Solo Chronicles – Next Station London

I live in Tennessee now, but I did not always. I used to live in Illinois. I have never been to London, nor any part of the United Kingdom. I was hoping that I would still be able to enjoy a game based on the Underground metro that runs beneath the city of London. Sure, I have toured Europe previously, and it was amazing. My wife has been to Europe as well, though separately from my trip. We both would love to make a trip, and I believe we will soon. Will we ride the tube? Yes. Will we visit one or more of the Doctor Who Experiences? ABSOLUTELY. Until then, I will pretend to redesign the Underground lines in this game. Sometimes all by myself.

In Next Station London players assume the role of subway architects tasked with creating the most efficient routes to and from major points of the city. The game lasts four rounds, and no matter the number of players, they with the most points will win!

DISCLAIMER: We were provided a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. This is a retail copy of the game, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received in your box. I do not intend to cover every single rule included in the rulebook, but will describe the overall game flow and major rule set so that our readers may get a sense of how the game plays. For more in depth rules, you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T

Setup is a snap, even for the solo mode (on which I will be concentrating on for this review). The player takes one map sheet from the pad and lays out the four colored pencils in a line in any order they wish. The Station cards are shuffled (for this review, I used only the base game components without the two Advanced modules). At this point, the player takes the first pencil from the line, finds the matching starting space on the sheet and the game may begin!

As previously stated, Next Station London lasts exactly four rounds, though the rounds may not all be the same length. On a turn, the player will flip over the first Station card to determine where a line will be drawn next. Once the player has started the line from the starting point, they must draw a straight line along the given dotted routes and end at a station that matches the one drawn from the deck of Station cards. That seems too verbose to describe drawing a line from the last place visited to one matching the card that was flipped.

When thinking logically about how subway trains work, several rules need to be followed when drawing the next section of rail line. Lines may not cross through an already-existing line, all lines are straight and not curved, and the line may be added to from either end of the existing line. The player will continue adding to their line until either the deck of Station cards runs out or the fifth pink Underground card is played.

The player will then consult the scoring section of the map sheet to tally points for the round. Points can be scored by entering multiple districts during the round, earning points in the district with the most stations visited, by passing under the Thames river, and by creating the line to visit specific tourist spots across the city. When points have been tallied for the round, the player then discards their pencil and takes the next color from the table. A new round is played and after the fourth round is complete, the final score is counted and compared against the Achievement Table in the rulebook. Solo players play to beat their highest scores and then treat themselves to fish and chips immediately afterward.

Components. This game has relatively few components: a pad of map sheets, four colored pencils, and 20 cards. The map sheets are so hip, colorful, and stylized, and they look great once the game is over. The pencils are fine and the cards are fine quality with some bold colors and design. The aesthetic on this one is right down my alley/boulevard/parkway. Blue Orange Games knocking it out of the park again!

So yes, it looks great. It is very light. And I think it’s brilliant! Honestly, this could have any theme attached to it: other cities, D&D lore, Firefly universe, literally anything. Obviously certain IPs would be more successful than others, but there is a really awesome game going on beneath any given theme that tons of people will love, I’m sure.

The flip ‘n write mechanic is great, and I enjoy it way more than I do other games in the same or similar genre (I’m looking at you, Welcome To…). It plays quickly, can be played solo, and is light and enjoyable. Now, I do wish it were roll ‘n write, as I’m a big fan of dice, but I’ll allow play of a flipper. I have played the multiplayer version of this as well several times and have loved it with other players as well. Turns are all simultaneous and each player’s scores can end wildly different.

Using the different colored pencils is such an easy and smart way to keep track of rounds, while adding more color to the game, and adds mechanical advantages as well. Again, I am not detailing every rule in the book, but the pencils are a big part of Next Station London.

It’s obvious that I love this one. I know Laura and I both thoroughly enjoy playing, and I think many many others would as well. If you happen to see this one hanging out in your FLGS pick up a copy for yourself and one for your neighbor. You all will have a great time and maybe rekindle that wanderlust some of the population lost in recent years.