TransAmerica is a simple railway game. Each player has a set of five cities strung across the U.S. that need to be connected by rail. Players first place their station on an intersection on the map, then take turns placing one or two rails each turn on the lines of the map. Initially they can place only adjacent to their station or on a line that touches their station, but once their network connects with another player's, they can place anywhere along the combined network.

The game ends when the first player completes a connected route between their five cities. The player who can make the best use of the other players' networks is generally victorious.