Rail Tycoon vs Efemeris
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Rail Tycoon
Build and manage your own railroad empire by laying track, constructing stations, and scheduling trains. This simulation game offers a realistic railroad experience with strategic decision-making.
- Build rail lines and stations
- Buy and manage trains
- Schedule train operations
- Simulate railroad management
- Economic strategy gameplay
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Rail Tycoon lets you take control of your own rail network. You decide where to build stations and rail lines, to server the community best. Then buy stations, add cars, and and start making money. This is a simulation of a railroad, with all the fun and problems that entails. The objective of the game is to build and manage a railroad company by laying track, building stations, and buying and scheduling trains. Based on the PC game, this game is fully playable on your iPad or iPhone, and features no ads or in-app purchases.
Efemeris
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Two fleets face each other across a star map that does not exist yet. You build it, one tile at a time, as you explore. A turn-based board game duel, played solo against the AI or with a friend across phone, tablet and PC. A game lasts about twenty minutes. HOW YOU WIN First to conquer five planets in ten turns takes it. Lose every planet you hold and the game ends there. EVERY TURN, FOUR DECISIONS • Explore — place a tile and open a new stretch of the Celestial Vault • Harvest — collect Star Pepper and Celestial Vanilla from the trading posts you hold • Manoeuvre — move your galleon and frigates, spend your crew cards • Build — buy frigates, raise fortresses, pay a planet's price THREE NATIONS, THREE WAYS TO PLAY The British Royal Navy, the French Royal Navy or the Spanish Armada. Each fields its own captains and its own crew: the Spanish Governor talks a planet's price down, the French Lady of the Night fills your holds, the Gunner opens fire. You pick two captains and five crew members before the first tile is laid. That choice shapes the whole game. NOTHING IS FREE Your holds never exceed five spices. Firing costs a Gunner card. Your captain's ability only triggers if a Chief mate is there to relay the order — and if your galleon falls, your captain goes down with it. SOLO OR TWO PLAYERS • Solo — face an AI that drafts its hand, plays its cards and races you to the fifth planet • Duel — play a friend across Android, iOS and PC HAND-DRAWN CELESTIAL CHARTS Engraved constellations, gilded compass roses and inked portraits: Efemeris is played on an old star atlas that slowly fills with light. A complete game. No ads, no in-app purchases. Available in English and French.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Rail Tycoon at every 10 days against Efemeris's every 8 months. Rail Tycoon also leads on price ($1.99 vs $3.99) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). On ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Rail Tycoon costs $1.99 and Efemeris $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Rail Tycoon ships an update every 10 days, Efemeris every 8 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Rail Tycoon | Efemeris |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 1.7 (3 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 130 MB |
| Age rating | +4 | 4+ |
| Developer | JOhn Lyons | DTDA Games |
In-app purchases
Rail Tycoon
No in-app purchases
Efemeris
No in-app purchases









