''Southern Belle'' is a

train simulation A train simulator (also railroad simulator or railway simulator) is a computer based simulation of rail transport operations. They are generally large complicated software packages modeling a 3D virtual reality world implemented both as comme ...

video game published by

Hewson Consultants Hewson Consultants were one of the smaller software companies which produced video games for home computers in the mid-1980s. They had a reputation for high-quality games which continually pushed the boundaries of what the computers were capable ...

in 1985. ''Southern Belle'' was unique at the time of release in that it was the first 3D steam train simulator available for home computers. The game allows the user to take over the fireman and/or driver duties on a King Arthur class passenger

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

on the

London to Brighton line The Brighton Main Line (also known as the South Central Main Line) is a major railway line in the United Kingdom that links Brighton, on the south coast of England, with central London. In London the line has two branches, out of and stations ...

. It was programmed by Mike Male, who teamed up with friend and railway buff Bob Hillyer."The Hewson Express"
article from ''Sinclair User'' issue 43, October 1985; retrieved from Sinclair User Magazine Online

Gameplay

The aim of the game is to complete a simulated journey of the ''

Southern Belle Southern belle () is a colloquialism for a debutante in the planter class of the Antebellum South. Characteristics The image of a Southern belle is often characterized by fashion elements such as a hoop skirt, a corset, pantalettes, a wide-b ...

'' steam

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self pr ...

from London Victoria to

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

while keeping to speed regulations, being careful not to derail when going around curves and completing the journey on time. There are various options available including a demonstration run, where the computer takes control of the locomotive, and a number of challenges such as beating the real record breaking run for that line, set on 26 July 1903 (at 48 minutes 41 seconds).

Graphics

The graphics were "vector-style", but because of the limitations of the ZX Spectrum and such computers, the graphics were minimal. The framerate was very slow, updating only once per second. This was particularly notable when playing in "Fast" mode, where gameplay could be sped up x5 by pressing the "A" key. Also, the main gameplay screen lacked colour, with most versions being in monochrome. However, the ZX Spectrum version did include a "red" fire. Additionally, there were sections of line where there were no buildings visible in the foreground, leading to criticisms that the game looked as though the countryside had been hit by a nuclear bomb. The game's demo mode was a high speed run, in homage to

British Transport Films British Transport Films was an organisation set up in 1949 to make documentary films on the general subject of British transport. Its work included internal training films, travelogues (extolling the virtues of places that could be visited via th ...

's classic ''London to Brighton in 4 Minutes''. The next station/tunnel's name appeared as a totem sign at the top of the screen (just after Gatwick Racecourse, it changed to

Three Bridges Three Bridges may refer to: England *Three Bridges, West Sussex, a neighbourhood within the town of Crawley **Three Bridges F.C., an association football team **Three Bridges railway station **Three Bridges depot, a rail depot * Three Bridges, Linc ...

and the lineside features passed in that section included three bridges).

Sequels

''Belle'' was followed up in 1987 with '' Evening Star'', also published by Hewson and programmed by Mike Male and Bob Hillyer. ''Star'' is set on the old Somerset & Dorset line between

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

Reception

'' Your Sinclair'' reviewed ''Southern Belle'' in October 1985, giving an average rating of 5 out of 10. The reviewers felt that ''Belle'' made a welcome change from space games and had intuitive controls, but was ultimately lacking in excitement. '' Electron User'' reviewed ''Southern Belle'' in May 1986, giving an overall score of 7 out of 10. The reviewer praised the title's originality but questioned if it could hold the attention of gamers who were not railway enthusiasts. '' Zzap!64'' reviewed ''Southern Belle'' in July 1986, giving an overall score of 88%. The reviewer concluded: ''"A superb simulation of a dull subject"''.

References

External links

*
''Southern Belle''
at World of Spectrum *{{Lemon64 game, id=2382, name=Southern Belle 1985 video games Amstrad CPC games Amstrad PCW games BBC Micro and Acorn Electron games Commodore 64 games Hewson Consultants games Single-player video games Train simulation video games Video games developed in the United Kingdom ZX Spectrum games