Railroad Ink Challenge: Shining Yellow Edition

Good filler or solo game. Icons on draw space could be a little more obvious. Easy to overlook in the midst of everything else going on. Takes a bit more explaining than some other filler games but not too difficult to teach. Can be combined with other colored Railroad Inc and/or expansions.

This is my first railroad ink game, and I’ve got to say it was SUPER easy to learn, and the game itself also goes fairly quickly. I think it’s a great game to take with you when traveling, as it doesn’t include a massive board or lots of complicated pieces. Would love to try some of the other editions/expansions!

As per the title, I love Railroad Ink. I think it's a fun, cute, relaxing game that I enjoy with people and solo. The only caution I'd give is that I think the expansions in Shining Yellow are quite a bit weaker than Lush Green. The Cactus one is fine though, much more so than other expansions, its die rolls can render it irrelevant. The first game I played of it we rolled nothing but Cacti and suns, no oasis. This means each turn we drew cacti, only to erase them. Everyone scored 3 points from it at the end of the game. It had no impact on decision making. The Canyon expansion is a little better because it contains more a risk reward. You can only bridge so many canyons and you get points for your largest one. If you don't have Railroad Ink and want to know if you should get this vs Green/Red/Blue I'd say this. Get Green if you can. Period. If you already have green and just want more expansions. I'd get Blue and maybe Red first. If you can't get Green I might still advise toward Yellow because Railroad Ink Challenge is more gamery (and, I think, fun) than the base game.

I picked up the Red and Blue versions of the game a couple years ago and have enjoyed them with my family. Combined, they allow for twelve players - ideal for larger gatherings, and play is pretty quick, with little to no set up time. I ordered Green and Yellow together, and am pleased to see that the basic gameplay is still the same, but with some additions that keep things interesting. The dice have changed a little, with double curved roads and rails making things a bit harder. The player boards are a little different, with several added features (towns, universities and factories) that reward you for meeting their requirements. Also new to these editions are the goal cards, that add a bit of a race to the game (whoever finishes first gets the most points) - these offer a little more competition and variety. Something to keep in mind - while the earlier editions supported six players each, these support only four each. They are all compatible, but I believe that would mean ignoring the new features on the boards - everything else should work fine. Just like the earlier editions, Yellow contains two mini-expansions: Deserts and Canyons. They both look great amd come with their own goal cards.

These challenge version of RRI adds more of a brain burning feel to the game. The player interaction cards are definitely something to pay attention to in the game, and give the game that nail-biting feeling you may experience from the milestones in TFMars. The expansion dice add a good deal of fun to the game, and even the easy cacti dice can be brutal and unforgiving with poor use of placement. The boards erase nicely, and everything stores in a compact box with a nice magnetic side panel.