The main issue I have with the original US map is the route selection. You randomly get two long routes that work together, you probably won the game, unless someone block you, which mean you are dead last.

Thanks Tom!!! TTR Europe was one of the first games I got. I liked it but it didn't impress me that much. Years later I got all the map packs and this is one of my fav games of all time. It's so much fun and you can also get some new players to the table ... and they have a chance to win on their first game. It's a great franchise ... thanks Tom for pointing that out so many times.

With Europe rated so low, I don't know if I can ever trust Tom again!!! Fine, Tom is still my go to guy and I'm glad he had UK/PA map pack so high. Thanks for doing this one Tom! It was really interesting to see your perspective on such a classic series.

@alphabet2238

7 ай бұрын

I think TTR:Europe is marmite, primarily due to the stations. Those who dislike confrontation and blocking would prefer it while those who prefer confrontations would dislike it more. Personally I feel that TTR was designed to be a game with confrontations and Europe does take away that fun. Although the lasting impact of ferries and tunnels can't be underestimated so it has certainly earnt it's place however later maps simply did a better job.

Great video! Very nice to hear Tom's opinion on each game. My favourite is Rails and Sails, and we like to stretch it as much as possible!

I think Zee should do the same for Pandemic.

@snackablegames9469

4 жыл бұрын

I think I recall him doing that with the Pandemic roles.

@bigsucculenta1

4 жыл бұрын

This!

@DeyaViews

4 жыл бұрын

I'd love to see that, honestly. The Pandemic spin-offs interest me a lot, but I'm worried my family might not enjoy them as much, or get fatigue from "different theme, same mechanics" if they are too samey.

@ericfolsom4495

4 жыл бұрын

I know he's mentioned this. It wasn't a separate video, but in one of his reviews he mentioned fairly casually what his order of Pandemics are. I remember that the base expansions got progressively worse with the 3rd (hinterlands?) being the most 'eh, pass unless you love pandemic a lot'

@kevinbhieey9188

4 жыл бұрын

Ranking Pandemics is always difficult because of On the Brink and the two Legacy Seasons. The former is barely an expansion - unlike In the Lab - but those extra characters make Original Recipe a perfect game. The latter are kind of in a different category due to their one-and-doneness. Other than that, we could probably predict Zee's list from previous videos. If we remove these from contention, the biggies would probably be: 1) Original Recipe + On the Brink 2) Iberia 3) Fall of Rome 4) In the Lab 5) Reign of Cthulhu 6) Rapid Response 7) Rising Tide 8) The Rest (and who cares?) I'm pretty certain about the top three, not sure if Cthulhu would outrank Lab, but I think it would as Cthulhu doesn't do enough to differentiate itself. Rapid Response and Rising Tide could also switch, but his review for Rapid Response was definitely better than Rising Tide's. Slotting in the Legacies is the biggest guesswork - Season 2 is definitely higher than Season 1 - but they would go either above Original Recipe or below Iberia. I didn't like them as much as Zee did, but even if I did, I still just see them as being in Cthulhu's neck of the woods, though Season 2 was quite a bit different than 1.

Something similar for Dominion and other popular games with lots of content would be great!

Thank you so much for this!!!! My husband and I are new to the game and we play the Europe version. We changed it up a bit. For a two-player game, we each use two sets of trains, we start with 10 train cards, two long routes, and three short routes. It is so fun. We love it! Thank you so much for this very helpful video!

I think the main reason to just admit that Ticket to Ride Europe is better then the Ticket to Ride USA is that Europe is a far more interesting continent then America ;-)

Started with ticket to ride London and love it. I've been looking to get another and had no idea there were so many choices, I'll definitely be having a look for some of these other cool maps. Thanks for the info 😊😊👍👍

@fathervader

4 жыл бұрын

Keep in map that the numbered "map packs" are expansions and require you to own a "base" copy of the game... i.e. the original Ticket to Ride, or Ticket to Ride Europe. :)

@Mr83goat

3 жыл бұрын

Did you get another one? If so witch one, and how do you like it?

@craigweir768

3 жыл бұрын

@@Mr83goat yeah got the European one and really like it. We don't have any friends to play it with so 2 player is a bit predictable. I think with more it'd add that element of having to use your stations and work around other blockages

I loved Rails and Sails. The one adjustment I woukd make is taking ticket cards. I would change the take 4 keep 1 to take 4 keep 2. It needs more of a penalty if you just keep taking tickets once your main routes are complete

thank you for posting a shorter list video! perfect length for me!

0:55 I must admit that, I've exactly come here to hear your opinion on Polish map :D As I'm going to buy it for my parents, as they love to play in TtR:EU and even sometimes they play with theirs neighbors. Nonetheless, thank you for this great video!

I only have the original game, but looking at this I'm interested in checking out more. Especially because family members understand this game.

Great review! We just played Japan and loved it.

This was one of the most informative videos that I've seen put out by you guys. Thank you!

Markland & the OG TTR were my fav too!

I've been looking for content like this. Thank you.

Germany is our favorite of all the expansions. Picking up the Meeples adds a whole New level ticket to ride. And gets you more scoring opportunities than other TTR games

@oleksiyblinov4265

Жыл бұрын

Seems like Tom refers to abridged Germany without that function (they have 2 editions - extended is with meeples)

I picked up rails and sails as a first ticket to Ride game about two years ago because I had played the app in the past and the game was on sale. We quickly realized a flaw. You can almost disregard your missions and just go for the long routes and you'll likely win. This is made easy with the double ship cards. A 7 space route might only use 4 cards. I imagine if everyone would compete for those spaces that may mitigate that issue, but usually players are focused on missions so it's kind of game breaking... Now I've picked up the new anniversary edition of Europe, and everyone seems to like it alot more. With 4-5 players it can still get highly competitive.

I’ve only recently gotten into board games (besides party type games) and I bought TTR original. My family (especially my brother) really loves it. Now I need to buy some more TTR stuff!

Cool concept

Thanks for the review and ranking of Ticket to Ride franchise. I am surprised; however, how low you rank Rails and Sails. It is one of my favorite with combination of ships and trains, and is meant to be longer play and a higher strategic level of play. Looking forward to keep adding to my collection and your reviews are always helpful.

I'm still a basic purist - USA (+1910) for me. I've played Europe, and maybe Asia once, but I don't really like making a simple game more complex with extra rules when it's not necessary. USA keeps things at its simplest. New York and London are thus also good :D

Thank you 🙏

Thanks Tom! I wish DoW would reprint Marklin and make it available in the U.S. It's very expensive in the secondary market.

@juliesquirrel5269

4 жыл бұрын

Vasel's law, unless there is a problem with the IP...

@icedrakin

4 жыл бұрын

I believe the reprint version of marklin is germany but without passenger

@stefanrathgeber7319

4 жыл бұрын

Hung Nguyen Germany is the reprint of Märklin but you have to get the expansion 1902 for the passengers.

I’d love to watch such a video about all the Carcassonne stuff: base game, expansions and spin offs. Sam would have been ideal for such a list: I wonder if someone else in the Dice Tower would be able to do it now. They would have to have played it all several times to rank all the items.

Thanks Tom. I agree with most of your rankings. TtR is still one of my favourite games. I love playing it with my kids.

Pennsylvania is my favourite. I like that it forces people not to save up a ton of cards and then dump them all down.

The Pennsylvania version is phenomenal. My favorite by a considerable margin. Nordic Countries #2.

Thank you exactly the video I was looking for

My 3 year old plays Ticket to Ride: First Journey with me. Until you (Tom) pointed it out, I never realized how complicated the main game is to play.

Ticket to ride Europe is my favorite. I like the tunnels and the fairies. I also like playing against Alexa.

Thank you for this vid! Personally by watching this video I once again saw that these games could be experienced completely different for everyone. Ive played quite a few versions and rails and sails is my absolute favorite, and Asia is probably in second place. So if you maybe dont like his number 1, you might love some other versions

Hi Tom, I agree more or less with all of that, there is a few versons I haven't played yet but like you I love the UK and pennsylvania maps and the Japan map. Even though I lean more to heavier games than this I still p[lay and enjoy Ticket to Ride.

My goodness me I think I could be happy owning all of this stuff except maybe the base games of Germany and Netherlands (the Marklin and Nordic Countries sets would suffice there I think), and the travel version London, as I own the similar New York already, and also those yellow submarines man - I'd just keep humming the first line of the song! (and of course I'd avoid and the 2 discontinued mini-expansions, incl Orient Express cards, that Tom says ignore). With children in mind, I can even see a use for the dice-variant and card/memory versions of the game, as well as the kids version itself. For parties, Alvin and Dexter could make the game a bit less competitive but still fun, and sometime you do need to do that. The other one I own is Europe, but I can see myself playing the original US base set too (with the 1910 expansion I suppose) just for the American map. I'd hate to think what they'd cost if you bought them all together! I think he mentioned 27 different products all told, including the 2 deluxe sets, 1910/12 expansions, discontinued stuff and Poland, and tbh I was a pretty cynical about the whole business model, which does seem like a runaway train to me.. but I also had no idea how different all the genuine variants are to each other, which covers most of the products it seems. It's interesting that the long-play variant, Rail and Sails, which could well combine the most game elements of all of them, isn't actually regarded as well the maps (with their own rules) for the base game(s).

At our house this game is called "Ticket To Rage".

@markusschmidt9260

4 жыл бұрын

Totally agreed. But the sheer amount of different colours, and that you are often bound to just draw two cards from top of the deck and get garbage, is even more frustrating then some mean blocking by other players.

@parrotwhisperer8923

4 жыл бұрын

😂

@craigl6167

3 жыл бұрын

Flying trains...

@aboutblank4356

3 жыл бұрын

That’s how the incredible Hulk was created.

@Blister77

3 жыл бұрын

Poland is good.

UK, the Technology Cards are awesome!!!!

@maison770

4 жыл бұрын

But the 40 points ruin the game ... from NY to Southampton..

The video I never knew I needed.

Ticket to Ride Amsterdam appeared just recently. Where would you rank this map? :D

I think my favourite is Rails and Sails. I like the extra length, and the split between boats and trains is really interesting. I just wish they were better quality components. I don't know if they were trying to save weight or money, but the trains in particular feel thin and cheap compared to all the other versions I have that came with trains.

@Razaprime

4 жыл бұрын

David Landon Cole I love Rails and Sails, I thought it added an extra element of strategy and a nice element of depth. Hadn’t noticed the train quality though

When we gonna get Ticket to Ride World? Legacy game with a giant 12 panel world map board.

I actually tend to leave stations out in Europe unless I'm playing with new players to board games in general.

@MrClawdew

4 жыл бұрын

I prefer the stations. It is still punishing to use them so you are still encouraged to make sure you control the right areas, but you aren't just screwed if you just don't get the color of cards you need fast enough.

@1979kubala

4 жыл бұрын

I never use the stations and as a result I think its my favourite, waaaaay better than 🇺🇸 one, which I think is kinda bland

@JohnnyLeyenda

4 жыл бұрын

Gavin Scott I like Europe better due to the map layout and the tunnels still provide some challenge and competition for the shorter routes. As I said I tend ro leave out stations so it’s the best of both worlds.

@josharguello4313

3 жыл бұрын

@@MrClawdew I agree with you. I don't think the stations make the game easier, they just add a layer of complexity to the game. Do you take the penalty for using a station or do you take a penalty for not completing a route? My friends and I rarely use stations, unless it's absolutely necessary.

The Polish expansion is actually quite decent. Everyone liked it in my group so far. My personal favourite is the UK though.

My favorite Ticket to Ride is the 10th Anniversary edition. Who doesn't love placing a train car carrying a giraffe with his head sticking out? To me, the more detailed and nicer cars are well worth the extra money for the game.

We play a game of TTR every day. France is our favorite board. I wish they sold extra train cards as they tend to not last very long. I did buy the 1910 expansion pack for the cards but that is quite expensive for what you get.

In Rails & Sails, do you end the game when someone reaches 6 train pieces or 6 boat pieces OR in when they reach 6 pieces in TOTAL?

Marklin is also my favorite TTR game (that is, of the officially published ones) with Pennsylvania being a close second.

TTR Europe deserves to be in top 5....Hit like👍 if u agree

My favorite (and only) TTR is Nordic Countries. Bought it mainly for the aesthetics. I might get Europe too because I don't like too much confrontation and we had several occasions on whoch we wanted to play TTR with friends and family but couldn't because of Nordic Countries lower player count.

Love Marklin, UK, and Asia too. Searching for where to buy the Japan.

@Dutchandfrench

4 жыл бұрын

From Europe

Yeah, never heard about Italy and Japan pack. Is there a review?

Marklin! I love this one too.

Anybody have the expansion if so can you tell me how this game mode works If I play the big city after I deal out for big city cards do I use the regular ticket

My favorite is UK and Pennsylvania.

@johnthomas4567

4 жыл бұрын

I definitely agree, especially for the PA side.

@hanseathl

4 жыл бұрын

The UK Map is my favorite- period

@Venryk1

4 жыл бұрын

I agree! Especially Pennsylvania.

@TheSlov

4 жыл бұрын

Yal crazy. UK was the least fun for me. Legendary Asia all the way

Awesome Idea this video - and I like the trick with not telling us the games in the info section

The original is my favourite followed by the UK and Pennsylvania maps🤟

I play with my 7 year old we mostly play US map but I like the Europe map better because US map tends to have a way to win and hard to loose if you play one strat while Europe is more balanced. However, my kid makes us play with train stations in the US map...

Rails and Sails if my favorite! c:

Europe was the first one I ever played and still love it to this day. Uk and Pennsylvania map pack might be may favorite though as it is great for both beginners and for players who want something more.

@djordjetodorovic5989

Жыл бұрын

Europe or original what is more interactive?

@jameshayward1992

Жыл бұрын

@@djordjetodorovic5989 probably europe

Which base game do you use to play the map packs? Do you know if using Marklin works with UK/Pennsylvania?

I suppose it would be placed between London and New York because it is basically the same thing, but what about TTR Amsterdam?

It's funny, my favorite actually changes depending on how many players are in the game.

The only thing I can't agree with is the high placement of India/Switzerland. Both - especially Switzerland - have tickets that are super-duper valuable. The games become all about getting those tickets rather than strategic placement of trains.

Take a drink every time he says ticket to ride

I think they mixed around the maps for the 2 Asia versions. The first one shown is the Asia map. The 2nd one is the team version.

@theromulans

3 жыл бұрын

Came here looking for this comment - thought I was misunderstanding!

Is ticket to ride - rails and sails not part of this ranking or did I miss it?

@BernieTime1

4 жыл бұрын

It's near the bottom, Tom didn't like the additional time it added to a TTR game. I think there are many other problems with Rails and Sails besides a time increase.

America and Pennsylvania are probably my favorites.

whats your favoritve small box game, san francisco, london, new york, or amsterdam?

I own Europe, Nordic Countries and a few map packs, and used to own USA, but sold it off. I haven`t played them in a while, though...

"Rails and sails" can't challenge in this category : it really put Ticket to ride on an other level ! It's the most expensive box, but it's a full box with two more items inside and 2 wonderful map. Once a few games, it doesn't feel too long but too short. Concerning Europe, if you don't like the stations token, you can just agree not to play with it, it's ok. But I don't feel their using make the game too easy because you do pay the price : you loose points, cards and most of the time, the possibility to win the Longest road bonus.

I actually really liked the dice expansion. It does speed up the game a lot. Plus no shuffling!

I love Europe with 1912... but pronouncing the city names is always challenging for me. I like stations because they allow you to accomplish your routes easier but also reward those who do so without using the stations. Love trying to get through a long tunnel with only the exact amount of cards required... a bit of push your luck. Need to play more maps though.

Which one do you think is best for only 2 players?

I like Ticket to Ride and will play it if someone else wants. If however some other gamer is in contest with Ticket to Ridge I'll pick the other.

Is there a non fan based map for Canada?

I think the one gripe with the US map vs Europe, and why I prefer Europe as a base game is the Europe map there's an in built balancing mechanism with the tickets, so no-one just wins from their initial ticket draw, or perhaps more importantly loses. The one issue with US map is if you are playing with experienced players and get a bad initial ticket draw of say no tickets over 8 points or whatever, you can basically never win, you're just too handicapped against someone inevitably will have better tickets than you (should add this is obviously assuming you're playing 4-5 players rather than 2 players). It doesn't happen often so it doesn't hurt the game too much, but it can be frustrating to sit down to play a US game, look at your tickets, and know you basically can't win before the game has begun. A few other maps have this too, but the US perhaps more than most has a number of long tickets that work extremely well together which feels less on other maps. That could just be a case though that I have played the US map more than any other map, so you have the ticket deck virtually memorised, meaning you know a good route to take from the off to benefit your draws later. It's only really Europe that I also know most the tickets, but it doesn't have the same issue with getting a bunch of long tickets that work together by definition of the rules.

I like Nordic Countries the most. It's a maximum of three players, and I usually just play with my Dad, so it works well. Also, that's one of the parts of the world I want to visit some day. And I think the map is nicely set out.

@zxccxz164

2 жыл бұрын

It is Xmas friendly!!!!!

My favorite Ttr thing is 10th aniversary edition!

I have completely ignored the dice expansion and my wife complains when we go to a store and it's the only "expansion" they have. I didnt know there was a card game of it. Lol

I bought scandinavian countries this christmas for my mom. First time ive ever played ticket to ride, and we all absolutely loved it! Wonder which one I will get for myself.

Pennsylvania, UK, Europe, Wild West, UK, France, NY, Rails and Sails.

Which version is best with 2 players?

What about TTR pack 6 and half? it's Poland map.

Which would you recommend best for 2 players? There are only 2 of us in the house that like games, so this would be played mostly only by 2, but we like the lenght of the original (that we borrowed from the library to try it out and loved!). My local game store did a blog post and did not recommend the original for 2 players only as they thought it became too easy. Would you agree with this or think this would still be good? I find the Europe map appealing too, but since you say it's the easiest, I'm a bit worried that, again, it'd be too easy. The London and NY look awesome but the games seem to be so short! Which one to choose?! 🤔

@alphabet2238

7 ай бұрын

I'd say Nordic definitely, Plus you get a full set of cards and trains also. For expansions, I hear UK and India are the best. Switzerland can work, however the map hasn't aged well and now is vulnerable to a single exploit that was discovered a while back. I don't know about the city maps since I've never played them.

My favourite TTR maps are Marklin, UK and Italy

Im a bit confused, isnt TTR Germany a streamlined Märklin with also a passenger system, which Tom didnt even mentioned and I cant remember any area connection there. I would expect, people liking Märklin automatically like TTR Germany. Or is there another Germany map I dont know about? Or maybe Tom really doesnt remember the Germany map, bc it shouldnt be that low (especially when Märklin is his #1).

@stefanrathgeber7319

4 жыл бұрын

Mark Buschhaus You are right. Germany + 1902 Expansion = Märklin map and gameplay

This is the game that got me into computer gaming. 😁😁😁😁😁

Seems Tom got the ranking backwards. US original map is the worst one, because it is designed backwards: singles and many doubles are wild card colours, while long routes demand specific colours.

I play the Nederlands version without any of the new rules. No bonus points. No coins. Nothing. Toss it all. Just play the game straight up. It's the most intense (and maybe the most fun) Ticket to Ride that I play.

@sagov9

4 жыл бұрын

The tickets have more points to keep it balanced with the bonus points based on your coins, surely doing it this way would mess up the balance.

Ticket to ride Germany is my family’s favorite not mine but I really think it’s one of the best but not the best, Netherlands was my favorite

Is there more than one version of the Germany stand alone? ''You get points for connecting different areas'', not sure what he's referring to. Also no mention about the passengers ?

Marklin is also my favorite. Such a great game. Beautiful to look at and great, tense game play. Kudos to Alan Moon for creating such a great train game system.

Rails and Sails is my favourite

we love rails and sails.

Thoughts on ticket to ride San Francisco?

I have Europe. I enjoy it quite a bit. Yeah, I agree it's easier to get around someone blocking you, but it's still infuriating.

Can you please do the same for power grid maps?

My biggest issue with the original game was that people could win, by getting short tickets then trying to build as many of the 6 train connections as possible. They would never take extra tickets and obviously block others from doing their tickets. It is a winning strategy, but seems to be a weak point that one of the best strategies is to get a couple of 6 point tickets and connect them up, then try and build a long train and get as many of the 6 train segments as possible. I find a 4-5 player Europe game has a good level of conflict in it. I do have Marklin and forgot how much I like it also! We must be due a map of Australia sometime soon?

@L4JP

2 жыл бұрын

Have you tried it with the 1910 expansion's "Globetrotter" award? That's an extra 15 points for the most tickets. That seems to balance out what you're saying, at least with two players (what I know best, because 95% of my game time is just with my husband, especially during the pandemic).

@JustinWatson23

2 жыл бұрын

@@L4JP Yeah adding the 1910 expansion tickets into the game balances it out for sure. Its because its much riskier to try and do longest train with just 2 tickets, because the other players if they take tickets will almost certainly be earning more victory points than the player trying to go longest route on two tickets.

@L4JP

2 жыл бұрын

@@JustinWatson23 Is it only 2 tickets minimum in the original version? We bought the 1910 expansion when we bought the main game, and we probably only played it once or twice without the expansion (the cards are way too small!). In 1910 you take 5 cards and keep at least 3.

Tom - The Europe version has stations that can make it easier, yes perhaps...kind of but, that is offset by: (a) You are penalised points for every station you use making them a last resort option and (b) The tunnelling mechanic which makes it harder to complete some routes unless you take an alternative longer route. I enjoy Europe for this variety it brings over the original US map version. And there are plenty of opportunities to shut people down. Just ask my daughter.

@millesq88

3 жыл бұрын

You don’t get penalised for using them. You just don’t get the bonus at the end for not using them. It’s different. People tend to see it as loosing points but they are extra points.

I started with Europe. Still my favorite.