Which pak sets are balanced?

[Antonin]

For years I was playing pak128 and pak 128 British, but I remember someone saying those paks are not really balanced, and because of that, it's difficult to make a profit. Now, here in 2024, is pak64 still the only balanced pak?

Recently I started a game using pak64. It's very fun!

[Flemmbrav]

What kind of balancing are you looking for?

I can only recommend giving pak192.comic a shot.
It has proper pricing, and a somewhat okayish timeline past 1930 with lots of railway stuff.

https://github.com/Flemmbrav/Pak192.Comic/releases/tag/Nightly

[Andarix]

Each pack set has advantages and disadvantages. It depends on your own playing style and preferences.

In terms of size, pak128.german, pak64.german, pak128 and pak192.comic are the larger pack sets. However, the number of objects says very little about the balance.

pak64.german does not use a speed bonus. pak128.german probably doesn't use a speed bonus either, but I can't say that for sure.

list of paksets not complete

However, there has been no current release of any package set for more than a year.

A new Simutrans release is currently being prepared. It would be nice if the still active developers of Paksets also published releases.

[_Hajo_]

There might also be a problem in regard that different pak set makers have different ideas of what "balanced" means. So it's hard to give a general answer.

In my own set pak72.Elegance I'm struggling not only to balance profits, but also to find a good balance between production and consumption capacities of factories and shops, and the available transport capacity.

Good to know you found a set that suits you. Have fun

[Andarix]

...
I was wondering about other paks. I understand that this great game Simutrans is the work of volunteers who donate their time. I know some paks have not been updated in a long time, or are not really playable. Years ago I tried one of the Jaoan paks, and it looked unfinished. I wish I knew something about programming, so I could help make different paks more playable.
...

You don't have to be able to program for balancing.

Wiki - Object Datareference

The data is in the data files for the objects. The difficulty is to choose the data so that there is good balancing over time but at the same time there is still a certain dynamic. Without dynamics the game would be very predictable.

The balancing that Hajo aims for with the pak72.Elegance was also applied to the pak64.german. But as you already wrote, the 64 size is no longer appropriate today, even if there is now a fairly decent zoom.

What is most likely missing are graphic designers.

[Yona-TYT]

I am very happy that the project is active these days! It is very nice to see people giving access to Simutrans. 

It's what I've done here since I was 14 and registered on the forum.

[Andarix]

Simutrans has long had a built-in feature that permanently scales up industries. Unfortunately, the trigger for this is only a production counter. This means that the function cannot be used sensibly.

If the trigger were linked to the actual movement of goods (entry overflow, exit empty), then that would be a big step towards balancing industrial production. Because then only industries whose production rate is too low for the current time would be expanded in production.

FactoryDef - Parameters for permanent production increase

[smellstalk]

Industries can be permanently scaled up in Simutrans thanks to a long-standing built-in functionality. Regrettably, a production counter is the sole event that triggers this. Because of this, the function is useless for practical purposes.
Industrial production may be better balanced if the trigger was associated with the flow of goods (enter overflow, exit empty). For the simple reason that this would lead to the expansion of production in just those industries where the rate is now too low.