Rush for Gold California is a resource management video game based around the California gold rush. You will explore the then untamed deserts in search of wealth and fame.
There's so much untapped wealth in this area, can you capture it all?
As you start a level, you have a single worker and you need to send him to do different tasks. He can build things, collect resources and clear obstacles.
Collecting resources is the most important aspect of your moment to moment gameplay. You need wood, stone and food. And of course, gold. Each resource has its use, depending on what you are trying to do. Wood is used for constructions, as is stone. Gold is used to pay other characters, and food is for when you need your workers to put in extra effort.
Obstacles come in many forms. For things that require simple labor, like holes and debris, you normally only need food for your workers' trouble. The great thing about these obstacles is that you get resources out of them most of the time. Other types of obstacles can be quite troublesome, like bandits or jackals. The latter can be taken care of by your own character, who scares them off, but bandits require special law enforcement that is found in certain levels and needs to be paid in gold.
For the aspect of building things, they can be resource buildings or bridges. The latter is self explanatory; you make a bridge over a river in order to get to the other side. Buildings have their own depth, however. Every building has their own resource they make, and they can either be slow and infinite or fast and fast depleting. For example, if you build a farm it ticks every so often and adds a unit of food to your pile, but if you build a fishing spot you need to dedicate a worker to do the activity. You get plenty more food with the downside of losing a worker, and like we said earlier it will not last forever.
The kind of building you can make is entirely dependent on the slot itself; the strategy does not come from choosing the building to make, but to make it to the area to build it in a timely manner.
Another aspect of the game is the base you build between missions. You start with a central saloon and you can upgrade, clean and add buildings to the area as you advance the game. In order to improve this place, you need stars that are awarded for clearing levels particularly fast. You can see said timer on the left side of the screen.
The story of the game keeps it very simple: The President of the United States of America has made it official that there indeed is gold in California. You are one of the many pretenders looking to tame the land and run away with its riches.
As you begin, you get a choice of gender and are tossed right into the meat of things. You save another entrepreneur and his worker, and are given free reign commanding the latter. This is how the gist of the game is played, you do the intellectual and ordering, while your underlings do the dirty work. Which is to say, most of it.
The game art style follows the norms of the genre: Simple cartoony and colorful characters with detailed buildings and objects set on an isometric view. Since the mood is bright and cheerful, the color palette follows suit. It does however keep it to the canonical colors that are to be expected from the arid Californian desert. That is to say, plenty of yellows and golden frames.
Animations are sharp and to the point, allowing one to focus on the gameplay. There is a fun detail for when buildings are under construction, whereas we can see the little parts being piled upon as the job gets done. One must not sit on their laurels however, since the default difficulty of the game is timed mode.
Rush for Gold California is one of the most fun Windows 7 games for the genre, taking on an era of human history that is just perfect for this type of gameplay. There are plenty of levels to sink your teeth into and a lovely town to build as you do so, so get your boots on and get ready to get that golden fever.
If you enjoy these free games, you will love this list of our 10 Best Time Management Games!
