Train Sim World 6

Train Sim World occupies a strange, lonely corner of PC gaming: it is essentially the only game in town for serious, modern, first-person train simulation, and it knows it. Train Sim World 6 is, mechanically, the best version of that fantasy Dovetail has shipped — and also the clearest example yet of a series that has become a storefront wearing a sequel’s clothes.

The sim underneath is the real thing

Sit in the cab and TSW6 justifies itself. The simulation is authentic in the way enthusiasts crave: braking curves that demand you read the route ahead, realistic signalling, and start-up procedures that turn “drive a train” into a genuine skill you learn. The headline new feature — random events and faults — is the smartest addition in years. Signals that take longer to clear, sudden speed restrictions, and equipment failures you have to diagnose finally inject tension into what used to be a purely serene experience. Add platform and onboard announcements for immersion, and the moment-to-moment driving is excellent.

The three new routes are a well-chosen spread: NJ Transit’s electrified Morristown Line out of Hoboken, the gorgeous coastal Riviera Line along the Dawlish sea wall, and the historic Leipzig–Dresden mainline in Germany. Conductor Mode, Free Roam, Photo Mode and the surprisingly deep Creators Club (livery, formation and scenario designers) round out a package with a lot to do.

As a driving simulator, it’s genuinely great. As a product, it’s complicated.

The storefront is the game

Here’s the part no honest review can skip. TSW6’s store page lists 153 pieces of DLC — routes, locomotives, wagon packs — which, bought together, run to over $1,700. That’s not a typo. The base game is a gateway; the actual hobby lives in an endless catalogue of $15–$45 add-ons, and while owned content carries forward between versions (a genuine plus), the annual “new number” model means TSW6 itself is a fairly modest, iterative step over TSW5. If you came in expecting a generational leap, this isn’t it.

There’s also an AI disclosure worth flagging: Dovetail uses ElevenLabs text-to-speech to generate some announcement and training voiceover (scripts are written in-house). It’s a small thing, but for a premium-priced sim it’s a choice some players will notice.

Where it lands

Steam reviews are Very Positive — around 80% lifetime and 89% across the last 30 days — and that’s fair: the people buying TSW6 are enthusiasts who know exactly what they’re getting and love it. This isn’t a broken or cynical game; the craft in the simulation is real.

Verdict

If train sims are your hobby, TSW6 is the best current home for it, and the new fault system genuinely improves the core loop — for you, it’s an easy recommendation. For everyone else, the value equation is brutal: a full-price, incrementally-updated base game sitting in front of a four-figure DLC wall. Wait for one of Dovetail’s frequent deep discounts (the base regularly hits 70% off), start with the routes you actually care about, and treat it as a platform to invest in slowly rather than a game to buy outright.