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Microsoft Train Simulator

2001 simulation video game

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 5, 2026
Entity authorityQ384055
Source-derived summary

Microsoft Train Simulator (informally abbreviated to MSTS) is a 2001 train simulator game developed by UK-based Kuju Entertainment and published by Microsoft Games (now known as Xbox Game Studios) for Windows. It was released on June 18, 2001.

Features

Microsoft Train Simulator allows players to operate a selection of trains on various routes within Europe, Asia, and North America. Gameplay features include the ability to couple wagons, start and stop them, as well as operate trains using mouse and keyboard or hardware accessories (e.g. Raildriver) as controls.

Routes

The game features six routes in four countries: Austria, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Reception

Critic reviews

The game received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. John Lee of NextGen said of the game, "All aboard for HO scale fans, trainspotters, and nostalgic rail buffs. Train haters, however, may prefer the old cliché, 'Run for the roundhouse, boys. They can't corner you there.'"

Sales

The game sold 191,952 units in the U.S. by the end of 2001, which drew revenues of $8.7 million.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Microsoft Train Simulator” is 2001 simulation video game. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Microsoft, Train and Simulator, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2001—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 2001-01-01. For this dossier, Microsoft, Train and Simulator is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “2001 simulation video game” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 5, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q384055. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2001.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

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  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
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Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Microsoft Train Simulator”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Microsoft Train Simulator primary sources, Microsoft Train Simulator archive and Microsoft research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Microsoft Train Simulator”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Microsoft Train Simulator” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.