This is one game that should be in everyone's closet. It is simple enough to teach to your family and friends and interesting enough to be played with gamers.

The best aspect of the game is the tension that builds as players try and balance being efficient, with getting the tracks that they need before they are taken by other players. While the beginning of the game can be boring if people take a long time to play, the tension s builds so wonderfully that you'll always be riveted by the end of the game.

The only flaw in this game is that the original tickets are not very well balanced. In fact, the tickets that give you a lot of points are the ones that also enable you to place on the 6 space tracks, giving you an even greater bang for your buck. Next time I get some horrible tickets (the ones that go north - south), I might try and play a screw your neighbor game and see if that is a viable strategy. I doubt it will work but I am now certain that the outcome of trying to do your best with your cards will be middle of the pack at best.

This game does a great job of creating excitment and tension as the game developes. You never know for certain if you are going to win until the very end. I think some of the ticket cards are better than others which makes it annoying if you start with "bad" cards but the game is so much fun regardless of this "flaw" that I still gave it a 5. Anyhow, you would only notice this after playing the game 10 times or so which is enough to give any game a top rating from me.