Ongakukan and the East Japan Railway Company detailed the upcoming DLC for JR East Train Simulator, focusing on the scenic Senzan Line.
The DLC, teased a while ago, will include the relatively modern E721 train for the first time in the simulator. It’s also a fairly different scenario compared to the base simulator and most previous DLC, as it moves from the urban scenery of Tokyo to the suburban areas and mountains between Yamagata Prefecture and Miyagi Prefecture.
The listing is already available on Steam for wishlisting, and the release date is next week, on June 28. The price will be $26.99.
We also have a bunch of screenshots, which you can enjoy below.
The route extends for 58 km between Sendai Station in Miyagi Prefecture and Uzen Chitose Station in Yamagata City in Yamagata Prefecture.
Of course, you’re not limited to the full route, but you can also simulate rides that only span portions of it. Here are all the details.
Route Information
- Section: Senzan Line Down Sendai ⇒ Yamagata
- Total length: 62.8 km
- Number of stations: 20
- Security equipment: ATS-PS, ATS-SN
Train schedules that can be operated
- Train Number：825M
- Type/Destination: Local train to Yamagata
- Section where you can drive: Sendai（08:18）→Yamagata（09:45）
- Type of train: Series E721-1000 6 cars
- Responsible for real voice train announcements: Yamagata unification center
- Train Number：3831M
- Type/Destination: Rapid train to Yamagata
- Section where you can drive: Sendai（11:07）→Yamagata（12:26）
- Type of train: Series E721-1000 4 cars
- Responsible for real voice train announcements: Yamagata unification center
- Train Number：1857M
- Type/Destination: Local train to Ayashi
- Section where you can drive: Sendai（13:27）→Ayashi（13:57）
- Type of train: Series E721-1000 6 cars
- Responsible for real voice train announcements: Yamagata unification center
- Train Number：837M
- Type/Destination: Local train to Yamagata
- Section where you can drive: Sendai（13:45）→Yamagata（15:16）
- Type of train: Series E721-1000 4 cars
- Responsible for real voice train announcements: Yamagata unification center
If you’re unfamiliar with JR East Train Simulator, it’s available for PC via Steam and comes with a massive range of DLC simulating plenty of different trains and lines around Tokyo and Eastern Japan.
While it’s certainly a niche sim compared to more global franchises like Train Sim World 5, it enjoys “mostly positive” reviews, and it has a dedicated fanbase. Incidentally, it was developed by Ongakukan, one of the pioneers of the train simulation genre with the Train Simulator franchise that debuted all the way back in 1995.
Just a few weeks ago, JR East (the actual railway operator in the real world), which also publishes the game officially, announced an official and blindingly expensive controller unit for the most professional (or nerdy) of the simulator’s fans. A Series 185 DLC has also recently been released, alongside the Hachiko Line.