft.. I may admire it driving model railways, but behind it I yet did not sit down. But I was somehow always something enthusiastically from the small courses in numerous cellars the workstation found. And then as I in the network after some printout-strong Screenshots searched and which found natural, was absolutely convinced I of the grandiosen Game. On 28 June the play came into the German... Read review

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