Aim of the game from the rulebook:
The goal of the game is to build the most successful Underground lines and in doing so gain the most points. You can gain points by connecting your lines to various destinations on the board, and by having the passenger use your lines to travel from station to station.
The player who has best balanced the demands by the time that the deck of destinations is exhausted will be declared the winner.
Gameplay overview:
In On the Underground, the players represent companies building underground lines in London. Each player controls 2-4 different lines (based on the number of players).
On each turn, a player can build four pieces of track on the map in any of their color. All track pieces must extend the color. Alternatively, a player may decide to use two branch tokens (acquired by extending lines to the terminus stations or skipping building turns) to branch out of the line.
During the track building part, the active player can score in four different ways:
Connect their line to a station with a National Rail symbol (1p)
Connect their line to a terminus station (2p + a branch token)
Connect two connection tokens of the same type (3p)
Building a circular line (1p for each station "inside" the line)
After each turn, the passenger moves to one or two of the four face up destination cards; first to one express destination and then to a regular destination. If there are no cards face up in either type, the passenger only moves once. The passenger always uses the shortest route from their current position, avoiding walking and line changes. The passenger scores one point for each line they used to get to their destination.
When there is not enough destination cards to turn face up from the deck, the passenger marker is removed from the game. Players get equal turns, but after the passenger marker is removed, no more points are awarded from passenger movement and players can only build track. The player with the highest amount of points wins.
- Beautiful deluxe component aesthetic; standout artwork and 3D markers
- Clear iconography and a large, legible board
- Accessible to new players; easy to teach
- Two to four players offers tight, engaging interaction; five players can be chaotic
- Multiple maps (London, Berlin) provide variety and expansion potential
- Five-player games can drag and reduce pacing; solo mode requires an added expansion
- Limited opponent interaction when players AP slows the game
- Older design; some players may find it less scalable at higher player counts
- Building and optimizing passenger routes across urban transit systems
- London and Berlin metropolitan transit networks
- light-hearted, banter-filled, with a focus on mechanics over story
- Ticket to Ride
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action-point economy — Each turn consists of four action points to place tokens or connections.
- card-driven routing — Location cards and passenger movement rules determine the passenger's travel path.
- network-building — Players place connections on a board to extend their transit network and connect locations.
- passenger-driven scoring — A passenger moves along routes; players earn points when the passenger uses their networks.
- tokening and branching — Tokens allow branching from the initial continuous line to reach additional points.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this is a reprint done right
- this one doesn't feel clunky
- it's a gateway level
- free is the sweet spot
- the most beautiful looking game that Ludi Creations has ever put
References (from this video)
- clean streamlined reimplementation
- one of the best solo modes in gaming
- clever passenger steering mechanic
- tight scoring throughout game
- beautiful table presence with white board and colored routes
- very different from other games
- different maps available (London, Berlin, Paris, New York)
- four players becomes long and chaotic
- five players doesn't work well
- expansion took too long to release
- subway networks
- London Underground
- passenger transportation
- urban planning
- Ticket to Ride
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- all these factors that go into this list and the games that I enjoy at any particular time
- I like deck builders, it's a good fun mechanic
- watch their brains click and then you're like yes got you hook line and singer
- it's only a game
- these people should not touch card games - hate those people
References (from this video)
- engaging route-building
- Berlin map on the reverse side adds replayability
- tactical planning with variable passenger cards
- prototype status; final production may adjust rules/components
- iconography and map readability could be tricky for new players
- underground transportation planning and passenger routing
- London map reflecting the Tube network
- puzzle-driven route-building with dynamic passenger movement
- Ticket to Ride
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- passenger routing/pointing — points are earned when a passenger uses your line
- route-building — place train lines on a map to connect locations
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a pro Chabal strategy game that feels very different to anything I've played
- the Berlin map on the other side is a great bonus
- it's a cooperative word building game where you can't see your own letters
- it's a murder deduction game
- it's very simple in terms of rules but it has twists
- I can't wait to play this one again properly when it comes out
References (from this video)
- well-designed by known designer
- fun gameplay
- interesting mechanics
- slightly more complex than some alternatives
- transportation
- underground_transit
- urban_planning
- Ticket to Ride
- Ticket to Ride with passengers
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's the Grand Puba of like Gateway Games it's how you get your people from your Monopoly people in to playing everything else that we play
- it's so good that we're giving it the board game coffee seal of approval
- Catan hasn't played a big part in my board game history - Marvel Legendary and Pandemic got me into the hobby
- I think you're gonna like this [about Taverns of Tiefenthal] and then she played and played like three times back to back
- it's weird how I can like a game so much and forget so much about how it plays
- they're so freaking clever they're so cool [about Exit Games]
- I don't think I've a game has ever made me feel as stupid as these games
- dice Throne is a fun battle Yahtzee
- if people like Ticket to Ride and they're looking for something a little bit more complicated... I think this is like the upgrade
- everybody always talked about gunshot clever I had no interest and then... I played this and I was like gunshot clever is so good
- you have to trust the people you're with because it's blind [Quacks of Quedlinburg]
- we're all just happy Canadian people just hugging each other saying sorry apologizing all the time and drinking coffee and donuts