- BGG rating
- 9.0
Automobile: Chicken – 2 Player Variant
- 2 players
- 120 min
- Complexity 3.0/5
- 2012
- BGG rank
- BGG #765
- BGG rating
- 7.3
Automobile
2009
Rules assistance for Automobile
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 3–5 players
- 120 min
- 12+
- Complexity 3.5/5
For 3 players
Rules assistant for Automobile
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Automobile is a board game released in 2009 for 3–5 players, 120 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Martin Wallace and its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Loans, and Commodity Speculation.
Expansions
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- 1–5 players
- 45–120 min
- Complexity 3.1/5
- 2016
About the game
Automobile is a 3-5 player game that bears a modern setting when compared to most of Wallace’s releases. Players are competing in the U.S. auto industry in the early 20th century, purchasing factories that turn out low-, medium- and high-valued vehicles, starting with the 1893 Duryea and moving through history from there. Each player knows a portion of the market demand each round and must make his purchasing and manufacturing decisions based on the information. Players can fund distributors across the country, but if they don’t supply distributors with vehicles to sell, they go bankrupt, taking your investment with them. Alternatively, players can drop the prices on their cars to move their market share, or even temporarily improve sales rates at the cost of research. Special action spaces are available that give a player a one-turn special ability with the actions provided by Ford, Durant, Kettering, and others somewhat related to their actual business history. As newer models make their way onto the market, they sell at the expense of the older models. Older factories give inefficiency cubes as time passes, encouraging you to keep pace with technology. To get money, you need to build cars with your factories, but if you build more than there is demand they lose not only the money spent to make them, but gain inefficiency cubes that hurt them for the rest of the game. Whoever manages their car factories the best over this 120-150 minute game will win.
Categories
Designers
Publishers
- Wargames Club Publishing
- 999 Games
- Mayfair Games
- IELLO
- Lookout Games
- Warfrog Games
- Phalanx Games Polska
- Treefrog Games
Questions and answers
Automobile supports 3–5 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Automobile is 120 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Automobile for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Automobile has a complexity rating of 3.5 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-weight game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Automobile belongs to these categories: Economic and Industry / Manufacturing. Its main mechanics are Variable Player Powers, Loans, and Commodity Speculation. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Automobile are: Martin Wallace. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Automobile as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.