Open Rails on Steam software use steam workshop for better interaction and accessibility
#1
Posted 17 November 2018 - 04:28 AM
We could get mutch more users interacting and developing more content.
For me this game seams like "garry's mod" but for trains. When i play this game i always experiment new content (trains and routes).
#2
Posted 17 November 2018 - 12:08 PM
sergio, on 17 November 2018 - 04:28 AM, said:
Well I guess it's possible (and only costs $100 to get a seller account).
We are currently working on a mechanism for self-installing content, so that an Open Rails simulator can find, download and install content that has been suitably packaged and published. This will be suitable for both free and commercial content. It's intended for the release after Release 1.3 which is published this weekend.
#3
Posted 17 November 2018 - 03:41 PM
sergio, on 17 November 2018 - 04:28 AM, said:
Seems to me, based on user posts at TS that the only interaction between TS20xx users and MSTS users is the request to import one another's content. The requirements to create content for MSTS doesn't appear to be opening inviting to content creators of other sims. I have used TrainZ, but seldom visit Steam...going there only when there is no choice. Going there is an invitation to be bombarded with ads for all sorts of games and such I have no interest in. Given the number of content creators seems very small regardless of sim, and the time needed to create the content, I don't see a lot of users jumping on the band wagon. Those that would probaly have already done so.
#4
Posted 17 November 2018 - 05:03 PM
#5
Posted 18 November 2018 - 03:04 AM
#6
Posted 18 November 2018 - 07:02 AM
cjakeman, on 17 November 2018 - 12:08 PM, said:
Thanks, big news.
The UI should also be improved like a normal game (opengl menu with less buttons).
Open rails should also come with a standard route activity, to show what OR can do, because developers are spending time developing new features but the new and lazy users dont know anything.
ckawahara, on 17 November 2018 - 03:41 PM, said:
Because people dont know the capabilites of OR. If developers are still developing the game with more fancy features, people will join. A better documentation and tools like TSRE5 are important for that to.
Steam display ads based on your preferences and popular games, what you saying is just a personal preference, i like to see the last news, promotions and sales.
The content creators are small in every train simulator game, and will decrease from "dtg train simulator" because of "dtg train sim world".
When i have any doubt from Open Rails, just google it, and in a few minutes the answer is found, a lot of information from 2002 to now days are still compatible to open rails.
#7
Posted 01 December 2018 - 05:39 AM
As for Steam, I don't know if it's a good fit for ORTS or not. Given that train simulators are a rather niche hobby, Steam may not offer much of an advantage in promotion of Open Rails, while costing in terms of distribution on the platform.
What might work better is a means to integrate an optional content distribution system that's tied to the Open Rails website -- or perhaps even better -- a distribution platform definition that's open source and can be built upon by anyone. Make publication of content easy, using a website and RSS. Open Rails would need an internal RSS client and appropriate programming/scripts to handle placing files correctly into their proper folders and making them available to the sim. (Note -- It's not going to happen overnight, especially not until Open Rails file formats are formally defined -- that's still very much a work in progress as the sim moves beyond MSTS.)
Allowing multiple sources won't solve the fragmentation problem, but Steam won't solve that either. Yes, Steam has its distribution channel for games and Steam Workshop for game mods, but moddable games can take on mods from outside the Steam ecosystem -- so fragmentation of content sources remains. Look at Euro / American Truck Simulator. Mods are available from many sources beyond Steam, and many modders simply don't want to work within the perceived limits of the Steam Workshop system.
Not to mention, I don't think the trainsim community will react well to a distribution platform that doesn't have some form of human curation, for various reasons. Steam is largely automated -- the process of taking down a mod which infringes on someone's IP, or is just useless and non-functional, takes time to escalate -- more than many might consider acceptable. Tasking the official Open Rails volunteers to curate a content repository is simply asking too much.
In the end, many distribution points and a common interface inside the Open Rails launcher might be the most workable compromise. At most, the Open Rails volunteers could curate promotion links to content creator's distribution sources in the interface, which would probably just echo a similar page on the ORTS website. It would be up to to the individual user to link or subscribe to the individual source(s).
#8
Posted 01 December 2018 - 09:35 AM
#9
Posted 01 December 2018 - 10:46 AM
Steam- Just pure evil.
Steam is not much different than Google and I can't stand them either.
Robert
#10
Posted 01 December 2018 - 11:42 AM