Castlequest
System: NES
Release Date: September 1989
Developer: ASCII
Publisher: Nexoft
Genre: Platformer
Do you want an obtuse puzzle game created in the mid 80s? Then Castlequest is the game for you. The story is something we’ve seen dozens of times. Evil guy steals the princess and locks her away in his castle. It’s up to you, Prince Rafael to overcome the challenges and save the princess from her fate. I’ll be forthcoming with the fact that I did not stick this one out. I realize as a write this, that the game is incredibly similar in style to Montezuma’s Revenge, which I hated. The prince can jump, capping out at four tiles high, but with a long jump worthy of the Olympics. He can also swing his little sword, which can take out one of the enemy types.
There are 100 rooms in this castle, with entrances blocked by colored keys. The manual warns that you can use keys in the wrong places and put yourself in a walking dead scenario. There are a ton of jumping puzzles, as well as blocks to maneuver, mixed with enemies to avoid, elevators to contend with, water hazards that require an oxygen tank, and more. When you enter a new room, you can scroll the screen to see what you’re dealing with, as rooms are two screens wide.
You start with 50 lives and are liable to burn through them pretty quickly as you figure out what’s allowed and what will kill you. Oh look, a guy running at me, I’ll stab him with my sw- I’m dead. A barrel moving on a conveyor belt at me, I’ll just jump on i- I’m dead. A living flame moving oddly- I’m dead. Is that a plant? I’m dead. Moving platform for me to jump on- I’m dead. Are those spikes protruding from the wall? Ahhh yes, dead. Sorry princess, your prince is in another castle.
Graphics: 1.0
They aren’t the worst graphics I’ve ever seen, but they aren’t any good.
Sound: 0.5
The music is upbeat, but not good enough to have to listen to on loop for however long it takes to win.
Gameplay: 1.0
It probably works as intended if you care enough to stick it out.
Difficulty: 1.0
The puzzles weren’t interesting enough to coax me into sticking with it and figuring out the castle.
Fun Factor: 0.5
I can see some people enjoying this, but I’m not one of them.
Overall Grade: 0.8
Castlequest earns a D. It’s slightly better than Montezuma’s Revenge, but really, what isn’t?