I’ve now spent about two hours with Train Valley, and I’ve finished the first chapter. I’ve got a much better sense of the game and how it works now. At first it feels relaxing, but things can spiral out of control fast.
I keep rage-quitting this game, yet I keep coming back to it. Every time I return, I learn something new. One of my biggest problems was laying out tracks so trains could actually reach their destinations, but I’ve now figured out how to make junctions properly, which has made a huge difference.
That hasn’t made the game easy, though. The number of trains it throws at you can be overwhelming, and when trains start leaving stations on their own, things get messy. And explosive.
I’ve also learned that you can stop trains, which has helped me push through a level or two. I’ve moved past the stages set in 19th-century Europe and am now working through the Americas in the same period. Building a rail network between settlements is proving to be a tough challenge.
It’s a fun puzzle game, and a very challenging one. I keep stopping because it gets too difficult, but I always come back. Train Valley has its claws dug into me.
