The busy railway route between Edinburgh and Glasgow is the setting for a new train simulator game, “Train Sim World 3: ScotRail Express: Edinburgh – Glasgow”.

Developed by Scottish-based Rivet Games and published by Dovetail Games, the game is the latest release of the Train Sim World franchise. It adds another full Scottish route to the series and will be available as an add-on for Windows PC, PlayStation, and Xbox consoles when it is released today, Thursday, 26th January.

The game’s star is a ScotRail Class 385 electric train that carries ScotRail’s iconic Saltire livery and features a number of classic railway vistas including:

• the Balmoral Hotel, which overlooks Edinburgh Waverley station;
• viaducts separating Linlithgow, Polmont and Falkirk High stations;
• the recently renovated Glasgow Queen Street station.

New features in this game are passenger announcements, whilst ScotRail’s classic train planters feature again but this time as static scenery objects.

In 2021. the Cathcart Circle line around featured in a previous Train Sim World game – Train Sim World 2: Cathcart Circle Line.

The add-on requires pre-installation of Train Sim World 3, and can be purchased digitally on Steam, the Epic Games Store, PlayStation® Store, and Microsoft Store.

Further information about Train Sim World 3 can be found at www.trainsimworld.com, or on social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok, Discord, YouTube, and Twitch.

Phil Campbell, ScotRail Head of Customer Operations, said: “It’s great to see our Class 385 fleet and the Glasgow – Edinburgh mainline come to life in Train Sim World 3, following the successful addition of our Cathcart Line and former Class 314 fleet in the previous version of the game.

“We can’t wait to see what the players think as they take a virtual trip between Scotland‘s two biggest cities on the newest trains in the ScotRail fleet.”

Jonny Gourlay, ScotRail driver, said: “For anyone coming into this for the first time if you feel you don’t know the controls that well, or you don’t know the route that well, give yourself a bit of time first to learn it.

“There’s lots to remember if you’re driving between Glasgow and Edinburgh, like braking points and how many carriages fit on which platforms.

“Give yourself the time to learn it, because if you were doing it in real life, you’re not expected to drive the train within two hours or know the route back to front.”

Matt Peddlesden, Dovetail Games Executive Producer, said: “I’m delighted that Rivet Games have been able to bring this key railway from Scotland into Train Sim World 3 along with the ultra-modern ScotRail Class 385 units.

“This is an exciting release for all fans of Scottish railways!”

Jasper Holzapfel, Rivet Games Community Manager, said: “As a Scottish studio, we’re more than excited about this release.

“Recreating a route many of us often use was particularly fun and interesting.

“Combined with the modern Class 385, we can’t wait for our community to get their hands on this!”