Miniature Train Hack

[saxman1089]

Okay those who are more experienced than me... I need help with a hack for a recreation I'm working on. 

The train ride I'm trying to recreate runs a single train, goes out of the station, goes around a loop and switches back onto the same track, goes through the station backwards, and then follows a similar loop to get back to the station forwards. Currently, I can build the ride (see the attached screenshot), but the train turns around right upon starting to go backwards after the first loop.

[jensj12]

If a train needs to go backwards over a piece of track, the train itself needs to go backwards. What you're trying is not possible in OpenRCT2. A train will always face forward, and will turn around if necessary.

[saxman1089]

The center section is actually two tracks overlaid, with one going forward and one going backwards. There's no way to isolate them and "tell" the train to move forwards along each set of track?

[saxman1089]

Update: I figured out how to do it. Pretty simple hack once I thought of it in terms of isolating the two tracks going two different directions.

[hpg]

Care to share how you did it? I was going to suggest trying to build the tracks above each other and then changing the base height to put them on the same level but I wasn't sure that would work. I remember a similar trick back in the day to get single-wide peepable paths layered on top of wide paths in LL though.

Edited September 17, 2017 by hpg

[jensj12]

59 minutes ago, hpg said:

Care to share how you did it? I was going to suggest trying to build the tracks above each other and then changing the base height to put them on the same level but I wasn't sure that would work. I remember a similar trick back in the day to get single-wide peepable paths layered on top of wide paths in LL though.

The result will be exactly the same as when using zero clearance and/or the tile inspector.

@Saxman1089, you can't even open the ride in the screenshot, it should complain about an incomplete circuit. If there is indeed a solution, I'd like to know it as well.

[saxman1089]

So the track in the screenshot is a full circuit. Where the track turns around and folds back into itself, I turned on zero clearance and built track in the opposite direction over the existing track. So there are two sets of track in the middle portion (and through the station), facing opposite directions. That's when I had the error I mentioned, with the train turning around. Over on NE, I found a thread where someone said "trains always follow the first set of track built if two sets occupy the same square." That made sense to me, and tipped me off to how to solve the issue.

I ultimately made it work by changing the ride type and using a different type of track over the overlapping regions. I used a corkscrew coaster, and used a booster in the overlapped portions, so the two tracks were not the same type of track over the overlapped portion. If you want an overlapping curve, you can used a banked coaster turn. The mini train doesn't have a banked sprite, so it doesn't matter.

[imlegos]

You can open any ride that is set to Boat Hire mode. Powered launch also works, but Boat Hire allows multiple trains.

[Broxzier]

On 17/09/2017 at 20:37, saxman1089 said:

So the track in the screenshot is a full circuit. Where the track turns around and folds back into itself, I turned on zero clearance and built track in the opposite direction over the existing track. So there are two sets of track in the middle portion (and through the station), facing opposite directions. That's when I had the error I mentioned, with the train turning around. Over on NE, I found a thread where someone said "trains always follow the first set of track built if two sets occupy the same square." That made sense to me, and tipped me off to how to solve the issue.

I ultimately made it work by changing the ride type and using a different type of track over the overlapping regions. I used a corkscrew coaster, and used a booster in the overlapped portions, so the two tracks were not the same type of track over the overlapped portion. If you want an overlapping curve, you can used a banked coaster turn. The mini train doesn't have a banked sprite, so it doesn't matter.

The way you describe it, it sounds like there are two tracks on exactly the same height. As far as I know, that will not work. The vehicle uses track block data to know the curve of the current track, where it starts and where it ends with a relative location and height offset. It then simply checks if behind the end of a track block there is an element with the correct height and rotation and same track id, and if there is, it'll pick the first track element on that tile at that height without checking for rotation or track id, meaning that no matter which one you build first, there's going to be a loop in the track somewhere.

[saxman1089]

Maybe we can get a developer to tell us how it works, because it definitely does. And I have proof! I give to you, the most sad park in Six Flags history: Hackiture Railroad!

But in all seriousness, here is the hack in action. Works fine, even with peeps. There are two tracks at the exact same height, running in opposite directions. It did not work using both tracks as normal straight track, but changing one track to a banked track or booster track worked just fine.

Edit: Tagging @Broxzier, @jensj12, and @hpg so they see the post.

Hackiture Railroad.sv6

Edited September 20, 2017 by saxman1089

[X7123M3-256]

2 hours ago, saxman1089 said:

but changing one track to a banked track or booster track worked just fine.

That, then, is why it works. Track pieces of different types cannot merge.

[SpiffyJack]

I'll be damned... it works good. I'd like to try this with multiple stations cross crossing

[G_Force]

In the past I've always done this by building the return path with a continuously banked track.  This works with everything, coasters, trains, car rides etc...

Like this, essentially the same solution saxman seems to have discovered.

[SpiffyJack]

On 9/21/2017 at 18:54, G_Force said:

In the past I've always done this by building the return path with a continuously banked track.  This works with everything, coasters, trains, car rides etc...

Like this, essentially the same solution saxman seems to have discovered.

Looks like @G_Force has joined the dark side, Welcome  ... I've used that Technique for a while also but its not the cleanest look most the time

Edited September 24, 2017 by SpiffyJack

[saxman1089]

On 9/24/2017 at 18:48, SpiffyJack said:

Looks like @G_Force has joined the dark side, Welcome  ... I've used that Technique for a while also but its not the cleanest look most the time

Come to the dark side. We have cookies!

But in all seriousness, cool to see you over here @G_Force! Group Park 7 is starting soon, you'd be a welcome addition!