For those of you who have been actively following OBND and the development of our BVE Multiplayer addon, we have some exciting news to share with our community!
Throughout 2026, BVE Multiplayer has undergone significant slient rebuilding, improvements, and major updates. The progress we have achieved this year has far exceeded that of any previous year in the project's history, marking 2026 as our most productive and successful year of development to date.
With substantial improvements to stability, performance, and overall functionality, we have reached milestones that once seemed years away and impossible. What we have accomplished in 2026 has brought us closer than ever to making BVE Multiplayer available to the public.
2026
In 2026, OBND completely rebuilt the Dispatcher Board from the ground up. Previously, the board depended on the game loading before players could join, creating numerous challenges. We had always envisioned moving the board to a web-based platform, and during the rebuild, we finally made it happen. This change has proven to be one of our biggest improvements, providing greater flexibility, stability, and accessibility. We couldn't be prouder of what we've accomplished, and none of it would have been possible without the hard work and dedication of our incredible development teams!
Dispatcher Board Rebuild:
The Dispatcher Board is now the central command center for all train operations within OpenBVE. We like to call it the “Master of the Game.” Dispatchers have ultimate authority over operations, with extensive control over trains, signals, restrictions, bypasses, and emergency overrides. Nearly every aspect of the multiplayer experience can be managed directly from the board, 0 control from openBVE itself.
Simply put, you CAN'T BEAT the Dispatcher. The Dispatcher BEAT'S YOU!
Full Signaling Control & Active Train Monitoring – Manage signals, track occupancy, train movements, and signal protection in real time.
Complete Player Monitoring – Monitor player locations, speeds, movement, FPS, connection status, operating controls, and train performance.
AI & TFO Train Management – Control AI-operated trains, traffic movements, schedules, operating instructions, and train behavior.
Train Operations & Equipment Monitoring – Monitor braking systems, operating cabs, doors, reversers, power controls, and train equipment.
Dispatcher Jurisdiction Control – Assign operating territories, restrict unauthorized actions, and manage dispatcher authority.
Work Zones & Speed Restrictions – Establish temporary work zones, enforce speed restrictions, and monitor compliance.
Station & Timetable Management – Manage station operations, schedules, arrival and departure times, and train holds.
Emergency Controls & Safety Overrides – Apply emergency restrictions, override operating controls, and respond to incidents.
Train Coupling & Uncoupling Management – Authorize and monitor train connections, separations, and rescue operations.
Real-Time Train Diagnostics & Event Logging – Track train performance, operational incidents, equipment failures, and player activity.
Player & Session Administration – Manage player permissions, train assignments, session access, and operating restrictions.
Integrated Communication Systems – Coordinate train operators and dispatchers through multiplayer radio communications.
Some of the things we are most proud of in our development we will touch on for a minute will be
In-Game Radio: One of our exciting additions to BVE Multiplayer is our fully integrated radio communication system, allowing players and dispatchers to communicate directly within the simulator. The system features multiple radio channels, individual player call IDs, realistic transmission sounds, microphone controls, and dispatcher-managed communications interface. Players can communicate locally in a session or everyone while operating their trains, bringing an entirely new level of interaction and realism to OpenBVE.
Single-Player OpenBVE Integration: We're also excited to announce plans to expand our radio system beyond multiplayer! Our goal is to make radio communications available to the single-player OpenBVE experience, opening the door for route developers and train creators to incorporate custom radio functionality into their own projects. We plan to provide source code and API documentation to help developers integrate the system, create custom interactions, and build upon its capabilities. This is another step toward making OpenBVE a more interactive and immersive simulator for the entire community.
Content Delivery Network (CDN): One of the biggest challenges we faced during development was players joining sessions with missing, outdated, or modified train and route files. These inconsistencies often caused unexpected issues, affecting not only individual players but sometimes the entire multiplayer session. To address this, we introduced our integrated CDN system, designed to ensure players receive the correct assets required by the server. By simplifying file distribution, managing updates, and reducing asset mismatches, the CDN helps create a more stable, consistent, and reliable multiplayer experience for everyone.
AI + TFO: We have truly outdone ourselves with this one! One of our biggest achievements is the ability to introduce automated rail traffic into OpenBVE at any time, without requiring players to manually place AI or TFO trains within a route. We've developed dedicated user interfaces that allow dispatchers to plan and customize nearly every aspect of automated train operations, from station stops, bypasses, timetable scheduling, and more!
So, whether you prefer operating without other players or simply want to introduce additional rail traffic into your session, AI + TFO offers the perfect solution! Our goal is to make AI trains behave as closely as possible to real players, following schedules, responding to signals, carrying out operating instructions, and interacting with the railway environment. You can create an entire network of automated trains without needing additional players online, bringing a whole new level of activity and realism to OpenBVE.
With AI-TFO intergrated in BVE we created an advanced Special Instructions Builder, taking automated train operations far beyond simply traveling from one position to another. Dispatchers can create detailed operating instructions covering door operations, waiting for other players, signal conditions, scheduled holds, speed restrictions, and much more. This allows AI and TFO trains to respond dynamically to different situations, creating a far more realistic and interactive railway environment.
Our goal was simple: bring the railway to life, whether you're operating with 20 players or just one.
There is much more to this system than we can cover in a single announcement, and we'll be sharing an in-depth look at its capabilities as we get closer to public release!
What we've shared today is only a glimpse of what we've been working on behind the scenes. There are many more features, improvements, and exciting developments that we look forward to showcasing as we approach our anticipated December 2026 public release!
None of this has come easily. Over the years, BVE Multiplayer has required an extraordinary amount of time, dedication, and financial resources. The development of this project has been made possible primarily through personal investment, alongside the generous support of a small number of donators who believed in our vision. We have continued investing in this project because we believe in its potential and what it can bring to the OpenBVE community.
As we prepare for public release, continued financial support will help us maintain our infrastructure, expand development, improve our systems, and introduce even more features in the future.
For those who would like to support our work, contributions of any size are greatly appreciated. Every bit of support helps us continue building and improving the experience we have spent so many years creating.
Support OBND Development: https://www.openbvenews.com/support/
We want to THANK ALL OUR DEVELOPMENT TEAMS, private supporters, testers, and community members who have remained with us throughout this journey FROM 2014-2026. The dedication, patience, and encouragement have helped turn an idea that once seemed impossible into something we are now preparing to share with everyone!
After more than a decade of development, countless challenges, and an incredible amount of hard work, we're finally approaching the moment we've all been waiting for.
December 2026 — BVE Multiplayer is preparing for PUBLIC RELEASE!
Thank you for being part of this journey.
— The OBND Development Team
~We aren't Finished Yet! The best is yet to come!~
Login to react to this article
Login to report this article
Be the first to share your thoughts about this article! Your feedback helps create engaging discussions.