Railroad Tycoon at it's most basic level is your chance to rekindle childhood memories of laying down toy train tracks and then sitting back and watching your fleet of speedy trains zip along. One of the greatest things about Tycoon II is the ability to see clear, crisp details of your little trains chugging along the tracks as they pass train stations and travel through spectacular scenery.
There
are a variety of maps and scenarios within the game, and a range of
difficulty
levels as well. As you might imagine, you can purchase a wide
assortment
of trains within the game, including both different types of engines
and
numerous types of freight, passenger and other cars.
Of course, there's much more to the game than simply setting up trains on tracks. You need to run an entire train company and build (or acquire) all the necessary infrastructure such as stations, buildings, and fuel sources. Decide what routes your company will serve and the speeds to run your trains, as well as the types of tracks to build and where to place them. You can also play the stock market and try to improve your financial wealth by jumping on that roller coaster ride.
The
game is a paradox of complexity and simplicity. Although it's built on
an intricate and elaborate economic model, setting up your empire is
pretty
straightforward: just plant your stations, drag and drop a track
between
them, sprinkle with trains, and watch your profits grow. The challenge
comes when you select the more realistic economic models, in which case
you have to mind who's carrying how much of what--and where. You'll
have
to cultivate the more lucrative industries, such as steel mills and
automobile
factories, by making sure they get raw materials. Eventually, cities
and
industries will grow, and your network of train routes will serve as
the
veins of an economy.
Underneath this railroad latticework lies a deeply detailed economic model. Like a manic-depressive without his lithium, the economy will snap back and forth between the extremes of prosperity and recession. Railroad Tycoon II drops you into the nail-biting tension of trying to ride out a depression; you desperately tend to your empire in the hopes that the whole frail entity won't come collapsing down around your ears. But the game also re-creates the giddy spending sprees of wild expansion during periods of heavy economic growth. Furthermore, there's an intricate stock market that's challenging and mysterious enough to be an entirely separate game. If you don't know a dividend from a divot, don't worry; you will after playing Railroad Tycoon II.
Ride
the Iron Horse: It can take you from New York to South Africa. It
can take you from the year 1804 to the year 2000. It can take you from
penniless manual labourer to powerful multi-millionaire. It can take
you
from a normal, well-adjusted, well-rounded person to an obsessed,
single-minded,
one-tracked trainhead.
This is a real railroad game, not just a strategy game that happens to involve railroads. If you want to hop on a plane, car or ship, hop on another game. This game is about trains for people who love trains. Everything about the game is centered around an authentic look and feeling of the railways. Period video and pictures are interlaced with the game. The design and interface are true to the character of the fabled late 1800's railroads. All opponents are based on real people. And all maps are real (based on satellite photography from US Geological Service and other sources).
Features
Railroad
Tycoon II Gold includes all of the features described above in General
information. An in-depth manual is included, and a tutorial
mode
within the game helps get you started. Railroad Tycoon II deals
primarily
with the first century of railroads (1829-1929), but also included in
the
Gold Edition is the Second Century expansion pack, allowing you to play
during 1930-2030, and beyond. Multiplayer capabilities are included via
TCP/IP, IPX, modem or serial cable. You can play a game against
multiple
players using any of the maps in the game. Railroad Tycoon II contains
a map editor so you can create your own maps.
Railroad Tycoon II took gamers on a ride from the early days of railroading through the future, allowing them to explore various countries and experience history along the way. Railroad Tycoon II: The Second Century vaulted railroad tycoons into the next locomotive era of 1939 to 2030. Gamers encountered world catastrophes such as World War II, the Cold War and global warming, and had to solve modern problems associated with mass transit in major cities. Now with Railroad Tycoon II: Gold Edition, armchair capitalists will find themselves immersed in several new ventures including the construction of the Pennsylvania Railroad through the Appalachians. Gamers are also challenged to connect New York to Los Angeles using futuristic, magnetically levitating transcontinental railroads, and rekindle Scottish pride by laying the tracks for the Flying Scotsman from Edinburg to London.
Eighteen all-new scenarios divided into three distinct historical eras are sure to delight today's modern PC gamer. Thousands will travel across continents and across time with this exciting new expansion pack and surely, nothing could be finer. Ride the rails back in time! All aboard in war torn Europe. In the passage from 1939 through 1950, stop along the way to do your part for the war effort. Deliver troops and supplies to the besieged Allied front. Rebuild the British rail system after its destruction in the Blitz. Protect Mother Russia from the advancing Germans. Only a foolproof rail system can spell victory for the Allies! Modern times require progressive thinking! Next stop, the Modern Era. Solve the transportation problems facing the modern world from 1950 to 2005. Help build a modern Metra passenger system for Munich. Manage the suboceanic Chunnel system between England and France without drowning in debt. Be the visionary who links two of America's greatest cities, Los Angeles and San Francisco, with a long awaited high speed rail. Last stop, the future!
From 2005 to 2030, worldwide flooding and melting ice caps wreak new havoc for the modern railroad tycoon. The United States is a watery wasteland. The Mediterranean is an empty basin with a blossoming Eden. Antarctica is a promising agricultural center. The heady task of providing rail systems for this strange and exotic new world falls upon your shoulders. No doubt, only the most ingenious solutions will do. One of the wonders of the world?
System Requirements ( Windows ): Win 95/98/NT 4.0, Pentium 133 or greater, 16 Mbytes RAM, 4x CD ROM, SVGA video and monitor capable of 640x480 resolution and 256 colours or higher, 220 Mbytes Harddisk, Internet multiplay requires a 28.8 Kbps or better modem, Windows compatible, 16-bit sound card.
Railroad Tycoon II Gold Edition (Windows) $ 14.95 Order Code: S-RRTWin Media CD-ROM
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