Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon
Also known as Railroad Tycoon 1
Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon is a 1990 business simulation game developed by MicroProse, designed by Sid Meier and Bruce Shelley. Players build and manage a railroad empire across historically flavored maps of regions like the eastern United States and Europe, laying track between cities, building stations, scheduling trains, and transporting goods and passengers while competing economically and navigating the industry's development.
Blending construction, economics, and light stock-market and industrial strategy, it offered deep, open-ended gameplay that helped define the tycoon and management genre. Players could buy and sell company shares, trigger price wars, and manage supply chains, and the balance of accessibility and depth earned wide acclaim and inspired many imitators, while the design lessons Sid Meier drew from it fed directly into Civilization.
The Railroad Tycoon series continued with several sequels over the years, and the original stands as a foundational classic of the business-simulation genre, still studied and enjoyed by strategy fans.
Where can you play Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon today?
Device by device, which of the 5 alternatives below you can play on it.
- PC
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99), Rail Route (€ 24,99), Sid Meier's Railroads! (€ 9,99) and 2 more.
- Mac
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99), Rail Route (€ 24,99) and Sid Meier's Railroads! (€ 9,99). All 3 on Mac
- Linux
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99) and Rail Route (€ 24,99).
- iPhone
- Sid Meier's Railroads! (€ 9,99).
- iPad
- Sid Meier's Railroads! (€ 9,99).
- Android phone
- None of the alternatives to Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon runs on Android phone.
- Android tablet
- None of the alternatives to Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon runs on Android tablet.
- PlayStation
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99).
- Xbox
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99).
- Switch
- None of the alternatives to Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon runs on Switch.
- Steam Deck
- Railway Empire 2 (€ 49,99), Rail Route (€ 24,99), Sid Meier's Railroads! (€ 9,99) and 1 more. All 4 on Steam Deck
Games like Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon
Modern alternatives to Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon, with the devices they run on and their price. Ordered editorially by how well each one stands in for the original, with community votes weighted in as they accumulate.
Prices, platform availability and Steam Deck compatibility can change at any time. Always check the store page before buying.
Railway Empire 2
€ 49,99A polished modern railway tycoon with a huge world map.
Railway Empire 2 is also an alternative to 1 other classic
Railway Empire 2 runs on PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation, Xbox. Not available on iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, Switch. It is Steam Deck Verified.
Rail Route Indie
€ 24,99A signalling and dispatch game about keeping timetables running, the operations side of railway management.
Rail Route runs on PC, Mac, Linux. Not available on iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch. It is Steam Deck Verified.
Sid Meier's Railroads!
€ 9,99Sid Meier's own 3D follow-up to Railroad Tycoon, with the same track laying and stock market.
Sid Meier's Railroads! runs on PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad. Not available on Linux, Android phone, Android tablet, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch. It is Steam Deck Playable.
Sweet Transit Indie
€ 24,99An indie railway-driven city-builder from a Factorio developer.
Sweet Transit runs on PC. Not available on Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch. It is Steam Deck Verified.
Mashinky
€ 24,99A charming indie transport-and-rail builder.
Mashinky is also an alternative to 1 other classic
Mashinky runs on PC. Not available on Mac, Linux, iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch. It is Steam Deck Untested.
Sign in or create an account to add an alternative or vote.
More simulation & management classics
Other classic games in the same category as Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon.
