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Full shapez update
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Repeated intro
Hello everyone!
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It's finally time to talk about possibly the most anticipated feature of shapez 2: Trains! We'll keep the intro short, but please remember to wishlist shapez 2! There's a high chance you already have (in which case, thank you very much!), but every single wishlist helps out!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2162800/shapez_2/
Disclaimer
Please note that the vast majority of train visuals are placeholder or early concepts. The mechanics and balancing explained in this blog are also subject to change, depending on community feedback. To read more about how we implement new content and the current state of the game, check out our previous devlog!
You can explore everything you see and read in this blog yourself in Alpha 19, available to Patreons.
Our goal for trains
We’d like to quickly preface the blog with our intentions for trains. Their purpose is to transport a large amount of shapes over large distances. While tunnels and space belts work fine to connect nearby platforms, trains will connect your distant platforms that mine that specific shape you really need, but spawned multiple sectors away.
Ultimately, our goal was to create a fun, long-distance transport option that fits well into the existing shapez world and the mechanics you’re used to. It should be easy to get into but provide depth for optimization and versatility. For this reason we’ve omitted signals and other, more complex train mechanics in favor of a simpler line system that still offers a lot of depth for those willing to invest their time into optimization.
The basics
To get started, let’s place a station! You can also choose to start with the track or a depot, but we’ll start with a station as they come with a pre-build segment of track. The station building tells a locomotive where to stop. To load and unload the wagons you need to place Train Loaders and Train Unloaders, both of which are available for both shapes and fluids. Each (Un)Loader can service one wagon.
Once the stations are in place, it’s time to place tracks. You don’t have to worry about the length of the line, as placing tracks is completely free. Connect the stations by track in any way you want, but do keep in mind that tracks are directional. Additionally, trains have to slow down when making a turn and speed up on long, straight sections. You’ll want to minimize the amount of turns a train needs to make in order to maintain a high speed.
When your stations are connected, you won’t have to worry about making a loop or a place where the train can turn around: tracks are double-sided. When a train reaches the end of a line, it will flip to the bottom side of the track and turn back to where it came from. This helps a lot with space management as you won’t have to worry about frontal collisions or need to make two tracks to allow trains to travel back and forth. However, trains traveling along the bottom of a track cannot be serviced by stations and only travel in a straight line. If the line has junctions or switches, you may still need to complete a loop to get your train back to the start.
Now that you’ve connected an input station and an output station, it’s time to get a train running. To spawn a train, you need a train Depot. This depot is one chunk big and allows you to spawn a single locomotive that cannot carry any
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