In Autobahn, players take on the roles of managing directors within the German Bundesautobahn organization. Their mission is to develop the federal highway network from the end of World War II to the present day.
👥 1-4 players, ages 14+
⌛ Playing time: 90-120 minutes
📝 Designers: Fabio Lopiano & Nestore Mangone
🎨 Artwork: Javier González Cava
🏢 Publisher: Intrafin, publisher of the Dutch/French version of the game (review copy provided). Published in English by Alley Cat Games.
The gameplay unfolds across three eras, symbolizing decades of highway development. Players contribute to this development, which leads to them gaining seats on various Construction Offices of the “Bundesautobahn”. Employee tokens, representing each player’s workforce, gradually progress from these offices into different administrative departments, and their subsequent promotion forms a crucial part of the game.
🛣️ Autobahns in the game are color-coded and connect various German cities and even cities from neighboring countries. Each road segment connecting two cities is called a “link” and comprises one or two road sections. You can also construct service stations on these links, which can earn you bonus actions or coins each time a truck passes by.
🚛 Your activities aren’t limited to road construction. You can also facilitate the transportation of goods such as appliances, chemicals, and automotive products from Germany to neighboring countries. This is done via the autobahn network you’re developing. In the third era, pharmaceutical goods from Berlin become accessible as well, providing additional trade opportunities.
⛽ Each of your turns during the game consists of the following four steps:
1️⃣ Claim delivery bonus: If you have unclaimed delivery bonuses, you can claim one.
2️⃣ Take action: You must take one action, like playing a card, refreshing your hand, or claiming funding. Additionally, you can use a bonus tile during this phase.
3️⃣ Move Truck: If you played a card, you might be able to move your truck.
4️⃣ End of turn: If you have no more cards in hand, you can pick them all up.
🗺️ At the end of each era, there’s an administration phase where players assess their construction budget and check their route cards, which they drafted before the start of the game. If a complete road connection exists between the cities shown on your route card, you earn coins and promotions based on the status of the connection. The route’s status consists of the distance of the route, minus the number of upgraded links and service stations along that route.
🏆 The game concludes after the third era, with a final administration phase followed by a final scoring phase. The player who has accumulated the most prestigious seats emerges as the winner!
Autobahn, a eurogame for 1 to 4 players, is a product of the combined creative efforts of designers Fabio Lopiano and Nestore Mangone. This economic strategy game, with artwork by Javier González Cava, takes between 90–120 minutes to play. It was published after a successful Kickstarter campaign by Alley Cat Games, and this review is based on our gameplay experience of the Dutch/French version, translated and published by Intrafin, who provided us with a copy of the game.
📚 Autobahn is a richly complex game with many rules to master, which might necessitate a somewhat lengthy initial teaching phase. The game is abundant with lots of different icons, signifying a diverse range of actions and choices.
⚙️ The mechanics of the game combine hand management, route building, and pick-up-and-delivery, resulting in a robust gaming experience. As you play, you literally observe the expansion and improvement of the German transportation network. This expansion includes the emergence of service stations, and trucks transporting goods for export to neighboring countries, making the theme immersive and deeply integrated into gameplay.
👤 The ultimate objective of the game is not just the construction of infrastructure. The ranking of players at the end of the game is largely influenced by the positions occupied by employees, promoted across various administrative departments. Various strategies can be employed for these promotions, including the successful completion of route cards, triggering the end of an era, gaining service station bonuses, and advancing on the development track.
🔑 Promotion, however, is not a free-for-all affair. Players must first unlock the relevant technologies on their player boards, allowing access to specific floors in the corresponding departments of the administration. These unlocked technologies provide enduring bonuses and benefits, such as advancements on the development track when loading a truck or building service stations, and improved cards for players’ hands.
🏢 The height to which your promoted employees ascend in the administration’s departments can earn points based on construction office employees, the number of countries to which you’ve delivered goods, service stations built, and coins amassed by the game’s end. This aspect illustrates the interconnectedness of all game elements. Meticulous planning is required as every action has a far-reaching impact, influencing not just your future turns but also opening opportunities for opponents.
🚛 The game’s physical components are of high quality. Custom wooden pieces, like service stations and trucks, along with silk-screened containers, add a touch of authenticity. However, this attention to detail comes with a downside: the game involves handling a multitude of small, fiddly pieces. Tokens representing road improvements, street tiles, and especially the trucks with their small containers, can be somewhat tricky to manage, especially for those not blessed with nimble fingers.
💭 Autobahn provides an intricate simulation of the expansion of the German road network. It combines a strong theme with a solid combination of mechanics, and a high level of player interaction. For those who love economic simulation games and are not deterred by some fiddliness, Autobahn is definitely recommended.
📝 Many thanks to Intrafin for providing us with a review copy of Autobahn.
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