Age of Steam Expansion: Atlantis & Trisland (2010)

Atlantis & Trisland is a full size, full color mounted expansion that folds to a size that will fit in both the Steam and Age of Steam boxes. While both maps are island based, they couldn’t be more different: Atlantis is an epic map focusing on the struggles of the island nation to somehow create a self-sustaining rail network that reaches the shore from a central hub of production, while Trisland is a 3-player-only map with elegant simplicity and symmetry.

Atlantis takes place on the mythical island of lore, where you’ll need to figure out how the giant city of Atlantia in the center of the island can reach the towns and cities along the coast. It’s expensive, production is very limited, and the competition is brutal. Atlantis was originally designed 5 years ago, but was deemed too harsh and unforgiving for even the bravest players...it was shelved and only recently picked up again and tweaked to make it slightly more friendly, with an emphasis on slightly. Bankruptcy or utter hopelessness is almost always just around the corner when playing this map. Atlantis is for 3-6 players who are comfortable seeing their opponents weep uncontrollably.

Trisland is the perfect 3 player map. By perfect, not only is gameplay streamlined and optimized for 3 players, but it is also perfectly symmetrical. Very few rule tweaks are included with the map, making this a perfect “classic” Steam/Age of Steam playing experience for three players. The rule changes that are present are specifically designed to address the shortcomings of Steam/Age of Steam when played with three players. Trisland is for 3 players, and 3 players only.

The 2010 Essen Aos/Steam map pack from Bezier Games features 7 new maps, including 6 mounted ones on 3 double size expansions. These maps can be preordered from www.beziergames.com and will ship in October 2010. The “bonus” 7th map is only available through preorders. Expansion #1: California Gold Rush & Underground Railroad as well as Expansion #2: Amazon Rainforest and Sahara Desert have been previously announced. Details about the remaining bonus pre-order only map will be coming in the next few weeks from Bezier Games.