Tracking news and events in the railroad industry

In the past, kids with an interest in trains were limited to wooden or plastic model railways with simple, unpowered train engines. While these toys are still wonderful to play with, advancing technology has brought train-based games to the internet and game consoles, allowing for kids to build elaborate model railways with running trains, learn about strategy and planning, and generally train their minds. Many of these games are great for teens and adults as well, with some often challenging puzzles.

The simply named Trains is set in the 1840s, at the dawn of the era of the railroad. The player controls a train engine and has to guide its direction and the direction of the track to pick up cargo and passengers, avoid bandits, and get the train safely to its destination. While the puzzles start off simple to teach players the controls, things rapidly become more complex - kids might need some help, and even adults may find themselves reaching for the walkthrough. Still, Trains is a fascinating way to stimulate the mind and to kill a bit of time.

The website Free Online Games has a large selection of railroad-based games as well, ranging from puzzles to platformers. While many of the trains are suited for kids (like the brightly colored, fun physics puzzle game Mini Train) others are meant mostly for adults, like Rail of War. Still, with a wide selection of games, everyone is likely to find one game or another to suit their taste among the collection. The fun game Railway Line is especially recommended to those with a taste for modeling out railway networks for themselves - it's a bit like Tetris mixed with trains, as random pieces are selected and you attempt to build a railway network from them.

There are games off the Internet too, of course. While not fully focusing on trains, The Amazing Brain Train for the Wii, by NinjaBee, represents a fun and family-friendly way to build intelligence, memory, concentration, and more. Various puzzle minigames, ranging from block arrangement to memorization to math, are given to the player to solve. Correct solutions and fast thinking power the titular train, which runs on 'brain power', and between levels you get to see the progress of your train as it heads along. With cute graphics but challenging puzzles, this is a game to test the brains of the whole family.

Other games contain trains as a secondary aspect, but their background relevance often gives the player more control over the layout of their railroads. In the Sim City series of games, which put you in charge of the management of a city, railroad networks can be used to allow people to get across your city or to other cities nearby, and the player can shape them however they want, even sending passengers through loops or zigzags. The many side activities in Sim City can be just as fun as the game itself.