Shadowgate

A departure from the usual rogue-style video game, Shadowgate (for the Mac and NES) was a puzzle-style castle adventure that came out in 1987. There were no random elements to Shadowgate - either the player knew how to solve the puzzles or they didn't. The only thing to keep someone from finishing the main quest was the possibility of running out of torches, which was very real. Without a lit torch, a player could not see and would end up dying one or two turns after their fire ran out.

The castle is filled with all sorts of deadly traps, and the player should save their game quite frequently, even after every room or solved puzzle. However, saving a game with no torches in reserve can be a mistake that will require the player to start from the beginning again. Although there are weapons in the game, they are not used in combat, but rather they will slay the appropriate enemy if the right choice is made. The game's music is foreboding, and will change upon entering a new room or if a player's torchlight starts to dwindle.

Puzzles within the castle include a room with a lake containing a shark, a chamber full of upright caskets, and a hall of mirrors. Most areas have at least one fatal choice that can be made, so players should always consider their surroundings and inventory before they act. Many of the puzzle solutions are not obvious choices, so success is not as simple as merely selecting the correct option from a list. Thinking "outside the box" is the key to eventually meeting the Warlock Lord and solving the riddle of Castle Shadowgate.

For those who want to discover the solution to Shadowgate, there is at least one video that will take the viewer through all of the puzzles. The entire game takes only about 30 minutes if all of the solutions are known. The NES version of Shadowgate also exists in a flash version, which can be played in a web browser.