In Roads & Boats, each player builds up a civilization over a long period of time, like in many other games. Unlike most games, however, Roads & Boats is not about warfare, population growth, city or state building. The emphasis instead is on logistics, or rather: on transport.

Each player starts the game with three donkeys, a pile of wooden boards, a number of stones and two geese. With these few resources, you try to build such diverse things as woodcutters, roads, boats, mines, a stock exchange... but beware! There is no concept of territory in this game: you cannot own land, nor buildings, so the things you build can be used by any other player.

You start off small and gradually expand. Buildings cost a combination of stone and wood to build. But to get the stone and wood you need a quarry and lumbermill - you can see how the 'tree' works as you need this to make this and this to make this, etc. Resource management is the key to playing this, whether you play it solo or play with up to 4 (Up to 6 with the expansion). Although it sounds complex, each round is straightforward - it is the decisions that have to be made that makes this a bit of a brain-burner in some ways, but all the same this is an extrememly enjoyable game.