Station to Station Board Game Review

Station to Station

WBG Score: 7.5/10

Player Count: 2-4

You’ll like this if you like: Choo-Choo trains, engone-buiding and pick-up-and-deliver!

Published by: Alley Cat Games

Designed by: Steven Aramini, Jonny Pac

This is a free review copy. See our review policy here.

Trains games. Love them or hate them. They are everywhere! I suppose it's the fusion of two perceivably "nerdy" cultures; board games and trains, that makes this theme so prevalent in our wonderful hobby. Especially games seemingly set in simpler more analogue times. Which I am all in for. But it does mean any new train-themed game coming out does need to stand out. Otherwise, it will simply get washed away in the huge tide of other similar games. Does Station to Station do that? Well, it certainly doesn't with the name or box art. That is all very train generic, isn't it? But how does it play? Well, let's get it to the table and find out.

How To Set Up Station to Station

Place the board in the centre of the table and give each player their own player board and all coloured pieces: Train, score marker, and two Route Markers cubes. Each player will take one Coal piece and eight money as well. The game revolves around collecting tiles from the board. These are themed around Summer, Autumn, and Winter. There are also a few Countdown tiles to indicate the end game. Remove a set amount of tiles for each of the four groups based on player count. You can see the number in the table in the rule book. Now place the Summer tokens into the bag and give them a shake. Place the others in separate piles to the side; you will use them later. Next to these, place the Caboose tokens, face up in order of value with the most valuable token on the top, the least valuable on the bottom.

Now, shuffle the two Crew card decks separately, and place four of each out above and below the Crew Market Board alongside the main board. Shuffle the Route cards and place these next to this in a face-down pile, flipping over the top two cards for now. Now, place all the resources next to this in separate piles. Create a space for the four Cargo tokens, the Coal, and the Cash tokens.

Now, shuffle the starting Route cards, and give one to each player, placing any unused ones back into the box. Each player checks their card and places their Train onto their starting spaces as shown on their starting Route card. Each player now places one of their Route Markers onto this space on the starting Route card as well, to remind themselves they have visited this location. This way, when they get to the other destination on their starting Route card, they can see they have completed this route without leaving any trail on the board itself. They will then gain the shown benefits. And for the starting Route cards, you will also gain one wild ticket. A ticket valid for any of the four regions.

Each player now draws two standard route cards, discards one, and keeps the other. These are placed to the left of the player boards. You can mark one station with your Route Marker on this new route card if one of the stations on it happens to be your current starting city.

Now, draw Summer tokens from the bag and fill each empty space without a Train token in, to complete the starting board. Be sure to put any tokens with a Summer and Autumn side with the Summer side face up. The leaves aren't falling from the trees yet! When this is done, choose your starting player and you are ready to begin.

How To Play Station to Station

Players will now take turns to run through a five-stage sequence until all the tiles have been drawn. Let's go through each stage one by one.

Market: First, players will decide if they want to buy anything. They have three choices. First, coal. This costs $3 per coal. You can hold nine on your player board. Coal is used to import goods and travel further on your turn. More on both shortly. Second, the location of your train will show two goods symbols. These can both be bought for face value. Each good comes in two's, and the cost is shown on the bottom left of the board. You can buy as much as you can afford, but you can only hold eight Cargo in total. The Cargo is stored on your player board, in a line, behind your train at the top of the board. Third, any other Cargo you want to buy, you can do so at this point, you just need to add in one Coal per Cargo to import the item in. This again, is shown clearly on the table on the bottom left of the board.

Travel: Now, you must move at least one space. Shift your train along the shown lines on the board to one neighbouring city. If you want to go further, simply spend one coal for each extra space you wish to travel. You can move onto a space occupied by another player, but you must then move off it after you have completed your next station action.

Station: Now you will carry out the action at the station you have just moved to. This will be one of four things. First, if the station shows an Order token, as indicated by tiles with Cargo symbols in the top left, you can pay these required Cargo (if you have them) to remove the tile and gain the benefit shown on the bottom. Generally, a choice between money, coal, and points. Take the money early on, and points at the end. Then, flip the tile and it will show a ticket symbol. Place this now with the ticket symbol showing on your player board, in the area that matches the area you are currently in: North, South, East, or West.

If it is a Supply token, with icons on the bottom of the tile, simply take these resources as shown—coal, money, points, etc.—and discard the tile. It is a quick fix, but no ticket for you. If the tile is a Railcar token, showing an image of a Railcar, add this to the back of your train on your player board. This will now offer a once per turn discount of the shown Cargo.

Your last option when at a station is to Work. This again is shown on the bottom left of the board (shown above) and is a last resort if you do not want to or cannot do any of the above actions for any reason. You can take two coal, one coal and two money , or five money. Simple.

If the station you are in has a Wave symbol in, when you are next to the East or West coast, you will also gain one free coal at this point.

Crew: Your next step is to decide if you want to hire any crew. This is a way where you can enhance your skills in the game, permanently. Or at least, until you discard that crew member! Check the Crew board set up during the beginning of the game. The top row has the cheaper basic workers, the bottom shows the more advanced but expensive skilled workers. Each costs one specific ticket from the region the Crew are in, or two tickets from any area. The bottom are the same, but with one extra generic ticket added to the cost. You can hire any worker, no matter what area you are in, but you must place them into the area they came from on your player board. If you have a worker in that area already, you can discard this worker and upgrade them if you wish. Tickets come in the form of completed Order tokens, completed starting Route cards, and the workers themselves. Note the ticket symbol in the top right. So when you discard one for another, they do help contribute to this upgrade themselves. Sacrificing themselves for the greater good! The Crew offer various powers to gain additional benefits and points in the game as you carry out various actions. They are all pretty self explanatory, but there is a handy guide at the back of the rule book for any that are unclear. Each crew can use their power once per turn.

At this stage, you can also spend one ticket from each of the four regions and take the top Caboose token for straight points. But you may want to only do this near the end of the game. It's a high cost, and you may need those workers for the game.

Cleanup: Finally, draw a new tile from the bag and place it into the empty space you vacated at the start of this turn. And place now moves to the next player. Be sure to place the tile with the right season showing. If you draw the final tile from the bag, then the season has changed. Keep all existing tiles on the board, but flip all the Railcar and Supply tokens to their reverse side, and add the next season tiles into the bag. If this is the end of Winter, add in the final Countdown tiles. Each player now has one final turn. When the final Countdown tile is drawn and placed onto the board, this is the end of the game. This way, all players should have even turns.

At the end of the game, you will score a few points, but not many. Most points come from the in-game actions. You gain one point for each two Coal you have remaining, and one point for each four remaining coins. That's it. Most points wins.

Is It Fun? Station to Station Board Game Review

Pick-up-and-deliver is not my favourite mechanic in board games. There is something about its inherent structure that feels overly procedural and somewhat inevitable to me, leading to a gameplay experience that seems a bit too prescripted. Turns seem obvious to me. Go to the nearest location you need to go to. However, when this mechanic is effectively mixed with other gameplay elements, such as in this particular game, it can elevate the overall experience significantly. In this case, the combination of engine-building and set-collection intricately combined with the pick-up-and-deliver mechanic adds layers of strategy and agency that keep players engaged.

But, does it deliver on its promise? The answer is mostly yes. It works in varying degrees. The game offers moments of fun and satisfaction, providing a gameplay experience that is very simple to grasp, which is ideal for newcomers to the genre. The turns are quick, allowing players to maintain a brisk pace throughout the game. However, despite these positive aspects, I can't help but feel that the experience may not appeal as much to more experienced gamers. There are moments of excitement, but they are a little generic, leaving me concerned about the game's long-term replay value for people more used to modern games.

That said, for an entry-level family weight game around the theme of trains, it certainly meets expectations and delivers a solid experience. The gameplay flows smoothly, often much quicker than one might initially anticipate. Station to Station tends to conclude sooner than one might expect, sometimes, even before they have had the chance to fully realise their engine-building potential. This can create a sense of urgency and excitement, as players race against the clock to optimise their strategies, recruit the Crew they want, fulfil the missions they want to, and complete the journeys they hope to end.

Visually, the game is stunning, with gorgeous artwork and components that enhance the overall aesthetic experience. The design elements draw players in, making the game not only enjoyable to play but also pleasing to look at. In summary, while the pick-up-and-deliver mechanic may not be my preferred choice, when it is combined with other engaging mechanics, it can certainly create a compelling and enjoyable game experience that is well-suited for families and casual gamers alike. When I am looking for a quick, light, fun evening game, this may well be the one I gravitate towards. There certainly is a whimsical sense of nostalgic American train travels inspired by this game that makes the overall experience one I will enjoy over and over again.