World Train Royale
Verdict: Not Bad
In a Nutshell: This is a time and resource management game wrapped around a casual “swap” game.
“Welcome to World Train Royale! Join Lyria and her crew as they cross the continent expanding the Train Royale Company!
Search for new resources, meet strange and amazing hidden wonders. Create the best strategies in order to become the greatest Train Baron of All Time! “
- Fun Rating: Sorta Fun
- ESRB: n/a
- Players/Mode: single-player / campaign
- Game Duration: 8-15 hours
- System: PC (Windows)
- Developer: Versus Software
- Website: http://www.versus-software.com/wtr/
- Cost: $9.95 from Gamersgate
- Download: Gamersgate downloads
- Demo: Also available at the Gamersgate download area for the game
| Would I play this again? | Probably not |
| Would I recommend this game? | Maybe |
| Was the story good? | n/a |
| Was the music good? | If I could have only turned it down |
| Were the graphics good? | So-so |
| Was this game difficult? | Off and on up to the half-way mark |
| Was this game frustrating? | Occasionally |
| Was this game offensive? | Not really |
| Was this game worth your time/money? | Yes |
Playing the game
You are attempting to get a rail line all the way across the land. To do this, each area you arrive at has a task or two that must be completed in the allotted time. Tasks come in the form of shipping some amount of resources, earning some amount of money, or building some number of factories of a given level. All of these tasks can be boiled down to the need to ship resources.
Resources are collected by playing an item swap game (grid of resources that you need to rearrange in order to get three or more of the same items in a row or column). The resources are further enhanced by building factories in later levels.
The next part of the equation is shipping those resources which is handled by building the right sort of train. As you progress you will have more types of cars and engines available to get more resources to the right places faster.
In addition to the main tasks, extra tasks exist to pick up items to help you along the way. This help comes in various forms which include: extra time at the start, extra money for shipments, and starting with a random factory.
What the game gets right
Swap games by themselves are pretty mind numbing and addictive but adding an element of having to do something with those collected items is a refreshing twist. The dev was nice enough to stop the clock while you spend time figuring out just exactly what that something is. And, you get the cash from your shipment as soon as you send the train on its way, not when it returns, allowing you to add or upgrade a factory or a new train right away.
What the game gets wrong
There is a thin layer of cheese on this game that took a few rounds to catch what was going on. When you win, the boss lady takes off her coat and hat to show off her cleavage-a-poppin and when you lose, she covers up tight. Really? Why not just the “you win!” or “you lose!” notification without the girl?
Other than that, the list includes minor things that seem to get overlooked in indie games. For example, I wouldn’t mind leaving the music in the background if it just wasn’t so loud but the only type of volume control is on or off. Also, the graphics were designed for full screen not widescreen, so you get a bit of stretching going on.
Sum it up
I did enjoy the first half of this game and the difficulty was mostly a nice incline with the occasional drop. But, once I got 50-60% of the way through, and collected every extra item along the way, the difficulty dropped out of the floor and took some of the fun with it.
I also ran into problems when changing out train cars where I thought I was dropping it in the correct space only to have the car replace another car I had just placed.
All said, if you like swap games but have felt like they were limited on the gameplay, then you should give this one try and let us know what you thought.
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World Train Royale
Developer: Versus Software
All aboard! See if you have the management and swap skills to expand your rail line across the land.">
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