New Upgraded Edition of ‘Circus Train’ Looks to Take You Back to the Big Top

Aug 8, 2013

A sleeper favorite of mine from Victory Point Games is Tom Decker’s Circus Train (you can listen to my review here) and now VPG has a sharp looking upgrade available. You might think the topic of running your own circus would take on a whimsical tone but the reality is the game is an fun cutthroat endeavor forcing you to do what you can to make your second tier traveling show the biggest draw. Circus Train Second Edition can be had right now for $54.95.

From VPG:

Circus Train Second Edition, by designer Tom Decker, is a 1-5 player game in which you are the owner and operator of a small circus train in prohibition-era America. In this game, you and your opponents are vying to employ the best talent while putting on the most magnificent show each month. While touring the country by train, you will have the opportunity to perform while adding talent to your show through hiring the performers stranded in cities by defunct circuses. Just remember to keep an eye on your wages, because your talent definitely will.

Through clever card hand management, you control the movement of your train around the American northeast, making strategic business decisions about talent, performances and payroll in this fast-paced strategy game. Each turn represents one week of real time, and after six months, the circus season closes for the year and the game ends with one player declared as having The Greatest Show on Earth.

Inspired by Sara Gruen’s novel, Water for Elephants, Circus Train Second Edition includes thematic elements such as improving your show’s reputation by picking up alcohol for your talent and staff (legally, in Canada), the high costs of supplying big cats and elephants, and the ability to “red light” (firing by throwing off the train) disgruntled talent or talent that has simply become too expensive to maintain. These elements are blended into the game’s mechanics, keeping it all simple while adding layers of depth and strategy.

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Jeff McAleer

Founder/Editor-in-chief of The Gaming Gang website and host of The Gaming Gang Dispatch and other TGG media, Jeff tackles any and all sorts of games but has a special fondness for strategy, conflict sims, and roleplaying games. Plus, he's certainly never at a loss for an opinion...