Kris Hall: Thomas Hudson and 18io

The 18XX mini-genre of railroad games seems to be entering an especially active phase right now.  Mayfair just published a new edition of 1853, a game about railroading in India, and they supposedly will publish a new edition of 1830 this year.  And there are several designers working on new 18XX games who are not associated with Mayfair, and the ones that I’ve contacted were happy to talk to me by e-mail about their upcoming games.

This week I have an interview with Thomas Hudson, designer of 18io, a game about railroading in Ohio in the years before the Civil War.

Kris: Why design 18io? What will be special or distinctive about this 18XX game?

Tom: I designed an 18xx game because I like them and play them as often as I can. Also I spent a lot--I mean a lot--of time on trains and subways when I lived in New York/New Jersey. In fact, I met my wife on a NJ Transit train!

Finally, the small town in Ohio where I live now is known for its Lake Erie beaches and its heavily trafficked railroad tracks. Given how small the town is, it’s amazing how many traffic jams are created by the trains.

As it turns out, Ohio was in the middle of the rail frenzy that occurred during the early industrial era. Hundreds of companies were chartered in the state before the Civil War--the period covered by the game. The twenty-five companies in the game represent those that actually operated. The huge majority of chartered companies failed or closed before operating.

The distinctive features of 18io include:

25 major companies (no minors)

Focus on a narrow period (from the dawn of the Rail Age to the American Civil War)

Company charters claimed through charter auctions

Ability to reserve charters

Companies can be foreclosed

Kris: Do you think of 18io as more of a railroad construction game, or of a financial manipulation game like 1830?

Tom: That’s a good question! My favorite 18xx game is 1825. I love the focus on rail-building provided its large map. But I also like the stock manipulation found in my other favorites—1830 and 1856. So 18io is a combination of both styles. Its connection and route bonuses reward fast expansion, but the number of companies and ease of which they can be opened provides amble opportunity for stock jobbery.

Kris: How many players can play 18io? How long will it take to play?

Tom: 18io can be played by 2-8 players. At the beginning of the game, players decide if they want a Standard or Short game, which is based on the amount of money put into the bank. So, 18io can play fast relative to other 18xx games, or be about par.

Kris: How much playtesting has the game received?

Tom: We timed the announcement of 18io to coincide with the second phase of testing—remote, or blind testing. 18io has been in heavy testing since the late summer. While local testing is essential, of course, blind testing is also crucial. The remote testers don’t have the developer or designer hovering around to coach them and explain away problems. Also, the remote testers’ experience is closer to the typical end-user’s as they struggle with the components and rules. Blind testing is underway and going well.

Kris: I see that there 25 major railroads in 18io. Am I correct in assuming there will be a lot of merger activity in the game?

Tom: Even though 18io has a very large number of companies, the actual number of companies opened during a given game is the same or only slightly larger than other 18xx games. This is regulated by various mechanisms: certificate limit, available cash, and availability of trains. There are no mergers.

Kris: Do you think that 18io deviates or innovates away from the standard 18XX model in any significant way?

Tom: We think 18xx players will find a lot of 18xx-goodness combined with enough new and fresh things to make 18io a compelling title.  Unique to 18io are charter auctions. Charter auctions enable players to gain control of a company charter. Once a charter is controlled, the company can be opened or reserved, another unique feature of 18io.

The twenty-five major companies is--I think--the most of any 18xx game.

Kris: What caused you the most trouble in the design? What are you most proud of?

Tom: The biggest challenge, by far, was finding a way to integrate such a large number of companies into a playable game. Hopefully, with charter auctions and the other mechanisms mentioned above, we’ve found a solution that ensures high replayability without too much chrome or too many unwieldy rules.

With 18io, I wanted a gamer’s game: a game in which players were given large quivers with plenty of arrows to aim true, but also plenty of chances to shot yourself in the foot. There’s a lot of tension from the outset and we see many smashups, but plenty of comebacks too.

Kris: After reading the rules, I can say that 18io has a relatively large gameboard, there are lots of route bonuses for railroads to claim, there is an unusually large number of railroads in the game for players to run, and railroads can begin operations once the president’s certificate has been bought. This sounds to me like a recipe for an 18XX game that emphasizes route building, and that gives players little reason to invest in each other’s railroads. Why would I buy a share of someone else’s railroad when I could probably use the cash to start a new railroad of my own? In playtesting, have you seen many players invest in each other’s roads?

Tom: While 18io has a large number of companies, our emphasis from the beginning has been or variety and replayability. The number of companies opened in a typical game is not too different from other 18xx titles. As challenging as the number of companies has been, the size of the map has proved equally as challenging. In early testing, players tended to start in areas remote from each other and we felt there wasn’t enough player interaction. The problem was exacerbated by the lack of minor companies. Route bonuses, along with other changes, have fixed that problem. We see track built rapidly in all corners of the map, and tension over getting the right tile.

18io certainly rewards route building, but the stock market is always active. Money is tight and the profit from flipping opponents’ stock is very attractive. So in our testing we see a red-hot stock market combined with frantic route building--pretty much what we hoped to see.

Kris: I’ve read that 18io will be published by Grace Games. I can’t seem to find any information about Grace Games--who are they?

Tom: Grace Games is a new company and 18io will be its first game. You could describe Grace Games as a mom and pop shop. The company is run by wife Kathleen who, before becoming a stay-at-home-mom, worked at the World Trade Center. The birth of our last son caused her to leave her employer and the WTC--thank God!--just before 9/11.

I am chief game developer and bottle washer. When I was in college I worked for the game company SPI as a developer and designer. SPI had a great development system which we are following at Grace Games (local and remote game testing, for example).

Currently Grace Games has four games in development. I am the designer of two and the developer of the other two. None of the other games are 18xx games, or trains games for that matter. All are Euros. We will have more to say when the games are further along.

Kris: When do you expect to see 18io in print?

Tom: We plan for a mid-year release. We will roll-out our web site before then.

Kris: What projects would you like to work on in the future?

Tom: My other current design is an economic, Euro-type game with an historical theme. We should be able to make an announcement about this game shortly.

Kris: Thanks for the interview.

Next week I will have another interview with an 18XX designer.

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