The Trainz series is a video game franchise of model train simulators. Trainz is also the title of the original game in the series. To commemorate the 15th anniversary of the release of the very first game, Trainz Original Edition is being given away for free until December 20.

The original Trainz was developed by Auran and released in December 2001. Since then, over a dozen games in the franchise have been released, for the PC, Mac, Android and iOS platforms. Auran was bought by N3V Games in 2008.

N3V announced the giveway in a press release for their 15th Anniversary Celebrations. They also announced the launch of their latest edition of the Trainz franchise, Trainz Model Railroad 2017 (TMR17). Over 15 days, starting December 5, N3V will be unveiling a variety of special offers and interesting back-stories regarding each major Trainz release over the past 15 years.

The celebration starts out with the digital re-release of the original Trainz Edition from 2001 for free on the "Trainzportal.com" store (store.trainzportal.com). Each day for over two weeks, additional Trainz versions will also be made available at a discount of the original price for a limited time only.

Way back in December 2001, Trainz "Community Edition" was released to a small core group of 1,000 fans, many of whom had been following development progress for the past year online. The original Trainz received good reviews from critics.

On Metacritic, it has a Metascore of 79 from 16 critics. On MobyGames, it has a Critic Score of 74 from 13 critics. The original Trainz is a complete virtual model railroad experience that allows you to collect, create and control, the many aspects of a working railroad.

Players start by building up their collection of locomotives, rolling stock, objects, buildings, flora and fauna, then create the ultimate railroad layout using the simplest and best landscape editing tool available before jumping into the driver's seat for a whole new perspective. A Trainz Store account is required to get the free offer. Trainz Original Edition can be added to the account for free until December 20 from its store page. The download size of Trainz Original Edition is 488 mb.