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{{Header Nav|game=Castle of the Winds}}
{{Header Nav|game=Castle of the Winds|num=2}}
{{Game
{{Infobox
|completion=2
|image=Castle of the Winds 1 box.jpg
|title=Castle of the Winds
|title=Castle of the Winds
|image=Castle of the Winds 1 box.jpg
|developer=[[SaadaSoft]]
|developer=[[SaadaSoft]]
|publisher=[[Epic Games]]
|publisher=[[Epic Games]]
|genre=[[RPG]]
|year=1989
|systems=[[Windows]]
|systems={{syslist|win}}
|released={{rd|1989}}
|genre=[[Roguelike]]
|players=1
|players=1
|ratings=
|modes=[[Single player]]
|requirements=640x480 monitor, 286MHz CPU, 2MB RAM
|pcgamingwiki=Castle of the Winds
}}
}}
{{Wikipedia}}
'''Castle of the Winds''' (CW) is a tile-based [[roguelike]] computer game for [[Windows]] 3.x. It was developed by [[SaadaSoft]] and published by [[Epic MegaGames]] in [[1989]]. The game is composed of two parts: A Question of Vengeance, released as shareware, and Lifthransir's Bane, sold commercially. A combined license for both parts was also sold. The game differs from most roguelikes in a number of ways. Its interface is mouse-dependent, but supports keyboard shortcuts. Castle of the Winds also allows the player to restore saved games after dying.
 
'''Castle of the Winds''' is a Roguelike [[RPG]] designed to run under [[Windows]]. It will also run on [[Linux]] using the WINE Windows compatibility layer<sup>[http://appdb.winehq.org/appbrowse.php?catId=55 1]</sup>.
 
{{Continue Nav}}


==History==
In [[1998]], the game's author, Rick Saada, decided to distribute the entirety of Castle of the Winds free of charge, but did not release the source code publicly. There is an HTML5 implemented version of the game available for play at http://game.castleofthewinds.com.
''CoTW'' was written in 1989 by [[SaadaSoft]] (a one-man, one-product company run by Rick Saada) and published by [[Epic Games]]. It was one of Epic’s first two games for Windows (previous games had run on DOS), the other being a [[:Category:Adventure|point-and-click adventure]] called ''Dare to Dream''. The game was released in two parts: ''A Question of Vengeance'', released as shareware; and ''Lifthransir's Bane'', sold commercially. A license to continue using ''A Question of Vengeance'' and a copy of ''Lifthransir's Bane'' were sold together.


In 1998, Saada released the distributed files into the public domain. However, he has not released the source code, and has expressed no intent to do so <sup>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Castle_of_the_Winds 2]</sup>.
Although secondary to its hack and slash gameplay, Castle of the Winds has a plot loosely based on Norse mythology, told with setting changes, unique items, and occasional passages of text.


Among Roguelikes, the game is notable for several innovations. Its [[Castle of the Winds/Interface and Controls|interface]] is heavily mouse-based. Many commands are awkward to enter with the keyboard (requiring the use of the Alt key on the menu bar). Traditional Roguelikes (such as ''[[NetHack]]'') were controlled completely by keyboard, sometimes with optional mouse input.
The player begins in a tiny hamlet, near which he used to live. His farm has been destroyed and his godparents killed. After clearing out an abandoned mine, the player finds a scrap of parchment that reveals the death of the player's godparents as having been ordered. The player then returns to the hamlet to find it pillaged, and decides to travel to Bjarnarhaven.


Castle of the Winds also allows the player to save the game at any point, and to restore saved games after dying &mdash; features never seen in a traditional Roguelike game (where “death is final,” although this could be circumvented with backups). Since graphics, mouse input, and resurrection from saved games would be features developed in later RPGs, ''CoTW'' can be seen as the transitional step between old and new.
Once in Bjarnarhaven, the player explores the levels beneath a nearby fortress, eventually facing Hrungnir, the Hill Giant Lord, the one responsible for ordering the player's godparents death. This reveals a new twist to the plot concerning the player's heritage, and the game continues on as a quest for the player's birthright.
 
Still, due to its age, the game has few players today. It has only four known [[Castle of the Winds/References and External Links|fan sites]].
 
===Basic concepts===
====Space====
''CoTW'' is a (square) tile-based game, meaning that movements may only occur in increments of one tile. Diagonal and orthogonal adjacency are treated the same way in terms of distance.
To pick up an object, the player must be directly on top of it.
 
There is no way the player can walk through the rock walls of the dungeons, despite that some monsters can.
Tiles (in diagonal corridors, etc.) that contain half a wall are treated as walls.
 
====Time====
''CoTW'' is turn-based. Players and monsters cannot attack each other at the same time. However, their speeds can vary, which means the monster may be able to make several steps or strike at the player several times before the player can respond, or vice-versa.
 
Monster speed depends on the specific monster, and can also be affected by '''Slow Monster''' and '''Haste Monster''' spells. See [[../Character Attributes/]] for details on player speed.
 
Winning players are ranked in Valhalla's Champions (the high score list) in order of shortest to longest time to complete the game.


{{ToC}}
{{ToC}}


==External Links==
==External links==
* [http://www.exmsft.com/~ricks/ Rick Saada's home page]
* [http://www.exmsft.com/~ricks/castl11a.zip Freeware version download]
* [http://www.exmsft.com/~ricks/castl11a.zip Freeware version download]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20110717071112/http://www.exmsft.com/~ricks/castl11a.zip Freeware version Parts I & II download, from archive retrieval of the Saadasoft homepage]
[[Category:SaadaSoft]]
[[Category:SaadaSoft]]
[[Category:Epic Games]]
[[Category:Epic Games]]
[[Category:RPG]]
[[Category:Roguelike]]
[[Category:Windows]]
[[Category:Single player]]
[[Category:Single player]]
[[Category:1989]]

Latest revision as of 14:39, 25 June 2022

Box artwork for Castle of the Winds.
Box artwork for Castle of the Winds.
Castle of the Winds
Developer(s)SaadaSoft
Publisher(s)Epic Games
Year released1989
System(s)Windows
Genre(s)Roguelike
Players1
ModesSingle player
LinksCastle of the Winds at PCGamingWikiCastle of the Winds ChannelSearchSearch

Castle of the Winds (CW) is a tile-based roguelike computer game for Windows 3.x. It was developed by SaadaSoft and published by Epic MegaGames in 1989. The game is composed of two parts: A Question of Vengeance, released as shareware, and Lifthransir's Bane, sold commercially. A combined license for both parts was also sold. The game differs from most roguelikes in a number of ways. Its interface is mouse-dependent, but supports keyboard shortcuts. Castle of the Winds also allows the player to restore saved games after dying.

In 1998, the game's author, Rick Saada, decided to distribute the entirety of Castle of the Winds free of charge, but did not release the source code publicly. There is an HTML5 implemented version of the game available for play at http://game.castleofthewinds.com.

Although secondary to its hack and slash gameplay, Castle of the Winds has a plot loosely based on Norse mythology, told with setting changes, unique items, and occasional passages of text.

The player begins in a tiny hamlet, near which he used to live. His farm has been destroyed and his godparents killed. After clearing out an abandoned mine, the player finds a scrap of parchment that reveals the death of the player's godparents as having been ordered. The player then returns to the hamlet to find it pillaged, and decides to travel to Bjarnarhaven.

Once in Bjarnarhaven, the player explores the levels beneath a nearby fortress, eventually facing Hrungnir, the Hill Giant Lord, the one responsible for ordering the player's godparents death. This reveals a new twist to the plot concerning the player's heritage, and the game continues on as a quest for the player's birthright.

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External links[edit]