Are the dlc's worth getting?

[*| Lion Heart |*]

I never played this game, and was considering just the vanilla....but I was concerned that the game is super simplistic that I will get bored of it fast, since it is only 1 map (unless I am mistaken)... do the cld's add any veriety in gameplay, besides teh map designs?

[scheisspositivismus]

I also would like to know that before the purchase.

[ben_is_able]

The game is definitely much better with the DLC. The vanilla game, while quite good, will not last you very long, The DLC adds new mechanics to the gameplay: Europe adds ferries (which require 1-2 locomotive wild cards to claim the route.) and tunnels (which require three cards to be drawn from the top of the deck, and the player to pay cards further if a locomotive or a card of the same color pops up.) In addition to the aformentioned tunnels, Switzerland adds Country tickets, City-to-Country tickets. Tunnel cards work the same as locomotives in this game except that you can only use them in tunnel routes and don't affect your two card per turn rule. USA 1910 adds three new variations of play to the vanilla USA map: Classic, which includes 35 new tickets to play with, Big Cities, which includes tickets that connect to at least one of the seven big cities on the board, and Mega, which is played with all 69 USA tickets. Finally, Legendary Asia includes Mountainous routes that require you to discard 1-2 more trains depending on how many crosses are on the route, in addition to ferries.

TL;DR Vanilla game is good, but the DLC adds so much more variety and fun to the experience.

[scheisspositivismus]

Thank you.

[ben_is_able]

You are quite welcome!

[*| Lion Heart |*]

Originally posted by T2RMunchen99:

The game is definitely much better with the DLC. The vanilla game, while quite good, will not last you very long, The DLC adds new mechanics to the gameplay: Europe adds ferries (which require 1-2 locomotive wild cards to claim the route.) and tunnels (which require three cards to be drawn from the top of the deck, and the player to pay cards further if a locomotive or a card of the same color pops up.) In addition to the aformentioned tunnels, Switzerland adds Country tickets, City-to-Country tickets. Tunnel cards work the same as locomotives in this game except that you can only use them in tunnel routes and don't affect your two card per turn rule. USA 1910 adds three new variations of play to the vanilla USA map: Classic, which includes 35 new tickets to play with, Big Cities, which includes tickets that connect to at least one of the seven big cities on the board, and Mega, which is played with all 69 USA tickets. Finally, Legendary Asia includes Mountainous routes that require you to discard 1-2 more trains depending on how many crosses are on the route, in addition to ferries.

TL;DR Vanilla game is good, but the DLC adds so much more variety and fun to the experience.

Thanks for the info, looks like some of these verieties should of been part of the vanilla, since by the look of things vanilla is super super simplistic....Might play it once or 2 times and get bored of it. Ill research it a bit further...thanks.

[lvngbth]

The 1910 add-on is essential - it's what the original board game should have had from the start: more route cards and a couple of new game options. It's the second most played version on the online server.

The Europe map is an interesting variant - stations mean your route doesn't have to be completely built by you and the tunnels are a chance to take a risk. It's the third most played version on the online server.

You can live without the other two. The Switzerland map is best for face-to-face play with a couple of people and Asia doesn't really add anything new. Both are much less common online.

[lvngbth]

Originally posted by Devastator:

Thanks for the info, looks like some of these verieties should of been part of the vanilla, since by the look of things vanilla is super super simplistic....Might play it once or 2 times and get bored of it. Ill research it a bit further...thanks.

1910 definitely should have been.

There's definitely skill involved and it is fun, but it's not a train game. It's a 'join the dots' game with a train theme.

If you like boardgames and might have bought this one, it'll save you a small pile of money as it makes getting the physical game unnecessary.

[Zaunpfahl42]

Originally posted by lvngbth:

If you like boardgames and might have bought this one, it'll save you a small pile of money as it makes getting the physical game unnecessary.

I wouldn't say unnecessary. I've owned this on Steam for over a year, but recently saw the board game in a toy store and got it as well. And sitting around a table with a couple of friends moving around actual little trains and holding cards is a whole different experience than playing it digitally. I'd say it's more fun, but the digital version is well made and has good presentation so it's fun to play as well. They can both coexist next to each other.

To answer the OPs question: get Europe as well as 1910 from the DLCs. Europe provides a whole new map and some gameplay extensions while 1910 improves the vanilla game a lot. If you like these enough you might expand to Asia and Switzerland as well.
Big Cities would be last on my list. It makes games rather long and more difficult, there will be a lot more competetion involved, but it can get rather frustrating as well.

[*| Lion Heart |*]

Originally posted by Zaunpfahl:

Originally posted by lvngbth:

If you like boardgames and might have bought this one, it'll save you a small pile of money as it makes getting the physical game unnecessary.

I wouldn't say unnecessary. I've owned this on Steam for over a year, but recently saw the board game in a toy store and got it as well. And sitting around a table with a couple of friends moving around actual little trains and holding cards is a whole different experience than playing it digitally. I'd say it's more fun, but the digital version is well made and has good presentation so it's fun to play as well. They can both coexist next to each other.

To answer the OPs question: get Europe as well as 1910 from the DLCs. Europe provides a whole new map and some gameplay extensions while 1910 improves the vanilla game a lot. If you like these enough you might expand to Asia and Switzerland as well.
Big Cities would be last on my list. It makes games rather long and more difficult, there will be a lot more competetion involved, but it can get rather frustrating as well.

I just got the vanilla since it was on sale, and frankly, it looks to be a boring game....digitizing board games is kind of pointless, in some cases, they loose thir charm.

[sherlockskerlock]

It's one of my favorite games (and I have over 450 games on Steam alone). It's one of my go-to games if I have only 15-20 minutes to play something (from loadup to close). I rarely play the vanilla game, as T2RMunchen99 said, it doesn't have the mechanics that the other dlc have. Plus, once you get your highscore board filled with the dlc boards, you'll never be able to beat it with the vanilla game. I find a challenge by trying to keep different boards on the highscore board. But that's just my own personal style.

Also, if you play against multiple computer (or possibly human players; I can't remember as I never play people too often) the number also has a bearing on mechanics of play. If for example, you play Switzerland with 5 players instead of 3, you can come to a city where only so many entrance/exit points can leave from it. That is, if there are five points of connection and four have been used by your opponents, you're out of luck on using that fifth connection. Just another dynamic to play with.

[canis39]

Switzerland is limited to a maximum of 3 players and multiple routes are always available, no matter whether 2 or 3 players are involved.

But you are correct with the other maps: the number of players determines whether multiple routes between 2 cities can be used. With 2-3 players, only one route can be used. With 4-5 players, multiple routes can be used.

[*| Lion Heart |*]

Thanks for the info, I got the base game to see if I like it...so far I had more fun with it than I thaught, was considering getting the europe version as an actual board game, bu for 2 people though.

[canis39]

The board games are a lot of fun, even for just 2 people. (More fun with 3-5 of course).

[sherlockskerlock]

Yeah, Canis39, I noticed I mispoke about my choice in stated maps soon after. Thanks for clearing that up for others (Devastator).

[MilkmanWes]

Originally posted by Devastator:

I just got the vanilla since it was on sale, and frankly, it looks to be a boring game....digitizing board games is kind of pointless, in some cases, they loose thir charm.

The game is great in digital format because it gives you more opponents and you do not have to schedule play time with friends. The basic strategy is the same, and the simplicity of the game is where the challenge comes in. There is a lot of subtle strategy to it that may not be as obvious until you play through against very good opponents.