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- Out December 10, 2026 for 18,480 yen (tax included), Steam exclusive
- Every change from “A9 Evolution,” laid out in a comparison table
- The new “Flexible” track-laying mode frees up curves and gradients
- Max train length jumps to 16 cars, and coupling gets you 32-car freight
- Save data carries over, and an upgrade campaign is planned
- The good, plus what you need to know before buying
Has any other game made the simple act of laying track feel this anticipated?
Here’s the bottom line. Artdink’s A-Train 9: PRIME LINE launches Thursday, December 10, 2026, on PC (Steam) only, priced at 18,480 yen (tax included / 16,800 yen before tax). The headline change is a total overhaul of track and road construction, built around a new “Flexible” mode that generates curves and gradients at any curvature and angle you want. On top of that, it folds in everything from the Nintendo Switch 2 release “A9 Evolution,” making this the everything-included PC flagship of the series.
Long, gentle sweeping curves. Spiral loops winding through mountain terrain. Anyone who has put hours into A9 knows exactly what just happened from those two phrases alone. This piece sticks strictly to what the official site and press release have confirmed, and lays out exactly what changed from Evolution in table form (as of September 27, 2026, verified on the official site).
What is A-Train 9: PRIME LINE? Release date, price, and system requirements
A-Train 9: PRIME LINE is the newest entry in A-Train 9, the simulation series that fuses city development, railway operation, and corporate management. It hits Steam on December 10, 2026, as an 18,480 yen (tax included) PC title.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Title | A-Train 9: PRIME LINE |
| Release date | Thursday, December 10, 2026 (goes live around noon Japan time that day) |
| Platform | PC (Steam) / download only |
| Publisher | Artdink (planning and development) |
| Price | 18,480 yen (tax included) / 16,800 yen (before tax) |
| Genre / players / languages | City development and railway simulation / 1 player / Japanese and English |
The content list lives up to the billing. More than 300 real-world train models from across Japan, plus roughly 600 building types. Licensing covers JR’s six regional companies and JR Freight, along with over 40 operators including Odakyu, Kintetsu, Keio, Keikyu, Tokyu, Tokyo Metro, Hankyu, Hanshin, and Utsunomiya Light Rail. An international edition launches the same day, but that version includes JR rolling stock only.
How much PC do you actually need?
Recommended specs are a Core i7 8700 or better plus a GeForce GTX 1050. For a 2026 release, that’s shockingly light.
| Item | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| OS / CPU | Windows 11 (64-bit) / Core i3 8100 or better | Windows 11 (64-bit) / Core i7 8700 or better |
| Graphics | GeForce 9 series / RADEON HD4000 series or later | GeForce GTX 1050 (GTX 1060 for 4K output) |
| Memory / VRAM | 4GB RAM / 512MB or more | 4GB RAM / 1GB or more |
| Other | 8GB or more storage, DirectX 9.0c, internet connection required | Keyboard and scroll-wheel mouse required |
Pay attention to that one line: “Input devices: keyboard and scroll-wheel mouse.” Once a wheel mouse is spelled out as a hard requirement, comfort on handheld-style setups is off the table. My daily driver is a Steam Deck, and I’ve already given up on the dream of playing A9 flat on my back. City builders are meant to be played sitting at a mouse.
What changed from “A9 Evolution”? The full comparison table
The biggest shift: track and road construction moves from fixed standardized parts to freeform curves via “Flexible,” and maximum train length expands to 16 cars.
Some context first. “A9 Evolution” launched June 4, 2026, for Nintendo Switch 2 at 12,980 yen (tax included), Japanese language only, rated CERO A. Built as the 40th anniversary title for the A-Train series, it was a port-plus-upgrade package with a rebuilt UI and refreshed graphics. “PRIME LINE” takes all of that as its foundation, then goes after the construction system at the very root of the game.
| Item | A9 Evolution (previous) | PRIME LINE |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | Nintendo Switch 2 | PC (Steam) |
| Release date / price | June 4, 2026 / 12,980 yen | December 10, 2026 / 18,480 yen |
| Track and road construction | Fixed preset angles and gradients | “Flexible” generates any curvature, angle, and gradient |
| Long curves and spiral loops | Impossible | Long gentle curves and loop lines now possible |
| Maximum train length | Fewer than 16 cars (pre-expansion) | Up to 16 cars / 32 when coupled / 300 vehicles total max |
| Track appearance | No variations | Four types: ballasted track (gray), ballasted (brown), direct-fastening track, slab track |
| Stations and roads | Straight platforms / single-lane roads | Adds “curved stations” / adds two-lanes-per-direction roads |
| UI and graphics | Already rebuilt | Includes Evolution’s rebuild, plus all-new tree models and roads |
| Convenience features and integration | — | Autosave (every 10 minutes, up to 5 slots) / adjustable UI scaling / A9TC integration |
Laid out like this, the 5,500 yen price gap starts to make sense. “PRIME LINE” contains everything Evolution rebuilt, then touches all four of the game’s core pillars: construction, train formations, stations, and roads. This is not a straight PC port, and that’s the editorial team’s read.
How free do track and roads get with the new “Flexible” mode?
“Flexible” is a new construction setting that lets you generate curves and gradients for track and roads at any curvature or angle.
“Flexible,” a new addition to the construction settings, generates track curves and gradients at any curvature or angle you choose! From subtle curves and undulations that hug plateaus and cityscapes to the tight curves and steep grades of mountain routes, you can build the ideal line to match your city and its terrain.
Source:A-Train 9: PRIME LINE official site
Don’t skim past the phrase “subtle curves and undulations that hug plateaus and cityscapes.” City building in A9 turns fake the instant your track picks a fight with the terrain. Flip that around, and simply letting the rails lie down along the landscape instantly gives the screen the face of a real Japanese railway scene. Flexible’s real value is probably in that unglamorous ability to follow the land, not in the showy spiral loops.
Track appearance gets four options too: ballasted track in gray and brown, direct-fastening track, and slab track. Brown ballast for rural lines, slab track for Shinkansen sections, direct-fastening for elevated urban stretches. That kind of visual coding now works. Think of it as finally being able to choose the texture of your model railway’s roadbed. Roads get the same benefit, and the addition of two-lanes-per-direction roads means station-front arterials and highway junctions finally look the part.
Let me say one thing as a former hobby shop clerk: A-Train was the title customers agonized over longest before buying. Not because of the price. Because they wanted to confirm they could really build the city in their head. Flexible is a pretty effective answer to that question.
What does a 16-car maximum actually change? Curved stations and 32-car freight
With the cap raised to 16 cars, you can run Shinkansen and urban commuter trains at full length, and coupling lets you put 32-car freight consists on the rails.
Train formations now expand to a maximum of 16 cars! You can run Shinkansen and urban commuter trains at full length. Couple trains together and you can even run freight consists up to 32 cars long. Added on top of that are “curved stations,” which let you build curving platforms. Watch a train pull in and the beauty of a full consist stands out all the more.
Source:A-Train 9: PRIME LINE official site
Any rail fan grasps what the number 16 means immediately. The N700 series on the Tokaido Shinkansen runs 16 cars, and Tokyo-area E233 series 15-car consists fit inside that too. In other words, you can finally reproduce “the same car count as the real thing” without compromise. The spec also allows up to 300 vehicles running in total.
The combination with “curved stations” is going to land, no question. Sixteen cars at a straight platform is impressive on its own, but a long consist being swallowed by a curving platform is exactly why real railway photographers go out of their way to shoot on curves. The fact that the official copy reaches for a phrase like “the beauty of a full consist” tells you the intent is deliberate.
Custom formations, coupling, and run-around moves all return as before. If you own “A-Train 9: Train Construction” (sold separately on Steam), you can import your own custom rolling stock plus the 6,000-plus vehicles on the Steam Workshop. I’m a 32-year-old (late twenties, by my own accounting) who keeps insisting my favorites can stay 2D, but footage of a 16-car consist rolling into a curved station moved something in me even in three dimensions. That one’s just unfair.
Can you carry over A-Train 9 save data? What are the upgrade campaign terms?
Save data from existing copies of A-Train 9 can be carried over to “PRIME LINE,” and an “upgrade campaign” for owners of older releases has been announced as coming.
Per the official FAQ, instructions for the carryover will be shared later. Core features such as coupling, turntables, run-around moves, and terrain generation from images all return, so your assets from the old setup come over almost intact. The campaign covers two tracks. First, the Windows edition of A-Train 9 (the non-Steam, installer-based product), where everything from the original release through Version 5.0 qualifies, including copies sold by CyberFront. Second, the Steam edition of “A-Train 9 Version 5.0 Complete Pack DX+,” with both the Japanese and international versions eligible.
⚠️ Heads up
The upgrade campaign’s actual discount price, run dates, and procedure are all unannounced as of September 27, 2026. Details will be posted later via Steam news and the official site. If you own an older release, the smart move is to wishlist it and wait for the follow-up rather than paying full price. Note also that serial codes for the Windows edition are not reissued, so if you lost yours you’ll need to substitute the serial code from a version-upgrade kit.
Honestly, this is a well-constructed arrangement. Rather than making everyone hand over 18,480 yen flat, existing users get a separate price. As a way of doing right by the people who have bought into this series for years, it earns credit.
A-Train 9: PRIME LINE — the good and the concerning
The good: freedom in track and road layout, plus 16-car formations. The concerning: the 18,480 yen price, Steam exclusivity, and spec changes you can’t undo.
The good: the series moved its foundations forward
- Flexible construction: long gentle curves, spiral loops, and steep grades are finally achievable
- Up to 16-car formations: 32 when coupled, with up to 300 vehicles running in total
- Curved stations, four track types, two-lanes-per-direction roads: the resolution of your scenery work goes up
- Includes the A9 Evolution content: the UI and graphics rebuild comes to PC too
- Autosave and adjustable UI scaling: every 10 minutes, up to 5 slots, so a misclick isn’t fatal
The concerning: price, platform, and irreversible changes
- 18,480 yen (tax included) is not cheap: that’s 5,500 yen above A9 Evolution’s 12,980 yen. The upgrade campaign discount hasn’t been announced, so owners of older releases should wait for details
- Steam exclusive, with no word on console versions: nothing whatsoever has been announced about Switch 2 or other platforms. Anyone who came to A9 through Evolution can’t get the newest entry
- Some spec changes can’t be reverted: the official FAQ explicitly lists the new road asphalt color, improved textures for certain trees and buildings, continuous BGM playback, and materials being consumed directly from factories as “content that cannot be changed back to the previous setting”
- Some rolling stock has been cut: Keihan Electric Railway’s “8000 series 0 subseries” and “3000 series” are not included and cannot be purchased (they will still display inside migrated save data)
- No demo announced: Evolution had a free demo, but nothing has been said about one for PRIME LINE
The missing Keihan stock is a small thing that stings badly if it stings you at all. Somebody out there bought this series specifically to run that double-decker out of Yodoyabashi. Putting rights-related realities like this in the FAQ up front, instead of hiding them, deserves credit as honest publisher behavior.
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Verdict: is A-Train 9: PRIME LINE a buy for rail sim fans?
A-Train 9: PRIME LINE arrives Thursday, December 10, 2026, exclusively on PC (Steam), at 18,480 yen (tax included / 16,800 yen before tax). Artdink handles planning and development, and it’s download-only.
The conclusion: if you have any itch to draw your own ideal alignment, buy it. Flexible construction and 16-car formations visibly raise the ceiling on what A9 can put on screen. The volume is unchanged too, with over 300 real-world train models and roughly 600 building types, and Evolution’s overhaul sits on top of that.
There are exactly two cases where waiting is the right call. If you own the older A-Train 9, hold until the upgrade campaign discount is revealed. And if Switch 2’s “A9 Evolution” was your entry point, you’ll need to sort out a PC first. Wishlisting on Steam gets you both the campaign updates and the release notification. Locking that in is the right first move.
The SpotGeeks editorial verdict: this is a real update that touched the foundations. Plenty of sequels claim “newest entry” status on a graphics bump alone, but “PRIME LINE” rebuilt the construction system, the single hardest layer to touch. Call it a long-overdue answer to every generation of players who wrestled with track pieces just to get one long, gentle curve. 18,480 yen is not cheap. But simulations like this are a genre where one hook lands and you’re in for hundreds of hours. Price it per hour and it stops being scary.
Own an older release? Wait for the upgrade campaign. New to the series? Start laying track on December 10, no hesitation.
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