0 
0 Hot on the heels of our news coverage of this latest update, we were offered the opportunity to go hands-on ourselves. So here we are, this is our review of the West Coast Main Line: Preston to Carlisle DLC for Train Sim World 5. To give it its full title.
A long trek to Shap Summit
If you want to check out our review of the main game, head over here.
Gameplay
I’ve laid this DLC review out in the same was as our standard reviews. However, one difference will be that we will focus on purely what is entailed in the DLC. For the full review, head over to the link above.
The WCML: Preston to Carlisle DLC will give you access to almost 100 miles of railway. All are based in the northwest of England, and you will be sent back in time to experience the best of the British Rail days. It features some new locomotives, including the Class 87, which are brand new to the Train Sim World lineup. Real train fans will know, this is the exact model that used to run up and down this section of the track. Coming in two distinct liveries that track fans will know and love.
One great option, if you own the Deluxe Edition of the base game, is that you can take the Avantie Class 390 Pendolino up the West Coast in an era before the train was introduced. Alternatively, take the Class 87 further down the line and see how it operates on some of the more modern routes.
Taking in the sights
Some of the stations are recreations of real-life stations that I have worked at in my day job. That’s right I have a job outside of Thumb Culture! It was incredibly reassuring just to be able to see how much love had gone in by the developers, Just Trains. Even the external environments are beautifully accurate. Showing that it isn’t just all about the trains and track, but also giving the player the full experience. Granted you can’t go walking off down Carlisle High Street, but as you’ll see below what you do get to experience is very good.
Graphics & Audio
The environments included in this update are beautiful. Travelling through the lakes is a real joy and there’s even something pretty special about the nighttime scenarios. Having a train doing 110mph in the darkness while the snow is falling brings a certain serenity to the game.
Nothing really new with the audio, aside from the train-specific screeches and wails as the power gets delivered to the wheels.
Longevity
The 100 miles of track takes gameplay into upwards of 2 hours to journey. That’s not even counting the scenarios and all the little hidden bits when walking around the stations. There are also missing timetables for you to find, alongside your luggage pick up duties from the stations. There are also a number of small hidden castles for you to find.
Final Thoughts
As with all DLC that Train Sim World 5 gets, this one will have you loving every minute. Head out to the West Coast and enjoy everything that the region has to offer. Coming in at £32.99 it is pricy. But we cant grumble when each add-on increases the enjoyment by an infinite amount. Especially when travelling to more real-world areas of the train tracks. It’s cheaper than the actual train ticket would cost you!
The West Coast Main Line: Preston To Carlisle route Add-on for Train Sim World 5 receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
YouTube | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Discord | Podcast
About Author
