Category: Base game
In Iberian Railways, 3 to 5 players compete to build railways to connect the many important cities in Spain and Portugal. Each player starts the game with no money. The railways must be financed by taking loans from the Bank of Madrid. The players need to plan their routes carefully to generate the most income.
The way money is never handed to you at the start, only earned through clever debt and delivery timing, made every round feel like a tense negotiation with myself. I’ve played it three times in one sitting and the Spain-Portugal map keeps offering different routes to fight over.
The debt-financing mechanic really forces you to think three moves ahead instead of just laying track like a maniac. I love that you start with nothing and have to gamble on routes paying off before the other players snatch the connections. Played it twice this week and the tension never let up once
Getting to start with zero money and having to finance every track through the tolls you collect is such a clever twist—it made every early decision feel tense. The way the cities across Spain and Portugal force you to balance short-term gains against longer routes kept all three of us on edge until
