Sid Meier's Railroads!
Encyclopedia
Sid Meier's Railroads! is a business simulation game developed by Sid Meier
on the Gamebryo
game engine that was released in October 2006 and is the sequel to Railroad Tycoon 3
. Although Sid Meier created the original Railroad Tycoon, subsequent versions were developed by PopTop Software
. After a visit to Miniatur Wunderland
in Hamburg, Germany
, Sid Meier was inspired to reinvent his original creation.
and geared more toward head-to-head real-time strategy
than the previous versions. The terrain is also more compressed in this game; there are few areas where players are allowed a long, straight run of track, meaning that terrain, such as hills, mountains, rivers, and inlets, play a much more important role in the game.
The game is heavily focused on economics
– players have to build and sustain entire industries using the railroads they develop. Gameplay changes from previous editions of Railroad Tycoon include a system where new technology is first auction
ed to the highest bidder. This gives the player a ten-year exclusive use of that technology. Similarly, individual industries are also put up for auction amongst players. Tracklaying is automated and much easier than other editions of Railroad Tycoon. When combined with the more "compressed" terrain, it allows for tactical placement of track to obstruct and frustrate opponents.
Industries vary depending on the location and timeframe. Europe
an scenarios include Wine
, Beer
, and Dairy Products while Western United States
scenarios focus on Oil
and Gold
.
The game also allows head-to-head play over a LAN
or the Internet
, supporting up to four players per game, either human or artificial intelligence
.
, the Pacific Northwest
, the United Kingdom
, France
, and Germany
. In these scenarios (fifteen in all), the game allows the user to take on the role of various famous railway tycoons and robber barons
from the past, such as Cornelius Vanderbilt
and J.P. Morgan.
reports an average score of 77 out of 100 or "Generally Favorable" in published reviews. IGN
gave the game an "8.0" or "impressive."
Sid Meier
Sidney K. "Sid" Meier is a Canadian programmer and designer of several popular computer strategy games, most notably Civilization. He has won accolades for his contributions to the computer games industry...
on the Gamebryo
Gamebryo
Gamebryo is a game engine, originally from Numerical Design Limited , and the successor to NDL's NetImmerse engine.Since the creation of Gamebryo, NDL merged into Emergent Game Technologies...
game engine that was released in October 2006 and is the sequel to Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad Tycoon 3
Railroad Tycoon 3 is a computer game in the Railroad Tycoon series, released in 2003.-New features:The game interface is in full 3D, with free camera movement...
. Although Sid Meier created the original Railroad Tycoon, subsequent versions were developed by PopTop Software
PopTop Software
PopTop Software was an American video game developer. It was known as the publisher of several strategy games including Railroad Tycoon II and the Caribbean island simulation Tropico . They are not to be confused with PopCap Games, which is a casual game developer.-History:PopTop Software was...
. After a visit to Miniatur Wunderland
Miniatur Wunderland
Miniatur Wunderland is a model railway attraction in Hamburg, Germany and the largest of its kind in the world. , the railway consists of of track in HO scale, divided into seven sections: Harz, the fictitious city of Knuffingen, the Alps and Austria, Hamburg, America, Scandinavia, and Switzerland...
in Hamburg, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Sid Meier was inspired to reinvent his original creation.
Overview
Railroads! is fully three-dimensional3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
and geared more toward head-to-head real-time strategy
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
than the previous versions. The terrain is also more compressed in this game; there are few areas where players are allowed a long, straight run of track, meaning that terrain, such as hills, mountains, rivers, and inlets, play a much more important role in the game.
The game is heavily focused on economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
– players have to build and sustain entire industries using the railroads they develop. Gameplay changes from previous editions of Railroad Tycoon include a system where new technology is first auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
ed to the highest bidder. This gives the player a ten-year exclusive use of that technology. Similarly, individual industries are also put up for auction amongst players. Tracklaying is automated and much easier than other editions of Railroad Tycoon. When combined with the more "compressed" terrain, it allows for tactical placement of track to obstruct and frustrate opponents.
Industries vary depending on the location and timeframe. Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an scenarios include Wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, Beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
, and Dairy Products while Western United States
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
scenarios focus on Oil
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
and Gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
.
The game also allows head-to-head play over a LAN
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
or the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, supporting up to four players per game, either human or artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
.
Scenarios
Like the previous versions, Railroads! offers various historical scenarios, in regions such as the Southwestern United StatesSouthwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
, the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. In these scenarios (fifteen in all), the game allows the user to take on the role of various famous railway tycoons and robber barons
Robber baron (industrialist)
Robber baron is a pejorative term used for a powerful 19th century American businessman. By the 1890s the term was used to attack any businessman who used questionable practices to become wealthy...
from the past, such as Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt , also known by the sobriquet Commodore, was an American entrepreneur who built his wealth in shipping and railroads. He was also the patriarch of the Vanderbilt family and one of the richest Americans in history...
and J.P. Morgan.
Custom Scenarios
With the introduction of patch 1.1 a map editor could be enabled by editing one of the game's .ini files, allowing for the creation of custom maps by users.Critical reception
MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
reports an average score of 77 out of 100 or "Generally Favorable" in published reviews. IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the game an "8.0" or "impressive."