Railroad Tycoon II

Overall: A
Violence: A-
Sexual Content: A-
Language: A
Drugs/Alcohol: A-

Platform reviewed: Playstation & PC
Publisher: PC: Poptop Software; Playstation: Tremor Software
ESRB rating: E

When I was young, the only way to experience the thrill of owning a railroad was to fill my parents' basement with plywood and model trains. In the virtual world of today, your children can have all this fun in a whole new way with Railroad Tycoon Version II. Don't confuse this simulation with the original 1990 edition because the 1998 PC version, now released for the Playstation (in 2000) turns the phrase "New and Improved" into an understatement.

To take this train for a ride, select a time period and a location in the world where you would like to build. A click or two later, and you have a map that indicates real towns and cities. With money in the bank, you begin small, by laying track and placing a couple of stations. Then you need a train. Charts that indicate an engine's pulling capacity, speed, and reliability are provided. If you choose to play in the 1800's, expect a meager selection of locomotives. The next concern is a routing plan. It starts out pretty simple when you only have a couple of stations, but expect it to get more complicated as your railroad grows.

This is only the start of a highly complex game. If you want your venture to flourish (make money), pay close attention to what your communities produce and consume so you can choose the right kind of "rolling stock" to couple up to your engine. And while you scramble to take care of things like misrouted trains, your competition (computer controlled) is moving in with their own empire.

Pre-made scenarios offer even more strategy options. For instance, you can be the first to build from the eastern U.S. to the West Coast. Make it there within a certain time period, and you're awarded a special prize. Along the way, boxes pop up with information related to the history of that time. I learned Montana would pay a half-million dollar incentive if I would build through the sparsely populated state.

While the game was good on the Playstation, I could not find a way to save my empire. This was a major and annoying flaw. Compared to the PC demo-version downloaded from Poptop Software (which does let you save), the Playstation looked like an old steam engine. Not only were tracks, buildings, and menu options easier to locate and select on the PC, there was also more detail to the game play. In addition, Poptop sells "The Second Century", an expansion for the original PC game that provides modern and futuristic scenarios.

On either platform this wonderful simulation teaches history, geography, and accurately portrays technology within the time period you're playing. It requires basic math and business skills, and even has a stock market for investing and raising more funds for your empire. Using the included tutorial, even young players (down to about 8) can understand basic game skills. And for parents, this may be a far better solution for your budding rail tycoons than giving up your basement.

Rod Gustafson

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