Castle Escape (ZX Spectrum 48K-128K)
A downloadable game
Wee Knight must escape the haunted castle collecting gold coins and dodging the castles deadly inhabitants as he goes. Due to the enormous weight of his armor, Wee Knight cannot jump very high unless he consumes the magenta eggs found within the castle. But beware, the anti-gravity effects of the eggs do not last long leaving Wee Knight at risk of missing out on the castles many treasures. Prolong life by collecting the hearts and don’t let Wee Knight fall too far or he'll be crushed by the weight of his own armor.
Awards
Awarded 3rd place for Best Platform Game in Planeta Sinclair's Game of the Year 2022 awards.
Reviews
Reviewed in Crash Micro Action Issue #15 Apr/May 2023.
Cassette Copies
Physical copies of Castle Escape are available from our partners at Cronosoft.
ZX Spectrum NEXT Users
If using HDMI output on the ZX Spectrum NEXT select NEXT/+3 mode when starting the game.
User Controls
- Default Keys (can be redefined)
- O - Left
- P - Right
- M - Jump
- Joysticks
- Kempston
Tips
- All coins are collectable!
- But you may need magenta eggs to reach them.
- Points are also scored for collecting eggs and hearts!
- Patience will help you sneak under the spiders.
- Jumping over them is possible, but difficult.
- Rats have a predictable behavior.
- You can jump over them without eggs but it requires cat like reflexes.
Notes
- The high-score table is auto-saved if ESXDOS (DivMMC) is detected.
- Game engine: All hand coded ;)
Credits
- Design & Coding
- IrataHack
- Graphics
- Fonts
- Levels Designed with Tiled by IrataHack
- Music
- Rich 'Tufty' Hollins
- MmcM
- rnR T.A.D.
- Sound Effects
- Shiru
- IrataHack
- Loader
Purchase
In order to download this game you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $1.99 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Download demo
Development log
- Bug fix releaseAug 19, 2024
- ZX Spectrum Next and MoreJan 04, 2024
- Minor UpdatesJan 03, 2024
- Crash Xmas Tape 2022 VersionJul 20, 2023
- Bug Fix ReleaseFeb 23, 2023
- Let's Get PhysicalFeb 06, 2023
- Happy Christmas Eve!Dec 24, 2022
- Updated Demo AvailableNov 04, 2022
Comments
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Hi, many thanks for esxDOS (ZX Spectrum) support!
Gameplay: Cool
Graphics: Cool
In One Word. Masterpiece 😁👍
❤️
Cracking game, nice bit of beeper music too.
Many thanks!
Hi, Happy New Year!
I hope I’m not going mad but I just downloaded the update and ran on my N-GO that has 2.08 and core 3.0.2.0 and when I start the game the main player sprite is missing on the first screen If I load it up using 48k or 128k mode. If I select Plus 3 / Next mode it loads up fine and seems okay. Is this something you are aware of or is it my error?
I also noticed that the main player sprite seems to flickr a lot more now. I checked the YouTube video and it looks quite noticeable compared to my original version. Perhaps this is to do with it not running in 128k mode?
Look forward to hearing from you.
Regards - Rob
Hi Rob,
Happy New Year!
There is a known problem when running on the Next or N-GO when using HDMI output. There will be a fix available shortly. The fix requires you run in Next/+3 mode as you have been doing but the flickering has been addressed. Once the new release is available, please give it ago and let us know if you see any problems.
Best regards,
IH.
Hi IH,
Great to hear from you. Thanks for the super fast reply and update.
That makes a lot of sense because I’ve just changed to using a new monitor with HDMI, I previously used VGA hence why I didn’t see the issue. I look forward to the next update soon.
Your work is great and really enjoyable - keep it up in 2024 :-)
Regards
Rob
Very nice platform game. Our German-language review can be found in our recorded livestream starting at 04:38:42. Subscription to our YouTube or Twitch channel is welcome. 🙂
Probado también en el ZX UNO XL, se bloquea en cualquier modelo que se ponga. Por otra parte, decir que el juego está muy bien
Corrijo lo anterior. Con el kempston no me funciona. Solo teclado si. En 128k
Gracias por la información. Investigaremos.
En estos dos modelos, se queda bloqueado. Sólo funciona en 48K
No es compatible con el Plus 2A ni el Plus 3
Hola, el juego ha sido probado en +2A y 3.
Great game!
Great game. The movement of the protagonist, and the whole in general, is super smooth. Adjusted difficulty and great gameplay.
I love it, it's one of those games you must have. Congratulations!!!
Nice game, really enjoyed the demo and I've Pre-Ordered it. Looking forward to playing this over Xmas.
Thanks for your support. There are still some final touches needed but development is coming along nicely.
Ok so, I have no experience with the hardware, playing or developing, but the music in this game has convinced me, I think, that maybe it's time to look into it! It's so lovely and appropriate to the theme.
Ah, yes. The AY-3-8912 from General Instruments/Microchip Technology is the 'musical' heart of many a home computer, ZX Spectrum, MSX, Amstrad CPC, for example. Even some arcade machines used it back in the day, 1942, Frogger, and more. There is a Wikipedia page for it here.
me again, ok it works
Fantastic, enjoy!
on my spectrum 128k +2b only appears the scenario the player doen't appear nor everything moves on the screen only music and scenario :(
Sorry to hear it's not working for you. Currently only the +2 and below are supported due to the games use of the floating bus feature which is not supported by the +2b hardware. Stay tuned to the Devlog, if I find a resolution I'll post an update there.
Aw hey! :) I remember we talked about it a year ago, I just looked and oh god I forgot to reply to your last email. I so sorry. But great to see you keeping at it. :) I'mma pre-order it and give that latest demo a go. :) Glad my old pixels were good for something.
By the way, my username hasn't been Carnivac for about, I dunno, a decade? I never made that ZXArt page. I don't know who did. The images on it certainly weren't from 2014 as it says. Actually did them in 2010 so I think whoever uploaded them to ZXArt did so in 2014. :) Anyways my name ain't hugely different but was tweaked in case Hasbro registered 'Carnivac' (which is a Transformers character) and I wanted something a bit more unique. :D
Hey Carnivius, (got your username right this time ;)) great to hear from you. Thanks for the support! I updated your username and linked to your itch.io profile.
Stay tuned to the Devlog for updates.
Aw thanks for the name adjust! :D
Yeah I'm following you now (not in a creepy stalker way) and I played the demo earlier. Man I suck at it but I'm having fun playing it. :)
I didn't think it was creepy... Until you mentioned it, and now it's weird... Just kidding.
I've been told it's 'Brutally Hard'. I've been playing a lot as I've been developing so I guess I'm used to it.
Awesome ! When is the final release ?
In true Speccy style I hope to have it complete by Christmas. Stay tuned to the Devlog for updates.
Thanks.
Nice game!
Thanks! Great video. You nearly found the secret passage to the lower portion of the rightmost 2 levels ;)
Cool game for retrolovers. Thumb up.