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ggsmufazkvbn's avatar
ggsmufazkvbn
New Adventurer
1 month ago

The "End Game" Train Experience: Shrinkflation, Gambling, and Useless Rewards

Just unlocked the new Train Pass this morning and the disappointment is real. As a player who has already unlocked and operationalized all trains, this pass feels like a total slap in the face.

The Highlights of My Frustration:

  • The Reward Paradox: Some the "prizes" are tickets for trains I’ve already fully upgraded (like the Simeo Plus B). Why are these even in the pool for high-level players? There’s no trade-in or scrap mechanic, so they just sit there as a reminder of a wasted tier.
  • Shrinkflation: We’re seeing fewer meaningful rewards (like new Stations) and more "filler" items. The pass used to feel like a boost; now it feels like a chore for scraps.
  • The E5 Paywall: I need 15 tickets to get my E5 Super Sim to Level 2. The Premium Pass offers... 10. So even if I pay, I’m still 5 tickets short and at the mercy of the "gambling" rotation in the Rail Shop, where these tickets almost never appear.
  • Station Scarcity: Where are the actual train stations? I was hoping for new infrastructure to actually build my city, but it’s all just cards and currency.

Anyone else at the "maxed out" stage feeling like the Train Pass is officially a dead feature? EA needs to give us a way to trade in excess cards or give us rewards that actually scale with our progression.

Mayor USS Midway

discussion

2 Replies

  • duderville's avatar
    duderville
    Seasoned Hotshot
    1 month ago

    As a player who has NOT fully upgraded my trains, I find the train pass a welcome improvement so that I can more quickly become fully upgraded like you folks. 

  • njkh871zmp2p's avatar
    njkh871zmp2p
    New Traveler
    1 month ago

    I’m impressed that you managed to jump through all the incredibly complicated hoops in order to max out your trains!  I lost interest with the train station after I couldn’t upgrade my Prague station past 150.  There didn’t seem to be any point in upgrading trains when the max on my station was 150 per train.  Plus, the whole upgrade process was just too complicated.  To me the whole train station was a bust!  The way the system was designed it didn’t integrate into established cities.  
    I tried to use the trains in the Design Challenges, but even when you design around trains, they took up huge amounts of real estate and really didn’t do anything.  There weren’t any trains chugging along the rails.  Just empty rails that used space.  
    Now they come up with a premium pass for railroads!  The novelty has completely worn away and most people have lost interest with the idea.   
    Your comments about the rewards are spot-on! Crummy rewards and prizes.  Especially glaring is that this took so long to show up.  What are they thinking?  
    Between this and the Service 2.0 destruction update. I have to assume they are deliberately trying to make long term, established players quit.  Because new players won’t realize how worthless the ‘Rewards’ actually are.   

    I feel your pain and frustration.  
    Since I have been using this forum, I doubt you will get any reply back.   
    But good luck.  Remember, if you enjoy Train games, there are plenty of good games available.

     

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