Ticket to Ride

The game is built around a giant map of the North American train network and a collection of miniature trains for each player. Its rules booklet opens by describing the steady rhythm of the train and the early 20th century landscapes of North America sliding by. Its designer, Alan R. Moon, writes on the maker's page that he loves route-building games and railroads, and that his goal was to combine the two in the simplest way possible, while keeping a game that stays fun however many times it is played. He also wanted the emphasis on building routes from coast to coast. Asked whether he knew the game would be a hit, he answers on the same page that if he had known, he would have designed it twenty years earlier.

At the table, the maker lists the game for two to five players, ages 8 and up, with a playing time of 30 to 60 minutes. The box holds one game board, 225 plastic trains in five colors, 110 train cards, 33 tickets, one longest path bonus card, five wooden scoring markers and one rules booklet. According to the rules booklet, the 110 train cards are twelve each in the eight route colors (purple, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, white and black) plus 14 locomotives that act as wild cards, and a few extra trains are included in each color so that every player starts with 45. Setup deals each player four train cards and four tickets, keeping at least two. On a turn a player does exactly one of three things: draws two train cards, claims one route by playing as many matching cards as the route has spaces, or draws three tickets and keeps at least one. A route of one to six spaces scores 1, 2, 4, 7, 10 or 15 points. The game ends once a player is down to two trains or fewer at the end of a turn, after which everyone takes one last turn. Completed tickets add to the score, incomplete ones are deducted, and the player with the longest continuous path receives a 10-point bonus.

It suits families and friends who want a train-themed board game for a game night and can seat two to five players aged 8 and up, as the maker describes it. The maker's page quotes players who call it a family favorite that introduced their household to board games, and one who finds it relaxed at two players and cutthroat at five. A household with younger children should look at the maker's kids' edition, Ticket to Ride: First Journey, which the maker lists for two to four players, ages 6 and up, with a playing time of 15 to 30 minutes. The maker also sells an expansion of cards and rules variants for the original game, Ticket to Ride: USA 1910, for players who want to change their strategies.

Ticket to Ride: First Journey is described by the maker as easy to learn and quick to play and the perfect introduction to the series; its box holds a game board, 80 plastic trains, 72 train cards and 32 ticket cards. Ticket to Ride: Poland is listed by the maker in its map collection. The USA 1910 expansion is for players who already own the original game.

Image: Ravensburger · source

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Image: Days of Wonder / Asmodee · source

Ticket to Ride: First Journey (Europe map)

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Image: Days of Wonder · source

Ticket to Ride: Rails & Sails

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Why railfans pick itCheck price on Amazon (affiliate link, opens Amazon in a new tab)