Gold Rush!
Encyclopedia
Gold Rush! is a graphic adventure game
released by Sierra Entertainment
in 1988. It was designed by Doug and Ken MacNeill. Players move a man from screen to screen, and type in simple commands to control him.
. The player is Brooklyn
newspaperman Jerrod Wilson, who soon receives word that he must go to Sacramento
to meet his long-lost brother. After a few minutes of gameplay, word arrives that gold has been found in California, and it becomes much more difficult for Jerrod to settle his affairs in Brooklyn and find a way to Sacramento (for instance, the price of tickets skyrockets).
The game is notable for its inclusion of multiple paths which Jerrod can take to get to his brother. He can travel on a stagecoach
, which is the cheapest path, and the only one that is always available to Jerrod, no matter how long he spends in Brooklyn. This path also brings Jerrod into contact with Native Americans
, unruly ox
en, parching desert
s, and the likelhood of a winter storm at the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He can travel on a ship to Panama
, cross through treacherous swamp
s and jungle
s on foot, and catch another ship to Sacramento. This route is more expensive than the others and also requires Jerrod to prepare carefully for many hazards of the tropical climate of Panama, from malaria
to jungle ants to crocodile
s. The third, and most time-consuming, path is to journey all the way around Cape Horn
on a ship. This choice has its own perils, from storm
s to scurvy
. In each route Jerrod could perish at random by a disease to which there was no cure, such as cholera
, forcing players to save their game whenever possible. Once Jerrod arrives in Sacramento, the three routes converge and all of the puzzles are the same.
Once in California, Jerrod must try his hand at prospecting, avoid bandits, and locate his mysterious brother.
interface and is one of the most complicated. However, this has not prevented it from becoming one of the lesser-known Sierra adventure games.
. If the user failed to enter the correct word, their character would immediately be arrested for claim jumping and hanged
on the gallows, which is the same as the regular in-game punishment for claim jumping, being caught in someone's hotel room, or stealing.
#145 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4½ out of 5 stars. Computer Gaming World
gave the game a positive review, noting it mixes historical simulation with Sierra's traditional adventure gameplay.
Adventure game
An adventure game is a video game in which the player assumes the role of protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and puzzle-solving instead of physical challenge. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based media such as literature and film,...
released by Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment Inc. was an American video-game developer and publisher founded in 1979 as On-Line Systems by Ken and Roberta Williams...
in 1988. It was designed by Doug and Ken MacNeill. Players move a man from screen to screen, and type in simple commands to control him.
Story
The game is set in 1848, just before the California Gold RushCalifornia Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. The player is Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
newspaperman Jerrod Wilson, who soon receives word that he must go to Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
to meet his long-lost brother. After a few minutes of gameplay, word arrives that gold has been found in California, and it becomes much more difficult for Jerrod to settle his affairs in Brooklyn and find a way to Sacramento (for instance, the price of tickets skyrockets).
The game is notable for its inclusion of multiple paths which Jerrod can take to get to his brother. He can travel on a stagecoach
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...
, which is the cheapest path, and the only one that is always available to Jerrod, no matter how long he spends in Brooklyn. This path also brings Jerrod into contact with Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
, unruly ox
Ox
An ox , also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable...
en, parching desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
s, and the likelhood of a winter storm at the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He can travel on a ship to Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, cross through treacherous swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
s and jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
s on foot, and catch another ship to Sacramento. This route is more expensive than the others and also requires Jerrod to prepare carefully for many hazards of the tropical climate of Panama, from malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
to jungle ants to crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s. The third, and most time-consuming, path is to journey all the way around Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
on a ship. This choice has its own perils, from storm
Storm
A storm is any disturbed state of an astronomical body's atmosphere, especially affecting its surface, and strongly implying severe weather...
s to scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
. In each route Jerrod could perish at random by a disease to which there was no cure, such as cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
, forcing players to save their game whenever possible. Once Jerrod arrives in Sacramento, the three routes converge and all of the puzzles are the same.
Once in California, Jerrod must try his hand at prospecting, avoid bandits, and locate his mysterious brother.
Developmental history
Gold Rush! is one of the last games that Sierra made with the AGIAdventure Game Interpreter
The Adventure Game Interpreter is a game engine which Sierra On-Line used through most of the 1980s to create and run animated, color adventure games...
interface and is one of the most complicated. However, this has not prevented it from becoming one of the lesser-known Sierra adventure games.
Copy protection
Gold Rush used words from the manual as a form of copy protectionCopy protection
Copy protection, also known as content protection, copy obstruction, copy prevention and copy restriction, refer to techniques used for preventing the reproduction of software, films, music, and other media, usually for copyright reasons.- Terminology :Media corporations have always used the term...
. If the user failed to enter the correct word, their character would immediately be arrested for claim jumping and hanged
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
on the gallows, which is the same as the regular in-game punishment for claim jumping, being caught in someone's hotel room, or stealing.
Reception
The game was reviewed in 1989 in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#145 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4½ out of 5 stars. Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
gave the game a positive review, noting it mixes historical simulation with Sierra's traditional adventure gameplay.
External links
- Gold Rush! at MobyGamesMobyGames-Platforms not yet included:- Further reading :* Rusel DeMaria, Johnny L. Wilson, High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games, McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media; 2 edition , ISBN 0-07-223172-6...
- Gold Rush! review at Adventure GamersAdventure GamersAdventure Gamers is a computer game website created in 1998 dedicated to the genre of adventure games. It publishes reviews and previews of adventure games, as well as opinion articles and interviews with game designers....
- Walkthrough for Gold Rush!