You’ve already seen several beautiful screenshots from the upcoming Heart of Russia DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2. Inevitably, now comes the time to put it all together and present to you the very first gameplay video. Please relax, get some snacks or a drink to accompany you on this journey, and enjoy this short ride-along, covering a drive from Vyazma to Kaluga.
Please keep in mind, that everything you are about to see in this gameplay video is still very much in the 'WORK IN PROGRESS' phase.
It seems like the Heart of Russia DLC is shaping up great and our dedicated team is doing impressive work! If you agree, make sure to add the expansion to your Steam Wishlist, and eventually, you will be able to drive through the same roads as shown in the video yourself. Until then, we have many more interesting topics to cover so keep an eye out for any updates in the future!
While previously talking about the sculpture monuments of Russia on our blog, we have purposefully left out a very specific type of these structures. Let’s take a look at why you should always be on the lookout for any interesting entrance monument in the upcoming Heart of Russia DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2!
Entrance monuments are unique structures most often made of concrete, or they can be variously decorated signs or inscriptions. Their main purpose is to indicate the entrance of a city, which is a type you will most commonly pass by in this expansion. Every city will make its best effort to let you know you are officially entering their administrative area. Speaking of which, these monuments also serve as markers of three important Russian administrative divisions - oblast, okrug, raion.
Perhaps the most important one out of the three is the structure indicating the border of a so-called oblast (province/region), which is a type of federal subject of Russia, that serves as a first-level administrative division. Another use includes marking an administrative okrug (district), which involves outlining a district inside a city, which is sometimes divided into smaller units - raions.
It looks like even with a slight GPS malfunction, no trucker should get completely lost in the Heart of Russia map expansion. And if you cannot wait to pass by numerous of these entrance monuments and signs, make sure to add the DLC to your Steam Wishlist to show us how excited you are to be able to drive through this fascinating country!
Time goes by so fast and our Christmas Toys of Yesteryear event must now, just like the most wonderful time of the year, unfortunately, come to an end. In true holiday fashion, drivers from all across the world have tirelessly participated in delivering gifts in both Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator.
With brightly-decorated Christmas gift trailers and festive painted trucks, you set out on December 16th to deliver Christmas cargo and hit milestones with the help of our in-game tracking icons or deliveries tracker at http://WorldofTrucks.com. We hope the theme of vintage toys and our desire to share the magic with you by offering them as nostalgic gifts have brought out the best possible memories and the sense of the true holiday spirit.
Once again, the collective strength of the #BestCommunityEver has produced incredible final numbers, so let’s take a look at how you all faired throughout the duration of this special event.
Absolutely amazing work truckers! We are truly impressed by your effort. After all, apart from showing individual willpower by earning the special decorative lighting for truck cabs, the power of the #BestCommunityEver has prevailed in a very short time, unlocking all the reward tiers for unique cabin accessories. Thank you all for participating, you can all be proud of yourselves and your fellow truckers!
You have also flooded our social media with hundreds and hundreds of posts using the hashtag #XmasToysOfYesteryear. It was great seeing truckers from every corner of the world take part in the event and share their experience with us. We are grateful for you letting us know about your progress via screenshots, videos, or simply by writing a couple of kind sentences!
We also appreciate you taking the time and visiting our special Live Stream dedicated to this event. We have enjoyed hanging out with you all and seeing your excitement in the live chat over at Twitch and Youtube, and we hope our game designer Gavin will grace us with his presence once again with something unique and new sometime in the future!
To every driver who took to the roads and delivered gifts in this event, once again, thank you! It brings a lot of joy to our team to know how much you enjoy these events, and we will do our best to always make them feel unique and memorable. But until the next one is ready for you, we’ll see you on the road!
As the world’s largest country, Russia has vast and various landscapes to explore. Driving there is an experience in itself too, as you’ll encounter all types of road, from slick highways to bumpy dirt roads. In our upcoming Heart of Russia DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2, our team has been hard at work to replicate some of these road networks.
During the early research phase of Heart of Russia, which has been on-going since the release of 'Beyond the Baltic Sea', many of the roads highlighted for the road network of this DLC were quite old and very well used. However since that time, local map sources were updated which allowed us to bring in some recent changes, which we have replicated virtually to bring the most up-to date road network possible.
Our teams have also taken a new approach for a lot of road assets in the 'Heart of Russia' DLC, such as bridges, railings and curbs; which are bigger and denser. Traffic signage have also been a particular focus for our teams too, as there is quite the variety of them in Russia. Besides the standard road signs on poles, we encountered new challenges, such as hanging signs, dynamic warnings, new horizontal signage, unique railway crossings and many more.
Whilst Russia maybe known for its very well-used roads, the truth is that most of the major road connections intended for truck transport are in good condition; especially around major cities such as Moscow, which are very well maintained. One type of Highway that drivers will often find themselves driving on are Russian federal highways, which are owned and maintained by the government as they are of regional and intermunicipal importance for the country and economy.
This does not mean, however, that we have not encountered completely different situations in other areas. Prefabs, textures and assets have been especially adapted to the various roads conditions found across this vast country. Our teams have also focused on creating a better ratio between local roads and highways too. Drivers will find themselves often routing onto local roads rather than on a highway, as smaller roads make up a majority of the road network in Russia. You can also expect to find quite a few dirt roads too! Just be sure to keep an eye out, as these tricky roads are often used by local traffic too.
Our teams have focused on bringing lots of unique and small details to the road network in Heart of Russia, which we hope is evident from the screenshots in this blog. We cannot wait for you to explore them all for yourselves! We hope you enjoyed this first look at some of the roads that will be featured in the Heart of Russia DLC. If you did, then consider adding to add Heart of Russia to your Steam Wishlist. Огромное спасибо!
Time flies and the 2021 is slowly coming to an end!
There are certainly some positives from our point of view that we can focus on when looking back on 2021, especially the work on new map expansions, new vehicles and parts, new game features, and general improvements for our games in new updates. Hopefully, we have succeeded in our goal to remain productive and, thanks to that, raising the bar yet again on the gaming experience in American Truck Simulator and Euro Truck Simulator 2.
Let’s take a look in the rearview mirror and explore the content and features we have released throughout 2021!
Due to the worldwide pandemic, this year was not as great as we were hoping for, but we believe that science and everyone cooperating together towards better days is the answer for the right direction next year. Once again, we’d like to stress the importance of staying optimistic and keeping your health in mind. Stay safe and act towards others with care. Sometimes there are those around us who require support, which can be as simple as hearing some encouraging words.
Moreover, there were quite a fair amount of teases and hints in our special Christmas live stream. Our teams are already working hard on several new and exciting projects, and we are looking forward to bringing you more specific information in the future.
And of course, there’s you, our #BestCommunityEver! You’ve all been tirelessly supporting us throughout the whole year and we greatly appreciate that. You all deserve a big THANK YOU.
Today, we are happy to share with you the first look at one of the many cities that will be featured in our upcoming Heart of Russia DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2. Introducing Ryazan, the 3rd largest city by population in Central Russia after Moscow and Yaroslavl.
Located near the Oka River, Ryazan is a bustling industrial centre and transport hub. Despite the city's size, Ryazan is not usually on a tourist's list of places to visit in Russia. If you do choose to visit however, you will find many beautiful historic landmarks, such as cathedrals, as well as other interesting attractions such as museums that attract residents and visitors alike.
Ryazan is home to the one of the oldest museums in Russia, The Ryazan Kremlin. Located on the top of a steep hill, it is surrounded by rivers and a dry moat. This monument of architecture and nature reserve of federal importance is included in the State Register of Especially Valuable Objects of the People of the Russian Federation.
Truck drivers travelling to Ryazan for work can find a variety of industries, including a refinery and oil storage facility, a sawmill, warehouses and car dealerships. All of these which are located in around the city's main ring road, where you will also find shopping malls and many apartment complexes.
So whether you are just passing through or staying the night in Ryazan, we hope you will decide to take a few moments out of your driving schedule to admire this unique and historical city. We hope you enjoyed this first look into one of the many cities that will be featured in the Heart of Russia DLC. If you did, then consider adding to add Heart of Russia to your Steam Wishlist. Огромное спасибо!
We have already shared with you details and screenshots about the industrial areas of Heart of Russia DLC previously on our blog. However, the team of map designers is producing so much content, we actually decided to split the topic into two parts to avoid overwhelming our #BestCommunityEver with too many beautiful pictures. We hope you don't mind getting a second portion of beautiful screenshots related to this topic!
In the first part, you had the opportunity to see some of the new models arriving in these industrial areas. Can you tell if there is anything original in these screenshots as well?
If you managed to spot anything interesting let us know in the comments! Also, make sure to add the Heart of Russia DLC to your Steam Wishlist, which, apart from being a great way to show us how excited you are for the new map expansion, will also keep you in touch with all the latest news.
The most wonderful time of the year is knocking on the door, and most of the SCS team is taking a bit of time off to enjoy beautiful moments with their families and to recharge their batteries. The pace of our social media posts and blog updates will be slowed down a little, but don't worry, because we still have a few more blog posts, screenshots, and social media videos ready to be released for you till the end of this year. And then we’ll return to our usual form in January with a lot more exciting news.
In the meantime, you can keep working on your progress towards achieving all the goals in our new special Christmas Event, which offers some incredible rewards and fun!
Even though we all would love to see the world around us back in better times, it’s impossible to deny that the global pandemic is still causing problems. We encourage all of you to stay safe and care for everyone around you responsibly. Only with mutual care will all of you be able to find a way to create a good mood in your families, and hopefully, you will spend these upcoming festive days with health and joy.
So, make yourself a cup of hot chocolate, coffee, or tea, put on some warm and cozy clothes, grab some nice holiday sweets, and just lean back and relax while watching some classic movies. Or, grab a steering wheel, a game controller, or your trusty keyboard and mouse, and play the games you love, including American Truck Simulator and Euro Truck Simulator 2.
Additionally, if you missed our Special Christmas live stream, you may want to watch the recording as well. Maybe it will put a smile on your face and put you in the right mood!
We all have different ways in which we enjoy spending our holidays, therefore, no matter which activity you choose, we sincerely hope you will have a wonderful time.
The vast woodland territories of Russia account for more than a fifth of the world's forests, which means it holds more forest area than any other country in the world. This is why we would certainly be guilty of "treeson", if we were describing the content you can expect in the upcoming Heart of Russia DLC without mentioning a couple of their most interesting tree species along with some related industry information.
We have already slightly touched on the topic of Russian birch trees in our blog post dedicated to nature. But why exactly are these trees so famous all over the country? Well, as you may have noticed, quite often we call Russia "mysterious". That’s because its history and folklore are filled with myths and legends. And according to one of those legends, ancient pagan Slavs considered hugging a birch tree as a sign of good luck. Moreover, it seems that birch trees are generally considered to be magical.
From a more practical point of view, another important tree species you will be able to spot in this map expansion is the pine tree. Their lumber is well known for its texture, warm feel, and how easily it can be shaped. The wood is perfect for construction, components, millwork, and other products.
Due to this industry being so important in the country, there will also be a new prefab related to logging arriving with the DLC. This means that you will be able to deliver and haul for some of the forest harvesting areas and see the beauty of the local nature for your own eyes!
Whether you believe in myths or you are a driver that is focused on delivering cargo, hopefully, we've managed to strike the right note for you. If we did, be sure to add the Heart of Russia DLC to your Steam Wishlist and who knows, maybe once the expansion is released you will pass by a birch tree and it might just bring you some luck.
As part of the 1.43 update, we introduced new level of support for the controller in the game UI. Unfortunately, due to our mistake, the Steam Input configuration files were not properly updated and required manual update from our players. The fix for this just rolled out, but it will reset Steam Input configurations for those of you who already did it manually and made some custom changes for the configuration since the 1.43 update. This fix doesn't require any game update but we advise restarting the Steam client to automatically get the configuration change from Steam's servers. We are sorry for the inconvenience!
Now, go enjoy the Christmas event! ːwinter2019happyyulː