I played the second game for a while and enjoyed it, even though I am not a train enthusiast at all. However, Train Sim World 3 popped up on Game Pass and as I had fun with the last game, I thought I would give it a try. I do want to note that I am talking about this game from an Xbox Series X point of view so please keep that in mind.
How to Download Train Sim World 3
You can download the game from a digital store. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Game Review
Let me start by saying that if you liked Train Sim World 2, you will like this. If I am being 100 percent honest here, apart from better visuals and more dynamic weather effects, it is pretty much the same game! However, that does not make it bad and all of your content from the second game can be used here too which is cool.
There are three routes in this game and what I like about them is that they are very diverse. The USA’s Cajon Pass route was my favorite, but there is also a route in Germany and the UK as well. These routes have been replicated in immense detail and it is very cool just to look at the scenery as you are driving past.
They have also added in some new trains as well. They make a big deal out of the ES44C4, the ICE 1, and the Class 395 ‘Javelin’ being in the game. As I said, I am not a train enthusiast so I cannot speak for how “accurate” they are. Yet, given how detailed everything else in the game is, I would be shocked if these were near-perfect recreations. What I can tell you from a train ignoramus point of view is that they look great!
The gameplay is pretty much the same as it was in the last game. You have to make your route, go the correct speed, make sure you stop at stations, and so on. It sounds like it would be boring, but it is way more challenging and addictive than you would think. There is a kind of zen-like feeling when it is all going smoothly. Like in the last game, it was breaking at the right time I found the most challenging, but I got it eventually.
You are working towards earning points and you get these points by making your routes and taking on various “side missions”. Being able to walk around the train was something that was added in the last game and that is here too, complete with various missions that you will have to do.
Like before, you can also make your own trains as well and I am sure that people who are into trains will have a great time doing this. While there may not be anything significantly new added to the game for you to actually do, what is here is a lot of fun and just as much fun as it was in the last game.
What impressed me the most about the game were the new extreme weather effects. From thunder and lightning to crazy fast wind and snow, it adds a great deal to the game from a presentational point of view and it does make you think a bit more about your speed. I also got a kick out of how the passengers would change their clothes to match the weather.
I am really not someone that you would call a “trainspotter” however, I still had fun with this game and I am glad that it came to Game Pass. I do think they perhaps could have added more game modes or something more significant to warrant this being an actual sequel. However, as I said at the start, if you are already into this series, you will love this.
