City of Gold (2010 film)

Spelunky XBLA (1080i HD) Mini-Guide #12: City of Gold + Big Money

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• published: 16 Aug 2012
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If you weren't aware, the steps to accessing the City of Gold are: I. Find the Udjat Eye by carrying the Big Key to the Golden Lock Chest. The Key and Chest will always spawn together on some level in The Mines (meaning you'll never have to carry it between levels to unlock the Chest), and usually/always on the second, third, or fourth level of that area. If they end up being on a special level, the Key and/or Chest is often found in the actual pit of Snake Pit ("I hate snakes!") levels / guarded by the four Giant Spiders in Crawling Skin levels. Good luck! II. Find the entrance to the Black Market. The entrance is always hidden in terrain in the first, second, or third level in The Jungle. Kind of like a metal detector, the Udjat Eye blinks and make sounds corresponding to your distance from the entrance. Once inside the Black Market level, make your way to the rightmost edge and purchase or steal the Ankh. III. Find the blue moai. The moai is always found somewhere in The Ice Caves, and usually/always in a "normal" level (e.g. not a "Wet Fur" level). Die somewhere within range of the moai. Suicide via proximity mines, spikes, and the abyss all can work since the moai has a generous radius, but try to stay close if you can. The Ankh will cause you to respawn inside the moai, where you can collect the Hedjet. You will lose any held item (e.g. Damsel, Idol, Shotgun) upon respawning, but you get to keep your Cape/Jetpack and all other equipment. IV. Find the Sceptre / Scepter. The Sceptre is always dropped by defeating the Anubis boss in the first level of The Temple. Carry the Sceptre to the second level and find the Golden Door. If every step was followed correctly, the door should open and you'll finally gain access to the City of Gold! Making it to the City of Gold (and still beating Olmec afterward) constitutes the second tier of game completion in Spelunky, and it's the first "true" completion in my eyes. I'm sure some people think speedrunning or avoiding all treasure (i.e. Low Scorer achievement) while going through the game is just as valid of an Ironman strategy, but I disagree. I will admit that both of those are still challenging, but I think they're challenging in a different way. I normally don't mind such things, but I dislike them in this game since I feel they go against its central challenges and design. In most other games, there are a set of "main" missions or levels or areas where it is interesting to see how fast one can complete the objectives. In Spelunky, speedrunning (and Low Scorer, for the most part) is just traveling from point A (a level entrance) to point B (a level exit) as fast and direct as possible, and navigating to the exit is usually one of the easiest parts of any given level. I think the "true" challenge is exemplified in things that I do: exploring, killing, and collecting as much as one can before the ghost shows up. Sure, doing ghost runs is one more layer of challenge, but I consider that as something that's in addition to the challenges I already tackle. Sorry if you think different because you have a different preferred playstyle, but that's my sentiments and I'm sticking to them. I think the single most important decision in any given run is whether or not you're going to steal anything. While it is technically possible to limit your theft to occasional snatch and grabs, I wouldn't recommend it. Shopkeepers are just as murderous and frantic as they would be if you just straight up committed armed robbery, so there's usually little benefit in trying to constrain yourself. You should decide to either steal nothing or steal everything of value at every opportunity. If you do decide to steal (a very useful tactic for increasing your chances of both making it to the City of Gold and earning the Big Money achievement), then the next question is: When? Robbery can make exiting levels much more difficult depending on the layouts you get, so I recommend waiting until you feel you have enough equipment to deal with multiple spastic and deadly enemies. Paste for Sticky Bombs is pretty much a must at some point, and the Pitcher's Mitt can be handy too but isn't a necessity. Robbing before the Black Market is often a bad idea since the combination of cramped, trap-deficient spaces and scant equipment can easily be deadly for you and not them, but it can be accomplished with good timing and skill. 4:02 - Yes, I know I got the Jetpack quite early again. I swear I'm not scumming for them on purpose as I can do nearly as well with only Climbing Gloves and/or a Cape. It's just that a Jetpack greatly increases your chances of survival, and that's why you tend to see it often in my successful runs. 14:22 - Not exactly sure what finally offed that shopkeeper (it seems like my dropped shotgun fell and the resulting falling damage removed the last hit point he had), but I'm glad it did!