Suggestion: Different Way to Handle "Early" Deliveries

[snbitzer]

After spending over 300 hours in this game, there is something I have always noticed; the "Expected" delivery time is always a range between two times, yet we only get penalized if it is "Late". As a consequence, you can rush to the delivery point, get there days in advance, and still a loading dock is available for you.

Now, in real life, at least from my experiences in the USA, it is not possible to do this. Either the company is closed when you arrive, or they do not have a loading dock ready for you because you arrived at an unscheduled time. In these cases, you would need to wait at a rest stop or on-site if they allowed it until your scheduled drop-off time.

As an avid player of this game, and one who is looking forward very much to playing ATS, this concerns me. I am always one to obey the speed limits and take my time to ensure a safe and timely delivery, yet I have watched countless videos and streams of people with no regard for "the law" who will race to the delivery point as fast as possible with no repercussions.

Since the trucking industry is largely about safety and time management, to me it would be advantageous to add a feature that would at least encourage players not to rush to the delivery point; something like disabling the drop-off point until the expected time is reached would be a good start. This would create a much safer environment and learning experience.

Hopefully, others will see this in the same light as I do. After all, this is not a racing game. Thanks in advance for any feedback.

[TwinShadow]

At the time of this post, I'm currently rendering a video now in Sony Vegas to upload to Youtube that shows the opposite of what you've seen.

The calculations for the delivery time is done if you keep your speed at 62.5 KM/h constantly. So yeah, in very many cases, you will be as much as 24 hours early than the expected times.

However, I bet that if you take the proper rests like a real trucker and only drive as long as they're supposed to, then perhaps, yes.. you can get within the time frame given.

People play the game differently, and I follow the rules too. But I'm not trying to play to get exactly within when I'm suppose to deliver something. I plan out rest stops when needed, among other things. I honestly think the way it is now is fine, as this is just a game to try and simulate driving a truck, not to micro-manage every aspect of an actual truckers life.

[snbitzer]

Heh, I may have exaggerated a bit by saying "days" in advance, although I have noticed that routes including long ferry rides usually leave a large surplus of hours.

In any case, I just see the "Expected From __" time as not really having a use in the game as of now. Something like adding a tick box in the options for forcing to deliver within the time frame would entice me to use it. It would essentially be the same as adding an option for the H-shifter or air brakes (which I do not use btw). I may just be grasping at straws here, but it would certainly add just a little more realism in my point of view.

[T-Bone Biggins]

At the lumber yard where I used to work we would sometimes just have truckers with a trailer sleep in our parking lot until we opened.

[Peno11]

I understand what you are trying to say, snbitzer, but I don't know. It often happened to me that I rushed to make the delivery before its supposed time, because I had to take rest soon, but if I did that with the cargo, I would be late already. So, unless they will lengthen the delivery times to allow us taking a nap and still be in time, I don't think it's a good idea. ETS2 is still a game, after all.

[TheMe260]

I agree with snbitzer! A chekbox would enable us to be more realistic if we wanted.
Peno11 you are right: it is just a game. It's true!
But I am playing it since version 1.3 or something and in Steam for around 200 hours. Passionate about it!
But still think it could improve in the "micro management" area and also think that it is not a racing game.
Regards all!

[Ryu]

I understand what you're intending, however, if I had to wait once I got to the destination I wouldn't be inclined to play much. I don't go crazy fast, but I do tend to drive around at 90 kph when I can and am always early.

I did wait once, when I was working on the acheivement to make the delivery withing 30 mins of expiration. I got there hours before and had to just sit there... Not much enjoyment in that.

[TheMe260]

I understand your point! That's why I think it should be an option, not an "obligation"!
We would all have fun in our own ways!
Best to you, RYU.

[UrsidaeClay]

Originally posted by Ryu:

I did wait once, when I was working on the acheivement to make the delivery withing 30 mins of expiration. I got there hours before and had to just sit there... Not much enjoyment in that.

I remember going through that. Driving about the city discovering everything... still time to kill. Looping around on the nearest motorway... still time yet. It was dreadfully slow waiting for that clock to tick away. And it's not like sleep was an option either, as it would not only make you miss that 30min-left target but also quite late overall.

One solution is maybe some sort of proficiency bonus, like the one for parking. If you're looking to play 'by the book' and make it with in the assigned ETA window, perhaps some extra XP/money could be awarded. It shouldn't be mandatory by any means, but just a little extra incentive for those who wish to sim a little more realistically.

[Drevin]

I agree with the OP. Having a delivery interval right now in the game really serves no purpose. I personally don't understand why SCS did it. It would make sense only if (as stated above) you'd have to wait for the warehouse to open if you arrive early. And quite frankly, SCS could solve this with a message pop up as soon as you enter the destination company grounds, saying 'you're early, press enter to rest until the warehouse opens'. This way you as a player wouldn't have to wait, you as a driver would get some rest, and the economy would be a little less inflated because you wouldn't make money anytime. And I would quite like a system where companies would have specific dates and hours for either pick-up or delivery, so we would get some free time between jobs. And to solve the human boredom problem, you could go to a rest place and choose an option such as 'rest until 6AM' in case you want to pick-up a load but all companies are closed during the night.