thumb|<span style="font-size:85%">A game of 18FL in progress, depicting the gameboard with track tiles and station tokens.</span>

18XX is the generic term for a series of board games that, with a few exceptions, recreate the building of railroad corporations during the 19th century; individual games within the series use particular years in the 19th century as their title (usually the date of the start of railway development in the area of the world they cover), or "18" plus a two or more letter geographical designator (such as 18EU for a game set in the European Union). The games 2038, set in the future, and Poseidon and Ur, 1830 BC, both set in ancient history, are also regarded as 18XX titles as their game mechanics and titling nomenclature are similar despite variance from the common railroad/stock-market theme.

The 18XX series has its origins in the game 1829, first produced by Francis Tresham in the mid-1970s. 1829 was chosen as it was the year of the Rainhill Trials. 1830 was produced by Avalon Hill in 1986, and was the first game of the series widely available in the United States; it is seen as the basic 18XX game by the U.S. audience.

In addition to traditionally published games, the 18XX series has spawned self-published variants and games published by low-volume game companies.

With few exceptions (such as 2038), 18XX titles are multiplayer board games without random variables in their game mechanics.

Gameplay

Common features

18XX games vary, but most follow this general pattern:

  • The objective is to enhance personal wealth, not the assets of any companies a player may be operating. Personal wealth consists of cash, listed company shares (which increases wealth both by receiving dividends and by capital appreciation), and other investments (such as private companies).
  • Players don't directly interact with the game board, but do so indirectly through companies they control. Generally, the player who owns the most stock of a company is the president of that company and makes all decisions on behalf of that company. The president is also often required to help fund the company when it lacks sufficient funds to satisfy a mandated expense (such as owning a train by the end of its turn).
  • Game play alternates between "stock rounds" and one or more "operating rounds". In a stock round, players buy and sell stock (some games have company actions during a stock round as well), while in an operating round players take actions on behalf of companies they control, including laying track, placing station tokens, operating trains, withholding income or paying dividends, and buying trains.
  • "Certificate limit": there is usually a limit to how many corporate shares and private companies a player may own, to keep the game competitive by preventing snowball effects resulting from early leads by some players.
  • The "President's certificate" (or "Director's certificate") represents control of a railroad corporation, usually represents a greater percentage of corporate stock than other certificates (e.g., 20% as opposed to 10%), and is usually the first one purchased for a company (with its purchaser setting the price, or "par value", for regular shares of stock in many titles in the series). If another player accumulates more shares in a company than the current president, they acquire the President's certificate (with attendant side-effects for both players regarding certificate limits) in exchange for their own lesser shares, and becomes the new controller of the corporation.
  • Certain games may impose restrictions on the order in which companies may be started (generally to impose a historical context upon the game), and they vary in how many shares must be purchased before the company may operate ("floats").
  • The map is usually a hex grid that depicts cities and terrain features. Hexagonal "track" tiles (representing available land-rights) are laid on top of this map to represent the growth of railroad networks, and tokens are placed on the board to represent stations (as well as special abilities from private companies). Cities have values which can vary based on which tiles have been laid on the city, the phase of the game, their historical importance to a corporation, or type of train used to reach them. Different color tiles are available in succession, and in phases that are typically determined by the first purchase of a more advanced type of train.
  • A company's stock price is adjusted based on the revenues earned and whether the president chose to pay dividends or to withhold the earnings in the company treasury. Stock prices are usually also affected by actions in the stock round, and some games have other mechanisms that affect the stock price.
  • Scarcity (forcing future-turn planning by players) of available corporations, shares thereof, train types, and track tiles.
  • Trains eventually become obsolete and must be replaced by more-expensive trains that also have greater capacity for earning revenue. Purchase of a new type of train usually triggers other phase-changes in the game, such as the obsolescence of older trains, the availability of different sets of tiles, increased valuation of certain non-tiled cities, closure of private companies, and the ability to merge corporations or form them at higher valuations.
  • Game end is usually determined when the bank runs out of money, and also by player bankruptcy (when a player cannot pay the debt of a company they control). Some games do not end when a player goes bankrupt, while others add other conditions for ending the game such as when a stock reaches a certain value on the stock market, or the most advanced type of train has been purchased. Other games do not feature bankruptcy at all, and enable a player to place a moribund company in "receivership", or be incorporated into a government railway, and walk away from debts.

Differences

While adhering to common similarities (see preceding section), each 18XX game differs from the others in subtle or significant ways in rule set as well as game map. As with games in general, each individual mechanic has probably been used before, but a new game can put together a set of mechanics which provide a new and interesting challenge. Some typical areas of difference are: 18XX games also figure prominently in various "RailCon" and "Puffing Billy" tournaments at many conventions.

List of 18XX titles

The 18XX series is prolific, with many different publishers offering games and many fans designing and self-publishing titles in the series as well. The website BoardGameGeek lists 293 titles (including games and expansions) in the series as of January 2025. Not all of these titles are necessarily in production: many titles are only available as print-and-play games, offering rules and digital assets but requiring fans to print and assemble the games independently.

Due to the large number of games, the disparate designers and publishers, and the question of what constitutes a complete 18XX game, it is difficult to create an exhaustive list of all 18XX titles. This list contains the most notable titles from major publishers as well as some notable self-published 18XX titles.

;1761: From Canal to Rail: Self-published in 2011, and then in 2017 by All-Aboard Games and designed by Ian D. Wilson. 1761 is set in England, with its early game focused on building canals and portrays the eventual fading away of canal companies as rail companies start to dominate.

;1800: Colorado: Set in Colorado, the game was published in 2002 by David Methany in Rail Gamer magazine #17 and was later available in free print-and-play format. The game was designed by Antonio Leal. A mini-18XX game for 2–3 players, and consists of only nine playable hexes.

;1817: Designed by Craig Bartell and Tim Flowers and published by Deep Thought Games in 2009 and subsequently by All-Aboard Games in 2012 and 2020. 1817, set in the United States, is well-known as one of the heaviest 18XX titles in term of complexity and game length. It offers a complex financial system with features such as short selling, market-driven interest rates, and company liquidations. An expansion, 18USA, published in 2017 (self-published), 2018, and 2021 (by All-Aboard Games) offers new contents and a randomizing of elements of the game.

;1822: The Railways of Great Britain: Designed by Simon Cutforth and published 2016 by All-Aboard Games. Set in Great Britain, the game offers several unique features such as historical destinations for companies and new local trains. The game was the winner of "Golden Elephant Award" for "Best Heavy Game of 2016" by Heavy Cardboard.

;1822CA: Designed by Robert Lecuyer and Simon Cutforth, and published 2018 by All-Aboard Games. This game, also strongly based on 1822: The Railways of Great Britain, takes place in Canada, features a larger number of private companies, and includes an innovative scale change halfway across the map to account for the larger expanse between cities in Western Canada.

;1822MX: Inspired by 1822: The Railways of Great Britain, the game (set in Mexico) was designed by Scott Petersen and published by All-Aboard Games in 2019.

;1822PNW: Designed by Ken Kuhn and published 2023 by All-Aboard Games and inspired by 1822: The Railways of Great Britain; takes place in the mountainous Pacific Northwest.

;1824: Austria-Hungary: 1824 was published by Double-O Games in 2005. The game was designed by Leonard "Lonny" Orgler and Helmut Ohley, and is set in Austria-Hungary. It is a smaller and simpler version of Lonny's 1837, and adds some ideas from his later 1854 and Helmut's 1844. Publisher Fox in the Box and Lonny Games re-implemented the game in 2019 under the title 1824: Austrian-Hungarian Railway.

;1825: Great Britain, released 1995 (Unit 1) by Hartland Trefoil, 2000 (Unit 2) and 2004 (Unit 3) by Tresham Games, designed by Francis Tresham. The game has subsequently had many revisions, reprints, add-on kits and variants.

;1826: Railroading in France and Belgium from 1826: 1826 was published by Chris Lawson in 2000 and Deep Thought Games in 2004 and set in France and Belgium. As David Hecht's first design, it is the most conventional, and only one to use "traditional" green and brown plain track upgrade tiles. 1826 started out as "1830 on a different map", but rapidly evolved into a game of capital and technology management: the game's key decisions revolve around when to "grow" a company, and which trains to buy to optimize a company's final position.

;1829 Mainline: England, released 2005 by Tresham Games, designed by Francis Tresham.

;1829 (South) and 1829 (North): 1829 (South) was the first game in the 18XX series, published by Hartland Trefoil Ltd (UK) in 1974 from an original design by Francis Tresham. A second version, 1829 (North) was published in 1981. The game has subsequently had many revisions, reprints, add-on kits and variants.

;1830: The Game of Railroads and Robber Barons: 1830 was published by Avalon Hill in 1986, and its popularity led to the creation of many other 18XX games. The game has subsequently had many revisions, reprints, add-on kits and variants. The latest English editions were published in 2011 and 2021 by Mayfair Games and Lookout Games, respectively, under the title 1830: Railways & Robber Barons. Set in eastern United States.

;1832: The South: 1832 was published by Deep Thought Games in 2006. The game board covers most of Germany. It was the first 18XX game use the concept of 'minor' companies, which operated like the normal stock companies (with some limitations) but are owned by a single person like a private company.

;1837: Rail Building in the Austro-Hungarian Empire: Set in Austria-Hungary, self-published and designed 1994 by Leonard "Lonny" Orgler. It was subsequently republished in 2021 by All-Aboard Games.

;1837 Saxony: The game, an updated version of 1837SX and 18SX by the same designer Wolfram Janich, was due to be published in 2022 by Spielworxx, but is now expected in 2026 under the name 18Saxonia. As the title suggests, it is set in the Saxony region.

;1838: Rheinland: Designed and self-published by Wolfram Janich in 2003, and set in the Rhineland region. 18Rhl-Rhineland, a newer version, was published in 2007 by Marflow Games.

;1839: Published in 1993 by Diabolo and designed by Paul Stouthard and Rob van Wijngaarden. Set in the Netherlands. The designers hand-made only 32 copies of the game.

;1840: Vienna Tramways: Designed by Leonard Orgler and published through Lonny Games in 2020, the game is unique in that it focuses on the building of tram transport systems rather than heavy rails. It is set in Vienna, Austria. Also innovative is the availability of the best trains from the very start, albeit with reduced income as they grow older.

;1841: Railways in Northern Italy: 1841 was published by Chris Lawson in 1996. The game was designed by Federico Vellani with assistance from Manlio Manzini and is set in Italy. With its complicated financial rules and very steep train gradient (i.e., the trains get very expensive very quickly), it emphasizes stock manipulation and funding train purchases over route building.

;1842: Schleswig Holstein: Self-published in 1992 by Wolfram Janich through Marflow Games and set in the Schleswig-Holstein province of Germany.

;1844: Schweiz: 1844 was designed and published by Helmut Ohley in 2003 and set in Switzerland. Peter Minder collected extensive background materials and drew the map. The game was republished (with revisions) as 1844/1854 in 2016.

;1844/1854: A 2016 Mayfair Games and Lookout Games republishing and re-packaging of 1844 and 1854 in one box with various changes.

;1846: The Race for the Midwest: 1846 was published by Deep Thought Games in 2005,

;1849: The Game of Sicilian Railways: Set in Sicily. The game was designed by Federico Vellani and released in 1998 by Chris Lawson. A newer 2021 version was published by All-Aboard games.

;1850: 1850 was published by Deep Thought Games in 2006. The game is set in Upper Canada, including the upper reaches of the St. Lawrence River, and the Toronto to Detroit area for southern Ontario.

;1858: The Railways of Iberia: 1858 was designed by Ian D. Wilson, and published in 2012 by All-Aboard Games. 1858 is set in Spain and Portugal in the late 19th to early 20th centuries

;1860: Railways on the Isle of Wight: Set in the Isle of Wight, the game was released 2004 by JKLM Games, designed by Mike Hutton. Z-Man Games published a second edition in 2010, and All-Aboard Games published the newest edition in 2022.

;1861: The Railways of the Russian Empire: Set in Russia, the game was released by JKLM Games in 2006 and by All-Aboard Games in 2012. It was designed by Ian D. Wilson and features a non-player controlled government railway.

;1861/1867: Railways of Russia/Canada: Published in 2020 as a package containing the two games 1861 and 1867 by Grand Trunk Games.

;1862: 1862 was designed and published by Helmut Ohley in 2000. The game covers the entire width of the United States and parts of Canada.

;1862: Railway Mania in the Eastern Counties: East Anglia, England; designed by Mike Hutton and published in 2013. The game was famous for a few unique features; among them was petitioning the parliament as a mean to float new companies and three different train types available. It was re-released by GMT Games in 2019.

;1865: Sardinia: Designed by Alessandro Lala and published by Gotha Games in 2011, 1865 is set in Sardinia and features the Dragon, a non-player foreign investor who trade in certificates between players. It also contains the Traffic system, which makes calculating company revenues easier.

;1867: Railways of Canada: Set in Canada and designed by Ian D. Wilson, the game was originally set as an expansion to 1861 in 2015 (published by All-Aboard Games), but was released as a standalone game in 2017 by Grand Trunk Games.

;1868: Set in Uruguay and designed by John Bohrer. As usual with Winsome 18XX games, a copy of 1830 is required to play, largely due to the need for the tiles. 1868 has a shorter playing time than 1830 and includes a number of little companies, a delayed fifth railroad and a bit of South American history. For 3-5 players for about 3 hours.

;1870: Railroading across the Trans Mississippi from 1870: The game is set in the Mississippi Valley and central United States, released in 1992 by Mayfair Games, and designed by Bill Dixon.

;Harzbahn 1873: Harzbahn 1873, set in the Harz mountains in Germany, was designed by Klaus Kiermeier and initially self-published in 2011 in German. It was later republished by All-Aboard Games in 2014 and 2021 in English, and by Marflow Games in 2017 in German. Harzbahn 1873 includes independent and public mining companies which can purchase trains as "machines" to improve their revenue and the revenue earned by train companies running past mines, a unique method of revenue calculation (a 4-train runs 4 connected routes of arbitrary length), and a maintenance mechanic that replaces train rusting.

;1880: China: Set in China and designed by Helmut Ohley and Leonhard "Lonny" Orgler, this game was self-published through Double-O Games in 2010 and 2016. Lookout Games worked with the designers to republish a new third edition in 2022. The game is unique in that the turn order for companies are set along with the starting par price, and players could manipulate the Stock Round-Operation Round ratio.

;1882: Assiniboia: Designed by Marc Voyer and published by All-Aboard Games in 2020, 1882 is set in the historical Assiniboia region of Canada and depicts the Canadian Prairies railway boom.

;Shikoku 1889: 1889 was published by both Wild Heaven Productions in 2004 and Deep Thought Games in 2006.

;18FL: 18FL was published by Deep Thought Games in 2006.

;18Lilliput: Designed by Leonard Orgler and published by Fox in the Box and Lonny Games in 2018, this game was noted for its innovative elements which stayed true to the 18XX spirit but provides a fresh and light experience for players. Actions are picked based on a set of action cards in a common pool. As the title suggest, the game was set in the fictional land of Lilliput.

;18Mag: Hungarian Railway History: Designed by Leonard Orgler and published by Lonny Games in 2021, 18Mag recreates the history of Hungarian railroads and companies. The game features, in addition to the usual operating railroad companies, seven service companies which provides special supporting effects to its owners. All trains are also available from the start of the game.

;18MEX: 18MEX was published by Deep Thought Games in 2005

;Powerrails: Designed and self-published by Tom Schoeps in 1999. The game, based on 1830 and 1835, uses eleven small A4-sized map boards with only a handful of hexes and a small set of special rules for each of them.

;Steam Over Holland: Set in the 1839 Netherlands, the game was designed by Bart van Dijk and published by Vendetta in 2007.

;Railways of the Lost Atlas: Designed by Kevin Delger and Jacob Schacht, and published by Asterisk Games in 2024, RotLA features a variable-geometry modular board with divergent corporate abilities and mergers, with many variant options.

;Ur: 1830 BC: The game is loosely adapted from the 18XX series, and features irrigation and kingdom management in ancient Mesopotamia. It was designed by Jeroen Doumen and Joris Wiersinga and published by Splotter Spellen in 2001. Its play centers around ownership of valuable networks, replacing the rail networks found in most 18XX games with irrigation canals, shares with parcels of land, companies with kingdoms, trains with irrigation technologies (such as reservoirs and pumps), and presidents with kings. Networks of canals and waterworks generate income by irrigating lands within kingdoms.

References

  • Article on the 18xx family on BoardGameGeek
  • BoardGameGeek rules synopsis for 1870 (extrapolatable to other 'xx titles)
  • Boardgames With Scott 046, a video introduction to the 18xx family of games
  • Review of 1853 in Games International