{"product_id":"ride-the-rails","title":"Ride The Rails","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c!-- wp:fl-builder\/layout --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe station is jam-packed full of excited people ready to ride the rails. Mason is off to Chicago, Ashley to Denver, and Hunter is going all the way to San Francisco. The train arrives, and passengers start detraining the sleeper cars with the red-capped porters expertly loading their luggage onto the baggage carts. Enthusiastic travelers crowd the doors, anxiously anticipating their adventure cruising across America in style!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e In Ride the Rails, you will invest in railroad companies, build railway track across the United States, and deliver passengers to as many cities as possible. Each round, a new railroad company is introduced to the game, and each railroad company has its own special placement rules! Deliver passengers to as many cities as possible to earn the most points. Be cautious in your travels as shareholders of railroads that you use will also earn points!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Ride the Rails is the second title in the Iron Rail series by Capstone Games.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\n\t\tBLOG\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAll Aboard\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/ride-the-rails\/\"\u003eRide the Rails\u003c\/a\u003e from publisher \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/buy\/capstone-games\/\"\u003eCapstone Games,\u003c\/a\u003e designer John Bohrer and artist Ian O'Toole is the second in the “Iron Rails” series of games. It follows on from last year's sell-out hit, Irish Gauge.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRide the Rails, takes the mechanisms and aesthetics seen in meaty “cube rails” board games like the 18XX series and streamlines them into a more accessible package. If you want to move on from games like \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/ticket-to-ride\/\"\u003eTicket To Ride\u003c\/a\u003e but feel heavier train games like \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/search-results\/?query=Age+of+Steam\"\u003eAge of Steam\u003c\/a\u003e and\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/search-results\/?query=Russian+Railroads\"\u003e Russian Railroads\u003c\/a\u003e won't get to the table enough, Ride the Rails could be a good option.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHow to ride the rails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRide the Rails is a route building, pick up and deliver game. Players build up stocks in the companies building railroads across the USA, before transporting passengers from city to city. Players gain money for both transporting passengers and for using the rail companies whose stock they own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach round players add a new stock to their portfolio, next they can build or extend a route in an attempt to connect cities. Lastly, each player picks up a passenger meeple that had been patiently waiting for you to not only send a train but build the damn train line in the first place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOf course, they are happy to just be on a train so you can send them anywhere you want. The more cities you pass through the more money you make. Each time you go between two cities, the share price of the company that owns that track also goes up. When you cash in your dividend you get the share value multiplied by the number of shares you own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo, you want to take the longest route possible, but you want to avoid routes that won't increase your share value. You could find yourself in a situation where making money for yourself makes two, three or four times as much for your opponent. This concept of “incentive management” is central to gameplay. Avoiding helping your opponents too much, while setting them up so they have to help you, seems to be key to success here.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eLast call for passengers\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis board game appeals to me no end and I will be picking up a copy when it comes out. The graphic design is clean and easy to understand. The rules book is just two sides of A4. The route building and pick up and deliver mechanism seem entertaining while the share management aspect appears very easy to grasp.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith medium complexity and lasting only about an hour, this game is right up my street (or should that be track? Tunnel? Ok, maybe not tunnel). I've seen a few people even go as far as to say Ride the Rails is replacing Ticket to Ride in their collection. While others are comparing it to other successful train games like Mini-rails and Chicago Express. And frankly, that's a big accolade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRide the Rails and it's expansion map France\/Germany is out late July 2020, pre-order now.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c!-- \/wp:fl-builder\/layout --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Capstone Games","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56046775140730,"sku":"ZBG-CAPIR201","price":47.9,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0916\/9970\/8282\/files\/Ride-The-Rails.jpg?v=1760967293","url":"https:\/\/zatu.com\/en-au\/products\/ride-the-rails","provider":"Zatu Games","version":"1.0","type":"link"}