Railroad Tycoon II

Release Date - November 2, 1998 (NA)

Developer - PopTop Software

Publisher - Gathering of Developers

Platform - PC

It was a long time between drinks for the Railway Tycoon franchise. The original Sid Meier’s Railroad Tycoon was released all the way back in 1990! Eight years on, and the original game had garnered quite a reputation for itself, and it was well deserved, being one of the earlier examples of a ‘business simulator’. The game was a commercial success and praised for the in-depth, but addictive gameplay. There would be quite a bit of pressure on a sequel to live up to the name, but thankfully Railroad Tycoon II not only met, but exceeded these expectations.

Railroad Tycoon II would not be developed by the legendary Sid Meier himself, but retained the core concepts of the original game. The game has quite an ambitious scope, covering the history of railways from the dawn of steam engines all the way to the present day of 1998 and beyond. 

As one would expect from an eight year gap, the graphics in Railroad Tycoon II are a huge improvement over the original. A nice combination of functional 2D isometric graphics for the map, mixed with live action footage of trains, rail workers and more popping out in windows to illustrate what’s happening on the ground. You can also inspect the various buildings like the train stations and get a lovely pre-rendered CGI shot of the building in close-up. It all goes a long way to creating a living, detailed world for you to build a business empire. It really is a ‘world’ to play in too, with the game taking you across the globe from the USA, to Europe, to Australia and more. Couple this range of locations with the aforementioned scope of the timeline and you’ve got an incredibly varied set of scenarios to conquer. They’re all tied together with a charming narrator that sounds like an American gentleman from the old west, providing you with context and objectives (and even chastising you for taking too long to make a decision in the menus).

“Stop making fun of me! I’m new to trains, okay?”
The narrator is a great addition to this game, giving you gentle jabs to get on with it!

Once in the game proper, the gameplay mostly revolves around placing train-tracks, stations and choosing the appropriate engine and cars for the job at hand. It may sound simple, but the game runs quite deep in how your choices will affect the outcome and profitability of your rail network! First, consider the cargo you’ll be transporting; rail cars are all suited to a purpose. There are rail cars for cotton, grain, milk, lumber and of course, passengers. Once you’ve done that, take into account that different regions will have different supply and demand for each of the commodities that need to be moved, so you’ll want to fill the train from each stop with goods that are in high supply from where you leave and in high demand at the destination. Finally, take into account the terrain, as different engines are suited to different conditions. Some may be better at traversing hills and steep inclines, while others will be best on flat ground. It might be faster to avoid the hills and take a slightly longer, but more convenient route too.

Two trains on the same track, one has to wait for the other. If I put some more time into managing their routes I could have avoided this…

Each train is lovingly detailed not only in appearance but also abilities! Acceleration, top speed, reliability and more are taken into account. Not to mention trains will move slower when they’re loaded with more carriages! It’s really a lot to take in, but much of it makes intuitive sense. There’s even factors affecting how much each station can output. For example, bring grain to a station with a cattle farm, and they’ll be able to produce more cattle. It makes sense, right? More food for cows and the more cows they can export. It’s one of those great little details that elevates Railroad Tycoon II beyond a casual city-builder and into a true simulation game. The level of detail and care put into the economy in this game is just amazing, and will impress even the most jaded gamer.

Stocks, bonds, salaries… yes, this game runs deep.

What’s more, you’ll have to keep the trains in good condition. Early on this means supplying them with enough water, sand and oil, as well as regular mechanical maintenance. One of the most charming features is the fact you can check all this detail by looking at the train’s control panel in-game! More than just a piece of flavour art, the panel will accurately show how much water is in the boiler, the sand levels and oil levels using the instrument panel.

If this wasn’t enough complexity and depth to take into account, the game also has a simulated stock market you can dabble in. Issuing shares, providing dividends and the like is an important part of building your wealth! It’s truly staggering, and very addictive to optimise those routes and find new ways to get filthy rich.

Far from being a game about building railroads in America, Railroad Tycoon will take you all around the world. Here, we find Japan’s unique terrain challenges.

Train aficionados will be spoilt for choice, with over 60 different types of trains or engines to choose from. As to be expected with a game spanning such a long history, the engines range from very early steam engines through to modern electric and diesel powered engines and even one futuristic ‘Maglev’ train!

Check out the top left corner. That’s not just for show, it accurately shows the train’s water, sand and oil levels! Amazing!

The soundtrack was highly praised for being a fitting mix of blues and bluegrass style music, and also for the recording being of a particularly high quality for the era. The music fits the setting down to a tee, and goes a long way to building the immersion. The announcer deserves a mention too; sounding like an old American frontiersman, he will give you lots of background info on the history of trains and the rail industry, and encourage you to try the campaign challenges. He’s also there with a a few verbal jabs if you fail a mission. Failing the opening scenario, I was surprised to come back to the main menu and hear the old man tell me “Couldn’t quite handle it, huh? Don’t worry, there are plenty of other career options for you…” Touche, old man.

Some lovely 3D renders of your stations. These can also be improved with things like water towers, telegraph offices and even things like restaurants and saloons.

Railroad Tycoon II was released with modest expectations from the developers. Even in 1998, the game was seen as something of a niche title. Bruce Shelley commented in a 1997 interview with gamecenter.com that “I would be happy to work on such a game but there are real doubts about its ability to generate sufficient sales in this blockbuster market where a few of the games make most of the money." The game went on to surprise everyone though, blowing away the initial forecast of around 500,000 copies lifetime sales estimate and selling more than 1.5 million copies on PC by August 2001! Railroad Tycoon II was the first title published by Gathering of Developers that would sell more than one million units, and would set them up for a successful future in publishing. 

Budding entrepreneurs would be able to revisit the game with an expansion pack in 1999 titled The Second Century, and eventually the re-releases Railroad Tycoon II: Gold and Railroad Tycoon II: Platinum. There was even a Dreamcast version, complete with new 3D graphics, released in 2000. Trust me when I say this game has enough depth to last you a long, long time. Doubly so if you love trains!

Making a profitable railway is more satisfying than it has any right to be. You’d be surprised how good the payoff is!