There's gold in them there hills... black gold gold!
The City of Gold is a hidden level somewhere within Area 4. It requires several items obtained from the first three Areas to access.
Item Chain
Accessing the City of Gold starts in Area 1 with the Big Chest and Key, which grant you the Udjat Eye when combined. The Eye must then be used in Area 2 to find the location of the Black Market, which sells the Ankh. Because of the way shopkeeper anger persists, this means that you CANNOT kill any shopkeepers or steal from any shops until after you have obtained the Ankh (unless, that is, you think you can handle the horde of shopkeepers that exist in the Black Market). The Ankh's high cost ($50,000!) will most likely prohibit you from buying anything until after you've obtained it, and finding the Black Market requires at least one bomb, usually two or three. The Ankh is used in Area 3, on a level with the Ankh Statue, a giant blue Moai head with an ankh carved into its forehead. Dying from anything but a bomb on that level will respawn you inside the Moai with four hearts. Sitting inside the Moai is the Hedjet, which must be used with the Scepter found off the Mummy in Area 4 to unlock a semi-hidden Golden Door to the City of Gold.
Reviewing:
- Locate the Big Chest and Key in Area 1.
- Use one or the other to obtain the Udjat Eye.
- In Area 2, the eye will blink and play a sound to denote the location of the Black Market. Find it and bomb it open.
- Purchase the Ankh on the Black Market for $50000, or brave the vengeance of at least seven Shopkeepers.
- Locate the Moai Ankh Statue in Area 3. Kill yourself in that level from anything but a bomb.
- Acquire the Hedjet from the room you've respawned in.
- Locate the Mummy in Area 4 and kill it to obtain the Scepter.
- Find the Golden Door somewhere in Area 4, usually floor 14.
- Use the Scepter (along with the Hedjet) to open the door and enter the City of Gold. Note that this consumes the Scepter.
Contents
The City of Gold is essentially only a "pat-on-the-back" area for those insane enough to get to it. Apart from the fact that all of the walls and floors are made of gold (and thus have a high value.. if you can harvest it), the City is essentially the same as any other level in Area 4. It isn't really worth all the trouble to access, especially considering that by going through it you are giving up the best weapon in the game - as well as almost all of the money you've made. It may also have MULTIPLE Mummies generated in it, making it extremely dangerous, moreso than just going through the normal level would be. Even worse, none of these Mummies will give back the Scepter used to enter, though this may be an unintended bug.
The City of Gold is only worth visiting when trying to accumulate an enormous gold score, but is only really worthwhile with several dozen sticky bombs and a jetpack or climbing gloves. Getting this sort of stock of items from supply crates or from legitimate shop purchases is extremely unlikely, so the best way to make the City of Gold worthwhile is to rob your way through the Black Market - an extremely risky move. Purchasing the Ankh is usually better saved for the four-heart refill if you make a mistake and die, especially if your main goal is to clear the game.