GOT QUESTIONS?

  • Fatal Frontier 1869 is the first in a new genre of Windows PC games designed by a team of games Industry veterans creatively led by Kevin Beardslee a co-creator of World of Warcraft.

    The game blends true-to-history pioneering together with exploration, survival, action role playing with optional prospecting for Gold, Coal and other buried resources.

    Install the Paydirt Launcher to get started. Paydirt Games are the developers of Fatal Frontier 1869 exclusive to Windows PC.

    Gold is real, but so is the danger.

  • Gold is real because it’s worth real money, and can be cashed out to your bank account. Every time you launch an Expedition, our software system procedurally generates the virtual Alaskan landscape and buries vast amounts of gold under the frozen dirt waiting to be found, just like in real life. Gold can be found in geological deposits, veins and clusters down at the bedrock, deep under the dirt, just like the real thing.

    How and where you dig is up to you.
    No crypto, no NFTs, just real US Dollars, available instantly.

  • Windows PC’s only (for now). We recommend minimum of 16GB of Memory and any basic graphics card. Fatal Frontier 1869 will work on nearly every PC out there, whether a laptop or a desktop.

    We do recommend players on laptops use a mouse not their trackpad.

  • Every time you set out on an Expedition the Frontier landscape is brand new, with all gold buried in advance of you starting play. Nothing appears because you dug in the “right spot” at the “right time”. You are searching for gold that already exists. Each landscape will be different for each and every Expedition. It also means nobody in our team knows where the Gold is buried, so please don’t ask us where it is!

    Only the software system operating behind several layers of sensible security and encryption knows where the Gold is buried on your landscape.

  • Of course! If you’re out in the Wilderness prospecting you can Save by pitching your tent and sleeping. Make sure any enemies are far away - no sleeping is allowed unless you’ve found a safe place to pitch your tent. You can also Save after sleeping in any Saloon, found in all mining Camps. If you choose to Save, you’ll exit back to the Game Lobby and the Pioneer character you ‘left behind’ will no longer be available to play with until you complete your existing Expedition.

    Saving and loading is another good reason to collect multiple Pioneer characters. Players who collect different Pioneer characters can send them out on different Expeditions at the same time.

  • Simple: Prospector’s Pass + Claims + Pickaxe

    A Prospector’s Pass is essential. And yessir (or ma’am), this is how our team pays our bills to keep working on Fatal Frontier 1869. You’ll find various Prospector’s Passes available in the Game Lobby along with the Pioneer characters. Owning a Pass permits you to prospect for gold and there is no in-game functional difference between the Passes. The longer-lasting the Prospector’s Pass, the less expensive it is to prospect on a per-day basis. Like buying an Annual pass to visit a real life State Park it’s always a lot more efficient than a single day pass. How long you want to prospect for is up to you!

    Don’t forget to obtain Claims in the Game Lobby, just like in real life, otherwise you won’t be able to keep the Gold you find. If you want new Claims during an expedition you may also find them available in Trading Posts or mining Camps or by successfully completing certain Quests.

    Finally, you’ll need to find a Pickaxe to get down through the frozen Earth to the bedrock where the Gold sits. You can find them or trade for one in mining Camps and Trading Posts.

    How and where you dig is up to you.

  • Find gold in your Claim and your skills will be tested to get all the Gold found out of the ground and safely into your backpack. This is called the “Skill Check” where dexterity and timing is required to maximize the value of your find. Failed Skill Check? You get nothing, the Gold scatters in the wind. Perfect Skill Check? You get it all. Average Skill Check? You get some … but not all.

    Skill Checks are fun & easy to play … but hard to master.

  • Once you’ve collected Gold, you must ‘Extract’ your Pioneer to end the Expedition. Upon successful Extraction, you’ll return to the Game Lobby where your Gold balance will be available for withdrawal or secure storage in your account.

    Gold in Fatal Frontier 1869 is denominated in ‘Grains’. Each grain has a fixed cash value within the game economy, inspired by (though not equal to) the historical value of a grain of gold in 1860s America.

    Some Pioneers have successfully prospected and Extracted substantial quantities of Gold from a single Claim. As in real history, Expeditions require careful planning, skillful play, and a successful escape.

    Extraction is never automatic. To secure your Gold, you must guide your Pioneer to safety - whether by Steamer or Coastal Signal Fire - while navigating the dangers of the Wilderness. In Fatal Frontier 1869, the Gold has value. So does the risk.

    Withdrawals are typically processed the same day. You may withdraw your entire balance or leave Gold stored in your account for future Expeditions. First-time withdrawals may require a brief verification step with help from our Support team to ensure your future withdrawals are sent out without delay.

    It’s your Gold, earned through skill, judgment, and successful extraction. We ensure the process of receiving it is straightforward and timely.

  • Two ways to return from the wilds of the Frontier:

    Take the Steam Ship home. The Steamer arrives several days into your Expedition. You can find it at the dock on the Southern coast. Don’t forget you’ll need a ticket from the mining Camp, which you can earn by harvesting resources, completing Quests or finding them hidden around the landscape.

    Light a Signal Fire. Take your chances and see if a ship offshore will send a rescue launch to pick you up. First, you must find a Signal Fire along the Western coast. Be warned, lighting this enormous fire is perilous! Ships at sea will see it from miles away, but so will ne’er-do-wells, bandits and cut-throats on land. Make sure you’re ready to rumble.

    You choose how - and when - to Extract your Pioneer.

  • The good news is that your Pioneer is not dead, just injured. Badly.

    You'll need to wait for the injuries to heal or send in the cavalry, in this case the Pinkerton Detective Agency whose agents can be hired to find your injured Pioneer.

    The bad news is your Pioneer character was earning XP during the Expedition, used to Level Up and become even grittier. If your Pioneer gets injured, they lose all their XP earned on the Expedition.

    The better news is that you never lose Gold grains found and dug out of the ground. It’s yours once you find it and dig it out of the ground.

  • The game is set in a digital version of Alaska in 1869-1870, just a few years after Russia sold Alaska to the United States on March 30, 1867 for just $7.2M (roughly 2 cents per acre!).

    At the time, the deal was mocked a “Seward’s Folly” after the Secretary of State William H. Seward who negotiated the deal, until vast reserves of first gold, then oil were discovered.

  • Yes. There are multiple modes of play.

    Tutorial shows you the basics of how to navigate the wilderness, fight to survive, pilfer the dead bodies of your enemies, equip found weapons, find buried resources, chop trees for lumber, Camp to restore energy and health as well as how to trade in a nearby mining camp. Just a few minutes of play will teach you the basics. Strongly recommended for new Pioneers. Yes, being a gamer helps and if you are you’ll zip through this in no time.

    Open Range mode is set in 1870, a year after the events of Story Mode took place. Open Range is the most popular mode of play and is where most of the gold prospecting takes place online. Open Range also offers Quests (not for the faint of heart) and lots of unique discoverable locations.

    Play your own way at the Fatal Frontier.

  • Our team loves questing! Quests can have one or more objectives to complete the Quest is concluded. The Right Hand Side ‘Quest Panel’ will show current Quests and the objectives fulfilled or outstanding. Successfully completing Quests may provide you with special or rare items that can be exchanged at Trading Posts.

    Quests are a fun way to explore the landscape, battle bosses and earn items worthy of your efforts. Every Quest is a potential payday.

  • Easy. Download & install the Paydirt Games Launcher from this website. Fatal Frontier 1869 will be available for download within the Paydirt Games Launcher which will also manage updates, as they come.

    Create your Account with Paydirt Games, download Fatal Frontier 1869 free in the Launcher and start playing. Once you’re ready, start prospecting for buried Gold.

    Look for exciting new games in the Store, coming online later in 2026.

    Adventure awaits you. Fortunes are to be found.

  • The Frontier is now live after a 50 day Closed Beta (bugs were found and squashed - thank you to all our early pioneers).

    Technically we went live on November 3, 2025 with in-person ‘Preview Play’ by a group of plucky Southern Californians who came to our retail location equipped with desktop PC’s for a shared experience. They played for free, learned the game for as long as they needed with experts on hand to answer their questions, then all of them (yes, everyone!) proceeded to choose their favorite Pioneers, load up with equipment and undertake Expeditions with their money risked in the search for Gold rewards. Learn more here.

    The online version went into Closed Beta in December 2025, with lucky players invited to download the Launcher, suggest improvements and battle-test the systems for creating their Account, downloading & updating the game and surviving the wilderness.

    ‘Early Access’ - started in the week commencing May 11, 2026.

    Years in the making, the Frontier is now open.

  • Launch the game, login and you’ll arrive in the Game Lobby.

    Here you can review the available Pioneer characters in the Store and choose your mode of play.

    Play for free and head out into the wide Open Range. Lots to see and do, Quests to unlock, maps to uncover.

    Want to prospect for gold worth real money in Open Range? Make sure you obtain a Prospector Pass + Claims = Gold Prospecting.

    All New Pioneers get a $65 free comprising a 72hour Pass, 80 Claims and 1,500 Greenbacks (the coveted currency of 1869 - use these to buy gear and special items while out on an Expedition).

    Game Lobby is where you manage your Pioneers, your Account, gear-up and launch an Expedition.Prospector Pass + Claims = Gold Prospecting

  • As you ready to launch an expedition you’ll be prompted to ‘Load Out’ your Pioneer with additional Traits (skills) unlocked as you play. Traits can make you faster, carry more, better at combat, sneakier in stealth … all manner of skills can be earned through play.

    Accumulate Experience Points (“XP”) and progressively Level Up your Pioneer. Max level-up is to 30. A level 30 Pioneer is a force of nature … or, as they called them in the 19th Century genuine “Frontiersmen”. The more you play the game, the more your Pioneer will progress, unlocking additional Traits.

    All players get ‘Wade Tornstrom’ for free - a shipwrecked Whaler forced to become a pioneer. Choose from several characters, each with their own unique abilities to match your preferred style of play.

    Adding Traits to your Pioneer makes your playable character more able to navigate, survive and thrive in the game world.

  • You’ll likely have your favorite Pioneer, but having more than one is instrumental as Pioneers can be injured, wounded and otherwise deemed ‘Exhausted’. This means from time to time your Pioneer might become inoperable 15 minutes while they recover from their wounds. Having other Pioneers on your roster means you can continue playing, exploring and Prospecting.

    All of this means you’ll very likely want more than one Pioneer over time.

  • No, not really, but most players will want to have more than one Pioneer in their crew.

    Each Pioneer is different. Some are excellent at Stealth, slipping past bandits and other enemies (Skookum). Some are expert at getting the most from blast mining (Boomstick). Some are fast-moving crack shots delivering more instant headshot kills (Clara) and others are more generalist in nature (Wade).

    Pioneer characters are added from time-to-time so keep half an eye open for more playable Pioneers.

  • Our innovative and unique software system buries the gold in a ‘deterministic’ manner, setting the stage for your very own private gold prospecting adventure, which is potentially highly lucrative!

    Gold and all other resources (buried or visible, like trees) are buried by the software, not by us ‘mere’ humans. This means fairness, integrity and excitement in finding resources buried - in the case of Gold - in realistic seams, veins, clusters and deposits.

    It’s up to you to find the gold, it’s out there waiting to be discovered.

  • Yes. Fatal Frontier 1869 is legal to play in the United States because it is a game of skill, not a game of chance.

    In Fatal Frontier 1869, finding and extracting real gold depends entirely on how you play - your decisions, timing, reactions, strategy, and resource management in the frontier. Skilled players consistently outperform unskilled players, which is the key legal standard used across most U.S. states.

    To keep everything above board, we automatically:

    • Check that players are located in states where skill-based games are allowed

    • Verify age and identity for anyone who chooses to prospect for gold

    You don’t need to worry about any of this. You can start playing for free, and the game will let you know if gold prospecting is available where you live.

    Everyone in the U.S. can play Fatal Frontier 1869 for free, just for fun.
    When it comes to prospecting for gold, 93% of American adults are eligible. We don’t allow minors to prospect for gold - sorry kids, the frontier is a hard place.