Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor is a game that completely surprised me.
What I initially dismissed as a title aimed solely at young children actually turned out to be an in-depth train simulator that brings childhood nostalgia to life. It is a game that parents can play in front of their kids, even if the mechanics are a bit beyond a child's comprehension. This complexity makes Wonders of Sodor unique, yet it may also cause the game to fly under the radar for many. It isn’t truly a game for a younger audience; instead, it is a title for train aficionados. It serves as a “life-sized” virtual model train set with a vast, beautiful world to explore, offering nearly unlimited hours of fun, though it might not be for everyone.
To be completely honest, I’m a bit of a disgrace when it comes to trains. I absolutely loved Thomas & Friends when I was around four years old, but my memory of the stories is hazy at best. My grandfather, who passed away before I was born, worked on the railroad his entire life, and my uncle followed in his footsteps. My dad, on the other hand, has always had a love for trains; our house was filled with authentic railroad lanterns and other memorabilia from his childhood, not to mention the model trains and a Christmas tree adorned with every single train ornament Hallmark has ever released. Needless to say, I’ve been around trains my entire life, but I never once thought about how they function or fully understood what goes into operating one. Jumping into Wonders of Sodor for the first time was quite the learning experience, to say the least. It proves that it is never too late to fall in love with the world of model trains. I just never thought it would happen to me at 34, and from Thomas the Tank Engine, no less.
A Dream Train Simulation:
Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor contains a few different game modes, but at its core, the title is a genuine train simulator. The game is played from a first-person perspective where players select and name their avatar before being dropped into Sodor. From there, they can freely walk around the open world, though invisible walls prevent you from straying too far from the tracks. Occasionally, extra areas present themselves unexpectedly, allowing for additional exploration, though these locations are typically used for hiding collectibles. Outside of these diversions, most of the gameplay takes place on one of the many trains—including Thomas—with multiple camera options available to make controlling them easier.
Once on a train, there are several systems players must manage. Before moving, the direction of the train must be manually shifted, and there are two control options for the regulator (the throttle). The default "simple" control allows you to hold the Right Trigger to increase speed and the Left Trigger to slow down, while "simulation" controls use the triggers to manually adjust the position of the lever itself. Icons and warning symbols can be toggled to assist with navigation, or they can be completely disabled, requiring players to be much more aware of their surroundings and to memorize the routes. It is up to the player to decide how deep of a simulator experience they want, but the default settings allow even newcomers to get their feet wet and begin the journey toward becoming an expert fireman.
The basics of Wonders of Sodor are fairly straightforward. You begin at a station or depot and must complete a specific task. Typically, this involves picking up and delivering passengers while following a strict timetable, though some missions are unique. These include coupling cars to other trains, fetching water, and refueling. The game attempts to teach you every aspect of driving a train, but the vast majority of your time is spent getting passengers to their destinations—which is easier said than done.
There is a lot to manage while riding the rails beyond just fuel. Speed is vital, and ensuring the track switches are in the correct position is a top priority. Going too fast can cause your train to derail, and the types of cars attached heavily impact your engine’s stability. A heavier load also means a much longer stopping distance, making it easy to overshoot your mark. While overshooting a station simply results in a poor grade on your record, passing through a junction before the tracks have been swapped is a different story; it will cause a derailment and end your current run. Thankfully, the game defaults to informing you where you need to stop, but if the marker is only 200 yards away and you’re traveling at 50 miles per hour, you’ve already lost.
The way the game is set up ensures players learn from each failure. While it is easy to zone out as the beautiful scenery passes by on long trips, a few seconds of carelessness is all it takes for catastrophe to strike. In the blink of an eye, a perfect trip can literally fly off the rails. Losing half an hour of progress still stings, but it ensures that the next time you jump in, you’ll be much more prepared for the trickier parts of the journey. It is an uphill battle to reach mastery, but with enough practice everyone can get there. That is until weather changes come along to throw a wrench into things.
Although summer is the primary season in Wonders of Sodor, players can customize both the season and the weather to their liking. This includes controlling the rain, the wind speed, and whether the ground is covered in snow. Each condition significantly changes how you must approach a trip and requires further practice to master. These changing seasons also provide great opportunities for the game’s photo mode and offer hours of replayability across both the Timetable and Free Play modes.
Time Tables and Free Play:
The two main modes in Wonders of Sodor are Timetables and Free Play. Timetables consist of specific time blocks throughout the day where passengers need to be picked up and dropped off, or other objectives must be completed. There are over 250 of these to take on, and each can be customized with various weather effects. With many of these runs taking roughly half an hour to complete, players are looking at well over 125 hours of core content. If you factor in replaying missions with different weather conditions, that time could easily be extended to over 1,000 hours to experience everything the game has to offer.
Outside of the structured missions, Free Play lets players spawn trains anywhere they want, jump aboard, and set their own course. I’ll admit the way the game handles this is a bit confusing at first; however, it is actually as simple as selecting your train, hopping on board, and using the map to plot its path. This isn’t the only time the game’s tutorials and messaging feel a bit odd, but once you figure it out, it isn't a major issue. Again, this entire title is a learning experience, and it takes time before the mechanics become second nature.
Within Free Play, there are no limits. You can bring in as many trains as you want, select how many cars you are pulling, and simply travel the world. Of course, there are only so many branches one can travel down, but each one ends with a turnaround point or depot, allowing the trains to continue their journey even after reaching the end of the line. While there isn't a lot to do in terms of specific goals in this mode, it is a relaxing experience that simply lets players enjoy playing with trains. This alone will be more than enough for many, though having the structured Timetables is a nice addition.
The final component of Free Play is finding the game’s many collectibles—which is no walk in the park. Nearly every town, station, or unique area has hidden items, and many of them are extremely difficult to spot. The whistles can usually be found by running into every bench in the world, while the conductor caps are often placed where they blend in perfectly with the environment. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t tell you which specific areas are missing items. If you finish visiting every location only to find you are still short a few items, you’ll simply have to comb the entire world again.
This completionist hunt also means looking for spots where invisible walls don't stop you, allowing you to walk into the woods or behind buildings you didn't even realize were accessible. Thankfully, the walking speed is quite fast, but the game's logic regarding what can and cannot be climbed is a bit inconsistent. You might be able to hop onto one platform easily, yet a platform across the way—holding a conductor hat—requires you to find specific steps to reach it. There’s no rhyme or reason to these constraints, and it can be irritating when aiming for 100% completion. The same can be said for the times you are allowed to venture far off the tracks to a dead end where nothing awaits. Perhaps something will be added to these areas in the future, but for now, it feels like a bit of a waste of time. It honestly made me wonder why we couldn't just explore the full world anyway—or at least get a closer look at the cow soccer game.
Either way, this on-foot exploration is just an extra feature and doesn't take away from the core experience. If anything, it actually enhances it; the mechanics allow you to drive trains manually from a first-person perspective and pull levers to change tracks by hand. This helps immerse you in the world, though it still would have been nice if there were a bit more depth to these interactions.
There is even more that Wonders of Sodor has to offer, with the final piece of gameplay being the best part for children and long-time fans of the series alike. Even I—someone who had forgotten most of the classic stories—had a few memories unlocked as I was transported back nearly 30 years.
Recreating Classic Stories:
Along with the vast number of Timetables to complete and the countless hours one can spend in Free Play, Wonders of Sodor includes complete recreations of classic Thomas & Friends stories; however, these are honestly the most frustrating part of the entire experience.
The stories themselves are narrated by Mark Moraghan and typically begin the same way as the episodes they are based on—featuring dialogue during the actual gameplay and a final cutscene that brings the tale to its conclusion. This is the part of the game children and adult fans of the series will likely enjoy most. The gameplay is also quite unique in each chapter, as the goals constantly change. One mission may have you moving cars around and coupling them to other trains, while the next will require you to physically jump off Thomas to fetch him water. It helps change the pace, but this is also where the game's flaws begin to show.
One particular story features Percy and is a rare chapter that is split into two parts. While the first section isn't too difficult, the follow-up introduces rain and two troublesome cars determined to push Percy past his limits. This chapter alone can take roughly 40 minutes to complete. Due to the mischievous cars constantly increasing Percy's speed, players need to hold the brake nearly the entire time to avoid derailing. Of course, the game doesn't warn you about this, and acceleration happens suddenly around turns, so it isn't surprising when you fly off the rails and have to restart. Combined with the "stop" points you are likely to overshoot, the number of "game over" screens you face can easily triple. Sadly, there are no checkpoints during these retellings, and there is no way to skip text or cutscenes. These failures can result in losing hours of your life, and the random glitches certainly do not help.
Thankfully, not all story missions are quite as long or painful, but there were a few times where a cutscene triggered while the train was still moving at 2 mph. Because the train continued to drift during the scene itself, it crossed a "do not cross" line, resulting in a game over and forcing me to restart the entire episode from the beginning. Again, this was another half-hour spent needlessly redoing everything, though hopefully, this won't be an issue in the final release.
Despite these complaints, the stories were quite nice to see, and some were relatively easy overall. Still, the core experience of Wonders of Sodor lies in the Timetables and Free Play modes, so the frustrations presented by the "story" mode are only a small part of the package—about five hours or so, compared to the previously mentioned 120 plus. It honestly isn't the main reason to play the game, but fans will still enjoy seeing their favorite moments come to life in video game form.
Should you play it?
Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor is not at all what I expected. It serves as the perfect example of why you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, as it is easy to dismiss this as a simple children’s game. In reality, the concepts and gameplay features are likely too complex for a younger audience to enjoy. Instead, the game will resonate more with long-time fans and train enthusiasts. While some players might prefer developer Dovetail Games’ other series, Train Sim World, even those titles offer a different experience compared to the classic world of Thomas the Tank Engine. That being said, the game is certainly a lot of fun, though it won't be for everyone, and a handful of issues undeniably hold it back.
The train simulation itself is fantastic. There is plenty of content to dive into, and the combination of Free Play and various weather customization options adds significant longevity. This is a title one could easily sink thousands of hours into, especially those with a passion for trains and model railways. Sodor is also an interesting location, and fans will love seeing its key landmarks brought to life. Even non-fans can enjoy the setting; although the Thomas theme is present throughout, you don't need to be a devotee of the brand to enjoy the mechanics. This is a train simulation game through and through, and that is where the true appeal lies. For many, this title is a dream come true; for others, it might be the experience that finally helps them understand the appeal of the hobby. Conversely, those with no interest in trains or the simulation gameplay loop may never find the fun here and should probably avoid it.
Regarding the drawbacks, I cannot stress enough how annoying failure can be during story missions, especially when caused by "curveballs" that feel outside of your control. While manageable, restarting from the beginning repeatedly is rarely enjoyable. Failing a Timetable mission or a session in Free Play feels less punishing because you aren't forced to rewatch story cutscenes, but it is no less disheartening. Still, this is a core part of the gameplay loop, and practice eventually makes perfect. Since Timetables exclude the random gimmicks found in story missions, they are much more manageable.
Beyond my grievances with the story mode, my pre-release build featured a handful of glitches and areas that lacked polish. However, I was informed that many of these were addressed in the final version. Additionally, the developers have future patches planned and will likely continue to improve the game based on fan feedback. Thankfully, the unpolished areas I encountered were minor and didn't impact gameplay—such as passengers crowding through a single door—but knowing they have been addressed is still reassuring. The only significant glitch involved trains failing to come to a complete stop during cutscenes, though I could bypass this by holding the brake until the scene triggered. Hopefully, this will also be addressed in a future update.
Overall, Thomas & Friends: Wonders of Sodor greatly surpassed my expectations. While it plays on nostalgia, the core gameplay is a full-on simulator that is a railfan's dream come true! With a massive amount of content that takes hundreds of hours to complete, this package offers much more than meets the eye and should not be overlooked. It is also a great title for children to watch, though parents will definitely need to be the ones behind the controls.
While I cannot say the game is for everyone, I greatly enjoyed my time in Sodor, and will be coming back for more.
VERDICT: Recommended
Reviewed on PlayStation 5
Review Copy was Provided
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