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OpenTTD 1.0.0 Released
Gmer writes "Eming.com reports that OpenTTD, the open source clone of the Microprose game Transport Tycoon Deluxe, has reached a milestone. OpenTTD 1.0.0 has been released 6 years after work started on the first version, with the help of hundreds of contributors and thousands of testers/players. Over 30 language translations are considered complete, and OpenTTD is available for *BSD, Linux, Solaris and Windows. OpenTTD is a business simulation game in which the player is in control of a transport company and can compete against rival companies to make as much profit as possible by transporting passengers and various goods by road, rail, sea or air."
on my n900 :)
Last time I played OpenTTD (a couple years ago), I found it entertaining for a while, but not challenging. The AI didn't present much competition, and I got the impression the game wasn't designed with that in mind. It seemed like it's a game for people who like playing with model trains.
"A week in the lab saves an hour in the library"
I remember back in 1994 or so on my first computer when I got a demo of Transport Tycoon from some British UK magazine we imported. You were only limited to few (five?) years of building and I had no idea what to do. I later got the very first original version of Transport Tycoon, the one with the real vehicle names, I honestly don't remember much what I did with that version.
I then got the Transport Tycoon Plus version, the one with the "mars terrain" as alternate graphics. I remember spending most of my childhood with that version, looking at envy at the "Deluxe" version which had maglev and one-way signals. You can bet I was happy when I eventually got the deluxe version, and I thought anything was possible with one-way signals... I had no idea about pre-signals or path signals yet. ;) I used TTDPatch to run Windows TTD under Win XP, then later got openTTD 0.3.x. That's when I was hooked again. One of the best things with openTTD compared to TTD or even TTDPatch is a fully working multiplayer. In both TTD and orginal transport tycoon, you were lucky if the game went past thirty years as it desynced very easily. OpenTTD is much more stable in that degree, and fails more gracefully if it does desyncs (which is rare, and the orginal versions would just crash or glitch up).
From stable download page:
For OpenTTD you can use the original Transport Tycoon Deluxe data files (you need to own a Transport Tycoon Deluxe CD). There are also the free alternatives OpenGFX (graphics), OpenSFX (sound) and OpenMSX (music) which can be installed automatically by the Windows installer.
Or you could just use a package manager like everybody else. If your distro is consistently slow to package things, consider another distro*. It would seem that Gentoo has had it since 2004.
# cat
Damn, my RAM is full of llamas.
It has been 100% playable for years, 1.0 is more of a milestone than anything.
I also find it very difficult taking anyone seriously who has the audacity to criticise other people who give their time freely into completing a project, whether it's a computer program or anything else in life.
It's not as though trolls like you who have no doubt been sat on their fat backsides moaning at everyone else for 15 years have tried to make any valid contribution in the project - so kindly climb back into your dark little hole and be miserable on your own, because none of the rest of us give a toss about your griping.
Gentoo Linux - another day, another USE flag.
Better yet was the opportunity for murder. Run your highspeed trains back and forth over their truck / bus roads, wiping them out. You could even create train disasters by running a line to one end of their stations, wait for their fully laden trains to arrive and then set your own train off to crash into them. Puts them out of business in no time...
(Open)TTD focuses its scope on trains: road/sea/air transport exist, but the main thrust is rail.
Remarkably, while the signaling dynamics are incredibly intricate (most 'real world' rail systems can be duplicated), for those who aren't trainspotters, or don't have days to burn on one single section of rail, simple signalling is still possible, and quite easy to roll in.
There are literally scores of sites a google-hop away explaining all sorts of systems, from one-to-one single and dual gauge systems, right up to 4x4 rolling junctions (nuts)
The general rule of thumb is: imagine you're a train, and follow the rails and signals. Place a signal before a split. Make a split long enough for your longest train, and then some.
Place a signal before the end of the siding. Repeat the operation for the other direction.
While I admit that getting solid signalling + junctioning going for me remains on of the biggest challenges, it's also the most fun.
Looking at the screenshots, I think some players approached this game differently then I did. For me the challenge was not the insane AI, but trying to create a maximum efficiency rail network. Getting the most goods transport, with as few trains with as little track as possible.
This game is closer the Sims and Sim City in that there is no AI to beat. The spiritual succesor of Roller Coaster tycoon makes this bloody clear by removing the AI altogether.
When you managed to pump up a city from nothing to a thriving metropolis with thousands of passengers, that for me was the challenge and the reward. I always switched the AI of.
Quite frankly, very few games have AI that is challenging. If you find satisfaction in beating a path finding AI... well then good luck to you.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
FYI, there is a patched version flying around the openttd forums which implements cargo and passanger destination, which means that cargos and passangers want to go to a specific location not just to any city,
this gives the game much more depth
http://wiki.openttd.org/Passenger_and_cargo_destinations