Dark Castle
| Dark Castle | |
|---|---|
| File:Dark castle pack thumb.jpg | |
| Developer(s) | Silicon Beach Software |
| Designer(s) | Mark Stephen Pierce (graphics) Jonathan Gay (programming) |
| Platform(s) | Amiga Apple IIGS C64 Atari ST Apple Macintosh MS-DOS Mega Drive/Genesis |
| Release | 1986 (Mac) 1991 (Mega Drive/Genesis) |
| Genre(s) | Platform game |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
Dark Castle is a computer game released for the Macintosh in 1986, by Silicon Beach Software. It is a platform game where a young hero named Duncan tries to make his way to the evil Black Knight, dodging objects as well as solving occasional puzzles. The game is notable for its use of sampled sounds to great effect.
Gameplay
Movement within Dark Castle is typical for most platformers. Duncan can run, jump and duck, and can throw a limited supply of rocks at his enemies. More rocks can be found in little bags along the way, as well as bottles of an elixir that provides a one-time antidote to bites of the numerous rats and bats found around the castle.
To defeat the Black Knight, Duncan will need a magic shield and the power to hurl fireballs, both of which can fortunately be found within the Dark Castle. The game begins in the Great Hall, where the player can choose from four doors. The large center door leads to the Black Knight when his time has come. One other is marked with the shield and the remaining two mysteriously alternate between the fireball course and a more troubling path. The game can be played at three different skill levels, the hardest Advanced level containing more enemies and a few extra surprises.
Distinctive features
- Duncan easily gets disoriented; when walking into a wall or falling a short distance without jumping he walks around in circles for a moment mumbling incoherently. This can often be a great source of amusement and annoyance.
- Falling into holes in the floor does not cause death but instead leads to a dungeon ("Trouble 3") which can be escaped with some effort. This is (probably intentionally) a source of much gameplay annoyance, however is often virtually necessary on the harder difficulty levels so that you can stock up on necessary items.
- Easter Egg: Play Dark Castle with the computer's clock at December 25th. The Great Hall will have some added holiday features.
- For some strange reason you can only pick up a maximum of 89 rocks. Why not 99 is anyone's guess.
Beyond Dark Castle
In 1987, the sequel Beyond Dark Castle was released, in which Duncan has to return and defeat the Black Knight who is still alive. To access the Black Knight's tower, the player must first gather five magic orbs which are placed in various hard to reach places. Beyond Dark Castle had an engine similar to Dark Castle but with improvements and additions, including some levels where the player could control a "mediaeval jetpack" of sorts.
Remakes
In 1994, the gaming company Delta Tao Software acquired the rights to some of Silicon Beach's old games, via Aldus, and were able to produce and publish a modernized color version of the original game. In 2000, a new sequel called Return to Dark Castle was announced, where a new young hero called Bryant must once again defeat the Black Knight. It is still in development.
A version for the Mega Drive/Genesis was released by Electronic Gaming Arts (now Electronic Arts) in 1991. However, this version does not do the game justice, and it was panned by critics and gamers alike. A PC version of the original Dark Castle was also released, which was closer to the original game. Considering the hardware specifications that it was written for (16 colors, PC speaker, no mouse), the port runs very well.
External links
- Delta Tao
- Video review of Beyond Dark Castle in the Computer Chronicles
- Original Dark Castle
- Running Dark Castle on an emulator, plus advanced walkthrough
- Return to Dark Castle
- Dark Castle at MobyGames on the non-Mac versions of the game