Разработчик: Diel Mormac Games
Описание
**Demo version with 45 levels**
**XBox 360 Controller Supported**
Madcap Castle was originally created for BaconGameJam 10 (and won!) in 48 hours by DielMormac, containing 4 colours inspired by old Game Boy games. Back in the day the game was called Mad Mage Tower.
In Madcap Castle you play as a new mage that do not know many spells yet, but is looking to regain his sanity on a strange castle full of objects, enemies and challenges. On some of the castle's levels there are books of spells. If you can make it over to a spell, you will be able to read it and learn the spell. These spells, including the ability to light candles, spawn chickens and use levers, will help you solve puzzles along the way.
Поддерживаемые языки: english
Системные требования
Windows
- OS *: Windows® XP or higher
- Processor: Single Core 2.0ghz
- Memory: 512 MB RAM
- DirectX: Version 9.0
- Storage: 100 MB available space
Mac
- OS: Ubuntu 11.04 or higher
- Processor: Single Core 2.0ghz
- Storage: 40 MB available space
Linux
- OS: Ubuntu 14.04 or higher
- Processor: Single Core 2.0ghz
- Memory: 512 MB RAM
- Storage: 50 MB available space
Отзывы пользователей
Finally I completed the game with all levels zero death. My first challenge of hell in 2024. If I knew the journey was that tricky and awful, I would think twice before buying this game.
Have to say some designs are very smart, while the flaws are just as astonishing. I doubt whether they tested every level, quality control is definitely missing in this game. Some levels are extremely easy to beat, while others? I do not even think the developers want you to complete the game, they only want you to get mad.
Unless you really want to challenge yourself at a high level, do not consider this game. Very few can play to the end, not even the developers themselves I guess.
Madcap Castle is a precision platformer where you have to get to the exit but each room has requirements such as pushing all buttons and killing all enemies. Many different traps and enemies are placed in such a way that the rooms won’t be a simple A to B walk. You have one skill that changes halfway through each castle (a world with 15 puzzles including 1 boss). There are 10 castles with their own gimmicks.
The gameboy style in terms of graphics and music is charming. There is a lot of content for the price paid. The skills, levels and bosses have creative ideas and it can feel great to clear levels/bosses sometimes. I like what the game is trying to do as it’s my kind of game. The big issue that ruins things is the way challenge is achieved.
There is fair challenge where a game can be incredibly challenging but the controls are perfect, the enemy behaviour is predictable, the traps are consistent and you know what you’re supposed to do. Madcap Castle is extremely challenging while it fails at all those elements. It requires perfect precision (sometimes with an inch difference) while there are some things that are seriously wrong. To give some examples:
-Enemies: rats can sometimes stop moving out of the blue, frogs have different jump strength, bats can dive deeper when they aim for you. Just to add some context, there will be rooms with many of them and you’re dead with one hit
-Traps: moving lightning can get stuck in its direction, beams & spikes have weird timing where they might stop moving for a while and then move again later in weird inconsistent ways
-Controls: not sure if intentional but you can’t jump when you’re too close to an edge while it feels like you should. There are certain moves with 3 skills where nowhere is explained how to activate them to clear certain levels (mini version high jump, invisibility high jump, different strengths of dash)
-Skills: ones like teleportation and dash suck because there is no indicator where you’ll land. You’ll have to figure it out by gauging things. This is all well and good but it sucks when the rooms become so complex & long and you’ll have to retry entire rooms from scratch with one mistake
-Checkpoints: as mentioned previously, it became very tedious dying every time and going through many steps again to get where you were. Often times it’s not challenge after a while but the annoyance of waiting for the traps to disappear and this waiting wastes so much time. Same with the bosses. After a while you figure what you need to do except for one step and you have to repeat all the steps so many times until you figure out that one step. A checkpoint system would have made things so much better
-Other: there are some weird situations like the card skill (your attack) sometimes not hitting enemies even though visually you can see they should be hit. Or you’re killed by the impact of bombs because the impact stays for too long etc.
I was dreading playing more of this after a while and I was more than glad to be done with it in a negative way. While I can see the love and attention the game got, I really urge you to not play this unless you’re a) too curious or b) the type that likes punishing challenge even if said challenge is not fair through systems that are not functioning properly. As mentioned though, the developers can clearly design creative puzzles with great ideas. So there is hope that their next game might get things right in terms of execution.
Ok if bought on a sale for 50 cents or so
A small, simple plattformer styled like a Gameboy game.
Every level completely fits on screen and you have to reach the exit on the right side from the entrance on the right. Every few levels you get a new spell to solve the following levels.
The small space filled with instant death traps makes timing and precision necessary but the short distance to the goal shapes the game to a hard plattformer of small bits. This would be an amazing game for short breaks, however, the rooms usually are peppered with switches you have to press consecutively before the exit will open. Obviously this is to lenghten the individual levels but it often just forces you to cross the same Room twice or more.
Even with this nuisance this game is a nice little intermezzo for everybody interested in precision platformers.
This game is just so-so. The real downfall in this is that I was expecting the kind of game where you get more and more spells as it goes on but instead you are given one at a time so each room is very straight forward in how they are completed and more relies on annoyingly precise platforming rather than any sort of clever thinking with how your magic works. Around the half way point it felt more worth it to stop playing rather than continue. If you enjoy tough platforming games then this could be for you but I personally find that it gets difficult later on for the wrong reasons.
This isn't that bad of a game, but it really isn't all that great either.
If you are fan of Super Meat Boy and the genre, you should give this game a try.
PROS
- This one is a "True Retro"
It's how I like to call these games where everything in the game is created to, supposedly, run on a old console. I can easely imagine my brothers and I fighting and crying to play this game in our old Game Boy, if this game had been released then.
- Simple/easy to learn controls, with lots of mechanical twists.
- Levels sequence really well designed
First, you want to find out what is the enxt spell. Then, you want to master them all.
- Almost all levels have a regular pattern being followed after the respawn
I really loved to study and plan my actions (and failed misarebly due to make lack of skills). Also, I can imagine people Speedrunning it.
- Good 8-bit music/sounds
- Good 8-bit graphcs
CONS
- Some really hard/almost impossible levels seams to pop randomly from time-to-time
(Personally, I struggled a lot on the level 89)
- Lack of a history through the levels
At the Intro, it tells why you are at the castle, but there is practically no follow up through the game.
[*]Some features, that you might be used to have, are not there
Like some Options (volume, brightness, screen size, etc.) or a button to exit the game in a single click. Since it is designed to run like it was on a GameBoy, it is understandable, but still a little annoying.
It's very cute and recreates the feeling of Gameboy games perfectly, I like it
this game.
this game.
where to start.
this game is so refreshing, even though it does not have "the best graphics on the planet"
to me, this is a wink, a nod and a m'lady to the good old days.
this game has a demo version, with 45!!!!! levels.
played through it, immediately fell in love with it, and purchased.
Madcap has a big skillcurve. you can get through the first couple of levels with ease, but after level 15 it gets exponentially harder.
full controller support is a welcome gift, and it plays like the old days. just an allround well designed and put together game, that is harder then any souls game ive ever played. Kudos!
will be sinking a lot of time in this, and for 10bucks, its a steal, and definitely a hidden gem!!
purchase this game now, and have fun with hours of giggles and rage!
(might want to stock up on controllers)
Madcap Castle aims to be a puzzle platformer from the days of Game Boy era games and does a very good job at reaching those aims.
TLDR; First Impressions Video and Critique
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iStmcOoIko
The controls are tight and intutive as well are the mechanics relating to your active abilities on each world. The movement is the biggest thing that could have made this game cross the line between challenging but attainable or frustrating and sloppy. Im happy to say that it most certainly falls into the former category making the puzzles challenging but I always felt that I could complete them with practice.
The only things I would like to see from either a patch on this game or in the developers future games is more love for the options menus!
Please put in something to the effect of audio sliders for your music, FX, and master volumes. By no means is the sound unbalanced between the different types of sounds created during gameplay but it is always a little piece of customization that is sorely missed when its not there.
The last thing I would love to see patched is a way to get back to the main menu from the world selection screen. You can return to the main menu when you've selected a world and are choosing a level but not when you're selecting just a world.
They are little nit picks but worthwhile to bring up.
All in all I enjoyed Madcap Castle would reccomened at least playing the demo if you have a spare 1/2 hour :)
I bought on first place just to see what it was like, and after playing until the 1/3 of all levels I can say that I will keep that game to play more!
Remind me when I bought my first game boy and how the years passed fast!
If you want to chill and play a little bit of old school game, this game is for you.
Дополнительная информация
| Разработчик | Diel Mormac Games |
| Платформы | Windows, Linux |
| Ограничение возраста | Нет |
| Дата релиза | 31.01.2025 |
| Отзывы пользователей | 70% положительных (10) |