So what the story with this game?
Well, many years ago (I think I was still at school!), as far back as about 1989, I was beginning to formulate ideas for a game similar to Datasofts 'Bruce Lee' for the 8-bit machines.
Bruce Lee game by Datasoft for the Commodore 64
I loved that game, but wanted to add something extra. I really enjoyed what I believed to be an unintentional comedy slant to the game (players could get squashed by someone falling on them and Yamos' funny 'baah!' call move which did absolutely nothing apart from amuse me and whoever else was playing at the time).
But as good as it was, I believed it could be better!
Around 1999 I started writing some code to control a Yamo sprite around the screen.
As I coded I became more interested and added more bits and wrote some test routines to see if what I wanted to do was viable.
Previously I had created several weird and wonderful game ideas. Some of which were written when the hardware to play them did not exsist! The most notable being a pre-rendered raytaced 'Dungeon Master' clone in 1024px wide screen resolution for an Amiga (with an as yet unreleased video board) using a controller which I was going to custom make!
My designs for a multi action controller for the Commodore Amiga
But for now I decided to concentrate my efforts on something which may eventually see the light of day.I was able to focus on what I really wanted in a game.
I was after the fun factor of 'Bruce Lee', with a similar comedy touch, but I also wanted to add a smattering of bits from other games which I had enjoyed playing in my earlier years. I wanted the puzzle parts of 'The Castles of Dr.Creep' as well as something extra in the fighting department. I wanted the fighting to be similar to 'Way of the Exploding Fist', but I was afraid that it would change the speedy dynamic of the game (similar to how 'Fist 2' was) in a way that I didnt want it to go. Being a platform game also meant it was going to be different, so I had to gauge the action accordingly.
Draculas Castle Demo Version Adventure Screen
I also wanted a few adventure style obstacles as seen in games like 'Pitfall 2' and the like. Infact, as the development progressed, (slowly I might add) it was beginning to become very clear what my objective was..
I was attempting to splice all the best bits from all the classic games that I had played and mould them into something which would hopefully be better than the sum of its parts.
In short, I had wanted to create the best retro game ever!
For me to get it right however, some hard and long thought out decisions have had to be made along the way.
One of the first of those decisions becomes apparent pretty much from the first few screens.
Draculas Castle Demo Version Adventure Screen
The graphics had to be kept fairly simple and minimalist. Why? Because it works!
In my opinion, somehow the graphics on the older 8-bits had more atmosphere even with their limited (2-4 colour) palettes than a lot of the more modern titles!
Storm Warrior by Front Runner Software for the Commodore 64
It seems that many modern action games in general are trying to astound the viewer with better looking graphics and realism, rather than concentrate on simple playability and atmosphere. 
An example of very pretty graphics making the character more difficult to notice
Theres also something else that is quite difficult to explain. It exists but cannot be properly quantified or measured...
If you think about coding in the early days of gaming (70's-80's) with a green display monitor (like what they have displaying the 'code' in opening credits of the film 'The Matrix'), theres just something about looking into the blackness of 'cyberspace'... Some people would say the 8-bit versions of 'elite' had a 'something' that the later ST/Amiga/PC ports lacked. Others often argue that ZX Spectrum games were somehow 'better' than the ones created on more graphically able systems. If you agree then you will understand some of the direction I am heading in with this game! This mysterious 'blackness' is prevalent throughout the game and is a nod to the games of old that had the atmosphere that the more colourful contemporary titles seem to lack.
Pentagram by Ultimate for the ZX Spectrum
Although more colour, memory and processing power has come over the years, there seems to have been a shift in the actual games being designed. Something seems to have been lost along the way and Im going to try my best to recapture that gameplay and atmosphere.
Perhaps then, I am ideally suited to be undertaking this project!
There are other bits of the game that have been trimmed down or kept to a minimum, to stay with the general retro theme of the game. Although the actual game engine or framework can deal with a lot more pretty stuff on the screen, Ive hopefully not strayed too far from my original concept.
The one big sacrifice that I made was to have the game completely modifiable, so that others could write their own game and have it totally different to what I had pictured. This meant that I had to forgo some custom routines which would have 'locked down' certain facets of the game to being particular to the Draculas castle game. Hopefully this was the right thing to do, as I actively encourage the Draculas Castle modding community to change anything they dont like. Infact, if they can create really good graphics, levels, or whole games with what I have essentially made into a highly modifiable 2D platform/fighting/Adventure game creator, then I would like to consider them for any future projects that I may have! Get in touch!
Draculas Castle Level Editor
With this versatility, the game could have been made to play very similar to something like Street Fighter 2 or more appropriately, the Vampire Hunter/Darkstalkers games (but in miniature!). However, all things considered, I am trying to make my own original game and hopefully it will feel like a fresh new approach from many different perspectives.