TableStop review - Colt Express

Schemin' and Stealin' in the Old West

It's July 11th, 1899 and the Union Pacific Express has just left Folsom, NM. It's loaded up with 47 passengers headed west when suddenly there are footsteps on the roofs of the carriages and the sounds of gunshots from behind. Its seems these innocent folks chose the wrong day to head out as they about to be rob blind of all their cash and jewels. Even with a Marshall walking the cars these bandits will keep coming to see who can gain the most loot by the end of the line.

Players take the roles of the infamous bandits as they compete to bring in the most money. The game is played over 5 rounds and each round consists of two phases. The Schemin' phase and The Stealin' phase.

In The Schemin' phase each player takes turns playing cards into a pile as they plan out their moves for that round. The Stealin' phase causes the cards to activate the players actions as they move around the train. 

As it is often know plans don't usually go the way you want them to. As players cards are revealed, choices you make are affected by choices other's made, and when you thought you we going to be grabbing a bag of loot you find yourself looking down a barrel of a gun or picking you teeth up off the floor.

All the in game actions take place on board a crafted 3D cardboard train. Each carriage is littered with gems and money pouches at the start of the game and you get to move your bandit meeples around this to attempt to grab the loot.

The game has a fun balance of luck and strategy, as I said before the whole round for you could go wrong early on. But you still might be able to make something of what you played, just not in the way you originally planned.

I played this a few times now and I must say this is one of my favorite gaming experiences I've had. If you don't like confrontational games, where you find yourself getting picked on by other players, this isn't for you. But if you can let it go and imagine yourself as the outlaws shooting and looting you can find a place for this game at your table. 

I played it with my gaming group last night and we had some great laughs as we ran around the train and by the end it seemed adding up who had the most loot was an after thought as the fun is found in getting to the end of the line.

YEE-HAW!!!