In 1989, game designer spent a beach holiday coding a prototype for a model railroad simulation. That prototype, which he almost abandoned for a spy game, eventually became Railroad Tycoon , the 1990 classic that defined the business simulation genre. The Story of the Game's Creation
: Meier’s original goal was a "software toy" where players could lay tracks and watch trains run, much like a digital model railroad. Railroad Tycoon Free Download
: At the time, the full game (approx. 15MB) was provided for free on the official 2K website, including the manual and reference cards. In 1989, game designer spent a beach holiday