18DO: Dortmund

Get ready, folks! 18DO: Dortmund throws you into the industrial heart of 19th-century Germany, where you'll invest heavily in breweries and railways. Each player starts with a private brewery, but the game is all about expanding your horizons, perhaps by founding your own railway company.

While coal mines and steel mills play a more passive role, providing background flavor, it's the railways that connect everything. You'll lay tracks, build routes to these industries, and run your trains, earning money for each hex they traverse. This railway expansion boosts beer demand, as more workers need refreshment, right? That's where the breweries come in: they'll need to upgrade their equipment to meet the demand and, later on, will use the railways to ship their production far and wide, towards off-board destinations.

The game features classic 18XX mechanics, with action and operating rounds where you buy shares, found companies, and manage everything. There are even shorter, simplified game modes for those new to this complex world, or more hardcore options for veterans seeking the full experience with a beer market and all the trimmings. Ultimately, the player who accumulates the most money through their shares and possessions wins the fame and the cold beer!