Comparison

Rail Nation vs Plimko

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Rail Nation

Become a railway tycoon in this transport simulation strategy game. Build your empire by managing goods, researching technologies, and cooperating with other players. Experience the history of railways across six eras and lead your city to prosperity.

Highlights
  • Realistic economy simulation
  • Cooperative and competitive gameplay
  • Real-time decision making
  • Six eras of railway history
  • Multiple game scenarios
  • Cross-platform play (PC/Mac browser)
Features
Read full description

Welcome to the world of Rail Nation. Here YOU will become a railway tycoon! Enter the transport simulation and discover the globally popular strategy game, train by train. You start in a small city that needs to be supplied with goods. Boost the economy to make the city – and your railway company – grow fast. Experience the history of railways in six authentic eras. Research modern technologies and choose from 150 realistic engines and trains. Feel the power of your team: Get together with other players in corporations, dominate your game world, and lead your city to victory! Find the right tactics, build your railway empire, and become a successful entrepreneur. Features: • Realistic economy simulation: Pay attention to supply and demand, consider production times, and smartly trade 48 different goods. • Cooperation and competition: Play with other players in corporations and become a powerful alliance to beat the competition. • Real-time calculation system: Make decisions throughout the day. • 6 eras of railway history: Experience historic steam engines, powerful diesel engines, and ultramodern electric engines. All trains are modeled with great attention to detail. • 3 different scenarios: Play Classic on a fantasy map featuring 50 cities. Fight for supremacy in the battle of East vs. West on the USA map. Travel through Europe in Steam over Europe and bring the continent to prosperity. • Also on your PC: Playable in a browser on your PC or Mac with the same account! Issues & Questions: https://support.rail-nation.com/ Blog: https://blog.rail-nation.com/ Community Discord: https://discord.gg/railnation Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RailNation T&Cs: https://agb.traviangames.com/terms-en.pdf Requirements Recommended: Dual Core CPU, 1.5 GB RAM Rail Nation can be downloaded and played for free. Some in-game features may be purchased for real money. If you don't want to use this function, please disable in-app purchases in your device's settings. A network connection is required.

About

Plimko

Features
Read full description

Your plinko machine. Your rules. Plimko flips the plinko formula: instead of just dropping balls, you build the board they fall through. Place pegs, bumpers, multipliers, splitters, portals, magnets and gilders — then watch your machine turn gravity into gold. BUILD — Eight piece types, each with its own physics. Bend ball paths toward the jackpot buckets on the edges, split one ball into many, teleport them mid-fall, or gild them for double value. UPGRADE — Tap any piece or bucket to level it up. Faster drops, heavier balls, bigger payouts. Unlock new ball tiers, from Basic all the way to Prism. REWIRE — When the run slows down, trade it in. Rewiring resets your board for permanent stars — spend them on income multipliers, extra board rows, piece masteries and more. Every run starts stronger than the last. ASCEND — The layer above rewiring. Trade all your star progress for cores and rule-changing perks: full offline earnings, faster frenzies, free starter pegs and more. AND MORE • An endless mission chain plus elite goals • Challenge runs with escalating tiers • Frenzy mode and golden jackpot balls • Earn while you're away — offline income up to 8 hours • Crisp retro pixel-arcade style • Plays fully offline. All ads are optional and rewarded-only. Free to play. No account needed. Just you, physics, and an economy waiting to be broken.

Screenshots

Rail Nation4 screens
Plimko4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Plimko at none against Rail Nation's 36. Rail Nation's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, update cadence, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Rail Nation sells 36 one-off in-app purchases. Plimko asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Rail Nation ships an update every 3 weeks, Plimko monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Rail Nation versus Plimko: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRail NationPlimko
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (281 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews41.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings281 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better14.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.3 GB91 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTravian Games GmbHsimon deshayes

Bugs and requests

Rail Nation

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Login issues and account problems
  • Inability to claim rewards and bonuses
  • Unresponsive UI and freezing screens

Requested features

3 requests
  • Add Russian/Ukrainian language support
  • Improve compatibility with newer iOS devices
  • Optimize app for better battery life

Plimko

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

36 purchases

Rail Nation

One-time36
  • Gold Package A$1.99
  • Spring Package 2 2025$3.99
  • Spring Package$3.99
Show 33 more
  • Birthday Offer 3 Basic$3.99
  • Birthday Offer 1 Basic$3.99
  • Birthday Offer 2 Basic$3.99
  • Gold Package B$4.99
  • Rail Pass Premium$6.99
  • Winter Season Pass$6.99
  • Bella Italia Bundle Basic$6.99
  • Perfect Paradise Bundle Basic$6.99
  • Summer Event Package Basic$6.99
  • Global Enterprise Start-Up$8.99
  • Winter Event Package Premium$8.99
  • Gold Package C$9.99
  • Full-steam box Basic$9.99
  • Birthday Offer 7 Premium$17.99
  • Birthday Offer 5 Premium$17.99
  • Birthday Offer 4 Premium$17.99
  • Birthday Offer 3 Premium$17.99
  • Birthday Offer 2 Premium$17.99
  • Birthday Offer 1 Premium$17.99
  • Winter Event Package Deluxe$17.99
  • Gold Package D$19.99
  • Full-steam box Medium$22.99
  • Sylvester Surprise Bundle$22.99
  • Dest. Africa Bundle Premium$24.99
  • Summer Event Package Premium$24.99
  • Bella Italia Bundle Premium$29.99
  • PP Bundle Premium$29.99
  • Full-steam box Premium$44.99
  • Gold Package E$49.99
  • Birthday Offer 1 Deluxe$59.99
  • Summer Event Package Deluxe$59.99
  • Full-steam box Deluxe$79.99
  • Gold Package F$99.99
None

Plimko

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Rail Nation free?
Rail Nation is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Plimko free?
Plimko is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Rail Nation or Plimko have ads?
Plimko shows ads; Rail Nation does not.
Which is updated more often, Rail Nation or Plimko?
Rail Nation ships an update every 3 weeks, and Plimko monthly. Most recently, Rail Nation was updated on October 24, 2026 and Plimko on October 25, 2026.

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