Train Sim World 5 Review (PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, & PC)

You may not be a fan of trains, but cruising down the routes Train Sim World 5 offers does something to you. It’s incredibly relaxing watching the lush green forest and busy freeways whisk by. Moreover, you have full control over your train so that you determine when to pick up pace and when to slow down. But as much as you can just decide to speed down the tracks, adhering to safety will net you some valuable XP points. It’ll allow you to deliver your passengers safely to their next destination, all the while ensuring that they don’t arrive late to work. It’s been a long time coming for the series, and the latest iteration proves Dovetail is only just getting started. Here’s our deep-dive Train Sim World 5 review to help you decide whether it’s the right game for you.

Carry Over

The best part about the new game is that you can carry over all the trains and routes you worked so hard on from the previous games and DLCs. You aren’t just playing the new game alone, but a ton of content curated across several games over the years. This makes playing Train Sim World 5 all the more attractive, especially when Dovetail has been fine-tuning the mechanics and revamping the visuals. So, if you’re a longtime fan of the series, don’t worry. You can always experience all the nostalgia, alongside new content, in the newest iteration of the series. 

Free Starter Pack

Furthermore, you can access a free starter pack for the new game. This gives you access to the training center, which is designed to hold your hand through the basics of driving trains you may already be aware of. For a span of roughly 30 minutes, you can learn to commandeer trains running on steam, diesel, and electricity. Of course, steam-powered trains will be more complex, demanding that you become familiar with a lot of controls. However, as technology has evolved, so have the trains, allowing for simpler control panels in the latest electric-powered trains. 

Training Center

In any case, the training center is pretty thorough, if not a little bogged down by a lot of information. It even teaches you about the history of some of the trains you’ll be driving, along with the tracks you’ll be speeding down. So, while veterans will quickly get up to speed with Train Sim World 5’s mechanics, newcomers can also catch up via the training center. First, stepping foot into the cockpit of the train can be intimidating with the many buttons on the control panel. However, the training center ensures that you can find your way around the trains easily, thus kicking your head back as you cruise down the tracks.

Free Roam

Once you can handle the speed and braking of the trains, you can proceed to choose the routes you like. Train Sim World 5 is pretty free-form, allowing you to cruise down the routes you prefer. As always, the new game takes us back to Germany, the UK, and the USA. We’re still holding out for the addition of new countries. The series is called Train Sim World, after all. Anyway, the new iteration at least adds some new routes to explore. More specifically, you access three new routes: West Coast Main Line: London Euston to Milton Keynes (UK), San Bernardino Line: Los Angeles to San Bernardino (USA), and Kinzigtalbahn: Frankfurt to Fulda (GER). 

For the West Coast Main Line, you can hop onto the Northwestern Class 350. However, with the Deluxe Edition, you can hop onto the Avanti West Coast Class 390 Pendolino, too. On the San Bernardino Line, you can transport passengers in the F125 and MP36 trains. The Deluxe Edition, on the other hand, stretches farther into the Cajon Peaks, allowing you to haul local freight alongside the hills of BNSF territory to Barstow. Lastly, Kinzigtalbahn gives you access to the DB BR 411 ICE-T, BR 114 + Dostos, and DB Vectron freight trains. Meanwhile, the Deluxe Edition offers the FlixTrain experience with its bright green scenic cross-country travel. 

Gameplay

Besides the addition of new trains and routes, the gameplay is pretty much the same. You still enjoy a smooth and fluid simulation of train driving. If anything, the trains feel like a copy-paste of an already functioning mechanic from the predecessor. Dovetail has been steadfast in translating the mechanics of the real-life counterpart trains. The same way you expect the trains to handle is the same way they do in the game. You have buttons that go incredibly in-depth into the functioning of a train, and you can operate each one separately. 

While you can use a mouse and keyboard, you may find it easier to use a controller as the buttons are pretty condensed, which can lead to mistakes when trying to locate the right ones. But this is all familiar news for veterans of the series. The gameplay is so similar, in fact, you should have no problem transitioning from Train Sim World 4 to Train Sim World 5. 

Further, the scoring system returns, tracking how well you handle the trains. You need to find the perfect balance between speed and safety, with the goal being to deliver your passengers to their destination in one piece. So, as much as toppling over can switch things up, the goal of the game is to simulate real-life commutes as closely as possible. And perhaps it’s the ingrained feeling of attaining an excellent rating that makes you want to adhere to safety measures. When you’re approaching a terminus, you want to start slowing down from a mile away to reach a natural stop. Then, wait for new passengers to board, and you can proceed with your journey. In time, the beauty of Train Sim World starts to sink in: the calmness and assurance of a commuting system that works.

Visuals

Part of the reason Train Sim World 5 is so relaxing is the intricately detailed environments you cruise by. Lush green forests and arid deserts whisk by you, combined with weather effects that can affect visibility. Dovetail has done a great job with the realism of the trains and the tracks they roll by. From the cockpit to the outside, the graphics are detailed and stunning. The only place where the environments didn’t feel as immersive was in LA, where the freeways sometimes had floating cars. Otherwise, the trains themselves look gorgeous in motion.

Did you know that you can design your own trains with the livery designer? The user-creation tools return with the option of building on the layers other gamers have created. The livery designer also allows you to create your own routes, but this is all old news. So, what else is new?

Conductor Mode

Well, for the first time ever, you can play as the conductor of the trains. So this means checking tickets, opening and closing doors, and ensuring passengers are happy. It’s a nice change of pace from driving the trains, although I’m unsure if every gamer will fancy playing the conductor. At the moment, it can feel a little shallow compared to the more comprehensive train driver role.

Additionally, you can now keep track of your train on a live map. On the flip side, you can study the schedules of other trains to see when they might coincide with yours. The live map lays out all the routes and station locations in great detail, providing quick access to timetables.

Route Hopping

Although a seemingly small feature, route hopping allows you to fast-travel across routes. It can be a solid option if you don’t want to complete the actual journey across routes. Moreover, you can hop between routes on the same locations, which means you can hop from the routes on Train Sim World 5 to the routes you own in other DLCs, provided they are in the same area. It provides a seamless way to connect all your routes and bring over your updates from previous games to the new game.

Verdict

If you have ever dreamt of becoming a train driver, Train Sim World 5 is the place to be. It’s the closest video game to real-life train driving, providing realistic simulations of popular routes and incredibly accurate control panels of some of the most used commuter trains. If you know nothing about train driving, there is a training center that gets you up to speed on all you need to know. It’s incredibly helpful and even provides historical information about trains and their routes.

The gameplay works smoothly, with the trains speeding and slowing down as you command them to. However, you also need to keep track of safety guidelines to ensure your passengers arrive safely. Visually, Train Sim World 5 is a treat, with immersive environments across routes in Germany, the UK, and the USA. My only gripe is much of the gameplay remains the same as the predecessor. Hardly anything has changed, except for the addition of new routes and trains that could have easily been launched via DLC add-ons. 

Perhaps if the routes explored other countries there might have been more incentive to ditch Train Sim World 4 for the new game. Also, hopefully Conductor Mode is more fleshed out in the future. The mode could add some more interesting interactions with the passengers, for instance.