The latest DLC route for Train Sim World 6 is a German one; Set around the turn of the century Frankenbahn: Stuttgart - Heilbronn consists of 51 km (~31 miles) of track connecting the major hubs of Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof (Main Train Station) and Heilbronn Hauptbahnhof.
Stuttgart Hbf and the massive Kornwestheim freight yard are without doubt the most eye-catching locations. Passengers are served by 15 stations along what is, at times, a very pretty route, which runs alongside a picturesque river for several kilometres.
Frankenbahn: Stuttgart - Heilbronn allows us to drive classic German locomotives such as the DB BR 140, which pulls cargo trains out of the Kornwestheim yard, or shuttle services back and forth in a substantial regional timetable with the 'new to TSW' Wittenberger Steuerwagen, powered by DB BR 111 traction. We also get to shunt wagons around with the BR 363, or the iconic DB BR 294 (which are available separately, but we had layered in thanks to previously purchased routes.)
Bnrdzf 483.0 is a head control car (better known as n-Wagen or Steuerwagen) used for push-pull local trains, often featuring the distinct modernised "Wittenberge" driver's cab design. The older Bnrdzf 463.0 also features in this DLC and shares the same 65-service timetable as the 483.0.
The BR 294 DB may be the quirkiest, weirdest, most temperamental locomotive I've driven. Attempting a timetable service (in snow, at 4 in the morning) and lacking the knowledge of how to start the bloody thing, and not getting sufficient advice from the game, I tried to redo the tutorial (which I'd done before on a different route) which like many TSW tutorials in the past, was about as much use as a chocolate fireguard! I got it done eventually (thanks to some unprompted experimentation and several restarts) and felt slightly refamiliarised. I then managed to do the timetable service. Yay! But do Dovetail expect newcomers to know what I know, and do what I do, and persevere like I did? Hmm…
When doing passenger scenarios I found that there's a fault where the HUD shows both sets of doors are open when they're not, and this continues into the timetable services.
Other locomotives with layers on the route include the classic BR 111 DB, the BR 140 DB pulling freight and the BR 363 DBB shunter in an attractive and refreshingly different blue livery.
A shunting scenario reminded me of how badly the game is optimised for use with a gaming controller, switching points is still unnecessarily fiddly, so this irritated level 1047 player enabled "automatic set manual junctions" in the options menu, for the first time, without any guilt, shame or remorse at all. I've had it with TSW's seeming ignorance, indifference or apathy towards console gamers' struggles or "quality of life" (a favourite games developer term.) Many games have a "fine control" option when accurate cursor control is required (usually holding a second button while moving the cursor) so why can't TSW6 have this?
Anyway, rants over, this is a fine route and beautifully representative of German rail. With some pleasant scenery and the longest freight trains I've seen on a German route, it certainly provides some enjoyable variety.
Many thanks to Dovetail Games & Indigo Pearl