OMSI - the bus simulator

OMSI - The Omnibus Simulator is a job simulation for Windows that was published by Aerosoft in February 2011 as a download version and in March 2011 on DVD-ROM . It was developed between 2007 and 2011 by Marcel Kuhnt and Rüdiger Hülsmann under the company name MR Software . The simulation takes place in 1989; the then bus route 92 in Berlin-Spandau is simulated. For this purpose, the route was recreated true to the original and integrated into the game.

Gameplay

The player is the driver of a bus operated by the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe . He is supported by double-decker buses of the series MAN SD 200 and MAN SD 202 as well as buses of the type MAN NL 202 and MAN NG272 with the original logo of the manufacturer are available. Vehicles of different years of construction were reproduced with different vehicle advertising. The 92/137 line and the 92E section between Falkensee / Freudstraße and Heerstraße city limits / Hahneberg, 5 / 5E / 5N / 130 / N30 between Spandau Nervenklinik and Ruhleben underground station and part of the 13N / N33 between Heerstraße city limits / Hahneberg can be used and Rathaus Spandau underground station . In addition to driving, ticket sales are also simulated. In addition, the player can ride in AI buses.

With the map editor included in the scope of the game, it is possible to create your own maps and lines for OMSI . You can also integrate your own bus models into the game.

Further development

Since the end of 2011 work has been carried out on joint physics for the simulator . With the MAN NG 272 , an articulated bus has found its way into OMSI for the first time . Since this differs little from the MAN NL 202 low-floor bus apart from the joint , this was also brought out with the next OMSI version. On February 23, 2012, the developers announced the official expansion of the included Spandau map. This includes the former line 5 from the Spandau mental hospital to the Ruhleben underground station. Furthermore, the Berlin-Spandau map can be played in different eras (from 1986 to 1994). In addition to these fundamental changes, other variants of the existing SD 200 and 202 models have also been added; In addition, there is now a chronology function that simulates events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall. The further development was officially published on December 12, 2013 under the name OMSI 2 .

On September 15, 2014 it was announced that MR Software will be dissolved and that Marcel Kuhnt will no longer work with Rüdiger Hülsmann in the future. On October 10, 2015, Marcel Kuhnt announced that the development of LOTUS-Simulator , a successor to OMSI, had started under the name Oriolus Software . LOTUS is an acronym for the individual simulated sub-areas of public transport : control center , omnibus, tram , subway and suburban train . The publication of three individually purchasable modules is planned. The first module, Rails of LOTUS , enables the simulation of rail traffic and was released on September 15, 2018 in an early access version with the GT6N tram , the small test card Diorama and a map editor. The Streets of LOTUS module for simulating road vehicles followed on December 23, 2019, also in Early Access with the MAN Lion's City DD .

Extensions

The following official AddOns have been released for OMSI - The Omnibus Simulator and have been made compatible with OMSI 2 at a later date:

Vienna - The high-floor bus LU 200 (published on June 11, 2013, developer ViewApp, publisher Aerosoft): The extension includes the route of the Vienna bus line 24A in 2005 from the Kagran underground station through the center of Kagran and via Breitenlee to Neueßling in the Viennese district of Donaustadt . A Gräf / Steyr LU 200 M11 is available as a vehicle . The extension was created in cooperation with Wiener Linien and is officially licensed by them.

City bus O 305 (published on June 24, 2013, developer Rolf Westphalen, publisher Aerosoft): The expansion includes four different models of the standard Mercedes-Benz O 305 city bus . In addition to automatic and switching cars, various interior and exterior designs are also available. The expansion also includes a fictional map with the name Neuendorf .

Hamburg Day & Night (published on July 17, 2013, developers Darius Bode and Barbara Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The expansion includes the Hamburg city bus route 109 from the Alsterdorf underground station to the Hamburg ZOB and the night bus route 688 from the Altona train station to the Rathausmarkt with a total of three drivable 12 m city buses from the 1990s in different versions of the transport company. In September 2016, an update for the card with the title Innovationslinie 109 was released .

The following official enhancements have been released for OMSI 2 so far:

Three generations (published on June 26, 2014, developer Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The expansion includes three different articulated buses, which represent different generations of Hamburg articulated vehicles between 1992 and 2012. Vehicles of the type Mercedes-Benz O 405 GN and Citaro 2 G are shown .

Chicago Downtown (published on June 17, 2015, developer Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The expansion contains two original bus types (solo and articulated bus), which are equipped with a hybrid and a diesel drive. The extension leads through the realistically recreated city of Chicago over a length of 32 kilometers , with lines 124 and 130 being passable.

Berlin X10 (published on September 24, 2015, developer Maerkertram, publisher Halycon): In the simulation, streets were implemented along the main axis of the Berlin express bus line X10 from the Zoologischer Garten underground and S-Bahn station through Berlin-Zehlendorf to Teltow in Brandenburg . The bus lines X10, 115, 625 and 626 are completely simulated over a length of approx. 60 km, with a further 14 lines partially. The expansion also includes a double-decker version of the MAN Lion's City based on the real BVG model .

Vienna 1 - line 24A and Vienna 2 - line 23A (published on November 12, 2015, developer ViewApp, publisher Aerosoft): The two extensions appeared as successors to the existing Vienna extension for OMSI 1. In Vienna 1, line 24A will be connected to the The corresponding bus Gräf / Steyr LU 200 M11 and the low-floor successor NL 205 M11 are simulated. Vienna 2 includes line 23A, which no longer actually exists, as well as the associated Gräf / Steyr GU 240 M18 and NG 235 M18 vehicles.

Project Gladbeck (published on December 10, 2015, developer Kevin Nitschmann and Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The map by Kevin Nitschmann, which in its seventh version appears for the first time as a chargeable extension, originally started in Gladbeck , now includes large parts of the northern part Ruhr area . The simulated route network has a length of approx. 500 kilometers. In addition to the map, the expansion contains a Mercedes-Benz Citaro 2 (G) based on the model of the Vestische trams .

City bus O 405 (published on March 8, 2016, developer Pedro Vendeira, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains both the Mercedes-Benz O 405 solo bus and the 18-meter-long articulated version O 405 G. A special feature of this extension is that it can be changed easily of individual components per manual.

City bus O 305 G (published on March 8, 2016, developer Rolf Westphalen, publisher Aerosoft): This expansion contains the Mercedes-Benz O 305 G city bus in four different variations (city bus front and intercity front with automatic and manual doors).

Tram NF6D (published on July 28, 2016, developers Philipp Zunk and Kevin Nitschmann, publisher Aerosoft): The focus of the expansion is the type NF6D (MGT6D) tram , which was originally developed in 1988 for the city of Kassel and is typical for the Ruhr area Meter gauge tracks drives. A real map of the Gelsenkirchen tram line 107 is included.

MAN city bus family (published in September 2016, developer Christian Rolle, publisher Aerosoft): This expansion contains four different bus models from MAN . In addition to the 12-meter-long versions as a city bus (A21) and as an intercity bus (A20), a 15-meter-long version (A26) and the 18-meter-long articulated bus (A23) are included. The 45 different setting options for the individual design of the vehicles (e.g. doors, displays, seats) are remarkable.

Aachen (published on October 13, 2016, developer Tobias Müller, publisher Aerosoft): This extension includes bus routes 33 and 73 of the Aachen transport company ASEAG . In addition to large parts of Aachen, the Dutch border town of Vaals was also recreated . It also includes three bus models from the Mercedes-Benz Citaro facelift series .

Rheinhausen (published in October 2016, developer Zane, publisher Halycon): The expansion contains a typical German city bus network in the fictional city of Rheinhausen with the connection of surrounding towns via overland lines. A bus based on the Citaro 2 Ü is included .

Double articulated bus AGG 300 (published on December 1, 2016, developer Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft)

Mallorca (published on December 15, 2016, developer Kevin Nitschmann and Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains numerous lines around Palma de Mallorca and an articulated and solo bus based on the Mercedes-Benz Citaro .

Citybus i280 (published on May 11, 2017 developer Bustrainz, publisher Aerosoft) This add-on contains five different variants of the Ikarus 280.

HafenCity - Hamburg modern (published on October 19, 2017, developer Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains lines 6 and 111 of the HVV and the hybrid buses 7900 L and 7900 LH (based on the Volvo 7900 ). Owners of the Hamburg add-on day and night have the option of using the routes 109 and 688 known from this add-on on this map.

Metropole Ruhr (published in November 2017, developer Kevin Nitschmann, Christian Rolle, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains the Solaris Urbino IV. The extension based on the Gladbeck project leads over 800 km of streets through numerous cities in the Ruhr area, including Gladbeck , Bottrop and Essen .

Bremen Nord (published on November 2, 2017, developer Dennis Kurzawe and Christian Rolle, publisher Halycon): The expansion contains eight bus lines from BSAG and a MAN Lion's City in the articulated and solo version.

Lucerne - Line 24 (published on December 6, 2017, developer and publisher Mailsoft): The included map shows line 24 from Lucerne train station to Meggen Tschädigen. A four-door Mercedes-Benz Citaro Facelift G from the Lucerne public transport company is included as a player's bus .

Hamburg bus package (published on March 15, 2018, developer Darius Bode and publisher Aerosoft): The add-on contains three Citaro buses from 2017. Buses: solo and articulated bus variants with a length of 12 or 18 meters and large-capacity articulated bus with 21 meters Length and 4 axes.

Wuppertal (published on September 6, 2018, developers Kevin Nitschmann and Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft GmbH): The add-on contains two Citaro buses of the latest generation and a vehicle from the Wuppertal suspension railway, which can also be driven by the player. Four bus lines and one suspension railway line are included .

Coachbus 250 (released on December 10, 2018, developer Long Vehicle`s Team and publisher Aerosoft): The add-on contains 22 different versions of the Ikarus 250.

Urbino city bus family (published on February 7, 2019, developer Christian Rolle and publisher Aerosoft) The expansion contains 5 different basic versions of the Solaris Urbino 12, 15 and 18 of the 2nd generation, which can be reconfigured directly in the game.

Citybus i260 (published on May 9, 2019, developer Bustrainz, publisher Aerosoft): The add-on receives five different versions of the Ikarus 260.

Wuppertal bus route 639 (published on June 28, 2019, developer Kevin Nitschmann, publisher Aerosoft) The mini add-on contains bus route 639 from WSW.

Masterbus Gen 3 (published on August 13, 2019, developer Masterswitch Studios, publisher Aerosoft) The add-on contains 3 variants of the Wright Gemini 3 bus series, each in 2 different lengths. Further variants will be added through future updates.

Munich (published on September 5, 2019, developer Olgu Cerit): The add-on comprises three lines and three different buses from MAN: MAN Lion's City articulated bus, solo bus and, for the first time, a solo bus with a Hess trailer.

Cologne (published on November 7, 2019, developer PAD-Labs and Darius Bode, publisher Aerosoft): The extension includes line 132 of the Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe from Breslauer Platz / Hbf to Meschenich Frankenstraße via many important points such as B. the Heumarkt , the Waidmarkt (here was the Cologne City Archives ), the Chlodwigplatz and Rondorf . A Mercedes-Benz Citaro in an articulated and solo bus version is also included .

MAN DN95 double-decker bus (published on November 27, 2019, publisher Halycon Media): The delivery includes the first Berlin low-floor double-decker bus ND202 (BVG name DN95) in different versions.

Düsseldorf (published on April 7, 2020, developer OMSI Projekt Gladbeck / Kevin Nitschmann, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains the bus lines M3, 835, 836, NE7, a rail replacement service of the Rheinbahn Düsseldorf and the Solaris Urbino IV.

Bad Hügelsdorf (published on May 22, 2020, publisher Halycon Media): The expansion contains nine bus routes for the fictional Baden medium- sized town Bad Hügelsdorf . Surrounding towns are connected by overland lines. It includes two intercity buses (Ü and ÜLL) from the MAN brand .

E-Bus Hamburg (published on June 4, 2020, developer Darius Bode): The modern eCitaro type city bus is also included

Düsseldorf line M2 (published on August 5, 2020, developer OMSI Projekt Gladbeck / Kevin Nitschmann, publisher Aerosoft): The extension contains the Düsseldorf bus lines M2 and 377

Coachbus 256 (published on August 20, 2020, developer Long Vehicle's Team, publisher Aerosoft) The addon contains the buses Coachbus 258.00 (256.50E), Coachbus 256.50V, Coachbus 256.50VL, Coachbus 256.51, Coachbus 256.54, Coachbus 256.69, Coachbus 256.74 1990 , Coachbus 256.74 1997 (74B), Coachbus 256.75 1988, Coachbus 256.75 1990 and Coachbus 256.21H

Berlin BRT (published on August 24, 2020, developer Maerkertram, publisher Halycon): updated map of Berlin X10 with a new bus, the Citaro C2 Solo Euro 6

The following AddOns for OMSI 2 are currently officially in development:

London (publisher Aerosoft, developer Rhys McColin)
C2 city bus family (publisher Halycon Media)

In addition, the functional extensions Advanced Omnibus Driver, OmniNavigation, Bus Operation Simulator and the Control Center Simulator are available, which integrate additional functions such as a career and multiplayer mode or an orientation map into the game.

Furthermore, many other free extensions are available in various forums (e.g. Marcel's OMSI Forum, OMSI WebDisk, ...).

reception

The internet magazine 4Players rated OMSI mostly positive. While the many technical details and the extensive setting options were particularly praised, the outdated graphics, especially the representation of the passengers, received negative criticism.

In contrast, the simulation received a poor rating from PC Action magazine . In addition to the outdated graphics, technical errors and poor performance were criticized.

In other tests, the limited scope of the game and a lack of long-term motivation were also criticized, but this is offset by extensive expansions created by the community such as mods, maps or buses. The prototypical implementation of the simulation, however, was praised.

Jan Böhmermann presented the add-on Bremen-Nord in December 2017 in a Let's Play .

Web links

Individual evidence

^ Jonas Wekenborg: OMSI - The bus simulator. In: GIGA . February 24, 2011, accessed March 5, 2020 .

↑ Marcel Kuhnt: What's next with OMSI, M&R and the forum? In: omnibussimulator.de , accessed on January 21, 2017

^ Oriolus software. In: oriolussoftware.de , accessed on November 26, 2017

↑ OMSI: Vienna - The high-floor bus LU (add-on). In: Amazon.com , accessed November 29, 2017

↑ Additional content for OMSI 2 on Steam

↑ The OMSI2-Bad Hügelsdorf 2020 - industrial area. In: Halycon Media. Halycon Media, November 22, 2019, accessed February 6, 2020 .

↑ With the OMSI 2-AddOn Berlin BRT in the new capital. Halycon Media, August 13, 2020, accessed on August 14, 2020 .

↑ OMSI 2 Add-on London - Aerosoft Shop. In: Aerosoft GmbH. Aerosoft Luftfahrtdatentechnik GmbH, accessed on April 10, 2019 .

↑ The C2 city bus family for OMS2 is rolling out. Halycon Media, May 11, 2018, accessed June 21, 2018 .

↑ OmniNavigation for OMSI 2. In: PeDePe.de , accessed on November 16, 2017

↑ Mourad Zarrouk: Test: OMSI - The Omnibus Simulator . In: 4players.de , accessed on January 21, 2017

↑ Scrap of the Month , PC Action, Issue 05/11

↑ Böhmermann Let's Play: OMSI2 - Bremen-Nord Add-On on YouTube