Castelian was published by Hewson Consultants, released in 1987.

What kind of game is Castelian?

Castelian is a action game for the NES / Famicom.

Can two people play Castelian?

Yes. Castelian supports multiplayer (Multiplayer). Player 1 uses the arrow keys, player 2 uses WASD, and two USB or Bluetooth gamepads can be connected instead.

How much data does Castelian load?

The Castelian ROM is 128 kB. It is fetched once when you press play and then cached by your browser, so returning to the game does not download it again.

Which emulators can run Castelian?

Castelian runs on NES / Famicom and Nestopia UE (Accurate). You can switch between them from the emulator list further down this page if one performs better on your device.

Castelian Game (1987) - NES

Name: Castelian
Availability: InStock
Author: Hewson Consultants

Action / Button	Keyboard Key
D-Pad (Up / Down / Left / Right)	`Arrow Keys`
Button A	`Z` or `J`
Button B	`X` or `K`
Button X / Turbo A	`A` or `U`
Button Y / Turbo B	`S` or `I`
Select	`Shift`
Start	`Enter`

Gamepad Input	Retro Function	Keyboard Key
D-Pad / Analog	Character Movement / Steering	`▲` `▼` `◄` `►`
Button A (East)	Primary Action / Attack / Fire	`Z` / `K`
Button B (South)	Secondary / Jump / Cancel	`X` / `J`
Button X / Y	Special / Turbo / Extra Fire	`A` / `S`
Select	Insert Coin / Select Option	`Right Shift`
Start	Game Start / Pause Game	`Enter`

Gamepad Input

Retro Function

Keyboard Key

D-Pad / Analog

Character Movement / Steering

▲ ▼ ◄ ►

Button A (East)

Primary Action / Attack / Fire

Z / K

Button B (South)

Secondary / Jump / Cancel

X / J

Button X / Y

Special / Turbo / Extra Fire

A / S

Select

Insert Coin / Select Option

Right Shift

Start

Game Start / Pause Game

Enter

Emulator Core Engine	Technology	Multiplayer	Gamepad	Touch	Ads	Action / Switch
EmulatorJS (Default WebAssembly)	`WebAssembly / JS`	YES	YES	YES	NO	▶ ACTIVE
NES / Famicom (Recommended)	`WebAssembly / Libretro`	YES	YES	YES	NO	PLAY ⚡
Nestopia UE (Accurate)	`WebAssembly / Libretro`	YES	YES	YES	NO	PLAY ⚡

Emulator Core Engine

Technology

Multiplayer

Gamepad

Touch

Ads

Action / Switch

EmulatorJS (Default WebAssembly)

WebAssembly / JS

YES

▶ ACTIVE

NES / Famicom (Recommended)

WebAssembly / Libretro

YES

PLAY ⚡

Nestopia UE (Accurate)

WebAssembly / Libretro

YES

PLAY ⚡

Castelian is an action game published by Hewson Consultants for the NES in 1987. The hook is the playing field itself: each stage takes place on the outside of a cylindrical tower. Move left or right and the entire column rotates, keeping the platforms, enemies, and gaps on the far side perpetually out of view until you reach them. The goal is to fight your way to the top and destroy the tower, then repeat on the next one.

How to play

Use the arrow keys to climb, descend, and rotate around the tower. Press X to fire at enemies; Z handles the alternate button action. Enter starts the game and Shift acts as Select. Reach the top of each tower to clear the stage and advance.

Tips

The tower wraps continuously — walking off one side brings you back from the other. Use that to sidestep a threat instead of retreating upward into a blind corner.
Shoot enemies as soon as they appear. The rotating cylinder compresses your reaction time, and waiting for them to get close usually means taking a hit.
Each tower layout is fixed. A run that ends early is still practice — you learn where the awkward gaps and enemy spawns are so the next attempt goes further.