There's a whole series of these very similar "Train Management" games currently in the WoS archive and the vast majority of them routinely score around 1 out of 10 or thereabouts. To be fair I think one of the games does score just above 5 and a couple score above 4, but those particular occasional "medium scoring" titles all have some form of rudimentary graphics. "North Wales 47 Fleet Manager" is however one of the many "low scoring" ones that appears to be purely a text-only affair, lacking any sort of graphics whatsoever and quite honestly is a complete bore-athon. (Even for someone who has some interest in trains).
If there is anything to be learnt from these games, it is that if you are going to have a train-based game, at the very least, graphics are absolutely required! Otherwise, the game is in real danger of seeming like just another lazily implemented effort. A game like this could in theory be created just by taking an existing BASIC listing and simply modding the station names, timetable and train number data and then passing it off as yet another unique title. I myself could take the BASIC listing of this game and make a new game tomorrow, detailing another route, and release it as "Transpennine Express" for example.
Perhaps that suggestion is totally unfair and it's quite probable that the data contained within this program pertaining to train routes, timetables of the early eighties and the status of the "Class 47" diesel-electric fleet was painstakingly entered with unflinching accuracy. But therein lies another problem. The program is so obsessed with petty details and endless columns of numbers that it's inpenetrable to anyone who hasn't actually worked for British Rail and even a hardened life-long trainspotter would probably be frightened off by it.
So dust off your flat-topped BR cap and grab your stale, tin-foil wrapped egg butties and step aboard the 08:30 to pillock central, calling at tedium, pointlessness and despair. Of course, if you have a few years experience of using the old British Rail TOPS mainframe-based terminals to manage trains, then I'm sure you'll do well with this one. (Although you may as well be paid to do the job on a real TOPS terminal - they are apparently still in use to this day). If however, it's all a bit too much then instead head down to your nearest mainline station and stare at the arrivals board for a few hours. The experience is exactly the same, but you won't be able to mess it up as you can here.
Overall I'd suggest avoiding this one (and that goes for all of the similar titles in this series). I mean, if anyone is seriously playing this game nowadays I'd be very surprised, but you never know - maybe I just failed to "get it"!
I just expected a graphically impressive 3D-journey alongside the sunlit, sandy beaches of the North Wales Coast, did I perhaps demand too much from this one? :)
