Railways of the World: The Card Game
2-4
8+
30+
Railways of the World The Card Game is a fast paced card game adaptation of the popular Railways of the World board game series.
In Railways of the World The Card Game players use track cards and city cards to build a series of railroad routes and deliver goods! As the game progresses, players work to connect more cities, upgrade their engines for larger carrying capacity and deliver goods through a network of routes across the table. Railways of the World The Card Game provides two versions of rules: one the whole family can play, which is also a great way to introduce them to Railways of the World, and one for more experienced fans of the Railways of the World series.
User Reviews (2)
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Railways of the World Card Game is an amazingly deep and satisfying train game experience. The basic gameplay revolves around collecting track cards, city cards, and locomotives, and then using these cards to create a network of connected cities and delivering goods between them. As a first introduction to the train genre, I feel like it included all of the things I was looking for and more. There is a good level of tension and decision making throughout this game, with many opportunities to develop varying strategies and score points. For example, you can build complex networks and focus on optimal deliveries of goods, or you can compete for city control by building a lot of tracks into key cities, or you can just rake in the points by building long high value links. There are a lot of considerations and ways to earn points, but it never feels like the game slows down because there is too much to consider. The game has a nice flow to it; with many different factors working together to deliver a different experience each time. The components are top notch, with colorful plastic trains, clear symbols and contrasting colors, high quality cards, and great instructions. This game can take up a lot of space on the table, especially with more players, but the rulebook includes great suggestions for stacking cards tightly and curving routes to make use of available space.
During our first game, my husband and I each built our own long sprawling train networks on opposite sides of the board, and had very little competition for points and goods. Since then, we’ve become increasingly more competitive as we learn new strategies and tactics to increase our scores and gain an edge. I can’t help but pay attention to the cities he’s laying track into, the goods he is adding, and the opportiunities to jump in there and swoop some points out from under his nose! This game has a lot of replayability, and is has considerable depth for a small package!
We decided to try out the rules for young players with our 5 year old daughter, and it was a big hit. I’ve often found when there are easy versions or rules that a lot of the depth and strategy in a game is diminished, but that is not the case with this game. The young player rules in Railways of the World Card Game still offer a very engaging, strategic, and rewarding experience with lots of options to consider, while also remaining simple enough for our 5 year old to quickly grasp and enjoy! She is looking forward to learning the full game, but we are having so much fun with the basic rules we haven’t yet felt a need to add anything. The “kids” variant was a very exciting feature of this game, and we’ve come to love playing it both ways.
Like a hybrid of Ticket to Ride and The Mexican Train Game, this one has the ability to really appeal to the audience that would enjoy either of those. And yet, with added strategy beyond simple network building, if you prefer.
The resource delivery mechanic being fully optional makes this game potentially as simple as matching colours and numbers, for a younger crowd or a casual audience, or one can play with the full rules and expansion cards for a more rich experience. Lifting mechanics from hefty train games easily, and staying simple, this game is a gem that is far too often overlooked.
I love the little trains, they’re the nicest of any train game I’ve played, and I’ve played many! It’s a shame some of the other graphic design, such as for the score board, seems rushed.