disk-based copy protection which caused him to fear damage to the disk drives, crashes when loading the game, and slow level loading. Game reviewers Hartley and Pattie Lesser complimented the game in their "The Role of Computers" column in Dragon #122 (1987), calling it "the finest arcade/adventure game ever designed for the Macintosh computer — as a matter of fact, for any computer!" and stating, "The graphics and animation are quite literally stunning!". In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars. Macworld reviewed the Macintosh version of Dark Castle, praising its gameplay, graphics, and sound, stating that "Dark Castle is at its core a shoot-'em-up, duck-'n'-run type of game, but one so finely crafted it deserves a new classification that reflects its fast-paced action as well as its superb animation, graphics, and sound. The game has a humorous aspect as well.", and furthermore stating that "Dark Castle provides the highest quality graphics and sound of any Macintosh game available. Its action is fast and furious, its scripting sublime." Macworld summarises their review by listing the game's pros and cons, stating "Great graphics, sound, animation, and design" as positives, and stating "None" for Dark Castle's negatives. In 1996, Computer Gaming World declared Dark Castle the 136th-best computer game ever released. Legacy Beyond Dark Castle In 1987, the sequel Beyond Dark Castle was released, in which Duncan has to return and defeat the Black Knight, who is still alive. To access the Black Knight's tower, the player must first gather five magic orbs which are placed in various hard-to-reach places. The orbs must be returned to the Ante Chamber and placed on 5 pedestals for the gate to open so Duncan can face the Black Knight. Beyond Dark Castle had an engine similar to Dark Castle but with improvements and additions like a health bar, bombs, and other items, as well as levels where the player could control a "personal helicopter". These levels and maze levels were side-scrollers instead of being limited to a single screen. Games could also be saved in a "computer room" level. Like all versions of Dark Castle, if the player beat the game on advanced, it presented a special ending. Return to Dark Castle In 2000, a new sequel called Return to Dark Castle was announced, being developed by Z Sculpt, where a new young hero called Bryant, the nephew of