Texas Discussion Thread

[flight50]

Yes what I am talking about is unused land just beyond XXX barriers. No need to modify or change much except relocate the XXX barriers. Just make the programming possible for modular garages of various sizes and various lot sizes. 6 truck, 12 truck, 18 truck or even 24 truck slots or more. Depends on how many will be allowed in official MP. Pavel did acknowledge VTC on a couple of streams and I'm sure he'd try to get support for it. Large company lots would be ideal.

Here is a prime example of what I mean. This is Twin Falls Idaho near US-30 and US-93. Push the XXXX barriers West. Use one of these fields as a saleable lot to construct your own business/garage. 2-3 of these locations for each dlc can go a long ways. Heck, perhaps even limit the dlc to just allow just one per dlc but give the option for 2-3 locations. If the dlc can only be programmed for only one instance per dlc, I'd be cool with that. If you want to change to a different location, sell it, the lot goes back to empty (just like SimCity/City Skyline) and build you a new one. If you don't like your old one, demolish it and build a new one. If the system is an add on only then yes rebuild it, heck I don't know, lol. But modular would mean you can change at anytime. Either way, I'm good.

In game US-30@US-93
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Real life US-30@US-93
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[killingjoke28336]

Hey flight, are you a native Texan?

[joschac2]

sure is

[flight50]

@killingjoke28336 define native, lol. I've been here most my life. Born in Oakland, CA. Moved when I was 1-2 back to my parents hometown of Little Rock/N. Little Rock Arkansas. My mom moved to Ft. Worth, Texas in 86. I did grade school and half of junior high here in Texas. Went back to N. Little Rock to finish schooling with my dad. Graduated in 97 and came back to Ft. Worth with my mom to attend art school. Graduated art school in 00' and moved to Dallas in 01. Been in Dallas for 20 years now...........dang time flies. 20 years already in Dallas, lol. I guess I've been here long enough to call Texas home. I've traveled very little in the state though. DFW to Little Rock is my most frequented route. I've been to a few places South of DFW but not enough to say I'm familiar with them like DFW or going to Arkansas. I would like to do more South traveling on a more frequent bases though.

Texas is a huge state to move around in. Its not glamorous like California, Florida or New York, but there is a little something for everyone here. The site seeing stuff in Texas is off the main trucking roads. I think the devs will do a pretty good job of giving enough of Texas to give a pretty good vibe what its like. So if people are expecting West coast terrains and beauty, you will be disappointed. If you want flatter lands, open space with numerous roads and cities, you can't beat Texas. As the largest state in the lower 48, it should be the most content packed dlc by default because of its size. The overall size of Texas is larger than Iberia and HoR but Europe in general is a much denser continent. Texas is big but the devs can only do so much. Remember, we still have that two headed monster called 1:20 scale. If people are understanding of Texas geography and judge it fairly, I really think Texas can get an 92% + rating on Steam. Unfortunately, there will always be some negatives that are being butt holes. But if you do your research and just look around on Google Maps in street view, you will learn more about Texas and what to expect.

The Texas blogs will be huge though. The will tell a broad story. So far, we got our first one and it shows a real good vibe that is coming with Texas. Its not all desert like some may think, its not sparsely populated by any means and its not cowboys and horse carriages like some may still think. Its very up to date and modern just like any other big city place. There should be some delightful driving in the dlc though. From city density to open country, we'll get it. If you think its takes awhile to cross some states in ATS now, wait til Texas drops. At the furthest extends from East to West and from North to South, it takes just under 12 hrs in both longest directions....in a car. Drive a semi and it will be an all day task. So those that love flater, non stop straighter roads, Texas is your state. If you play with fatigue on, you can easily spend all day traveling thru Texas and never get out of it until the next day if you are a cruiser. That is a sun up to sun down drive but it'll be fun. I can't wait to see the amount of content and detail the devs put in. The road network and the cities will be one of the standouts for this dlc.

[KnuteOle]

I'm most familiar with I-35 from DFW to San Antonio (especially the Austin area), and have spent some time in SE Texas in Houston/Galveston/Nederland areas. But I'll be curious to see how much of the Texas Hill Country we'll see in the game. I've spent a lot of time there.

One of the disappointments of Idaho was the lack of the Palouse in the game, which is one of the more unique landscapes in the western U.S., but something had to be skipped, and the Palouse ended up being a victim of scale.

Hopefully, the Hill Country won't be skipped or minimized due to scale. I know I-10 goes through it, but you don't really see the countryside unless you get deep into it. I'm hoping Fredericksburg and maybe Johnson City make it in the game. Maybe even Llano or Marble Falls, too.

[interstate trav]

I’m looking forward to Texas and the flat ness, I remember a family friend who drove the 10 coast to coast a few times and said it’s so flat in Texas your lucky to see an ant hill, and I laughed and I really wonder how it will look in the game.

I’m also looking forward to getting close to New Orleans, another exiting City.

On a side note I hope they make Las Vegas casinos brighter, I want brighter, lol

[killingjoke28336]

Can't wait for Texas as I love flat landscapes and long straight roads.
Do you think the 62 from El Paso to Carslbad will bei in? Would love to see Guadeloupe Peak.

[Sora]

Hopefully, the Hill Country won't be skipped or minimized due to scale.

The Hill Country is one of the reasons I keep trying to push really hard against cutting US 290. US 290 is just so, so important -- the west side passes through the Hill Country, and the east side is a major corridor between Austin and Houston. Fredericksburg needs to be a scenery city, and the only ways we're getting it are US 290 or US 87. And I kinda doubt we're getting US 87 south of Brady, so that leaves 290.

[flight50]

I don't know Hill Country but we'll see what they add. Texas is huge so it will be interest on how it all turns out. The good thing is that blogs did start for Texas so we should at least get monthly updates to see how things are progressing. There's plenty of state to blogs about so hopefully things are moving just like any other state.

[flight50]

I think we are knocking on the door of our next Texas blog. It was March 12th when we got our first. We are just over a month. Friday or next week could bring blog 2 for this w.i.p. There are a number of directions they can go with blogs too. The first one was cool because they didn't show all desert stuff. 1/3 of Texas is dry desert like. I/3 is high plains that can have a good mix of dormant vegetation with green the further East you go. Then the coastal plains is basically all green with your wood forest or what not. Pines all over the place.

The next blog could be something industry related. Like expanded industries as in farming, oil/gas and livestock. Texas is one of the higher producers in overall agriculture. From livestock to crops, there should be some goodies there to explore. Lots of land to cruise on. Then we have the obvious oil and gas industry. No other state out does Texas in this department. So hopefully Texas knocks it out the park and makes a huge and enjoyable impact for oil/gas that is pretty much all over the state. Around the Gulf, there are chemical plants to also bring into the equation. We only have one chemical company in the game but at least one more would be justified. I'd love to see an industry related dlc pack for oil/gas. If owned tankers don't come for Wyoming, it would be a mishap for Texas not to bring them. There is a lot of cool cargo that can come here with oil/gas. Last but not least.......livestock. Texas is the #1 cattle state. Plenty of land out West to achieve all this. A nice shiny chrome or aluminum livestock trailer should be a reality here pretty soon. Wyoming is suppose to introduce it but cattle in Texas is like the oil/gas industry....the doors should be blown open in Texas. There is more things than can come for live stock than just the cattle. Cattle require maintenance and hopefully that type of cargo follows. The amount of land that can be used for ranches, farms and feedlots is plentiful and shouldn't be much of an issue to load Texas up on it. Oklahoma and Kansas will benefit from livestock as well. Together with Colorado and Wyoming, it will be a nice industry to haul for perhaps.

Its to early to get city blogs but perhaps a few town blogs could come at any point. We did just get Jackson, Wy and that was unexpected. Texas has a ton of cities to blog about though. Ports! Now that one will be cool to see in Texas. We have gotten so use to only the West coast, now we'll get a chance to be in the Gulf of Mexico where its more industrial along the Texas coastline than along the West coast. A little different vibe to experience here for the Gulf. Its not a pretty as the West but it does bring industry to the coastline under a different light. Maybe the ports along the Texas coast can bring in new cargo from South America and maybe even Africa or Europe. We'll see.