Shadowgate

This article is about the 1987 video game. For the unrelated novel, see Shadowgate (novel).

Shadowgate
Developer(s)	ICOM Simulations Kemco (NES)
Publisher(s)	Mindscape Kemco-Seika (NES)
Director(s)	Dave Marsh Karl Roelofs
Composer(s)	NES Hiroyuki Masuno, Kento's Group
Engine	MacVenture
Platform(s)	Macintosh Apple IIGS Atari ST Amiga MS-DOS NES Windows Game Boy Color Mobile Palm OS Pocket PC PlayStation 4 Xbox One
Release	June 1987 Macintosh NA: June 1987 Amiga NA: 1987 MS-DOS NA: 1988 NES JP: March 31, 1989 NA: December, 1989 PAL: May 30, 1991 Windows NA: 1993 EU: 1993 Game Boy Color NA: January 1999 JP: August 13, 1999 Pocket PC NA: 2002 PS4 NA: October 2017
Genre(s)	Adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player

Shadowgate is a point-and-click adventure game developed by ICOM Simulations and published in 1987 for the Macintosh as part of the MacVenture series. The game takes place in the Castle Shadowgate, residence of the evil Warlock Lord. The player, as the "last of a great line of hero-kings", is tasked with saving the world by defeating the Warlock Lord, who is attempting to summon the demon Behemoth out of Hell. The original Macintosh version was only in black-and-white, but color versions of the game were later released for the Amiga and Atari ST, and in 1989 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The game was generally well-received, and was followed by several sequels and remakes for various systems.

Gameplay

The beginning of the game (Macintosh version)

Shadowgate is a point-and-click adventure game in which the player must solve a series of puzzles throughout a castle to proceed to the Warlock Lord's chamber. Due to the castle's perilous nature, at least one lit torch must be in the player's possession at all times. If all torches are extinguished, the player soon stumbles, breaking their neck, and must then continue from a saved game (or the area where they died, in console versions). Only a limited number of torches can be found throughout the game, which effectively acts as a time limit. The player may acquire various items such as a sword, a sling and other ancient weapons which can be used at the appropriate time to deliver a fatal blow to specific enemies.

The game has many instances of death, including being burned by dragon's breath, attacked by a cyclops, sucked into outer space through a broken mirror, dissolved by acidic slime, eaten by sharks, mauled by a wolf-woman, and suicide. Virtually any action taken by the player which is not the correct solution to a puzzle will result in a fatality. These deaths are often graphically described in the game's text (along with frequent sardonic and humorous comments), even in the NES version (in spite of Nintendo's policy of censorship at the time). Many of the game's puzzles rely on a system of trial and error, requiring the player to frequently save their game to avoid losing progress. Subtle hints can be found in books and the descriptive game texts. In the NES version, these are replaced by a hint feature which gives vague clues about what is noteworthy in any given room.

Plot

Shadowgate begins as the protagonist finds themselves standing at the entry to the Castle Shadowgate, remembering that they had been tasked by the wizard Lakmir with defeating the evil Warlock Lord before he can raise the Behemoth from the depths and destroy the world.

The protagonist then enters Castle Shadowgate and begins to solve its puzzles, while surviving its many traps and defeating various monsters along the way. During the journey, he collects three sacred artifacts which together form the Staff of Ages, a holy weapon capable of stopping the Warlock Lord once and for all.

The protagonist eventually enters the Warlock Lord's chamber just as he succeeds in opening the gates of Hell and summoning the Behemoth. The protagonist assembles the Staff and uses it to mortally wound the Behemoth. As it dies, the Behemoth then drags the Warlock Lord with him into Hell. The protagonist returns victorious, where he is betrothed to the King's daughter and entitled High Lord of the Westland.

Ports

Shadowgate was originally released for Macintosh in 1987 and ported to other computers, including a color version for the Atari ST and Amiga later the same year. In 1988, it was released for MS-DOS and in 1989 for the Apple IIGS. It made its first console appearance later that year for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The success of Shadowgate on the NES prompted ICOM Simulations to have Kemco port the other MacVenture titles to the console, including Déjà Vu and Uninvited. The NES version of Shadowgate is one of the few NES games with a Swedish language version. In 1992, an enhanced version of the game was released for Windows 3.1x.

The NES port was rereleased in October 2017 (alongside Déjà Vu and Uninvited) for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in a collection called 8-Bit Adventure Anthology: Volume 1, developed by Abstraction Games.

In 2024, a port for the Playdate handheld console was announced.

Reception

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	67.14% (GBC)

Review scores

Publication	Score
AllGame	(PC) (MAC) (NES) (GBC, Pocket PC)
GameSpot	5.8 out of 10 (GBC)
IGN	6 out of 10 (GBC)
Nintendo Power	7.3 out of 10 (GBC)

Computer Gaming World gave the game a very positive review, noting the game uses the same superior interface as prior MacVenture games. The difficulty was noted as a step up from Deja Vu and Uninvited, but Shadowgate was also said to be more flexible, allowing more than one solution to some puzzles.

The game was reviewed in 1987 in Dragon #128 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers stated "Shadowgate is a great adventure game in that you must continually be aware of what’s already been accomplished to complete subsequent puzzles". The reviewers gave the game 5/5 stars.

Keith McCandless of Macworld reviewed the Macintosh version of Shadowgate, praising its extensive gameplay, stating "so much is jammed into these two disks that nearly everyone should find this game appealing ... ShadowGate plays easily and instinctively". McCandless also praised Shadowgate's graphics and sound, calling the graphics "expertly crafted", despite "[lacking] originality", and called the sound effects "far better than those of most adventure games". He further called Shadowgate "technically, visually, and aurally superior to most of its competition", but criticized the game's mood, stating that it doesn't "take itself seriously enough to create a mood of mystery", and also lacks the 'tongue-in-cheek' humor of other adventure games, creating a feeling of something "lacking".

Legacy

Release timeline

1987	Shadowgate
1988–1992
1993	Beyond Shadowgate
1994–1998
1999	Shadowgate 64: Trials of the Four Towers
2000–2004
2005	Shadowgate Classic
2006–2013
2014	Shadowgate
2015–2020
2021	Shadowgate VR: The Mines of Mythrok
2022–2023
2024	Beyond Shadowgate

In 1996, Infinite Ventures acquired from Viacom the rights to Shadowgate and other games originally developed by ICOM Simulations. ICOM Simulations had been acquired by Viacom in 1994, but had published no updates to the original products. After the acquisition, Infinite Ventures ported the game to other operating systems such as Windows 9x, as well as portable systems including Windows CE and Palm OS, under the name of Shadowgate Classic. These versions had a new interface and menu layout, with artwork based on the 1996 Windows versions.

In 1999, Infinite Ventures licensed the NES version of Shadowgate to Kemco and it was ported to the Game Boy Color with enhanced sprites and animations, also under the name of Shadowgate Classic.

In 2005, a mobile phone version of the game was released by Vindigo Entertainment. Once again using the name of Shadowgate Classic, this version featured brand new graphics, puzzles, challenges, and areas.

In 2006, Infinite Ventures licensed the rights to the ICOM Simulations portfolio to Zojoi, LLC, a company formed by Shadowgate's original game designers, Dave Marsh and Karl Roelofs. In October 2012, Zojoi launched a Kickstarter campaign to secure funding for a remake of Shadowgate. Original game creators Dave Marsh and Karl Roelofs appeared in the pitch video and showed pre-production footage of the game in development. They set a crowd-funding goal of $120,000. In the 2nd update of the Kickstarter campaign, the Black Axe, an item and quest that had been cut from the original game due to size constraints, was announced to be reintroduced in the new version of Shadowgate. Those who pledged $2,500 or more received a replica Staff of Ages. The campaign finished successfully, earning $137,232 in pledges by November 2012 and reaching its first stretch goal. The remake was completed and released for Windows in 2014. In 2019, it was ported to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.

Sequels

In 1991, a novel written under the pen name "F.X. Nine" called Before Shadowgate was published by Scholastic Corporation as part of the Worlds of Power series of video game novelizations of third party Nintendo Entertainment System games. The novel acts as a prequel to the game, and featured contributions from Shadowgate co-creators Dave Marsh and Karl Roelofs, who provided important details and information to the book's author.

There have been two sequels to the game. The first, Beyond Shadowgate, was released for the TurboGrafx-16 in 1993 and the second, Shadowgate 64: Trials of the Four Towers, for the Nintendo 64 in 1999. Another N64 sequel, Shadowgate Rising, was well into development, but the project was scrapped when Nintendo announced a new console which became the GameCube.

On September 16, 2021, 317 Games launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for Shadowgate, The Living Castle, a board game based on the Shadowgate series.

In October 2021, Zojoi and Azure Drop Studios released Shadowgate VR: The Mines of Mythrok, an exclusive Oculus Quest title.

On January 22, 2023, Zojoi announced a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for Beyond Shadowgate, the official sequel to the NES version of Shadowgate. A video from series co-creator Dave Marsh notes this project uses the original design documents from 1990 and is unrelated to the TurboGrafx-16 game. It was released on Steam and GOG on September 19, 2024.

External links

• Official website
• Shadowgate at MobyGames
• Shadowgate at Interactive Fiction Database
• Shadowgate can be played for free in the browser at the Internet Archive
• Before Shadowgate title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database