Westward game
by The Downloadable Beast!
(DB HQ)
Westward
Game download from:
GameHouse (FULL FREE version
Rating:
3.5/5
Quick verdict
When you play the superb Westward 3, it's natural to wonder where this game has its roots. The original Westward was a fine game and is still worth checking out, though you'll be frustrated by several elements.
What's it about?
Settle the wild West by starting pioneer towns, mining gold, farming the soil and livin' on your wits.
Westward combines elements of adventure and real-time strategy to create what amounts to a resource management game. Your principle considerations are a supply of food and water, lumber and gold. With all these elements, you can build a new town from scratch.
The game opens in a town where the bank has been robbed and destroyed by bandits. Solving the bank manager's problem is fairly straightforward and the successful completion of this quest leads you out of town with a bag of gold and the Mayor's daughter.
(No sniggering at the back there.)
While there is a distinct glossing over of the kind of 'entertainment' that pioneer settlers probably engaged in, that's the only thing missing from Westward. Everything else is authentic wild West, from gun-toting bandits who invade the town to the gunslingers you can hire to drive them away for you.
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Gold veins are your source of cash; you can also find gold lying around in abandoned piles, or animal pelts which are worth gold. Mining camps or fully-fledged goldmines will convert ore into riches. Logging camps convert the trees around you into valuable lumber for building.
Settlers will be attracted to your new town as soon as it's established. You need to provide a home and employment for every person. Farms are essential to maintaining a good food supply, but beware of the famine which can drive your people into starvation in a single season.
Other Adventure, RTS and RPG games you might enjoy!
My Kingdom For The Princess
Puzzle Hero
Puzzle Quest
Totem Tribe
Virtual Families
Wandering Willows
Westward game
Westward 2
Westward 3
FREE Westward download links!
Free downloadable games HQ
Free RPG downloads reviewed
Pros and cons
+ Interesting blend of gaming styles with simple, understandable quests to complete.
+ Lots of building types to build and unlock.
+ Good variety of challenges to overcome.
- The game lacks the common thread that playing as a single character in Westward 3 gives the player.
- Many irritating aspects of gameplay; notably, you cannot right-click to move a person; even employed people hang around doing nothing, leading you to believe they aren't doing anything; people don't automatically find a place to live, you have to guide them.
- Graphics lack the polish of the later versions.
The verdict
Westward is a game which had heaps of promise, more than fulfilled by the two sequels, but the early game is rough and ready, just like pioneer life. If you're planning to play the entire series, it's essential that you begin here, as it's much harder to go back.