4 ms·

Dark Castle

248 points by evo_9 6mo ago

xnx 6mo ago
Also playable in browser at https://classicreload.com/play/mac-dark-castle.html https://classicreload.com/play/mac-dark-castle.html
- SethTro 6mo ago
  User input doesn't seem to work. Other classics on the site do work but not Dark Castle (at least for me)
  - butlike 6mo ago
    Same
- sinoue 6mo ago
  Thanks! On the original download site I'm getting a 404 MS Azure download error.
kelsolaar 6mo ago
The download links are all dead.
- card_zero 6mo ago
  But archived! https://web.archive.org/web/20250901121225/https://darkcastle.co.uk/assets/files/playmac.zip https://web.archive.org/web/20250901121225/https://darkcastl...
  - chongli 6mo ago
    Might as well link directly to the game: https://archive.org/details/mac_DarkCastle_1_2 https://archive.org/details/mac_DarkCastle_1_2
- binaryturtle 6mo ago
  I thought it was only me. Or it's temporarily down because some HN overload or something.
- QuantumNomad_ 6mo ago
  Microsoft Azure strikes again!
gaythread 6mo ago
[flagged]
einpoklum 6mo ago
So, I was disappointed to find dead links to a Windows-based emulator :-( Does anyone know... * What happened to the creators? * Who owns the copyrights, if at all? * Has anyone been approached to release the source code and games resources? Also, if anyone has an appropriate Linux emulator, which supports these games, please share a link and perhaps instructions.
- card_zero 6mo ago
  Mini vMac (bundled in the zip) has Linux versions too. https://www.gryphel.com/c/minivmac/ https://www.gryphel.com/c/minivmac/ Dark Castle was by Jonathan Gay, who also did Shockwave Flash, a somewhat more popular project. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Gay https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Gay
- fzzzy 6mo ago
  Mini vMac. You’ll need a mac plus ROM file and a copy of the software disk images. Or, return to dark Castle is now available on steam as mentioned elsewhere in this thread. It contains all the dark castle and beyond dark castle levels plus many more new levels and works on modern computers.
- deleted 6mo ago
  [deleted]
- djmips 6mo ago
  Elsewhere in a comment someone posted the archive links which worked - I had fun playing in the emulator on my Windows PC
st3fan 6mo ago
Such a classic. Played these for many hours as a kid.
mjmsmith 6mo ago
Z Sculpt sells an updated version of Return to Dark Castle: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4054940/Return_to_Dark_Castle/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/4054940/Return_to_Dark_Ca...
chrisallick 6mo ago
instill have the floppies :)
gausswho 6mo ago
Note that Dark Castle was programmed by Jonathan Gay, who would eventually go on to make FutureSplash. You might know it better from what it was renamed to: Flash (of Macromedia/Adobe).
- DonHopkins 6mo ago
  The first time Marc Canter (who founded Macromedia) introduced me to Jonathan Gay at CGDC as the creator of Dark Castle, I excitedly and respectfully held and flapped my hands above my head and shouted at him: "Nya nya nya nya nya! Yow! Uuuurh! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" (The sound of the nasty monsters, and picking up rocks.) https://youtu.be/6U6v3XyrPLc?t=43 https://youtu.be/6U6v3XyrPLc?t=43 For years after playing that game, I would always say "Yeah!" whenever I picked up a rock, and I'd always look for bats every time I entered a room. After my friend and I (whose Mac we both relentlessly played Dark Castle on) went to pick up a big chunk of hash from his pot dealer, we both looked at each other and said "Yeah!" Fortunately we refrained from throwing it at a bat.
  - z0r 6mo ago
    Someone claiming to be the creator of Dark Castle says they are working on a 40th anniversary edition in the comments of that video.
    - DonHopkins 6mo ago
      Another commenter figured out how to spell "Woah! Wueeeueehh, wueeeueehh, wueeeueehh! Mmmbrbrbrbr!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U6v3XyrPLc&t=416s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U6v3XyrPLc&t=416s
  - lolive 6mo ago
    Was the dual “euh weuuu heu heuuu” when you were drunk or when you fell from a a bit too high?
    - jjuran 6mo ago
staplung 6mo ago
You can also play it in the browser in Infinite Mac: https://infinitemac.org/1991/System%207.0 https://infinitemac.org/1991/System%207.0 (Worked somewhat better for me than the classicreload version)
deleted 6mo ago
[deleted]
CMay 6mo ago
This game came out the same year the original Castlevania did. They're different enough games, but there are a few similarities that do make you wonder if they had any particular shared influences.
bombcar 6mo ago
I'd love to see a Fabien-style Game Engine Black Book for some of these older Macintosh games.
m463 6mo ago
The other thing I remember of that era was the (unrelated) Talking Moose
astennumero 6mo ago
Would it be possible to play this in those retro platform emulation handhelds? Was able to find ports for DOS, Mac, Genesis, C64, Amiga, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, CD-i. Is this a viable portmaster suggestion?
formvoltron 6mo ago
ahhh.. childhood!
wickedOne 6mo ago
i still remember the christmas easter egg in there
kidkujoe 6mo ago
wow nostalgia!
macleginn 6mo ago
If the author sees this: it's "whose old Apples", not "who's". Only mentioning this because it's very prominent on the landing page. Also the feedback form doesn't work in Firefox, Chrome, and Edge.
tiltowait 6mo ago
If you've never played it before, Dark Castle really is worth looking at. Its artwork is incredible even before considering the constraints, and its gameplay holds up remarkably well for something from 1986.
frollogaston 6mo ago
The right way to play this game is on CD-i

248 points by evo_9 6mo ago

xnx 6mo ago

Also playable in browser at https://classicreload.com/play/mac-dark-castle.html https://classicreload.com/play/mac-dark-castle.html

SethTro 6mo ago
User input doesn't seem to work. Other classics on the site do work but not Dark Castle (at least for me)
- butlike 6mo ago
  Same
sinoue 6mo ago
Thanks! On the original download site I'm getting a 404 MS Azure download error.

kelsolaar 6mo ago

The download links are all dead.

card_zero 6mo ago
But archived! https://web.archive.org/web/20250901121225/https://darkcastle.co.uk/assets/files/playmac.zip https://web.archive.org/web/20250901121225/https://darkcastl...
- chongli 6mo ago
  Might as well link directly to the game: https://archive.org/details/mac_DarkCastle_1_2 https://archive.org/details/mac_DarkCastle_1_2
binaryturtle 6mo ago
I thought it was only me. Or it's temporarily down because some HN overload or something.
QuantumNomad_ 6mo ago
Microsoft Azure strikes again!

gaythread 6mo ago

[flagged]

einpoklum 6mo ago

So, I was disappointed to find dead links to a Windows-based emulator :-( Does anyone know... * What happened to the creators? * Who owns the copyrights, if at all? * Has anyone been approached to release the source code and games resources? Also, if anyone has an appropriate Linux emulator, which supports these games, please share a link and perhaps instructions.

card_zero 6mo ago
Mini vMac (bundled in the zip) has Linux versions too. https://www.gryphel.com/c/minivmac/ https://www.gryphel.com/c/minivmac/ Dark Castle was by Jonathan Gay, who also did Shockwave Flash, a somewhat more popular project. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Gay https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Gay
fzzzy 6mo ago
Mini vMac. You’ll need a mac plus ROM file and a copy of the software disk images. Or, return to dark Castle is now available on steam as mentioned elsewhere in this thread. It contains all the dark castle and beyond dark castle levels plus many more new levels and works on modern computers.
deleted 6mo ago
[deleted]
djmips 6mo ago
Elsewhere in a comment someone posted the archive links which worked - I had fun playing in the emulator on my Windows PC

st3fan 6mo ago

Such a classic. Played these for many hours as a kid.

mjmsmith 6mo ago

Z Sculpt sells an updated version of Return to Dark Castle: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4054940/Return_to_Dark_Castle/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/4054940/Return_to_Dark_Ca...

chrisallick 6mo ago

instill have the floppies :)

gausswho 6mo ago

Note that Dark Castle was programmed by Jonathan Gay, who would eventually go on to make FutureSplash. You might know it better from what it was renamed to: Flash (of Macromedia/Adobe).

DonHopkins 6mo ago
The first time Marc Canter (who founded Macromedia) introduced me to Jonathan Gay at CGDC as the creator of Dark Castle, I excitedly and respectfully held and flapped my hands above my head and shouted at him: "Nya nya nya nya nya! Yow! Uuuurh! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" (The sound of the nasty monsters, and picking up rocks.) https://youtu.be/6U6v3XyrPLc?t=43 https://youtu.be/6U6v3XyrPLc?t=43 For years after playing that game, I would always say "Yeah!" whenever I picked up a rock, and I'd always look for bats every time I entered a room. After my friend and I (whose Mac we both relentlessly played Dark Castle on) went to pick up a big chunk of hash from his pot dealer, we both looked at each other and said "Yeah!" Fortunately we refrained from throwing it at a bat.
- z0r 6mo ago
  Someone claiming to be the creator of Dark Castle says they are working on a 40th anniversary edition in the comments of that video.
  - DonHopkins 6mo ago
    Another commenter figured out how to spell "Woah! Wueeeueehh, wueeeueehh, wueeeueehh! Mmmbrbrbrbr!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U6v3XyrPLc&t=416s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U6v3XyrPLc&t=416s
- lolive 6mo ago
  Was the dual “euh weuuu heu heuuu” when you were drunk or when you fell from a a bit too high?
  - jjuran 6mo ago

staplung 6mo ago

You can also play it in the browser in Infinite Mac: https://infinitemac.org/1991/System%207.0 https://infinitemac.org/1991/System%207.0 (Worked somewhat better for me than the classicreload version)

deleted 6mo ago

[deleted]

CMay 6mo ago

This game came out the same year the original Castlevania did. They're different enough games, but there are a few similarities that do make you wonder if they had any particular shared influences.

bombcar 6mo ago

I'd love to see a Fabien-style Game Engine Black Book for some of these older Macintosh games.

m463 6mo ago

The other thing I remember of that era was the (unrelated) Talking Moose

astennumero 6mo ago

Would it be possible to play this in those retro platform emulation handhelds? Was able to find ports for DOS, Mac, Genesis, C64, Amiga, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, CD-i. Is this a viable portmaster suggestion?

formvoltron 6mo ago

ahhh.. childhood!

wickedOne 6mo ago

i still remember the christmas easter egg in there

kidkujoe 6mo ago

wow nostalgia!

macleginn 6mo ago

If the author sees this: it's "whose old Apples", not "who's". Only mentioning this because it's very prominent on the landing page. Also the feedback form doesn't work in Firefox, Chrome, and Edge.

tiltowait 6mo ago

If you've never played it before, Dark Castle really is worth looking at. Its artwork is incredible even before considering the constraints, and its gameplay holds up remarkably well for something from 1986.

frollogaston 6mo ago

The right way to play this game is on CD-i