

If they are real diamonds, it means we are winning.” Molefe, 41, who conceded that he had no clue whether they were actually diamonds. Two days of strenuous digging had yielded four stones for Mr. No one who came seemed the least deterred by the widespread skepticism that the stones were really diamonds. The rumor that a herdsman had found clear stones resembling diamonds in the soil of a grassy, tree-filled slope last month lured thousands of South Africans to KwaHlathi, a sleepy village in the eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal where cattle roam freely.Ĭoming by taxi and by car, many from hours away, they dreamed of a turn of luck in a nation whose persistent struggles with joblessness have reached new heights amid the pandemic. He took a few more vigorous whacks into the edges of the shallow crater he had dug at the bottom of a hillside, before scooping up a handful of loose dirt and shaking it in search of the sparkle of a gem. It's just a shame that while it ultimately proves to be something of an excavated treasure, Diamond Rush's flaws mean it doesn't shine as brightly as it might do.KWAHLATHI, South Africa - Sbusiso Molefe stretched the pickax high above his head and hacked into the clumpy black dirt around his feet. There's no doubt playing it beats being stuck in a ditch in Kent digging up old animal bones for a living. If you're not made of such stern stuff, you might be left feeling disappointed. And suddenly you're getting, well, a rush.Īnd that is the key with Diamond Rush: if you persevere and you're up for the challenge, you'll be fulfilled. Later on, the environments become more varied, as do the tools you collect, and the puzzles you're asked to solve more fiendish and also more thrilling. It's another old-fashioned trick, leaving some of the best action to the end, and as a result it's all the more rewarding to have made it there. The further you go, the more there is to do. There is a trade off, however, in the level of variety packed into the game. If you've not played thoroughly, you won't get out of the first area unless you have happened to collect enough of the rarer, hidden red jewels. It can make the game fairly wretched, even in its early stages. There's no leeway for mistakes and you're often forced to reset the area (costing you a life) to have another go. This proves more frustrating than, say, thinking your digging implements have struck buried booty when in fact you've unearthed a disused shopping trolley, and it often makes Diamond Rush feel more old-fashioned than it should. Or maybe that should be trail and error, because every path you're supposed to follow in the level, and every sub-room in each level, has a single and fixed way to be solved.
Diamond rush distrust trial#
What rocks can you push out the way or let fall so you can access the jewels and make sure you still have a clear path to progress?Īt first this provides a taxing but lightweight challenge, but unfortunately it irritates after a while thanks to its trial and error nature. This is the bulk of the game, and it requires forethought and calculation.

And we mean a lot puzzles and trapped jewels require you to push them out of the way, and quickly move aside when perilous stacks prepare to tumble on you, killing you and sending you back to the start of the area you've just entered. Diamond Rush demands you think about what you're doing as you fill the boots of a plucky tomb-trawler, searching for gems and dodging falling rocks.

Speeding might be exaggerating, however, because despite the Rush in the title, this game is an action-puzzler. What's that, you say? In reality archaeology involves squatting in a ditch, lightly brushing the dirt from almost-fossilised drink cans and decaying plastic bags of yore? We don't believe you, especially when a game like Diamond Rush refuses to dispel the myth of epic heroic characters speeding across the globe for deliciously valuable treasures. Is there a more exciting profession? Indiana Jones, Lara Croft: these famous adventurers do nothing but run around all day, collecting precious artefacts from perilous subterranean lairs and fighting mythical monsters.
