How was the road network created for the Heart of Russia DLC?

The road network of the Heart of Russia DLC has been introduced for Euro Truck Simulator 2. Russia awaits us in the largest country in the world, full of old and worn, slick highways, bumpy dirt roads. SCS Software’s map designers tried to adapt the real roads as much as possible. While there are many well-maintained roads around big and important cities such as Moscow, there are diversity and road conditions when descending to rural and local roads.

from SCS Software’s blog post

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.

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.

From 4 lane highways to unpaved roads, you can experience many types of roads in our upcoming Heart of Russia DLC for Euro Truck Simulator 2 🇷🇺

And we cannot wait for you to explore them all for yourselves! 🚛🛣️

See loads of NEW images at our blog: https://t.co/Ht4VprKUdW pic.twitter.com/SCwa7ACIgb

— SCS Software (@SCSsoftware) January 7, 2022