It’s been a long time since the days of Railroad Tycoon, even if you include Sid Meier’s Railroads! as part of the lineage. SimCity got revived, both under its own name and with a truly excellent spiritual successor, but what about the world of railroad management? It seems that the makers of Tropico have just the thing for you.
Build or destroy in the best sandbox games on PC.
Kalypso Media and Gaming Minds Studios will soon be putting out Railway Empires, a new management sim that’ll let you run a locomotive powered empire starting in 1830s America and running for a full century’s worth of industry.
There are 40 different trains to build your business on, and 300 technologies to research while trying to stay competitive, divided across five eras of technological advancement. Along the way, you’ll be building rail stations, maintenance buildings, factories, and tourist hotspots to help keep your line profitable.
Railway Empire will release January 26, but if you’re eager to get in early, pre-ordering will get you access to a beta featuring to first two levels of the campaign, plus more to come as the game approaches the release date. With the game’s current pro-order discount, it can be had for $42.49 / £33.99 / €42.49.