Overview

You are a young trader just starting out in your career in British Colonial America in the 1760s.  You've spent the last few years working odd jobs for local farmers, trappers, and merchants giving you a variety of skills (and some starting cash) that can be used to build your fortune trading goods and services all around the 13 colonies.  Make your fortune, marry your sweet heart, and live the good life.  Colony life is rough, so beware of robbers and looking to steal your supplies as you travel the land.

Game Description

The game world consists of four sections: the Main View, Inventory Screen, Town View and the Store Screen.  The game is played by harvesting or trapping goods in the Main view and then selling those items in the Store Screen.

The Main View is where exploration and the collection of good takes place.  This view is close enough to see the goods encounters pop into place and to recognize icons for terrain and towns, yet far enough away to recognize the relative locations of towns, colony borders, and geographic features.  The goods encounters are the main source of goods for the player to sell.  The frequency of each type of good availible during these encounters is related to the region in which the colony is located.

The Inventory Screen contains information about the player's location, the cash and goods that the player is currently carrying, and the passage of time.  This view also has a map that shows all of the colonies and the player's location.

In the Town View the player can visit the store, speak with a town's person, or take a fishing trip.  Town's people are a busy lot that give the player information about the colonies and game mechanics.  The fishing trip is very similar to the good encounters that take place in the Main View, except that it cost money and there is no danger of getting robbed.  From the Town View the player can also access the Store Screen.

The Store Screen is where all of the buying and selling in the game take place.  Here the player can see their own inventory items and cash.  They can also see the store's inventory and the prices that the store offers for goods and services.  This is the only place where goods can be converted to money.

The game starts with player setting off as a trader, and ends when the player has enough money to buy a small farm so he can get married (currently 1500 shillings).

Gameplay Instructions

Main View

Move Cuddy with the arrows keys.
Press "space bar" to interact with goods and towns.
Press "i" to view inventory

Different kinds of goods are abundent in different colonial regions (New England, Middle, or Southern).

Town View

Use left and right arrow keys to move Cuddy to the front of various sign posts.

Press the space bar to interact with the sign for the store, fishing area, exit, or town's person.

The goal of the game is to earn 3000 shillings(s) by selling goods and trading with towns around the colonies. Different towns have different prices for goods and so you may want to explore the region. Be careful when selling goods in a town because the number of goods the store has in its inventory will affect how much money you can earn.

Introduction Screens

1. The player takes the role of a jack-of-all trades colonist named Cuthbert Ernst ("Cuddy" for short).

2. Cuddy spent the last couple of years working odd jobs for local trappers, farmer, fisherman, and loggers learning their trades.

3. Cuddy meets the daughter of a modest land owner named Virginia "Vergie" Dowl.

4. Cuddy (Cuthbert) and Vergie (Virginia) fall in love.

5. Cuddy wants to marry Vergie.

6. Vergie father won't allow the marriage because Cuddy doesn't own a house or land.

7. Cuddy vows to earn enough money to buy some land and marry Vergie.