Note: A wonderful friend gifted me a copy of this game. ^^



Golden Rails: The heart of the state is a time management game developed and published by Alawar Casual. It is the seventh game in the Golden Rails series. Our duo, Jack and Jill, are traveling by train when it comes to a sudden stop. When the pair investigates the cause, they see that the state is littered with metal clogs along with plenty of pollution and neglect. It's obvious that the current governor has been neglecting the interests of his people. However, fear not. There's an election to vote for the next governor, and although the current governor is confident that he'll win again, Sophia, a newcomer, challenges him. She vows to clean up the state, and Jack and Jill are more than happy to assist her. Can this team win over the people and overthrow the current governor? :o

As for the gameplay, you can choose from among the usual three difficulty levels: easy (relaxed, no timed), normal, or hard. (For review purposes, I chose to play on normal mode.) There are a total of 60 levels, which include both the main and bonus stories, along with 6 levels with mini-games. The 60 levels have the usual objectives, which can vary from arresting bandits to rebuilding the railway. Depending on how quickly you complete all the objectives, you can earn up to 3 stars for each level. Stars can be used to purchase upgrades that can vary from making your workers run faster to collecting more money. With the mini-games, most of them involving matching 3 identical owls while the final one is the usual shooting as many bandits as possible. Of course, there are plenty of Steam achievements/in-game trophies, and they count towards a user's global total.


I continue to enjoy the time management genre a lot, and the games published by Alawar Casual are among my all-time favorites. It probably goes without saying that I definitely wanted to play this latest installment of Golden Rails as soon as I could, and thanks to a very awesome friend, I had the chance to try it out. ^^

The story is fun as always. I like following Jack and Jill as they embark on their latest adventure. Unlike the previous games, this one has a more unique story in that it takes a modern problem and puts a spin on it. Littering and pollution are major problems, and although the people in charge could put in more money and effort to curb them, they choose to neglect these problems and only think about themselves. Thankfully, Sophia won't tolerate the current governor's attitude, and since Jack and Jill feel the same way, they all work together to clean up the state and win over the hearts of the people. I like this feeling of teamwork, and as you might expect, the story ends in a predictable manner (although I don't think that's a bad thing XD).

However, it's probably the gameplay that a lot of people are curious about. I didn't run into any game-breaking bugs. However, I noticed that on the first bonus level, it glitched for me since I completed all of the objectives with 3 stars but the level didn't end. It turns out that if you save repairing the railroad for last, this glitch can happen. Aside from that, I didn't run into any other issues. I was able to earn all of the achievements. However, the achievement for building 120 gardens, flowerbeds, and parks might require replaying certain levels. (For anyone who experiences this, too, replaying level 7 helps a lot.) Earning 3 stars for each level didn't prove to be too much of a problem, especially since there is an in-game guide. Also, there are a couple of new game mechanics that separate this latest installment from the previous ones. For example, you can now pick up scrap metal and melt it to make iron, so it's basically recycling. It definitely helps to save money. Also, cats are now present in the game, and you can provide them with good homes, which helps to increase a town's happiness. ^^

In regards to the art, it retains that colorful, cartoony style that has become a signature of these games by Alawar Casual. The only differences are the additions of sprites for Sophia and the governor as well as a couple of new backgrounds. Also, there's an owl that you can decorate with hats, glasses, etc. As you find hidden owls in each level, you get closer to being able to customize the owl. Of course, it's purely for cosmetic purposes, but it's still fun.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3480742980

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3480743160

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3480743248

As for the music, the tracks are the same as in the previous games. So far as I could tell, there are no new tracks, which is a bit of a shame since new tracks would help to give more variety. Still, the tracks that are present fit well with the theme of being in the US Wild West.


Would I recommend Golden Rails: The heart of the state? If you're looking for a fun time management game and are especially a fan of games by Alawar Casual and even more so, the Golden Rails series, this is worth checking out. The new game mechanics make the game refreshing to play, and I like how the story ends. Hopefully, we'll get to see Jack and Jill on their next adventure. ^^

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