# Roadmap

We released Railroader in Early Access on December 7th, 2023. Please keep in mind that Railroader is an Early Access title and <mark style="background-color:orange;">none of our plans are set in stone</mark>. We expect to change our plans based on player feedback, technical feasibility, or our own shifting understanding of the game. Additionally, this is not an exhaustive list, but rather intended to communicate our high level plans.

If you are considering purchasing Railroader, please base your decision on the game as it stands today! While these are our plans, they are only plans, not certainties or guarantees. Our development team is small and we have other jobs and responsibilities. On top of that, Railroader is not a simple game and software development is notoriously difficult to estimate. Producing a quality game is important to us and that will take time. Thank you for your patience.

Curious about what we've got in mind for the future of Early Access? Read on!

### Ongoing Priorities

Game development is an iterative process. As part of our goal to deliver a quality game we will be continuously revisiting the following aspects of Railroader during its development:

* Bugfixes, Optimization & Stability
* Documentation
* Equipment model refinements (engines and rolling stock)
* Structures & Scenery
* Sound Enhancements
* Expanded Settings

### Railroader "1.0"

We plan to build the following features during Railroader's Early Access period. We are pretty certain about these but keep in mind that they may change depending on feedback and other priorities.

| Feature                                    | Status                                                                           |
| ------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Auto Engineer (AE)                         | ✅ Road & Yard Mode (On EA Release), Waypoint Mode (2024.6)                       |
| AE Passenger Service                       | ✅ Added in 2024.2                                                                |
| Equipment Service and Repair               | ✅ Added Overhauls in 2024.4, revamped repair and added oiling in 2024.5.         |
| Equipment Catalog Enhancements             | ✅ Added builder photos in 2024.6.                                                |
| Additional Car Loads                       | ✅ Added aggregates in 2024.6.1; more to come                                     |
| Additional Rolling Stock                   | ✅ Added T-22, A-23, F-71 in 2024.3. C-40, revamped P-43, P-48, and SD7 in 2024.6 |
| Timetables                                 | ✅ Added in 2024.6                                                                |
| Enhanced Tutorial                          | ✅ Revamped in 2025.1.0                                                           |
| Crouch                                     | 🗓️ Planned for 2026.1.0                                                         |
| Diesel Horn Customization                  | 🗓️ Planned for 2026.1.0                                                         |
| Bell Customization                         | 🗓️ Planned for 2026.1.0                                                         |
| Maintenance of Way (MoW) Operations        | 🗓️ Planned for 2026.1.0                                                         |
| Modding Support                            | 🗓️ Equipment Modding Planned for 2026.1.0                                       |
| Player Provided Bells, Horns, and Whistles | 🗓️ Bell/Horn/Whistle Mods are planned for 2026.1.0.                             |
| Revamp Save System                         | 🗓️ Planned for 2026.1.0                                                         |
| Steam Workshop Support                     |                                                                                  |
| Mail & Express Service                     |                                                                                  |
| Localization & Translation                 |                                                                                  |

### Beyond Early Access/Post 1.0

We plan to continue development once Railroader exits Early Access and these are a *few* of our ideas for the future. We expect this list to change in response to player and internal feedback as we get closer to the end of Early Access.

| Feature                               | Status |
| ------------------------------------- | ------ |
| Interchange-to-Interchange Operations |        |
| LCL (Less than Carload) Operations    |        |
| Dedicated Server Build                |        |
| Additional Character Customization    |        |
| Difficulty Modes                      |        |
| Additional Starting Locations         |        |
| Torpedos/Detonators                   |        |


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