Liquidated Companies

[luitzen]

Is there a way to remove track and stations of liquidated companies?

[Gwizz]

You can change the extension (Use the: .GM2 and add .MAP= .GM2.MAP).  Remove from game folder and put in the map folder and take the map to the editor and bulldozer the track there.  Then remover the (.MAP) and return to game file to again turn it into a game map  There is a negative doing this.  The random generator gives you another scattering of industry and houses that it adds to the first scattering of the same.

Normally I don't bother with this track.  You can run on it and build stations on it.

The map I'm working on now uses this type of track to indicate there is another RR in the area that can't be operated or changed by the player.  I believe you still pay to run on this track the same as with AI track. 

[luitzen]

That's a pity, but thanks anyway.

[jeffryfisher]

When did liquidation behavior change? I seem to recall a time when a company liquidated, and all of its on-map assets vanished. All it left was a scar across the landscape where it track had scraped some hilly terrain.

That said, it seems to be almost impossible to force an AI company into liquidation. No matter how I undermine its freight sources, and no matter how deep its debt hole, it seems to be able to declare bankruptcy again and again.

Usually, the better solution (for me) is to watch its stock hit bottom, and then buy up enough to force a merger. Then I can junk most of its assets and use whatever space has opened up.

BTW, When you merge, your trains will be renumbered, the newly acquired trains being inserted according to age. If you keep external records, this can seriously screw with your plans. For large railroads, I like to list all of my towns and cities in a spreadsheet with a column for each kind of urban delivery. I then put train numbers in the cells so I can know all of the trains serving any town/city. When a new source of something emerges, I can jump to the right train and shorten its route. There are other supply/demand problems that also have me asking "what train (if any) takes commodity X to town Z?"

Unfortunately, if 200+ trains get renumbered by a dozen interleaved merger trains, then my sheet is wrecked.  :(

Maybe I need relational DB. Then I could also design some useful reports. I should add "export train orders as CSV" to the wish-list thread.

[Gwizz]

When did liquidation behavior change?

You have some control if set up in the editor. 

I know of no way to removed the track when the AI goes broke during a game and leaves its track, except using the editor. 

[cogeo]

"Liquidate Bankrupt Companies" is a gameplay. not a scenario option.

As far as I can remember this causes all company's assets (track, stations and trains) to vanish, as jeffryfisher said. Also industries owned by the comapny become available for purchase. And that option controls exactly this, ie if its assets disappear from the map or are being left there (querying the track says "Owned by None"). I always have this option checked, because otherwise it makes no sense. You can use the track and stations (and pay fees to some supposed "government"-type owner), or connect to it, but not buy or bulldoze it. There was (is ?) a scenario using this feature ("English Channel" or "The Channel", can't remember exactly).

Please note that a company going bankrupt in RT2 doesn't mean that it is about to be liquidated too. A company going bankrupt will halve its debt and issue 50% more stock. This actually strengthens the company financially, and it may even achieve to stay afloat. A company in RT2 is liquidated if it can no longer service its debt, ie if total assets are less than total debt (negative cash + bonds), resulting in a negative equity. This may actually happen after a series of bankruptcies. The game option is named "Liquidate Bankrupt Companies", which is wrong; it should rather be named "Remove Assets of Liquidated Companies", which is what it actually does.

I don't even attempt to buy out AI companies, because they are not worth as the equity figure suggests: the track layout and quality of the trackbed often appear to be the worst possible ones (so most likely you are about to bulldoze it), the engine selection will rather be the worst possible too (eg expenisve to operate passenger locos for hauling freight), no service buildings in stations, etc. Also, old engines in RT2 are considered to be worth the same as new ones (ie there's no annual depreciation, the whole value is charged as an expense when the engine is written-off), so trains have a seemingly higher value than the actual one. Not to mention a bug concerning the retirement/replacing/crashing of engines: their value is NOT subtracted from equity. All these mean that the real value of AI companies is actually less than the one reported.

[Gwizz]

Liquidate Bankrupt Companies" is a gameplay. not a scenario option

In the editor, if you don't check Liquidate Bankrupt Companies, then the company track stays.  I think that would be a scenario option.  Either way game play can be affected

game option is named "Liquidate Bankrupt Companies", which is wrong; it should rather be named "Remove Assets of Liquidated Companies", which is what it actually does.

I would think the word Liquidate means about the same as remove Assets.

I don't even attempt to buy out AI companies

The only times I will merge an AI is to:

A.  use some of its' right of way to produce long straight high speed track for maximizing profits for my RR.

B.  because it has choice resources or demand industries I need.

C.  Topically in real life most RRs were liquidated, merged by another RR.   

I agree costs were not done very well in RT2.  But even that is somewhat programmable in the editor.

[TheDS]

I'm pretty sure he's right, that the ONLY place where you can choose to liquidate is in the game options.

There's a scenario option that's supposed to prevent players from starting a second company, but it doesn't work the way I want it to. I think it's a bug; if I unseat a player, if he's got enough money he can start a new railroad. Punk!

[Superchief]

Yes, you can choose to remove bankrupt companies via a check-box in the options when playing a scenario or campaign.