A-Train
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A-Train<tr><td colspan="2" style="font-size: 100%; text-align: center;"> </td></tr>
| |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Artdink
<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Publisher(s)</th><td>Ocean Software, Maxis</td></tr><tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Engine</th><td>Custom</td></tr> |
| Release date(s) | 1992 |
| Genre(s) | Simulation |
| Mode(s) | Single player
<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Rating(s)</th><td>ESRB: K-A (PlayStation version only)</td></tr> |
| Platform(s) | Amiga, DOS, Famicom, PlayStation, Macintosh
<tr><th style="background-color: #ccccff;">Input</th><td>Famicom Controller (Famicom Only)</td></tr> |
- For other uses, see A Train.
A-Train, known in Japan as A Ressha de Ikou (A列車で行こう), or Take the A-Train, is a 1992 computer game, originally developed and published by Japanese game developer Artdink for Japan, and was later published by Maxis for the United States.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
The game places players in command of a railway company. There are no rival companies, and the player controls the only one in the city and the game is fairly open-ended. A-Train uses a near-isometric dimetric projection to present the city, similar to Maxis's SimCity 2000.
There are two types of transport that the player's company can take: passengers or building materials. The former is more likely to be profitable, but building materials allow the city to grow.
Wherever the building materials are delivered, they can be taken and used to construct buildings for the city. These start with houses, but eventually, as an area grows, roads, and shops and other buildings are built. These can provide extra revenue for a passenger service, but also allowing the city to develop and grow can be seen as a goal in itself.
As well as the buildings built by the computer, in response to the materials being present, the player can construct their own buildings, such as ski resorts and hotels, and make profits from them if the conditions are right.
[edit] Maxis distribution and ports
The game was tremendously popular in Japan, thus motivating Maxis to license it for US distribution. Unfortunately for Maxis, aside from those spurred to purchase the game based on Maxis' then-stellar reputation (fresh from the successes of the early SimCity games), very few copies were purchased in the US.[citation needed] Some suspect that US gamers were not interested in the level of detail and micro-management that captivated the Japanese audience. The fact that it is a game about managing a train system cannot be the reason it sold poorly, as Microprose's Railroad Tycoon remains one of the bestselling game series of all time in the US. Even the release of an add-on pack for the game failed to stir up any real support amongst the gaming community. The game was the first major failure from Maxis.[citation needed]
A-Train for DOS, Macintosh and Amiga was based on Artdink's AIII, the third game in the series. It was released in October, 1992. In spite of the PC version's commercial failure in the US, Maxis later released a PlayStation version in 1996, based on Artdink's AIV: Evolution Global. The PlayStation was a relatively new platform at that point and the game suffered many limitations, such as requiring an entire memory card (expensive at the time) to store a single map. Like the PC version, it proved unsuccessful.
[edit] Sequels
In later years, development of the series continued on both console and PC platforms. A5, released for PlayStation and PC in 1997, introduced a totally 3D environment. A6, the first game in the series for PlayStation 2, was released in Japan in 2000 and later translated to English and released in Europe as A6: A-Train 6 by Midas Interactive Entertainment in 2004. A Ressha de Ikou 2001, a new version of A6 with online support, was released for PS2 in 2001 and followed by several expansion packs.
The most recently released game of the series, A7, was released in 2005 for Windows-based PCs in Japanese. A Traditional Chinese translation was released in July 2006. A7 is advertised as an homage to the 10th anniversary of AIV and uses a trimetric interface, instead of the open 3D interface of A5 and A6.
A-Train X is to be released on the Xbox 360 in 2006.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- A7, official Japanese language website for the most recent game in the series
- A-Train at MobyGames
- Free Train, a Japanese open source game based on A-Train
- A-Train English, a Yahoo group for English speaking fans of the A-Train series
- A-Train download
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