If you have spent hundreds of hours playing Simutrans over the years like I have, this game will feel right at home for you. I feel Railway Empire was at least partially inspired by Simutrans and other games of the genre (like Transport Fever) since many of the transport mechanics are very similar to those games, especially in Free mode (free as in “free from a set goal,” if you want to play with unlimited cash, that’s “sandbox mode”). In short, the mechanics of the game are: connect cities together to transport passengers, connect industries to cities to increase city sizes, and pick the right locomotive for each job. The locomotives are beautifully modeled (the Shays are my favorites), but the box cars could use some more variations over the years. Unlike in Simutrans, you do not control the entire train layout. Instead you only pick the best locomotive for the line and the wagons get picked based on the demand. This also means trains can be mixed passenger and cargo. But you can also limit trains to cargo or passenger-mail only (the latter may become express trains that make more money). Signal placement is fundamental in creating functional lines, especially trunk lines with lots of traffic. But they behave exactly like the simple signals in Simutrans, so if you’re familiar with that, you’re all set. Trains might breakdown in long lines so you may need maintenance stations along trunk lines, since trains only get maintenance at stations they stop at (no need to place the maintenance station in the train route though, just make sure it goes through it). Free mode is like Simutrans but with goals that you must achieve to get max score (the game storyline always ends at some point, but you can keep playing.) The campaign is the same but follows historical events, which is neat. However tech timeline ends in 1930. I hope a DLC will add later technology. The game is very polished and I’m positively surprised about that. It has quickly become a favorite.
