I do like a good board game. Ticket To Ride is a game from the old school with a proper board and a good theme. We were sent it as members of the Blogger Board Game Club. Ticket To Ride, by Days of Wonder Inc, is essentially a train adventure board game that has taken the world by storm. It was published in 2004 and has won a string of awards. It has sold some 4 million copies worldwide with sales of over $150 million and has been translated into 19 different languages.
The game is also available in a number of different versions reflecting different railways around the world. Since its publication with the original North America map, the game has expanded and there are numerous versions. These include a European edition and a Rail and Sails edition that also incorporates ferry routes into the game.
Playing
The game is simple to learn and can be played from the age of 8 upwards. Full of strategy and competition, Ticket To Ride is a very good family-friendly game. Players collect cards of various types of train cars to claim the railway routes on the playable map. They are awarded points depending on the length of the route achieved or for connecting their designated ‘Destination Tickets’ distant cities by railroad. A game takes 5 minutes to set up and play lasts for just over an hour.
The Board
The board represents, in the original version, a railway map of the US and Southern Canada. Each player is provided with a share of the railway pieces to mark their rail route. They also get a choice of destination tickets for their route (draw four, discard two to the bottom of the pile). The game play is driven by drawing railway car cards. This allows the player to build their train along a route and accumulate points. The cards can be supplemented by a dice expansion pack but it is best to learn the game with the cards.
Strategy
Longer routes earn more points and so regardless of the destination ticket players can claim routes to obtain more points. On a turn, a player can claim any route on the board that has not been claimed. This is regardless of the destination tickets. The routes score points by themselves but routes not connected to a destination do not help the player to reach the destination or complete the destination ticket.
End Game
The game ends when one player has two or fewer of their coloured train pieces left. When this happens, every player then plays one additional turn and then reveals their previously hidden destination tickets. Supplementary points are awarded for connecting the destinations on the cards. However, points are subtracted for incomplete destination tickets. A ten-point bonus is awarded to the player who has the longest continuous connected routes.
What We Thought
Truth, the children got a bit bored with the game. Nevertheless, I quite like it and with a few equally competitive players the play can be quite feisty. I think its great game for adults and older teens. With older players the competitive element and the strategy really comes to the fore.
