Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator Review (PC)

It’s cold out—freezing, even, and I’m still several hundred miles from reaching the next station aboard my trusty, yet frustratingly flimsy locomotive that’s scarcely running on fumes and dumb luck. In one hand, I hold the tools needed to fix one of the many, many compartments that are on the verge of breaking, whereas in the other—a slightly less stable hand of frostbite and paranoia—holds the dregs of a frozen bottle. The alcohol is keeping me warm, but as all who pass over the ever-shifting tracks of the Trans-Siberian intersection know, I, too, understand that warmth is a rarity, and death, whether I like to believe it or not, is a terrifying possibility, and one that might just arrive soon should I fail to make ends meet before the forthcoming terminal. This is, in short, Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator, and it could very well be my final stop.

Like Choo-Choo Charles—yet another survival-based locomotive-centric game of a vaguely similar concept—Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator holds the keys to a seemingly infinite cycle of treacherous tracks, natural disasters, and thousands upon thousands of kilometers of sacred grounds. The only major difference here, of course, is that you don’t quite go toe-to-toe with a ravenous reincarnation of a children’s character, but rather, the vast open world of the Siberian wilderness—a location in which wild bears threaten to tear you limb from limb, and the mafia, of all organizations, dare to impede your progress as the fledgling conductor of a doomed vessel. Needless to say that, you won’t find any eight-legged locomotives here; the Siberian railway has its own archipelago of nightmares to withstand.

Interested in hearing a little more about the latest survival-based adventure game on PC? Then let’s sound the whistle and jump right in.

The Railroad to the Abyss

Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator is a lot more than what its title implies; in fact, it isn’t even a simulation game. Well, it is a simulation game, but it’s also a mixture of other genres, too: it has full-scale combat, strategy elements, and even a wealth of quests and other sandbox-style mementos, too. At its heart, it is, more or less, an experience that sees you embarking on daring journeys across the Siberian network—a course that spans 2,200km of unscathed terrains, as well as a collection of deadly landmarks and other oppressed biomes, also. And it’s within this world, that you, the no-nonsense conductor, must not only learn how to withstand the natural conditions—icy climates and bone-shattering temperatures alike—but also grasp what it takes to survive in a hostile environment that’s teeming with questionable activity and other alluring factors of a threatening nature.

The game itself is spread out over several scenarios: Story Mode, which sees you tackling a plethora of odd transportation jobs around the rail network; Survival, which has you maintaining general needs such as hunger, thirst, and warmth; and Simulator, which allows you to remove the obstacles that orbit the well-being of your character, and instead prioritize the tasks that tie in with the locomotive. Regardless of the choice you opt for, each campaign in Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator has you working to keep tabs on one thing, in particular: the locomotive, as well as its ability to transport you through thick and thin to a destination of your choosing. Unfortunately for you, this means having to repair specific components, as well as searching for the necessary parts to maintain the structural integrity of your machine. Not an easy job, I’ll say that much.

“This Wasn’t in the Job Description”

Gameplay in Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator sees you embarking on a slew of trials, all of which are played from a first-person perspective and across several different phases. In each of the jobs that you choose to onboard, you’ll find yourself equipped with a selection of basic items—meats, which can remediate your hunger; alcohol, which can reduce your stress and keep you relatively warm; and even the odd weapon, which can aid you against various foes and other dangers that loom out on the tracks. The goal of the game, really, is to survive the lengthy periods of time spent behind the levers of the locomotive, and reach a final destination, whether it’s to deposit cargo, or reach some form of milestone in your journey.

It goes without saying at this point, but Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator isn’t the easiest of games to wrap your head around; in the contrary, it’s actually a bit of a pain in the backside, given the fact that you not only need to keep on top of your own needs, but also those of the locomotive that you tug around in near-perilous conditions. Thankfully, there is an option to save your progress for whenever the going gets tough, and so, while it is nigh impossible to curve around the tremendous amount of curveballs out on the open track, it is, in fact, possible to bide your time by placing rather forgiving markers. In other words, you can fail — but it’s never too much of a problem, given the fact that you can, more or less, rewind the clock and right a few wrongs and what have you.

Planning for the Future

As with any game that requires you to travel a large distance, planning is, of course, a huge part of the experience—so much, that failing to obtain or stockpile the necessary resources is more or less the same as signing your own death warrant. But there are a few helping hands, mind you; the game features traveling merchants, for example, who will purchase your meats, skins, and other trophies in exchange for some of the bare necessities to help you along your way. Even still, this isn’t to say that every journey is made to be perfectly accessible and without any major drawbacks; in fact, folks will often turn sour and resort to mindless violence, and even the local wildlife will make an effort to bring you harm. But that’s all part of the expedition — and it’s pretty good at keeping you on your toes.

Aside from the basic scavenging aspects of the game, there’s also the case of keeping the locomotive on the tracks—a task that, weirdly enough, isn’t all the tough to overcome, thanks to the game’s simplified controls and minimalistic UI. Don’t get me wrong, it can take a bit of effort to comprehend, but to say that it’s sitting on the same wavelength as, say, Frostpunk, wouldn’t be totally accurate. Suffice it to say that, there is a learning curve, but I wouldn’t go quite as far as to say that it’s the steepest incline I’ve ever witnessed in this particular field.

Verdict

Given the fact that Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator is still in its early access phase, the sheer volume of content that it currently holds is all rather surprising, to be fair. Sure, it’s a little gimmicky, and its English dub isn’t particularly teeming with realistic notes and what have you, but where it lacks in its few minor details, it most certainly makes up for in its original and irreplaceable ideas — being able to navigate an open track with a bottle of vodka in one hand and an AK-47 in the other, for example. Is it a perfect game? Not quite no — but it is, in the strangest of ways, a ludicrous amount of fun, and one that I’ll remember, for better or worse, for the next however many months it takes me to forget the image of a bear launching itself towards me at high speed.

I’m not going to say that Trans-Siberian Railway Simulator has a solid collection of visuals, because it isn’t quite worthy of claiming that right. However, given that we are currently glancing over an indie project that’s still a few miles from seeing its final destination, I have to say, from what I’ve caught so far, I am genuinely impressed with a lot of the features on display here, and honestly, I’m actually looking forward to seeing what the future holds.

To conclude, if you have just departed from one of the many, many train simulation games on the market, and are looking to bridge that gap conceived from some level of post-completion blues, then you might be in for a bit of a shock with this one. Don’t get me wrong, it has several simulation elements, but when all’s said and done, this is something else entirely — and I think I love it.