Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game • Hacker News Board

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#121

Post by robocat » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 2:32 PM UTC

noduerme wrote: post #83

jstummbillig wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The moment I have been waiting for: Top 1% player in all scenarios, both Mini Metro and Motorways. AMA. No, they are both really fun (and highly addictive in my case). I like that you can do a scenario in 30-ish minutes (and even pause if you need to). I personally prefer Motorways over Metro, but alas, both highly recommended. Fantastic game design.

Thanks! I've played the daily Mini Metro challenge for years and very rarely made it into the top 10%. I've gone through phases with widening loops, grids, etc. I always feel like there must be some mysterious "trick" I don't know. Questions: 1. How important is it to make sure you alternate symbols? (Beyond the obvious of not having 3 in a row). Do you go out of your way to avoid two in a row? 2. Is it better to put…

I have a similar set of questions about a different puzzle game.

I've reached a point where I don't feel I'm improving and I'm not discovering any more tricks.

Going online to find other people's solutions just feels wrong. Like buying a "how to complete $X" from the olden days. I don't learn when someone else provides the way to a solution; I like progressive learning, and I dislike the frustration when I stop progressing.

I keep wondering about the meta-problem of how to change my mental gears...

There's an itch to create my own version of the game which would force me to learn the underlying mathematics. Most games are designed to level your skills or knowledge up slowly (sometimes a social component involved). Building yourself forces one to understand the constraints better.

OR do I just train up my meta-skills e.g. playing similar but different games?

I do feel stupid!

Obviously I've also reached my limit on the metagame here, given that I'm asking...

When you reach an impass with a solo intellectual challenge, what's the next step?

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#122

Post by Thunderwolf08 » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 2:33 PM UTC

hatsuseno wrote: post #106

I'll be entirely honest here, this kind of game is generally up my alley but I clicked off when I came across the list of available cities to build in being exclusively in the US. Not even a fictional playground for messing around in the engine, just "US primacy or bust", doesn't inspire confidence for a full release down the line. Not that I don't understand why it's like this, pulling the required real-world data i…

It's US focused because it uses US Census data to be very realistic and uses US open map data for the map. The dev tried to do Canada but couldn't get it working properly because Canadian census data is weird. I've heard someone from Germany managed to use some work arounds to get the game earlier than anyone else and modded in Berlin

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#123

Post by clutchdude » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 2:35 PM UTC

jstummbillig wrote: post #64

tantalor wrote: post #7

In this genre, Mini Metro is really fun, highly recommend. https://dinopoloclub.com/games/mini-metro/

The moment I have been waiting for: Top 1% player in all scenarios, both Mini Metro and Motorways. AMA. No, they are both really fun (and highly addictive in my case). I like that you can do a scenario in 30-ish minutes (and even pause if you need to). I personally prefer Motorways over Metro, but alas, both highly recommended. Fantastic game design.

How do you balance the struggle to recognize your own greatness while also making time to engage with the little people?

Also, how much time would you say it's taken you to refine your skill to get to that 1%?

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#124

Post by tetromino_ » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 2:54 PM UTC

Paid, installed it on Linux and played for 5 minutes. Overall impression: game has potential but is early beta-quality at the moment, especially in UI. I will be waiting for updates to polish things up.

* Map tile rendering is laggy; edges of map are constantly unrendered when rotating the view.

* UI seems not very well thought-out, lots of modality for no good reason. Why do I need to turn off population density view before I can build a station?

* Controls non-intuitive - where exactly do I have to click to connect two stations with a track? (It somehow worked once, and I was unable to repeat it.)

* Undo / Ctrl-Z doesn't work (cannot undo deletion of tracks or station).

* Tutorial hints for some reason always point to a fixed coordinate on your screen rather than a location on the map, so if you zoom or pan, the hint for where to build will now point to a completely different map location. With no way to return to the original location. Is that intentional? Why?

* Can we get names of water bodies, major landmarks, major streets on the map? It would add a lot of character.

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#125

Post by wyan » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 3:02 PM UTC

hatsuseno wrote: post #106

I'll be entirely honest here, this kind of game is generally up my alley but I clicked off when I came across the list of available cities to build in being exclusively in the US. Not even a fictional playground for messing around in the engine, just "US primacy or bust", doesn't inspire confidence for a full release down the line. Not that I don't understand why it's like this, pulling the required real-world data i…

This was my experience too, lots of cities to choose but all of them US-based. Not even London or Berlin. I'll wait and see :)

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#126

Post by tetromino_ » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 3:06 PM UTC

jrochkind1 wrote: post #120

Is this game actually ready, or is it a pre-purchase where you pay now and get it when it's done? The splash page seemed to be giving me mixed messages, but dearth of screenshots/video makes me think the latter? A bit sketchy to take people's money for a pre-pay for an unfinished game without being entirely clear that's what's happening? Or it obvious to gamers?

It's an actual purchase of what appears to be a rather rough beta version.

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#127

Post by jstummbillig » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 3:10 PM UTC

clutchdude wrote: post #123

jstummbillig wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The moment I have been waiting for: Top 1% player in all scenarios, both Mini Metro and Motorways. AMA. No, they are both really fun (and highly addictive in my case). I like that you can do a scenario in 30-ish minutes (and even pause if you need to). I personally prefer Motorways over Metro, but alas, both highly recommended. Fantastic game design.

How do you balance the struggle to recognize your own greatness while also making time to engage with the little people? Also, how much time would you say it's taken you to refine your skill to get to that 1%?

> How do you balance the struggle to recognize your own greatness while also making time to engage with the little people?

Alas! I lie awake many a nights.

> Also, how much time would you say it's taken you to refine your skill to get to that 1%?

Just checked Steam stats. Surprisingly (well, to me) little: Around 60 hours of Mini Metro and 200 hours of Mini Motorways. I guess it's not exactly competitive esports.

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#128

Post by Krasnol » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 4:43 PM UTC

aizk wrote: post #30

Colin is a friend of mine - a really wonderful self taught programmer. Subway builder gets a thumbs up from me.

Tell him that asking for 30/40$ without delivering even a single video is asking too much. Especially for such a minimalistic game.

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#129

Post by noduerme » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 9:37 PM UTC

jstummbillig wrote: post #107

noduerme wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks! I've played the daily Mini Metro challenge for years and very rarely made it into the top 10%. I've gone through phases with widening loops, grids, etc. I always feel like there must be some mysterious "trick" I don't know. Questions: 1. How important is it to make sure you alternate symbols? (Beyond the obvious of not having 3 in a row). Do you go out of your way to avoid two in a row? 2. Is it better to put…

1. Alternation matters because circles spawn most often, triangles next, squares least. I avoid 3+ in a row almost religiously; 2 in a row is fine unless that segment is already stressed. If I can cheaply flip a segment into triangle-circle-triangle (or similar), I do it. 2. Where to put big junctions: Squares are rare magnets, so giving every line access to at least one square prevents square-bound riders from pilin…

Thanks for the tips! I haven't normally redrawn as aggressively as you suggest. I'm excited to try all these strategies in practice, and it's enlightening as well to hear your thought process.

The secret level plays in endless mode. On the home screen of the game, tap the white arrow in the upper left corner to go to the credits page. Then return to the home screen and go to the credits page again. The second time there will be a sort of gear looking design next to the credits. Tap on that.

I don't know if there's a further easter egg to solving it but maybe you'll figure it out ;)

Re: Subway Builder: A realistic subway simulation game

#130

Post by noduerme » Fri, Oct 10, 2025, 9:42 PM UTC

robocat wrote: post #121

noduerme wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks! I've played the daily Mini Metro challenge for years and very rarely made it into the top 10%. I've gone through phases with widening loops, grids, etc. I always feel like there must be some mysterious "trick" I don't know. Questions: 1. How important is it to make sure you alternate symbols? (Beyond the obvious of not having 3 in a row). Do you go out of your way to avoid two in a row? 2. Is it better to put…

I have a similar set of questions about a different puzzle game. I've reached a point where I don't feel I'm improving and I'm not discovering any more tricks. Going online to find other people's solutions just feels wrong. Like buying a "how to complete $X" from the olden days. I don't learn when someone else provides the way to a solution; I like progressive learning, and I dislike the frustration when I stop progr…

Well, I don't usually ask for help and I don't want solutions handed to me, but getting another player's thought process doesn't seem like cheating. I suppose it depends on whether there's one trick to always solving the puzzle, in which case learning the solution without solving it yourself ruins the fun, or whether it's a game that you can always keep improving at and never completely be perfect at (like Mini Metro, which everyone loses eventually, or Poker, or chess, etc) where sometimes learning from others' strategies helps you level up and become familiar with concepts that unlock further skills and open up new questions as well.