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. MillyK.
    Feb 16, 2007
    10
    WOW RYN nice talk about your frustration ever considered just not playing sim games, hell that solve all your problems don't take it serious just laugh at it and play for about half our the quit laugh some more play something else p.s have fun with the sending it back.
  2. JarodV.
    Feb 14, 2008
    10
    I absolutely love this game. If you are experiencing bugs, download the patch! A couple of my friends and I play this every week online. This is one of those 'easy to learn, lifetime to master' type games. I highly recommend it!
  3. silentghost4
    Sep 23, 2010
    10
    I love this game,, no problems at all.. It has been pretty fun. The supply/demand and cargo changing between cities has been very much simplified and is a lot easier to use. The railway layout has been simplified a lot as well, so that it automagically lays the track for you and you don't have to worry as much about minor/small gradients in the track.
  4. Jonasac02
    Jan 23, 2022
    10
    I love this game, is so much special for me because was my introduction to RTS genre (Starcraft, AoE series and so on)
  5. JackW.
    Oct 21, 2006
    9
    Wow, Ryan H is upset! That sure is a lot of text! In any event, I've enjoyed this game a lot - removes a lot of the clutter from the past Tycoon games to clear the way for fun. I've enjoyed the multiplayer games I've played immensely - I'd recommend picking it up for MP alone...
  6. StrategistJVG
    Jun 15, 2014
    9
    I have thoroughly enjoyed this Railroad game by Sid, thanks Sid ^_^
    But there is only One problem i have, and that is every time i hold down the mouse button and drag long out for a long railroad it crashes. This is definitely a windows 7 memory problem with the game.
    Apart from that I give it a 9 out of 10 ^_^
    it truly reminded me of Locomotion back in the day.
  7. ScottS.
    Oct 20, 2006
    8
    Fun game for those who aren't sticklers for detail. I've never played RRT2 or RRT3, so you can categorize me as a casual train-game kinda guy. I have the boardgame Railroad Tycoon, and in general I've never been disappointed by a Sid Meier's game; and I'm not now. I can see how the hard-core crowd wouldn't like it, but that being said I think it's a fun Fun game for those who aren't sticklers for detail. I've never played RRT2 or RRT3, so you can categorize me as a casual train-game kinda guy. I have the boardgame Railroad Tycoon, and in general I've never been disappointed by a Sid Meier's game; and I'm not now. I can see how the hard-core crowd wouldn't like it, but that being said I think it's a fun romp and a good game. If you are like me, and think games like MS Flight Simulator IL2 and Harpoon! are too detailed to be called "games", then you might very well like this one. Let's be honest gang...Sid isn't known for hard-core simulations...Pirates can't be called a true simulation of the Age of Sail any more than the Civ games aret detailed historical simulations. Sid has always made games that were on the simpler side...but fun. There are some bugs, which unfortunately is pretty much the rule rather than the exception these days.… Expand
  8. Vincent
    Nov 12, 2006
    8
    I only had a few problems with the game. The time scale of the game is just a little too quick, and there aren't enough track optioons. You are unable to really create any realworld switching stations or properly setup rails to minimize wait times.
  9. JeffG.
    Oct 18, 2006
    8
    Well, so far Railroads! has been pretty fun. The supply/demand and cargo changing between cities has been very much simplified and is a lot easier to use. The railway layout has been simplified a lot as well, so that it automagically lays the track for you and you don't have to worry as much about minor/small gradients in the track. The downside to this new system is that it seems Well, so far Railroads! has been pretty fun. The supply/demand and cargo changing between cities has been very much simplified and is a lot easier to use. The railway layout has been simplified a lot as well, so that it automagically lays the track for you and you don't have to worry as much about minor/small gradients in the track. The downside to this new system is that it seems kind of buggy and is hard to get it the way you want it. You also have to worry more about switching between double tracks and signals and such. It does the switching automatically, but with the new layout system again, it's hard to get it to work right. It appears to be somewhat unstable, my roomate crashed multiple times in the first 30 minutes, but has been fine for the past hour or so. I just crashed for the first time when trying to delete a complicated piece of track (trying to get it just right...) So far overall I think it's definitely worth a purchase, and I hope more Shackers will pick it up. If they can get it more stable, and hopefully work on the auto track layout, I think it'd be incredibly engrossing. Oh, and more maps would be nice as well. There's no US south east map! Worrrd. Look forward to a patch, but until then I will enjoy it. Later impressions: Played a couple more hours and it didn't crash, but the automatic track making was very frustrating as the trains did not work very well, or atleast the trains would stop where there was available track to use up ahead. It also runs pretty shitty once cities got larger. I JUST built this system last week, an OCed C2D with a 7900gto and it slowed down quite a bit. Also, NO ONE was playing multiplayer. No one even in the lobbies. At most, 2 people. So yeah, great game, worth picking up, but hopefuly they will patch this with some graphics optimizations and fixes for the track laying.… Expand
  10. Mobius
    Oct 23, 2006
    8
    let me start by saying that ive never played a train sim before. i enjoyed this and i imagine for someone who like train sets that this is a bit of simple fun. the first thing I thought is that it sort of looks similar to Civ4 but that aint a bad thing, its a very easy game to get into and i feel theres enough there to keep it a challenging game, i imagine where the main part of the game let me start by saying that ive never played a train sim before. i enjoyed this and i imagine for someone who like train sets that this is a bit of simple fun. the first thing I thought is that it sort of looks similar to Civ4 but that aint a bad thing, its a very easy game to get into and i feel theres enough there to keep it a challenging game, i imagine where the main part of the game lies is in its multiplayer and that looks intresting. overall good looking simple and fun.… Expand
  11. TroyM.
    Oct 27, 2006
    8
    I am not normally a railroads game player, but am more of a Civ die-hard fan. I tried this game based on the Sid Meier's name alone, and am pleasantly surprised. While this game is not as deep or involving as Civ, it offers an extremely fun, casual escape. I haven't run into the crashing problems that others have (i'm not saying they don't happen, I just haven't I am not normally a railroads game player, but am more of a Civ die-hard fan. I tried this game based on the Sid Meier's name alone, and am pleasantly surprised. While this game is not as deep or involving as Civ, it offers an extremely fun, casual escape. I haven't run into the crashing problems that others have (i'm not saying they don't happen, I just haven't seen it). If you are looking for an all-around solid game, with traditional Sid Meier's strategy, Railroads gets the job done. As for multi-player, I think this is where the game really shines. While single player is a bit on the easy-to-win side, multi-player is a serious challenge, and is a seriously fast moving game where if you don't pay attention, your apt to get most of your cargo stolen. Thumbs up. It will not disappoint.… Expand
  12. IsaacB.
    Nov 5, 2007
    8
    A fun and light strategy game which might be seen as a good introduction to transportation games. I was concerned when I began playing because I felt the economy wouldn't be deep enough. As it turns out, once you've got a few stations and trains running, I felt the game has struck a great balance. A lot of fun. (I'm sure my experience is colored by the fact that I A fun and light strategy game which might be seen as a good introduction to transportation games. I was concerned when I began playing because I felt the economy wouldn't be deep enough. As it turns out, once you've got a few stations and trains running, I felt the game has struck a great balance. A lot of fun. (I'm sure my experience is colored by the fact that I haven't suffered wioth the instability others have complained about.) Weak spots: track laying UI is a bit clumsy and you can't manually set switches to better control the routing.… Expand
  13. Paikia
    Feb 12, 2014
    8
    I love simulation games in general, and while Sid Meier's Railroads does have a few problems and drawbacks, I am having a lot of fun with it.

    I read many complaints about crashes and technical problems, but I rarely encountered any by now (15-16 hours of gameplay). The game did crash once for me, but it seems to have been an isolated incident. Generally - the game plays just fine    I love simulation games in general, and while Sid Meier's Railroads does have a few problems and drawbacks, I am having a lot of fun with it.

    I read many complaints about crashes and technical problems, but I rarely encountered any by now (15-16 hours of gameplay). The game did crash once for me, but it seems to have been an isolated incident. Generally - the game plays just fine (Windows 7 64bit).

    I don't have much to say about the graphics and music, which I suppose has a lot to do with this game being 7 years old by the time this review is being written. Obviously, I can't expect it to look and sound like games released during the last couple of years, so this is not a issue for me.

    As for the gameplay - I really love the general idea of building a railroad network, connecting cities and industrial sites. The game does offer a fairly deep, balanced and complex gameplay, but I must admit, that as a Civilization series veteran, I was expecting more. In every scenario I play, I usually end up with quite a network and a lot of money, so I start working on the scenario goals, but I can't escape the feeling that something is missing. I'm not sure if the problem is a lack of challenge, or maybe the scope of each of the scenarios is too small, or maybe something else that I'm missing.

    In conclusion, I love this game, I wish I had discovered it before, but what I'd really love - is an improved sequel. I doubt Firaxis games are even thinking about it, but maybe someone else will step up to the challenge.    … Expand
  14. Thomasv.d.b.
    May 5, 2007
    7
    Its a good game but alot of minor bugs make it less fun then it should be.
  15. 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
  16. 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.
  17. 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.
  18. 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.
  19. [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
  20. ChrisR.
    Oct 18, 2006
    6
    This game is riddled with bugs. Its too simple. RR Tycoon II was much better. Shame on you Sid.
  21. 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.
  22. 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
  23. DaleP.
    Oct 24, 2006
    5
    Game is too easy...maps too condensed...not much of a challenge. RRT3 is better.
  24. 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
  25. UbirajaraB.
    Oct 20, 2006
    4
    Fireaxis continues to produce substandard material out from a golden brand (Sid Meier) and from classical franchises (Civ, Pirates, Railroad Tycoon). They are watering the beer expecting trying to catter for today's kids while dumping the yesterday's ones. I think both today's as well as yesterdays' kids will not like it for different reasons. The first ones because Fireaxis continues to produce substandard material out from a golden brand (Sid Meier) and from classical franchises (Civ, Pirates, Railroad Tycoon). They are watering the beer expecting trying to catter for today's kids while dumping the yesterday's ones. I think both today's as well as yesterdays' kids will not like it for different reasons. The first ones because there are no "Kool x-plosions", the last ones because the game is so simple and unambitious it leads to despair.… Expand
  26. StephenErmann
    Apr 5, 2008
    4
    Beautiful game, starts nice and easy then becomes more complex. Nice, except that it crashes randomly under Vista. I was never able to finish a game. Issue is known since early 2007, and discussed on many web sites, publisher has not acknolwedged the issue, no patch has been issued since December 2006. Product seems abandonned by the editor and the distributors. Will try to get my moneyBeautiful game, starts nice and easy then becomes more complex. Nice, except that it crashes randomly under Vista. I was never able to finish a game. Issue is known since early 2007, and discussed on many web sites, publisher has not acknolwedged the issue, no patch has been issued since December 2006. Product seems abandonned by the editor and the distributors. Will try to get my money back, with regrets...… Expand
  27. EricP.
    Oct 22, 2006
    4
    A very pretty toy train game with little content or control for the Sim enthusiast. Highly suitable for ages 5 > 12, but not much over. You simply click in the required place, the bits appear, the time races by, you finish in a few hours. (If the bugs in it let you)
  28. JohnB.
    Oct 26, 2006
    4
    What a huge disappointment. The track-laying is just a mess. This game is so dumbed down that the fun is gone. I really was hoping for something close to the gameplay of the original Railroad Tycoon with updated graphics. Why can't the developers understand that accurately and precisely laying track and placing signals is immensely satisfying in a railroad game? And why are there no What a huge disappointment. The track-laying is just a mess. This game is so dumbed down that the fun is gone. I really was hoping for something close to the gameplay of the original Railroad Tycoon with updated graphics. Why can't the developers understand that accurately and precisely laying track and placing signals is immensely satisfying in a railroad game? And why are there no top-down overview 2D maps of your railroad empire? Or at least a few more levels of zooming out. The game is so claustrophobic and crowded. The maps are just so small- your trains never seem like they are going cross-country. Overall it feels like a "kiddie" game. I could go on here... Firaxis owes us a refund.… Expand
  29. DanP.
    Jan 6, 2007
    4
    It looks like it could be a good game to come home ticked off and just want to conquer, without too much resistance. I would like the game easily 3 times as much though if it didn't throw me on the desktop every 15 minutes!
  30. DeanT
    Nov 9, 2006
    4
    I agree with others who give this a low score. Crashes to desktop are frequent, there's a lot of graphic flickering, maps are too small, the trains don't always obey signals and end up in stalemate situations a lot. There is no way to back a train out of these stalemates and putting in a new piece of track to solve a stalemate is just plain stupid. The steam locos have no coal I agree with others who give this a low score. Crashes to desktop are frequent, there's a lot of graphic flickering, maps are too small, the trains don't always obey signals and end up in stalemate situations a lot. There is no way to back a train out of these stalemates and putting in a new piece of track to solve a stalemate is just plain stupid. The steam locos have no coal tenders. And yes it is very toy-like. I could live with most of these deficiencies but the crashes and graphic mis-behaviour really kill it for me.… Expand
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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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