Night Driving

[DerwentMailman]

I've just started a scenario that has me driving at Night (a JT one from the Kyle line). Trouble is I cannot see diddly squat other than the instruments in the cab and the HUD. If I am lucky I might be able to make out a distant hill outline. Really difficult to keep one's interest going when there seems to be no headlight illumination from the trains that I have tried. Is this just me or am I right to avoid scenarios like this?

[pjohnandlyns]

It's not just you nor should you avoid scenarios like this. We all get the same results. It's pretty realistic because (on UK routes) you're seeing what the driver sees in real life. Next to nowt.

The lights on UK locs, even the hi-viz ones, are not there to help the driver to see but to make the loco more visible to others.

[skinnyraf]

Play at night, with lights off, when your house is quiet.

Play HUDless, so you have to stare into the darkness for landmarks, boards and signals to observe speed restrictions, know when to slow down to stop at a platform.

That said, some routes are just too dark, going through deep countryside, and some locos have no headlights, just position lights. Then it is basically driving into abyss - I avoid such scenarios. But driving at night through quiet stations, especially if it's a bit foggy, is deeply relaxing and satisfying.

[Samuel Iles]

The HUDS are there to tell you were to stop at night. I find it difficult aswell but not as hard than you.

[simonmd]

You can see signals and stations, that's pretty much all you need to see and is reasonably true to life. The game could certainly brighten up the night stuff a little though as it can certainly be too dark, with most train lights being next to useless. Personally, I simple don't play night scenarios unless they are in well lit areas like an inner city route.

[DerwentMailman]

Originally posted by skinnyraf:

Play at night, with lights off, when your house is quiet.

Play HUDless, so you have to stare into the darkness for landmarks, boards and signals to observe speed restrictions, know when to slow down to stop at a platform.

That said, some routes are just too dark, going through deep countryside, and some locos have no headlights, just position lights. Then it is basically driving into abyss - I avoid such scenarios. But driving at night through quiet stations, especially if it's a bit foggy, is deeply relaxing and satisfying.

That was how it felt (driving into the abyss) earlier on today. Just glad that it is not a lighting defect. For some reason I thought that all trains would light up the track like a car driving on beam. I'll give it more chance when it is is naturally darker inside and out.

[skinnyraf]

There are some locos that have proper beams, e.g. Taurus, some american locos. But especially British trains seem to follow a completely different approach - some only have red tail lights, and no light at the front whatsoever, just lighted numbers (e.g. slamdoors).

What is troubling, some British MUs have quite ok lights, but directed to the right, thus not really illuminating speed limit signs and warning boards...

[Stringbean]

I know this thread is quite old now but I'm fairly new to Train Simulator and I've learnt something about this and was glad I came upon this topic because I too wondered why the heck I just couldn't see anything If I wanted to Quick Drive at night.

I love night driving in Euro Truck Simulator at night and wanted to try it in Trains. Big mistake, it's absolutely pitch black. I too thought the train headlights would light up the track a bit in front. It feels like you're just sitting there staring at a black screen.

[Chicken Balti]

Hello, the main thing to remember in the UK is that all our railways are fenced off on both sides to prevent any tresspass by larger animals or people, they are not normally going to be straying onto the railway, powerful headlamps are not required, only lights for identification reasons. Drivers know the route they are following like the back of their hand, even at night in thick fog.
That is not the same in many parts of the world that don't have any fencing at all. In those cases, more powerful front lights are of more use, perhaps, but not as much as one would think. If someone or something is on the railway ahead of you, chances are in most cases, you are going to hit it. Trains can't stop rapidly like a car can. Also remember, the rails are still going to be in the same place at night, they won't have moved from their daytime positions, so logicaly, no real need to see them with lights at night.
skinnyraf, all British trains have lights at the front and the rear including older steam trains, both day and night.
Regards.

[Mr._Headshot]

In real life, there are mile markers, signs, and landmarks placed so engineers know where they are at all times. This game doesn't have that degree of realism.

[Chicken Balti]

Originally posted by cActUsjUiCe:

In real life, there are mile markers, signs, and landmarks placed so engineers know where they are at all times. This game doesn't have that degree of realism.

Hello, drivers don't need to see them really, after many hundreds of hours running over a route, they know every single mile off by heart, even in the dark or thick fog. We use all our senses to determine where we are, rail sounds over bridges and sound reflections off lineside buildings etc as well as track defects. Plus gradiants affecting our train too.
Best.

[simonmd]

Also worth pointing out in real life, the human eye reacts differently. Especially out of town, you'd be surprised what you can see with no artificial light at all. It's very difficult to replicate that in something like this, unless they made it like a more twilight feel (NO vampire comments!!!). This is one of those times where the HUD is needed to supliment reality, it gives you advance warning of speed changes, etc. that you would already know or be able to see earlier in real life.

[fyoLt6HJmeBGy2kmVekR]

Another tip is that you can crank up the brightness slider in the game options, or on your monitor. The downside is that black may become grainy shades of gray.

[skinnyraf]

Originally posted by simonmd:

Also worth pointing out in real life, the human eye reacts differently. Especially out of town, you'd be surprised what you can see with no artificial light at all.

While that's true if skies are clear - especially at full moon, it can get bloody dark, it's overcast with no moon.

TS actually simulates eye accommodation - you may notice it when you leave or enter a tunnel. There is also ambient light if you drive close to towns and cities. Things get really dark if you're far from settlements though.

That said, the best way to play night scenarios is at night, with lights in the room off.

[Glenn]

Originally posted by skinnyraf:

Originally posted by simonmd:

Also worth pointing out in real life, the human eye reacts differently. Especially out of town, you'd be surprised what you can see with no artificial light at all.

While that's true if skies are clear - especially at full moon, it can get bloody dark, it's overcast with no moon.

TS actually simulates eye accommodation - you may notice it when you leave or enter a tunnel. There is also ambient light if you drive close to towns and cities. Things get really dark if you're far from settlements though.

That said, the best way to play night scenarios is at night, with lights in the room off.

TS does not really simulate 'eye accommodation' as such. It is simply picking up the glow from various light sources and displaying the computed results. When TS gets "far from settlements" as you put it, then the computer has little or nothing to compute, so the results are 'very dark indeed', yet under such conditions in real life (full moon or not) the eye has the ability to use a thing called 'dark adaptation' and it is suprising just how much the human eye can see - even in a totally blacked out room you will see something. The computer (any computer) is not yet clever enough to mimic this condition. Only thing is, it usualy takes the human eye around 20 minutes to become FULLY dark adapted.

[Dodgydruid]

The other thing to expand on Glenn's point is that if you lose your night vision due to being glared at by a bright light, it reduces your acuity tremendously which is something not desired when watching out for that yellow or red, in the army we always used to close one eye when near a bright light source as it salvaged some of the loss of night vision otherwise in the dark you would be blinded once passing that source, dunno if train drivers do the same?