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Warren Smith
Canada
Calgary
Alberta
God Save The Queen
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"All aboard!" the conductor yells as you climb courageously up the steps to the train car. You're thrilled about the possibilities that await you along your passenger tour of Germany. The railways here zig and zag every which way from Berlin to Munich to Dresden; they can take you to Switzerland, France and beyond. You've got the perfect plan to get to your destinations and you intend to have fun doing it. You've got a Ticket to Ride!
The Ticket to Ride series of board games is published by Days of Wonder and is the publisher's most successful title. The Marklin version of Ticket to Ride is the one that I'll be reviewing today. (Marklin is a world leader in the model train industry; they partnered with Days of Wonder to create a truly wonderful game).
Days of Wonder is well known for their outstanding production values - colors and artwork are brightly printed, cardboard is thick and sturdy, all the pieces fit cleanly into one snug package! Ticket to Ride is no exception. The game board is beautiful to look at and the cards have wonderful illustrations of various Marklin designed train cars. The rulebook is well written, making learning a breeze. You can even register your purchase online to have access to internet games when no one else is around to play with. I do, however, have one complaint. I'm not a fan of the little plastic trains that come in the box. In fact, I loathe them. For that reason I ordered a premium set of wooden train tokens from a specialty toy company as replacements. For that same reason, I give TTR only 7 out of 10 for components.
What I love about Ticket to Ride Marklin is the subtle way in which it introduces new players to games that offer multiple paths to victory. Unlike games that reward players for simply having the most money or the largest army or the biggest whatever, so-called European board games are about choosing the strategies that work best for you, the player! In TTR Marklin, players can amass points in three different ways: You can claim routes by placing your train cars on them, you can "ride" your routes and other players’ routes, or you can connect your routes so that you reach your "destinations". The fun comes when you mix these three strategies to adapt to the actions that others have chosen. Clearly, a lot of thought and play-testing went into this game design to get everything just right. For the extremely well balanced options available to every player I give TTR Marklin an 8 out of 10 for gameplay.
If you have young ones (age 8 and up) in the home then this is a great game because it hits the sweet spot where it's simple enough for them to pick up easily, yet strategic enough to engage the adults from the first turn. If there are only adults in your game group then you can get straight to the cut throat fun of messing with their strategy while trying to further your own interests! Making decisions like whether or not to travel to Frankfurt instead of completing a destination to Austria results in nail biting tension that can only be found in the best of board games. Because of the wide audience that TTR appeals to and how that changing group dynamic can alter the flow of each game, I give TTR a solid 7 out of 10 for replayability.
"Did you enjoy your trip?" the baggage handler asks politely as he hands you your carry on luggage. You smile and return a gentle nod. The moment is bitter sweet because although you were able to explore new and exciting parts of Germany, a rival adventurer went farther and faster than you did this time. Your spirits haven't been dampened though. You had more fun on this trip than on either of the others and your experience in riding the rails is growing by leaps and bounds! Next time, you plan on starting strong in Dresden before picking up enough tickets to get you through Hamburg and… and then… then next time will be different! Mwuhhaahaaha!!
All in all, any version of the TTR series is a solid investment and should be welcome on any casual or serious gamers' shelf. Considered by many to be one of the great 'gateway' games of all time, I have no hesitation in recommending this title. It's a non-threatening, feel-good game that has something to offer even the most cynical, un-fun, old miser. That's not you, is it? So go ahead and pick up a copy today. I give TTR an overall rating of 7.5 out of 10.
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