Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Harder to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
How it plays
How does it play?
It is 1888, and everywhere you turn, people are talking about the horseless carriage. They are also talking about Jenatzy and Cugnot, Benz and Diesel, Atkinson and Butler – visionaries now remembered for their passion to create, to progress, and to succeed.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Open Drafting
Select cards or items from a shared face-up display.
Set Collection
Gather related items that become more valuable when scored together.
Hand Management
Time and sequence a limited hand of cards to preserve future options.
Tile Placement
Place tiles to build a shared or personal spatial arrangement.
Worker Placement
Commit limited workers to action spaces before opponents occupy them.
Read the full game description
It is 1888, and everywhere you turn, people are talking about the horseless carriage. They are also talking about Jenatzy and Cugnot, Benz and Diesel, Atkinson and Butler – visionaries now remembered for their passion to create, to progress, and to succeed. But this game is not about them, these giants of engineering. No, in Gear & Piston, you play one of the unsung heroes of history, an engineer of meagre means but great ambition, trying to build a prototype for picky investors seeking to profit from the future of transport. Will you make a name for yourself as an automotive pioneer, change the history of motorized transportation, and win the race that is Gear and Piston? With a lot of skill and a little luck, maybe. If nothing else, try not to blow yourself up in the process. In the game, each player builds an automobile prototype by taking actions in different locations. You may patent brand-new parts in the Patent Office, look for rejected, volatile pieces of machinery in the chaos of the Junk Yard, try to gain an edge through the Back Alley, and finally build your prototype in the Workshop. All this just to please the two investors who are doing the rounds of the different engineering outfits, and who will be evaluating your rickety mess of an automobile. Good timing, keeping an eye on your competitors, and even a dash of luck are all you need to succeed in this business. So grab a wrench, some elbow grease, and your wits, and put some gears and pistons together!