Railgrade

About

Railgrade tasks you with reviving a struggling off-world colony by building and managing a railway network. As the sole operator left, you lay tracks through rugged terrain, assign trains to haul resources, and balance production between industries like water, steel, and oil. The goal is to stabilize the colony’s economy by optimizing transport routes and upgrading infrastructure. You’ll juggle short-term needs, like keeping cities supplied, with long-term investments in new industries and specialized train engines. What sets Railgrade apart is its focus on granular logistics and the challenge of squeezing efficiency from chaotic systems. Terrain obstacles force creative routing, while resource dependencies mean a single bottleneck can cripple progress. The achievement system adds depth, with 37 milestones tracking everything from delivery speed to rare feats like the 0.7% unlocked “Cloud Services.” Running on PC, Mac, and Switch, it’s a single-player strategy game that leans into methodical planning over action. With a 29% average achievement unlock rate, it rewards patience and adaptability.

Storyline

RAILGRADE is a construction strategy game about building railway networks to connect future, off-world cities with valuable industry. As the last remaining employee on a corporate-owned earth colony, it’s up to you to salvage the remains of the planet’s economy following a disastrous management mishap. With dozens of trains at your disposal, it’s up to you to manage the production of goods and ensure the delivery of essential resources in order to create a thriving industrial colony once more. In a near-future, corporations have transformed distant planets into industrial colonies, harvesting their resources for commercial gain. Your employer, Nakatani Chemicals, has lost control of one colony following a complete economic collapse - so it’s now up to you to salvage what’s left using retrofitted train transport. Build tracks, buy trains and transport the required cargo to reach your goal. Develop a truly successful transport economy by creating the most efficient system possible, and perhaps what’s left of the colony, and your career, will be restored. With simple construction tools it’s easy to jump in and start building a busy railway delivery system. Carefully consider the placement of tracks to overcome mountains, canyons or other challenging terrain, and create the fastest, or most cost-efficient route for delivery. Control resource inputs and outputs, optimise workflow, or increase the speed of production with catalysts and workers. Maintain a constant level of production across industries, or deliver enough water and other necessities, and the cities of the colony will begin to expand and thrive once again. Use your earnings to buy new train engines with different attributes, construct useful buildings like a lawyers firm or water pumps, and even research new industries to invest in: such as Steel, Oil and Ore. It’s up to you to decide whether to invest in the growth of your city, or focus purely on your own profit.