This Indigenous Remix of ‘The Oregon Trail’ Is Making Game History

For gamers of a certain age, The Oregon Trail game from 1971 is a true icon. Set in 1848 and following a group of European settlers, it helped school children everywhere learn more about American history. Furthermore, it led to some truly meme-worthy moments, including the classic “You have died of dysentery” meme.

Now, however, a new 2D adventure game has taken the concept of The Oregon Trail and given it a very unique twist. The game, called When Rivers Were Trails, is set in 1890 and tells the story of a Native American forced out of Minnesota as they make their way to California.

Released in 2019, When Rivers Were Trails has already made major waves in the gaming community. And it has also helped to put the original Oregon Trail back on the map.

Here is everything you need to know about When Rivers Were Trails and why it is making game history.

The original Oregon Trail

Younger gamers may have no real memory or even knowledge of the original Oregon Trail. Those who played it, though, remember it as an unforgettable experience.

By modern standards, the graphics and gameplay are primitive. After all, the original code dates back to 1971. And the game mostly centered around successfully getting from Missouri to the West Coast.

To do so, you had to pick the right supplies, select the speed of your journey, and make some hard decisions when bad things happen. And for most players, the journey ended in deaths that alternated between horrific and hilarious.

To the original developers, though, the point of the game was what you learned along the way.

Legacy of the first Oregon Trail

For better or for worse, Oregon Trail basically created the “edutainment” genre of gaming. Designed by Paul Dillenberger, Bill Heinemann, and Don Rawitsch in 1971, it served as an interactive history lesson for young students in Minnesota.

Thanks to Rawitsch, the game spread throughout Minnesota and then throughout the country. And it would receive numerous ports and adaptations over the next five decades to help gamers everywhere experience its bizarre and educational charm.

Even if it weren’t so influential as an educational title, Oregon Trail made history for another reason. It’s what the World Video Game Museum dubbed “the oldest continuously available video game ever made.”

However, the new game When Rivers Were Trails takes issue with some of the lessons from the original title.