Game: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game

Thread: Re: [Review] Ticket to Ride: The Card Game

anarchy — 2008-07-06T02:18:51+00:00

It doesn't help that some of us have such bad memories that we could forgot the name of the game as we're playing. ^_^

However, I've played this a couple of times now and it doesn't strike me that memory is any more important than good card play. I suspect it's going to hit the table with some regularity.

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

logopolys — 2008-07-05T09:52:20+00:00

Thread: Re: [Review] Ticket to Ride

Matthias_K — 2008-07-05T09:53:25+00:00

TomVasel wrote:
3.) Memory: Since a player can't look at their "On the Track" stack, they'll have to remember what cards they've placed there. This sounds easier, but I always ended up with only a vague idea of what was in my stack. In one game I attempted to memorize the stack, and I sat there, mumbling to myself the whole game - and still got parts of it wrong near the end. The rules say that young or inexperienced players can look through their stacks, but I would HIGHLY recommend against this, as it adds a tremendous amount of time to a game that should be short. If you don't like memory games, I think T2R:TCG relies too much on it for you to like it. I didn't have a problem with the memory aspect, but it certainly keeps me from doing as well as I'd like.

It might be obvious to some, but I've found that it helps to not try and memorize which destination tickets you have completed, but just the colors you've transfered to your stack (for example: 2 blue, 1 yellow , 3 red, 1 locomotive, etc.). This way it's much easier to figure out which destination tickets you've completed already and decide which ones to keep if you choose to draw new ones.

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

houjix — 2008-07-05T07:56:30+00:00

ggambill wrote:
I also agree it is a bit of a memory game, but it is not the defining characteristic.
I disagree. For me the memory aspect seems to overpower what little else is going on in the game. It may not be intended to be the defining characteristic, but in practice it sure feels that way. I've played without the memory element as well, and it does seem like there's not much left to the game without it. Personally I'm just not a fan.

Thread: [Review] Ticket to Ride: The Card Game

TomVasel — 2008-07-05T07:21:43+00:00

I had some trepidation about playing Ticket to Ride: the Card Game (Days of Wonder, 2008 - Alan R. Moon), because I enjoyed the board game so much that I didn't think a card game could possibly live up to it. Ticket to Ride is the most popular game I own, and I've introduced it to hundreds of folks with high success. I was eager to see the card game, and to see if portability had been injected into this tremendous series. T2R:TCG (what a bunch of initials!) used memory and card drafting to form an interesting experience, but it was not one that reminded me of the original game.

I think it's best described as watching a good movie sequel, except the main actor you loved from the first movie has been replaced. T2R:TCG is a good, fun little card game, which only really suffers from comparisons to the basic game. Forget that Ticket to Ride exists, and you'll find folks who enjoy this game. You will have to have some fondness for memory games, and there is the opportunity to really mess with your opponents; but most folks I've played the game with have found it enjoyable.

There are two different card types in this game. First, one locomotive and five other Train cards are dealt to each player. Then a deck of the rest of the train cards, made up of ten each of seven different colors and sixteen locomotives, is shuffled and placed in the middle of the table. Five of these cards are placed face up, along with six "Big City" bonus cards. A pile of ticket cards is shuffled; and six are dealt to each player, who must decide which of them they will keep (a minimum of one, but the player can keep them all if they choose). The youngest player goes first, and play proceeds clockwise.

On a player's turn, if they have any face-up train cards in front of them, one of each color is placed in a face down "On the Track" stack that they cannot look at until the end of the game. Then, the player can either
- Draw two train cards, which can either be one of those that are face up or from the top of the draw pile. If a player draws a face up locomotive, that counts as both cards for the purposes of drawing.
- Draw ticket cards. The player takes four of them and can keep any number, including zero.
- Play train cards in front of them. The player can play exactly three cards of three different colors or two or more of the same color. However, players cannot play a color in front of themselves if they or another player already have that color, UNLESS they play more cards than the other player has on the table. If this occurs, the player who had the cards already on the table must discard them all.

When the last card is drawn from the train deck, each player has only one more turn (unless it's a four player game - in which case the deck is gone through again). Players then discard all remaining train cards in their hands, and use only their "On the Track" stack to complete as many of their own tickets as they can. Each ticket shows two cities that it connects, as well as the cards needed to complete it (each train card can be applied to only one ticket). For example, the Chicago to San Francisco needs a white, yellow, purple, and orange card for completion. Players score points for each ticket they complete and lose points for tickets that they cannot complete. Locomotives, acting as wild cards can be used to complete any tickets. Also, the player with the most completed tickets to each of the Big Cities takes the bonus card for that city, adding the points on it (from 8 to 12) to their score. The player with the highest score is the winner!

Some comments on the game...

1.) Components: As usual, everything is of high quality - the cards have a nice linen finish, and the artwork and layout are both done well. My only problem is that the back of the cards have four purple dots (small clocks) in the corners, and I've often seen people think that they were purple cards when giving them a quick glance. All the cards fit into a plastic insert in a small box (same size as the Kosmos two-player series). The game is easy to play and set up - just sort out some locomotive cards and then shuffle a couple of decks.

2.) Rules: The rules are only a few pages but are well-formatted with pictures and illustrations. I do think they are a bit sparse - especially when describing the end game, because not everything is made perfectly clear. For example, it never actually says you cannot lay down a set of locomotives, although it certainly implies it. No matter, though, as the game is very easy to explain and understand. Ticket to Ride fans might pick it up a bit quicker, but I can't see folks having too much of a problem with understanding the game - I've played it with young teenagers, and they also did fine.

3.) Memory: Since a player can't look at their "On the Track" stack, they'll have to remember what cards they've placed there. This sounds easier, but I always ended up with only a vague idea of what was in my stack. In one game I attempted to memorize the stack, and I sat there, mumbling to myself the whole game - and still got parts of it wrong near the end. The rules say that young or inexperienced players can look through their stacks, but I would HIGHLY recommend against this, as it adds a tremendous amount of time to a game that should be short. If you don't like memory games, I think T2R:TCG relies too much on it for you to like it. I didn't have a problem with the memory aspect, but it certainly keeps me from doing as well as I'd like.

4.) Ticket to Ride: The card drafting and the tickets are very similar to the original game, but that's about it. In the board game, I am constantly watching my opponents and can gauge what cities they are trying to connect by watching the trains they place on the board. In the card game, I really have no idea what my opponents are doing; I simply hope they don't put down the colors I need at any point in time. Wild cards are super valuable in the card game! In the board game I love them but only draw a face up wild when I really, really need it. I draw every face up wild in the card game, since they can be used to complete every ticket - making them extremely valuable. Really, though - comparing the two games is only because of the name. I think the board game is far superior (one of the best games ever designed!), but the card game can hold its own.

5.) Interaction: If you take your time to save up four blues, placing them in front of yourself, and then I throw down a pile of five; you've just completely wasted your time, and it's a bit aggravating. This is my favorite part of the card game; I love the tenseness of playing cards, hoping that the other players won't "trump" them with a higher number of cards. Playing three different train cards is a better move, because hopefully your opponent(s) won't be able to knock them all out - but it's much harder to do. Besides, it's a moment of joy when a player plays three different colors in a four-player game, and the other three players systematically knock out all three on their turns (okay - maybe the joy isn't for that player). Now, some folks are going to hate this - the playing of cards often feels (and perhaps is) spiteful. I personally think it ups the level of the game and would enjoy it quite a bit less without this feature.

6.) Strategy and Fun Factor: So what are you going to do? Do you try and get the most tickets to New York, to snag that fifteen point bonus card? Do you try to stop other players from completing anything, and then grab whatever you can? I found that it seems that whatever "strategy" I've picked, it doesn't matter at the end of the game, because of the luck factor of tickets, other players knocking out your colors, and the train deck itself. These all caused a great bit of chaos in the game. I actually think the game plays best with three, since four is an evil, tight game; but I still am not sure any strategy matters much. I think players will do best if they simply concentrate as to what is the best move on any specific turn. Is that fun? For players who don't mind confrontation and memory, yes.

So ignore the name of this game - your liking of it will have nothing to do with your opinion of the board game, good or bad. Think instead about the mechanics. If a card drafting, memory-heavy, confrontation-filled, fairly random card game sounds interesting - especially with a train theme involved - then this is the game. Most folks who played it said: "It's not as good as Ticket to Ride, but it's pretty fun." Since that seems to be my consensus as well, let's leave it at that.

Tom Vasel
"Real men play board games"
www.thedicetower.com

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

willk_1230 — 2008-07-04T06:25:57+00:00

stormseeker75 wrote:
Aren't you basically saying though that you need to remember to get certain colors? And aren't you also saying that it:

Yes, sure, it's important to have an idea of the quantities of colors you have in your OtTS

That certainly infers remembering what you have there to some degree.

I really like this game, but there's no reasonable way your can say its not a memory game. There are other mechanisms in play such as timing and a bit of "press your luck", but at the end of the day, the winner will be the person who can best remember what they have in the On the Track stack. This in no way takes anything away from the game, but thats how it works. If you like games with memory mechanics (such as Mamma Mia!) then you'll definitely like this one.

I think its time for stormy to come out of my semi-retirement from writing reviews.

"Having an idea" and "memorizing" are two entirely different things that require completely different levels of concentration. Two days from now, I'll "have an idea" that you replied argumentatively to my review without "memorizing" the details of your response.

I think you simply missed the spirit of the review - that this game is about so much more than memorizing the OtTS. I'm not saying that there is NO memory element to the game - just that it's not the primary element of the game like many of the early posters were purporting. I simply wanted to point out all the other aspects of the game and that it is enjoyable even for those who don't like memory games.

Sure you can turn it into a memorization game if you wish, but it's completely unnecessary. I disagree with you statement "the winner will be the person who can best remember what they have in the {OtTS}". The last few games I've played have displayed the exact opposite results. The players who were able to focus on all elements of the game and turn all of those into advantages dominated the card-counters who couldn't focus on anything beyond how many more "reds" they needed.

Thread: Re: So, how nasty is this game?

Denise — 2008-07-04T04:42:18+00:00

It's reasonably nasty. I cannot play this game with my 8 YO daughter, who hates any sort of 'take that'. If you are thinking about getting this for people who don't like 'take that', I would at the very least borrow a friend's copy or demo it at a game store before you bought it.

Thread: So, how nasty is this game?

sightreader — 2008-07-04T04:18:14+00:00

From the early reviews, it seems that the nastiness may be mitigated by playing the "On The Track" rule properly. Once you do that, is the game still as nasty? Our gamers don't like "Take That!" stuff very much...

Thanks!

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

ggambill — 2008-07-04T03:56:29+00:00

I agree with the original post and with leroy43 completely. Once I gave up trying to remember what I had, and just focused on what I needed in general (lots of black, a good amount of green, a few blue and just singles of others) I began to like the game a whole lot more. I also agree it is a bit of a memory game, but it is not the defining characteristic. The element of "I wonder if I got enough black and red?" at the end of the game is also a bit of fun if you can stand some uncertainty.

I also think the wild cards really help make the game enjoyable, and moves it further away from a memory game since when completing tickets at the end of the game, these have saved me many times. I have grown to "trust" these cards, so I no longer feel the need to count or try to remember exactly what I have. If they were not part of the game, I feel that it would most assuredly make this a memory game. The wild cards make it much more forgiving and fun, and moves it away from the strict memory game category. Just my opinion.

On another note, I have also, I found that it seems like the big city bonus cards are HUGE at the end of the game, so most of my strategy revolves around selecting tickets that will get me the bonus cards, rather than just tickets that match cards I currently have.

Thread: Overview: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game

gschloesser — 2008-07-04T10:47:26+00:00

Note: My review of Ticket to Ride: The Card Game appears in the Summer 2008 issue of Counter magazine. What follows is an abbreviated version.

I was attending the Gathering of Friends convention when I first heard of the card game version of the popular and award-winning Ticket to Ride board game series. Already owning three of the Ticket to Ride versions – original, Europe and Marklin – my initial thought was “I don’t really need to play another Ticket to Ride game.” So, I didn’t put any effort towards playing it until the penultimate day of the convention. I wasn’t expecting much, but was I wrong! This is an excellent adaptation of the board game, complete with some very clever mechanisms and a touch of nastiness.

As in the board game, players are trying to complete routes between cities, thereby scoring points. However, in this version, everything is accomplished using cards, as there is no board and no train pieces to place. Rather, players are attempting to fulfill the requirements of destination tickets they possess by maneuvering the proper number and colors of cards into their “On the Track” stacks.

As in the board game, players have three primary options: take two train tickets from those on display (or face-down from the top of the deck), play cards to the table, or take new destination tickets. The rules for performing these options are very similar to those in the board game versions.

The playing of cards from the hand warrants further explanation, as it is vital to the flow of the game. When choosing this option, a player may play as many cards of a matching color to the table, which is known as the “rail yard”. Alternatively, players may play EXACTLY three cards, each of a different suit.

When playing cards, a player must play MORE cards in a suit than what is currently in play. So, if an opponent has three red train cards in his rail yard, in order to play red train cards, the player must play four or more cards. This has a cruel effect: any opponent who has red cards in their rail yard immediately discards them. This gives the game a nasty edge, and makes playing three single cards of different suits extremely risky, especially when playing with four players.

Before a player takes any of these actions, he places the top card of each suit in his rail yard facedown into his “On the Track” stack. These are the cards that will be used to fulfill destination tickets. A player may not peek at the cards he has placed in this stack. So, one must attempt to remember, at least in general, the cards he has set aside. Some folks have complained that this memory aspect of the game isn’t to their tastes, so the rules do allow a variant wherein players may look at this stack as often as they desire. This option is likely a wise choice when playing with children.

Play continues until the train deck expires, whereupon everyone examines the cards in their “On the Track” stack and completes as many destination tickets as they possibly can. Any wild cards in the stack can be used as any color. Finally, the winner of each goal card is determined. These are cards which list major cities, and the player having the most routes into a particular city receives the victory points listed on the card. Players tally the points of their tickets and goal cards, and the player with the most total points is victorious.

The game contains much of the same tough choices as the board game. Choosing whether to take more train cards or play them to the table can be tougher than one would think, as there is the persistent temptation to take just one more card from those available. However, getting cards to the table means that you will have more opportunity to move them into your “On the Track” stack, which is ultimately what leads to victory points.

Ticket to Ride: The Card Game is one of the best adaptations of a board game to a card game format I’ve had the pleasure to play. It maintains many of the mechanisms and much of the flavor of the original game, yet also offers some clever new twists and features. The aggressive board play aspect of the board game, wherein players can be cut-off from desired routes, has been replaced with the ability to force opponents to discard cards from their rail yards. Yet, at the same time, the game is easy to learn and very accessible. Families can learn and play the game quickly and easily, yet there is enough here to engage gamers. I feel I will be enjoying the ride on this new Ticket to Ride version for a long time to come.

In this session, the routes I completed were smaller than Jim, but I managed to complete just enough of them and secure a few “goal” cards to edge him for the victory.

Finals: Greg 137, Jim M. 132, Jim F. 123, Rhonda 58

Ratings: Rhonda 8, Greg 7.5, Jim F. 7, Jim M. 7

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

EgorjLileli — 2008-07-04T12:36:15+00:00

stormseeker75 wrote:
I think its time for stormy to come out of my semi-retirement from writing reviews.

Oooo, yes please!!!

Image

Duane Abrames — 2008-07-03T11:55:06+00:00

One side of the (US) Box

Image

Duane Abrames — 2008-07-03T11:52:10+00:00

Box Back (High Rez)

Image

Duane Abrames — 2008-07-03T11:50:34+00:00

Box Front (High Rez)

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

leroy43 — 2008-07-03T11:01:17+00:00

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

Mr_Bickman — 2008-07-03T09:55:25+00:00

Hm. I had written off this game because of the memory aspect. I have the memory of a gnat, but I like card games and I like TTR and I want to like this game!

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

DaviddesJ — 2008-07-03T08:21:24+00:00

willk_1230 wrote:
It's much more easy for me to keep up with the fact that I've got a "lot" of black and "quite a few" green and orange than it is for me to try to memorize counts on 9 different colors (counting Locomotives as a color).

Isn't the fact that it's hard what makes it a memory game? If it were easy to remember, then it wouldn't be a memory game, because everyone would just know what they have.

Thread: Re: This is so NOT a memorization game!

stormseeker75 — 2008-07-03T07:07:31+00:00

Aren't you basically saying though that you need to remember to get certain colors? And aren't you also saying that it:

Yes, sure, it's important to have an idea of the quantities of colors you have in your OtTS

That certainly infers remembering what you have there to some degree.

I really like this game, but there's no reasonable way you can say its not a memory game. There are other mechanisms in play such as timing and a bit of "press your luck", but at the end of the day, the winner will be the person who can best remember what they have in the On the Track stack. This in no way takes anything away from the game, but thats how it works. If you like games with memory mechanics (such as Mamma Mia!) then you'll definitely like this one.

I think its time for stormy to come out of my semi-retirement from writing reviews.

Thread: This is so NOT a memorization game!

willk_1230 — 2008-07-03T06:06:13+00:00

Ok, this isn't a traditional review, but rather a review designed to address what I consider is a fallacious reputation that the game appears to be garnering.

I've read several posts from people purporting some variant of complaint "This is nothing but a memory game." I simply couldn't disagree with this sentiment more. Granted I've only been playing a few days, but I've found it much more lucrative to pursue other strategies to win the game rather than trying to memorize my On-the-Track-Stack (OtTS). My score sky-rocketed when I stopped chanting "3 black 2 green 1 blue, 3 black 2 green 1 blue" over and over in my head like some kind of Gregorian Monk.

Yes, sure, it's important to have an idea of the quantities of colors you have in your OtTS. But I argue that it's more profitable, and definitely more enjoyable, to have a GENERAL idea of those quantities than an exact count. For example, if I chose destination tickets that require a combined quantity of 5 black, 3 green, 3 orange, 1 white, 1 red, 1 blue, and 1 purple, then I know I simply need to concentrate on black green and orange. The little quantities will take care of themselves over the course of the game - especially with your wild cards.

It's much more easy for me to keep up with the fact that I've got a "lot" of black and "quite a few" green and orange than it is for me to try to memorize counts on 9 different colors (counting Locomotives as a color).

Not only does this allow me to enjoy the game instead of straining my brain, it frees up some brain cycles to concentrate on what everyone else is doing and allows me to focus on the other aspects of the game such as...
1. How best to play into the railyard - individually or in suits?
2. Timing of playing into railyard - is my opponent likely to rob me at this time?
3. Is it profitable for me to rob my opponent - what are the risks at this time? One other poster claims it's "critical". I'm not convinced.
4. What destination ticketss are best? Big tickets or small? (I lean towards small)
5. Is it wise to concentrate ticket selection on 1 or 2 Bonus cities or spread them out as evenly as possible?

As you can see, there are many subtle decisions to be made to formulate a winning strategy. Much more than can be concentrated on if you're trying to count cards.

From my limited experience so far, I've got to say that I love this game. It's balanced, it's subtley strategic, and it plays quickly. I give it two thumbs up.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

jvdv — 2008-07-03T08:07:12+00:00

Many thanks for that Neil. My original comment was indeed somewhat pointed, maybe too much so. I certainly have added my fair share of useless remarks to this site, but I feel that especially Reviews and other such "hard" content (Session reports, Images) should be as accurate and informed as possible, because it is this type of content that give the site its proper worth.

You are a gentleman! :)

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Neil Thomson — 2008-07-02T10:28:04+00:00

Ok Jeroen the changes are made.

I was quite surprised with just how different the game felt, I knew there would obviously be a different feel, but not quite that much.

The edits have been made and the review is better for it - for that I thank you.

Apologies too if my reply to your original comment was snarky. I have no problem with constructive criticism, I just felt you could have been less pointed about it.

Hopefully all is well.

I have e-mailed all users who thumbed the review to inform them of the change, in case they were put off by the review as it was originally written.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

jvdv — 2008-07-02T02:16:16+00:00

Would you consider rewording the review, if you deemed necessary, after playing a few times the way the game was intended to be played? It is quite a fundamental difference, to put cards away as a chosen action or a mandatory action at the beginning of each round...

It may make some of your observations different, which will give readers of the review a more "honest" look on the game, though of course you made no more than an "honest" mistake...

Thread: Re: Counting your On-the-Track stack

puck71 — 2008-07-02T12:20:00+00:00

That's not such a bad idea either. Although usually (at least when we play with 3 players) it's pretty much the last turn of the game when you go for tickets. We tried letting you look as much as you want, but to just try to do it during other peoples' turns as much as possible. It worked pretty well, and probably sped it up for me so I didn't have to sit there trying to remember what I had banked.

Thread: Re: Counting your On-the-Track stack

TrimChris — 2008-07-01T11:06:49+00:00

We played today where each player could look at their stack until they first went looking for extra tickets.

Thread: Re: First Impressions

hughthehand — 2008-07-01T10:28:17+00:00

I agree with the above 2 people. I think this is a way better game with 3-4 (preferably 4)...more cards getting blown away and harder to get your tickets completed.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Neil Thomson — 2008-07-01T09:40:38+00:00

jvdv wrote:
So in fact this review is based on erroneous play, based on a misreading of the rules... Which is an accomplishment in itself, as the three small pages the rules span leave nothing to the imagination...

:shake:

Ouch stop poking me - that stick hurts...

Of course you are correct but then again I was prepared to let people see my error and live up to it, which should count for something.

In reality it is the games fault. There was no disclaimer that said - "Warning - if you have just bought 20 new games at the latest Expo be sure to read the rules more carefully before writing a review for the Geek."

In fairness I don't think it changes my analysis of the game in any way whatsoever. But thanks for reading and criticizing the 5% of my work that was wrong. I'll be sure to hand back my whopping BGG payment for this review.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

jvdv — 2008-07-01T02:29:38+00:00

So in fact this review is based on erroneous play, based on a misreading of the rules... Which is an accomplishment in itself, as the three small pages the rules span leave nothing to the imagination...

:shake:

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Neil Thomson — 2008-07-01T01:01:54+00:00

That Edit was harder than first thought.

Would somebody please kill Toasty... :D

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

LRayZor — 2008-07-01T12:57:44+00:00

That's certainly how we interpreted the rules too, Toasty.

First (non-optional) step of your turn was to take bottom card of each of your stock from your rail yard and place them face down in the 'On the Track' stack.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

letmethink — 2008-07-01T12:56:32+00:00

Yes, that is correct. If you have cards in your railyard at the start of your turn, you move 1 of each color to your on the track stack. Then you pick from the other options; draw wagons, place wagons, or draw destinations, to complete your turn.:)

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Neil Thomson — 2008-07-01T12:52:33+00:00

Toasty wrote:
Neil Thomson wrote:

:d10-3: Moving Cards to your 'On the Track Stack' - This is the 2nd key phase for acquiring cards that will count at games end towards completing Ticket Cards. It is very simple too, as it allows a player to take the bottom most card of each colour they have in their Railyard and add it to their 'On the Track Stack', face down.

In the game I played, this was not an option, it just happens as the first step of your turn, then the other 3 options you mention make up the 2nd step of your turn. A quick rule check suggests we played it correctly, can anyone confirm?

Cheers Toasty - We've been playing that wrong! I'm a damn fine rules lawyer eh?

Edit made and now keen as hell to see how the game will play now.

Thread: Re: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Toasty — 2008-07-01T12:29:42+00:00

Neil Thomson wrote:

:d10-3: Moving Cards to your 'On the Track Stack' - This is the 2nd key phase for acquiring cards that will count at games end towards completing Ticket Cards. It is very simple too, as it allows a player to take the bottom most card of each colour they have in their Railyard and add it to their 'On the Track Stack', face down.

In the game I played, this was not an option, it just happens as the first step of your turn, then the other 3 options you mention make up the 2nd step of your turn. A quick rule check suggests we played it correctly, can anyone confirm?

Thread: Ticket to Ride: The Card Game - A Detailed Review

Neil Thomson — 2008-07-01T11:19:33+00:00

This review continues my series of detailed reviews. I have tried to cover every aspect of the game and as such you may prefer to skip to the sections of most interest.

Summary

Game Type - Card Game
Play Time: 30-50 minutes
Number of Players: 2-4
Mechanics – Set Collection, Memory
Difficulty – Easy (Can be learned in under 10 minutes)
Components - Very Good

Ok I'll be honest and say up front that when I heard of this impending release several months ago I was more than dubious. I mean, did we really need another Ticket to Ride Game? Did we need it in a card game format?

Of course I bought the game thinking it may be quick to play with my Mum who likes the Board Game version of TtR.

Let's check it out.

]]>
Image Courtesy of MarkKaufmann

Theme

Nothing to report here really. This is a classic card game where theme isn't all that important. Not surprising really when the board game version is fairly light on theme as well.

The key difference between the two is that the board game is about connecting routes by playing cards. In TtR: The Card Game the players are trying to gather the cards that will directly satisfy the requirements for Ticket Cards.

The Components

Not surprisingly the game consists of cards. They are the same size as the large cards used in the board games and they offer a nice matte finish and feature vibrant colours.

Interestingly I find the artwork on the cards to surpass any of the TtR board games I have played.

In all there are -

:d10-1: 16 Locomotive Cards - which act as wilds and can be substituted for any colour.

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Image Courtesy of cnidius

Locomotive is on far left

:d10-2: 10 of each Train Card - in 8 different colours for a total of 80 Train Cards.

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Image Courtesy of Artax

:d10-3: 46 Destination Ticket Cards - Each card features 2 city destinations, which are named. The cards then feature a series of coloured circles down the left of each card, which denote the coloured Train Cards that must be collected to satisfy the Ticket.

Each Ticket also features a value, which will be earned or lost depending on whether a player is successful or fails in collecting the appropriate coloured cards by games end.

Each Destination Ticket Card requires 1-5 cards to complete them. The more cards that are needed the higher the point value awarded.

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Image Courtesy of Artax

:d10-4: 8 Big City Bonus Cards - Each of these cards features the name of 1 Big City and a point value. Each card is of a particular colour, which comes in handy during the game as the names of the Big Cities that feature on the Train Cards are of the same colour. In this way it is easy to identify how many of a given Big City you possess (see bonus card scoring later for more details).

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Image Courtesy of cnidius

The Set-Up

Each player receives 7 Train Cards to start and 6 Destination Ticket Cards. Each player is then required to assess their hand and keep at least 1 Ticket Card and discard those that are not wanted.

The set-up is completed by putting the Bonus Cards to one side and turning over the top 5 Train Cards of the draw deck, just as you would in the TtR board game.

The Game Play

On each player's turn they have 3 options. After one option is taken, the play passes to the next player.

It is important to note that at the start of a player's turn, they must take 1 card of each colour present in their Railyard and place them in their 'On the Track Stack' (this is a good thing).

This will make more sense after reading the following section.

The play options include -

:d10-1: Drawing Cards - This option is identical to the TtR board games. A player is allowed to take up to 2 cards from the draw deck or face-up cards, in any combination they choose. The only restriction is that a player cannot take more than 1 face-up card if they select a wild.

One change from the board game version is that the 5 face-up cards will not be scrapped if a 3rd Locomotive Card (wild) is turned up. In this game all 5 cards could be Locomotive Cards.

:d10-2: Play Cards to the Railyard - To be able to satisfy the requirements of the Ticket Cards, each player is trying to get Train Cards from their hand into a special stack called their 'On the Track Stack'.

The Railyard is a term used to describe the section of the playing surface in front of each player where cards are played from the hand.

There are two ways to play cards from your hand to the Railyard. One option is to play 2 or more cards of a single colour (including any wilds), however there are several restrictions.

A player cannot play cards of a colour that they themselves already have in play. These must be sent to their 'On the Track Stack' before new cards of that colour can be played.

It is also impossible to play cards of a single colour if another player has more of that colour in their Railyard than you are able to play.

However, should you be able to play a larger number (of a single colour) than an opponent, they will see their cards burned and discarded to the discard pile. :surprise:

Hence TtR: The Card Game has a fairly hefty element of 'Take That!' :angry: to its play.

When playing cards of one colour it is entirely possible to play 1 or more Locomotive Cards with them.

When cards of a single colour are added to a player's Railyard, they should be fanned slightly in a vertical fashion so the number present can be seen by all players. Locomotive Cards are always placed at the bottom of the fanned stack as these will be the first cards to be transferred to the 'On the Track Stack'.

But I did mention a 2nd way to play cards from your hand to the Railyard. The other option is to play exactly 3 cards, all in different colours. This option is only available if all 3 colours are not yet in play in anyone's Railyard and Locomotive Cards cannot be played in this manner.

I'll discuss the strategic considerations of both Railyard methods in a moment.

As I mentioned earlier, moving cards to your 'On the Track Stack' from the Railyard occurs at the start of a turn. It is mandatory and the bottom most card of each colour must be transerred to the 'On the Track Stack', face down.

Once cards are transferred in this fashion they cannot be looked at again until the end of the game - thus the memory component is revealed.

:d10-3: Drawing New Tickets - The final option is to draw new Destination Ticket Cards. A total of 4 Tickets can be drawn with this option and a player can take as few or as many as they like (0-4).

Game End

The game has slightly varied end conditions depending on the number of players. In a 2 or 3 player game, the game will draw to a close when the draw deck is exhausted. Each player gets one more go including the person to exhaust the draw deck.

In a 4 player game the draw deck will be exhausted twice before the final round takes place as outlined above. When the deck is exhausted for the first time, each player is allowed to look at their 'On the Track Stack' and satisfy as many Tickets as they can. Train Cards used in this way are then added to any burned cards in the discard pile and shuffled to form the 2nd draw deck. Incomplete tickets at the halfway mark are still kept and remain as goals to achieve in the 2nd half of the game.

End of Game Scoring

At the end of the game each player scores the points for their completed Tickets and subtracts any points for Tickets they were unable to complete.

Then comes the Big City Bonus Cards. Each player must assess their completed tickets and identify how many of the Big Cities feature on those cards. The player that holds the most cards featuring the name of a specific Big City can take the corresponding Bonus Card and add those points to their score.

Should 1 or more players tie for a particular Big City Bonus Card, all tied players gain access to it. There are two 8 point bonus cards, two 12 point bonus cards and one 10 and 15 bonus point card - making for a total of 65 bonus points up for grabs. Quite often these cards can determine the winner.

The Strategy

TtR: The Card Game really is a memory game with a 'Take That!' feel to it. At every step of the way you are trying desperately to remember what the heck you have in that 'On the Track Stack' so you can identify what Tickets have been completed. This in turn helps you to decide if it is viable to draw new Tickets during the game. Of course this is not as scary a proposition as the board game as a player can choose to keep none of the newly drawn cards.

What makes TtR: The Card Game work though is the mechanics involved in getting cards to the Railyard. Not being allowed to play cards of a given colour unless you have more than your opponent(s) is clever and makes timing a major consideration.

The ability to burn the cards of an opponent by playing more than them is an extremely nasty maneuver, but one that is critical to success. It is most satisfying when you manage to do it, but totally frustrating when it happens to you. Especially when you lose a set of cards in a colour that was critical to 2, 3, 4 or more of your Tickets.

My early plays took place with a key rule being played incorrectly and this lead to much card hoarding that left a bad taste in my mouth. Essentially I believed that moving cards to the 'On the Track Stack' was a turn action, meaning you couldn't draw cards or play to the Railyard. :shake:

With the correct rules, card hoarding is nowhere as big an issue. It still happens, but placing cards of 1 colour only is nowhere near as dominant a strategy. Playing 3 cards of different colours really allows a player to get multiple cards down quickly and this is key to completing many of the small to medium tickets in fast time, allowing you to complete tickets and draw new ones!

The ability to play 3 single colours also allows for bluffing to occur. Carefully watching the cards that are drawn by your opponent(s) (the face-up ones anyway) can help you determine what colours are likely to survive until your next turn. Players can also deliberately play a dummy colour or two (colours they don't actually need) in an attempt to sneak through the colours that they do need.

What results is a game of cat or mouse. What you don't want to do in this game is be 'card poor' when your opponent(s) have a hand full of cards. This would mean they have all the options and they will know that your ability to harm them is almost non-existent.

The final thing to note is that Locomotive Cards (wilds) are placed at the bottom of a colour pile when multiple cards are played. This allows a player to play a key colour in force. Playing, for example, 4 black and 3 wilds together is a real power play. The odds of someone burning your blacks is unlikely until you have transferred at least 2-4 cards to your 'On the Track Stack'. By this stage you will have transferred most of the wilds and possibly a black card or two.

This is important as Locomotives can be used as any colour card in the final scoring to complete Ticket Cards and this flexibility is imperative in a game where the 'Screw Factor' can be high.

The Final Word

Despite my initially negative stance on the need for this game, I have to give it the thumbs up as it really is cleverly designed and offers both decision making and game play that is significantly different to its predecessors.

That said TtR: The Card Game won't appeal to every lover of the board games. Many people play TtR very passively and don't like blocking in that version of the game. Those gamers may well dislike the 'Take That!' nature of this incarnation.

I find the memory aspect of the game a little frustrating but without it the game would be a little too mechanical and calculable. Approaching my 10th play I must say that I keep finding new and interesting ways to alter my card play. The card hoarding thing has diminished considerably and what remains is a tight little game.

A major plus for me is the fact that the game has a very different feel with each of the player numbers (2, 3 or 4).

With 2 players each player is getting more card draws, allowing them to do a little more. The negative here is that the game can become quite cut-throat as only you can screw them and vice versa. Timing becomes 'Uber-Critical' and having a card short hand when your opponent is getting RSI in their wrist from the size of their hand is a recipe for disaster. The Bonus Big City Cards are also critical as they effectively feel like a double whammy (points I don't have, you do)! For this reason I favour going after the small to medium tickets as it allows me to collect more tickets that feature Bonus Big City locations.

Playing with 3 is a lot of fun with the extra person and Railyard to engage with. I haven't played with 4 yet but expect that these benefits (player interaction) would be heightened even further.

I'd be keen to hear the thoughts of others that have played with 4.

I should also mention that the play time may be an issue for some gamers. The size of the box and the title itself suggest that this is a light filler game. In fact the play length is more akin to a light-medium game and at 25-50 minutes it may seem a bit long.

The time of course comes in when players continuously assess their Ticket Cards and try, in vain, to recall what damn colours they have managed to squirrel away. :cry:

Finally I like how the Big City Bonus Cards are implemented. They allow for planning, whereby players can target particular Big Cities in the hope of winning those crucial points at the end of the game.

In the end I have to say that this game is a real surprise but may be a matter of personal taste. Check it out for yourself.

EDIT - Rules modified regarding the transfer of Train Cards from Railyard to 'On the Track Stack'. This changed quite significantly my thoughts on the strategy.

Thread: Re: 2 Player - Ticket to the wrong destination?

Cornbread46 — 2008-06-30T09:59:31+00:00

After two 2 player games and three 4 player games, I agree that the feel is different with different numbers of players for sure, but that doesn't mean it is bad. just different.

2 player is a RACE, to get A LOT of tickets, before your opponent. 4 players is MUCH more about blocking, robbing, eeking every last train you can get. 4 player also has the wierd "score some of your tickets then run the deck again" thing, that makes it even MORE different.

All in all, this will see MANY plays at our house, with or without the memory aspect.