My group has loved Ticket to Ride ever since we played our first game. We started out with the original, which was improved by the 1910 expansion, then picked up TTR: Marklin (better still) and most recently, TTR: Europe (the best version I've played). Over the course of several months, I'd estimate that we've played around 20-30 TTR games total (not a lot by BGG standards, but a lot for us -- we tend to jump from game to game).

My group ranges from casual to experienced board gamers, and I'd put myself on the experienced end. I love games, and I'm more interested in having fun playing than in winning at all costs -- which isn't to say that I don't play to win.

The funny thing about TTR is that as often as we've played it (in one version or another), I've only won one game. It doesn't surprise me that it was a game of TTR: Europe -- Europe evens out the bumps in the other editions and, based on my experience with it, virtually ensures a photo finish with narrow margins of victory. (This is the main reason why it's my favorite TTR.)

My strategy in this game was the same as my base strategy for TTR: go for the longest route, and be conservative about picking up additional routes. I used my train stations sparingly (also my usual approach) and watched for opportunities to freeze other players out of completing a route or two in the late game.

As always with TTR: Europe games, I appreciated the small variations from the original, particularly the versatility of train stations (and the tradeoff between using them and holding them back for points) and the risk factor of tunnels. These small changes add a lot to the game.

The key difference this time around was that after completing my routes -- and being blocked from getting the longest, unfortunately -- I spent the rest of the game building random 5- and 6-car routes, which led me to win by a substantial margin. Usually I don't finish my routes early enough to do this, and have to round out my score with smaller routes in the endgame.

The trick now will be to see whether it will take me another 20-30 games to win again, or whether I've wrapped my head around the keys to success and can stay competitive with the other folks in my group. The good thing is that whether I win or lose, I know I'll enjoy playing -- that's the real magic of TTR for me: I've never played a game of TTR that I didn't enjoy.