In Pioneer Rails you represent a railroad owner who has seen an opportunity to expand his empire into the new lands of the frontier. You will compete against other railway owners to plan your railway in the best possible way to connect settlements to the railway network and meet the demands of locals.

In this flip-and-write game, you use poker cards to expand your railroads and build a poker hand at the same time. Each turn you choose one of the revealed poker cards. The map's symbol helps you expand your railway, connecting new towns and surrounding features. When you connect to a city, you will have the opportunity to get one-time bonuses. When you place your railways around a feature you activate it for scoring at the end of the game. The value of the card is added to your poker hand, scoring extra points at the end of the round.

In addition, there are three common goals, which encourage you to build in different directions.