
- BGG rank
- BGG #1,658
- BGG rating
- 6.9
Rialto
- 2–5 players
- 45 min
- Complexity 2.6/5
- 2013

2022
Rules assistance for New York City
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 1 player

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
New York City is a board game released in 2022 for 1–4 players, 45–60 minutes per game, and ages 14 and up. It was designed by Stefan Feld and its main mechanics are Auction / Bidding, Area Majority / Influence, and Solo / Solitaire Game.
Build sky scrapers and develop transport in the city that never sleeps. A game of New York City is played over 5 game rounds. First, players each draw 3 cards from the deck. Then deal out cards in sets of two cards equal to two times the number of players plus one additional. In turn order, players draft a pair of cards until they have a total of 7 cards in hand. Next comes the bidding round, where in turn order players will play cards to bid to determine the strength of their action, with the player who bids the highest getting a bonus. In order, the actions are: Press: Advance on the Press track to determine player and tie-breaking order. Money: Receive money to be used for special actions. Characters: Take a character with a special ability or scoring up to the value of cards played. Building plans: Take a number of skyscrapers from the general supply. Prestige: Receive points equal to your bidding value. I addition, the first and second place bidder gets to increase the value of a borough. Skyscrapers: Players place skyscrapers from their board into borough currently being visited by the mayor. The game is played over five rounds (there are six boroughs, one is randomly not visited each game). Each game, the value of boroughs is randomly assigned, and the player with the most skyscrapers in a a borough receives full value, and the next player receiving half, and so on. There is also a bonus for building in every borough. Points are also awarded for certain characters, and the player with the most points is the winner. Based on Rialto, a previously designed game by Stefan Feld.
New York City supports 1–4 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 New York City is 45–60 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 New York City for ages 14 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.
New York City has a complexity rating of 2.6 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light 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.
New York City belongs to these categories: Card Game and City Building. Its main mechanics are Auction / Bidding, Area Majority / Influence, and Solo / Solitaire Game. 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 New York City are: Stefan Feld. 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 New York City 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.