I have a really hard time explaining this game. Basically it is about stock mergers, resource production, shipping, and selling goods with a tech advance tracker. I know that doesn't really sound very coherent or fun, but reading thourgh the play through does a much better job than I can do in explaining this game.
It is ranked in the top 100 at Board Game Geek, so it is going to be pretty solid. Here is the blurb from BGG -
Judging by the smirk on the face of the Sultan of Solo, the businessman from North Sumatra has just made a mistake. And a costly one at that, too. He has paid way too much for merging his rubber company with the Sultan’s extensive rubber plantations: there are no ships in the area to transport the rubber to the booming cities of Java. And the Sultan is now dripping in cash — he can bribe city authorities so that his ships will gain preferential access to those ports where they are competing. Or he might invest in building an oil imperium. But wait — what’s that young fellow over there up to? Buying all the shipping lines? That might change the outlook … considerably, in fact … let’s see…
Indonesia is a game in which 2-5 players build up an economy. As the game unfolds, the basic agricultural economy develops into early industry —the players getting rich in the meantime by producing and transporting goods, and by acquiring and merging companies at the right time, and for the right price. The game takes three to four hours to complete.
Since this game is put out by Splotter-Spellen it is really hard to find stateside so I haven't had much luck finding anyone else who has played it.