SubwaySim Hamburg News

Today we are announcing another long-awaited feature. Many of you have requested it - and now it's part of SubwaySim Hamburg. We're talking about no other feature than the DT5's destination display!

Similarly to the information displays on the platform, we have now redeveloped the train destination displays from scratch, among many other things in the game. This means that we now use fonts which are perfectly true to the original. Finally, the DT5 matrix does look exactly as you know it from reality.



As with the information displays on the platform, the train's destination is also displayed in as much width as possible on the screen. For the platform info displays, this means that the character spacing is adjusted in order to utilise the entire display width.

For the DT5 it's not as easy as that! Here, we don't just have different character spacings but a total of 5 different fonts with various widths, heights and font thicknesses. Of course, the line label itself also has its very own font, resulting in 6 fonts with around 380 characters in total. Each of them has been traced by hand. Take a closer look: The widest font version is used for "Barmbek" as in the picture at the top. In contrast, the font for "Bitte nicht einsteigen" ("Do not enter", see second image) is much narrower. And the destination "Wandsbek-Gartenstadt", which we will show you another time, uses the narrowest of all fonts.



By the way: You can also use the DT5's Driver Machine Interface (DMI) on the right-hand cab screen to enter any station as destination. You can choose any of Hamburg's stations - no matter whether from the U3 or from another underground line. There's also a list of around 10 special destinations such as "Probefahrt" ("Test drive"), "Fahrschule" ("Driving school"), "Jazztrain" or "www.hochbahn.de". Oh, and one more thing: The train destination display now actually has an effect on passengers! While you can continue travelling on the "Jazztrain" with passengers hopping on and off, they will not board a driving school train.

It won't take too long until you'll be able to try all of these features in the upcoming SubwaySim MEGA update.

Everything you need to know about the MEGA Update!

Soon we will be releasing a MEGA update that will include fundamental changes to the game, with approximately 70% of all gameplay-related code being rebuilt from scratch. We've rewritten all the game's core systems from the ground to provide you with the best possible experience.

We are still progressing quite well regarding the MEGA update's development and we hope to be able to launch a public beta phase rather soon. Stay tuned - we'll keep you updated!

We're taking big steps towards the SubwaySim Hamburg Mega Update. 🚟 In this interview, Max gives you a little foretaste.

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A large part of the game has been rebuilt from scratch and will soon be available to you free of charge.

If you would like to see regular updates and take part in the development process, check out the SubwaySim Hamburg Discord .

Today we are announcing the next big feature for the SubwaySim MEGA Update: The brand-new Scenario Mode!

In a total of 6 exiting scenarios with a total play time of 240 minutes, you will experience a wide variety of situations along the U3 route. The picture below is just showing a first teaser.

What is Scenario Mode about?

In Scenario Mode, we will guide you through various events relating to the operation of Hamburg's U3 line. Each scenario has its own backstory, and in some cases, there are even special announcements and radio messages from the dispatch.

The particular advantage of Scenario Mode is that there is a close coordination between environment, story, timetable and signalling. For example, scenarios can influence AI traffic on the U3 or on other lines, and scenarios can also alter how busy the line is in terms of passengers. As part of the scenarios, we can even transfer player trains to the AI and vice versa. And of course, there's the hazard signal, which is particularly important for one scenario.

Thanks to the completely rebuilt signalling system - you'll perhaps remember our post from earlier this year - we can now depict processes that are far more complex. This includes the coupling and uncoupling of vehicles, which is part of a scenario. In that particular case, the signalling system must recognise that the one part of the train is actually allowed to enter the track section that's already occupied by the other half. Accordingly, you will see a special signal aspect for this case. Oh, and in many of the scenarios, you'll also have to turn around and continue in the opposite direction, sometimes three times or more.

Actually there's even a special version of the DT5, namely the graffiti-covered train in the picture below. To wrap it up, there's lots of exciting content waiting for you - and more information will follow soon!



Everything you need to know about the MEGA Update!

In the next few weeks, we will be releasing a MEGA update that will include fundamental changes to the game, with approximately 70% of all gameplay-related code being rebuilt from scratch. We've rewritten all the game's core systems from the ground to provide you with the best possible experience.

We are progressing quite well regarding the MEGA update's development and we hope to be able to launch a public beta phase in the next weeks. Stay tuned - there's more announcements on the MEGA update to come!

Today we would like to introduce you to our brand new platform displays in depth. The SubwaySim MEGA update is not only about fundamental improvements to the game - it's also about the visuals!

In response to your feedback, we have decided to redevelop our platform displays from scratch - this time with maximum attention to the original! In addition to a revised 3D model, this means many improvements especially to the display itself.




Some of you may have noticed that HOCHBAHN uses two different types of real-time info displays: On the one hand, the orange colour version in the picture at the very top, which is used for stations above ground. On the other hand, there is a second version for tunnel stations, as shown in the second picture above.

For the overground version, all the light points use the same colour. In contrast, for tunnel stations, each metro line has its own colour scheme - including one colour for the line number and another for the destination.

If you take an even closer look, you will notice that the two versions differ in more than just their colours. The overground displays are built with a resolution of 160 x 48 pixels, whereas the underground version's display spans across 200 x 64 pixels, making it appear in considerably higher resolution.

The consequence is, of course, that different fonts are used on the two displays. This can be easily recognised by the fact that the underground displays can spell out the destination WANDSBEK-GARTENSTADT, whereas the above-ground displays have to abbreviate it to WANDSBEK-GARTENST.



For this reason, we analysed countless real-life photos down to the last pixel for both versions of the platform displays. This resulted in a total of 4 different fonts, of which (almost) every single letter was copied pixel by pixel from original references. In addition, there is a specially developed Unreal Engine 5 material that ensures the typical matrix effect of the displays.

In addition to the graphic aspects, the functionality of Hamburg's platform displays should not be underestimated. The displays can show all kinds of different texts - and of course they do so too in SubwaySim Hamburg. One example for this is the current closure of the U2/U4 lines until April 2024, which is also resembled in SubwaySim Hamburg until then.




You will certainly come across another function rather frequently: The displays recognise whether the current train is a passenger train or not. For example, if you are travelling as an empty train in expert mode, the display changes accordingly and shows when the next passenger train will run.




Starting in the MEGA update, the real-time information displays will also identify short trains. On the U1 and U2 lines, the trains are usually made up of 3x DT5s, while 2x DT5s typically run on the U3 and U4 lines. As soon as the train length falls below the planned length, the text "short train" appears on the displays.




By the way: Our info displays are equipped with even more features that will play a role in the MEGA update. But that's a topic for another day.

Speaking of the SubwaySim MEGA update: Everything you need to know!

In the next few weeks, we'll be releasing a MEGA update, in which we've made fundamental changes to the game. We've rebuilt all the core systems of the game from the ground up to provide you with the best possible gaming experience.

We have decided to include a few additional features - such as the platform indicators - in the MEGA update compared to our initial plan. For this reason, we don't want to publish a release corridor just yet. We will of course let you know as soon as there is a release date.

As always, stay tuned - there are more announcements about the MEGA update to come!

We have already reported that we have re-engineered almost all the core systems in SubwaySim Hamburg from scratch as part of the MEGA update. This also applies to the input system, which handles the processing of keyboard and joystick inputs.

With the new input system, you will have the option of assigning up to 3 buttons or joystick buttons per function. Starting with the release of the MEGA update, greatly improved controller support will also enter the beta phase. This means that you can freely assign buttons and axes from your devices and the buttons will usually be recognised automatically.

By the way: Virtually any settings in the game have been redeveloped from the ground up. In the future, you will have many more options to adjust the quality of the game to your liking - from graphics and acoustics to specific gameplay settings. The game will also use a benchmark test to automatically identify which settings are recommended for your individual gaming setup.

The SubwaySim MEGA update: Not long to go until the release!

In the next few weeks, we will be releasing the MEGA update, with which we have made fundamental changes to the game. To do this, we've redeveloped all of the game's core systems from the ground up to provide you with the best possible entertainment.

As always: Stay tuned - there are more announcements to come on the MEGA update!