From TES issue 43 (January 2007)

Series 4. Level 1.
THE CASTLE OF DOOM

As we are all well aware, many changes took place for the fourth series of Knightmare, perhaps the most notable of which was the inclusion of pre-recorded eye shield sequences leading from room to room. I am well aware of how unpopular these are, and I agree that they do waste a lot of time. However, locations such as the Castle of Doom helped to give some definite structure to the Dungeon, which I quite liked, personally.

After a team had answered Oakley's questions and chosen their level one clue objects, they progressed either to the Castle of Doom or Dungarth, which was the final port of call in level one. The clue objects would have to be used here before the wellway to level two was discovered. Of the eight teams in series 4, only three ended up at the Castle of Doom.

The first team of the series (Helen's) visited the Castle of Doom, where they had to bribe Fatilla with a bar of gold, and then use the Dagger of Darkness to slip past the Armoured Behemoth and enter the wellway. Treguard gave us a chilling introduction to the castle: "I don't know how we got here, but I know this fortress. It's called Doom, and it's not inaptly named!" - Treguard. However, as you should know by now, the fortress is actually called Castle Rising!
The series's second dungeoneer, Alistair, also entered the Castle of Doom, walking a longer, more interesting route than Helen had taken. He entered through the bailey gate, where he had to flatter Fatilla (although he was actually supposed to bribe the guard with a bar of gold; surprise, surprise) and then walked up a path towards the main keep, which could be easily recognised from Helen's quest. Goblins pursued Alistair along the path, so he had to throw down some aniseed to throw them off the scent.
The final appearance of the Castle of Doom was in Simon's somewhat erratic quest, although it was rather too short for my liking. Simon entered the castle from the same direction as Helen, leaving Alistair's little jaunt around the grounds as the sole occasion those particular eye shield sequences were used. Simon had to blow a horn to deafen a pair of goblins, and then turn over an hourglass to freeze a giant lizard.

All four subsequent dungeoneers after Simon (as well as Nicky before him) ended up at Dungarth instead of the Castle of Doom, which was a shame in a way, as the location was somewhat underused, in my humble opinion at least. Still, let's not dwell on it...

Difficulty: 5 Two objects required to exit level one.
Killer Instinct: 0 No deaths occurred here, and were not likely to.
Gore Factor: 0 As above.
Fairness: 9 A fair way to finish off the level, although I'm sure series 3 purists would disagree with me.

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