Sid Meier's Railroads!

 PC
User Score
5.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 125 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 49 out of 125
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 125
  3. Negative: 48 out of 125
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  1. morrae
    Oct 18, 2013
    5
    I love this type of games!
    But railroads! falls short many times. It's too easy, too shallow, not much of anything besides putting down railroads (and I guess you can argue that that's the whole point, but I would've liked to have something besides that, something deeper, something more like transport giant or locomotion). This is basicly a children game.
    In a very short time you will    I love this type of games!
    But railroads! falls short many times. It's too easy, too shallow, not much of anything besides putting down railroads (and I guess you can argue that that's the whole point, but I would've liked to have something besides that, something deeper, something more like transport giant or locomotion). This is basicly a children game.
    In a very short time you will learn how to win any game very fast. Then you will learn to do it with any given spawn point. And then you will quickly find out how to beat 3 AI on hardest difficulty. It took me one evening to complete almost full game.
    And that's with the constant crashes and freezes. Yes, it doesn't work good on any system and I was forced to save every couple minute or so, so I won't lose my progress.
    It could've been so much more, but in the end, it's pretty easy and shallow game for one evening.    … Expand
  2. [Anonymous]
    Oct 24, 2006
    6
    It is a fun game but mostly after playing a while i got a load of cash and good income. I layed a bit more track and than it happens everytime again some trains start acting weird like taking routes they don't have to getting stuk on some places and then I start losing money becuase my income drops and I cannot recitify those stupid trains
  3. RyanHagan
    Oct 18, 2006
    5
    Fun game, fun graphics. Not up to par with Sid's other games, though. Haven't had any bugs or performance issues, but the game just doesn't feel done. Several things in the manual that comes boxed with the game just don't exist in the actual game. The game is quite simple, not nearly as complex as Railroad Tycoon 3, which may or may not be a bad thing.
  4. E.C.
    Oct 22, 2006
    5
    Dissapointing. The biggest challenge is to figure out how to deal with laying double/triple track so your trains don't block each other. This is made difficult by the 3/4 view - it's very hard to lay track precisely. Other than that the economy is pretty simple with only a few types of goods. Since a 150 year campaign takes only 3 hours to complete at regular speed it's Dissapointing. The biggest challenge is to figure out how to deal with laying double/triple track so your trains don't block each other. This is made difficult by the 3/4 view - it's very hard to lay track precisely. Other than that the economy is pretty simple with only a few types of goods. Since a 150 year campaign takes only 3 hours to complete at regular speed it's simply not worth it to reconfigure your opponents's to work with your network once you've bought them out - I just couldn't be bothered to worry about efficiencies for a game that would be over before I could even enjoy the fruit of my labor. Also frustrating there is no way to figure out what trains serve a city, so when you do purchase your opponent you either have to click on every bloody train to figure out what it does and rejig it (computer is very sucky in terms of route mgmt!) Again, not worth the trouble since the game will be over before you know it. Other than that UI looks good and very simple (perhaps too much for this gamer), maps are a little too small for my taste - 4 player game quickly become a nightmarish spaghetti of tracks trying to serve the same small cities. Conclusion: I like simplicity, but this makes it feel like a msn game. Maybe my girlfriend will find it interesting for an hour or two. If you want a game to immerse yourself in, take a pass. Version played is an electronic download - any patches coming?… Expand
  5. DaleP.
    Oct 24, 2006
    5
    Game is too easy...maps too condensed...not much of a challenge. RRT3 is better.
  6. MattB
    May 16, 2008
    7
    I haven't had a lot of the bugs or stability problems others have mentioned in their reviews. The game runs well enough for me and is entertaining although it has a fairly simple economic model and somewhat cartoony feel to it. Difficulty was also somewhat lacking- the only place I found a challenge was multiplayer which is now all but abandoned.
  7. ChrisR.
    Oct 18, 2006
    6
    This game is riddled with bugs. Its too simple. RR Tycoon II was much better. Shame on you Sid.
  8. Thomasv.d.b.
    May 5, 2007
    7
    Its a good game but alot of minor bugs make it less fun then it should be.
  9. WesC.
    Jan 26, 2008
    7
    Great game, horable vista support. That wouldnt be a big deal if the game had just came out. But people have had problems from release on. And they never fixed them.
  10. HartmutK.
    Jul 24, 2008
    7
    I just bought the game via steam. The game is fun so far, despite the following:
    I'm using Vista 32bit (HomePremium) and get maybe one crash every 1-2h. Since there is autosave you lose maybe 10-15min of gameplay per crash.
    I haven't played RRT2 and 3 yet (maybe will do so if Railroads proves to be not sophisticated enough.) I only played one scenario so far: the german    I just bought the game via steam. The game is fun so far, despite the following:
    I'm using Vista 32bit (HomePremium) and get maybe one crash every 1-2h. Since there is autosave you lose maybe 10-15min of gameplay per crash.
    I haven't played RRT2 and 3 yet (maybe will do so if Railroads proves to be not sophisticated enough.)

    I only played one scenario so far: the german (1835-1980) with 3 computer opponents and beginner difficulty ("investor"/"medium") - and it's far too easy: I retired 1917 after completing all tasks and buying all stocks /defeating all 3 opponents - why should I continue until 1980?
    Retiring 1917 earned me best possible ranking - I think ranking should be "normalised" like in Civ IV (where I'm usually sticking with "prince"-difficulty), so that difficulty is taken into account (I'm not sure if this is the case here - but you shouldn't get best ranking in easiest setting - even if you finish very early). Will continue playing now in harder settings.    … Expand
  11. Klewer
    Jul 16, 2017
    7
    A solid addition to this series, nothing particularly ground breaking about it. Solid rail simulation, improves on the graphics of previous games but has a few features missing compared to Tycoon II and doesn't quite have the same draw.

Awards & Rankings

62
#62 Best PC Game of 2006
31
#31 Most Discussed PC Game of 2006
45
#45 Most Shared PC Game of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. Game Informer
    80
    The only real problem with the game is that it sticks pretty close to its prescribed formula. You build trains, make money, and drive competitors out of business. You won’t uncover layer upon layer of depth, you’ll just get more efficient.
    Read full review
  2. GameSpot
    81
    But as complex and rewarding as building a railroad empire can be, it rarely feels daunting or tedious, which is perhaps the best thing that can be said for a game of this type.
    Read full review
  3. 1UP
    70
    In the end, it's hard not to fall a little bit in love with Railroads!, because it's just a lovable kind of game. Now if only they'd release some scaled-up maps to match the game's ambitions.
    Read full review
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