Cauldron (video game)

Cauldron
Artwork of a vertical rectangular box. The top portion reads "Cauldron" and the bottom portion reads "Commodore 64/128". Depicted behind a black background is a witch with long green hair and a long pointed nose. The witch uses a stick to stir a liquid in a black cauldron.
The box art depicts the main protagonist, a witch. Artwork by Steve Brown.
Developer(s)Palace Software
Publisher(s)Palace Software
Designer(s)Steve Brown
Programmer(s)Richard Leinfellner
Composer(s)Keith Miller
Platform(s)Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Enterprise 128
Release1985
Genre(s)Platform, scrolling shooter
Mode(s)Single-player

Cauldron is a video game developed and published by British developer Palace Software in 1985 for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and Amstrad CPC home computers. It contains both platform game and horizontally scrolling shooter sections. Players control a witch who aims to become the "Witch Queen" by defeating an enemy called the "Pumpking".

Designed by Steve Brown and Richard Leinfellner, Cauldron originated as a licensed game of the horror film Halloween. Brown eventually altered the game to use a theme based on the Halloween holiday. The mix of two genres resulted from Brown and Leinfellner wanting to make a shoot 'em up and platform game, respectively. The developers realized that there were no technical limitations preventing the genres from being combined.

The game received praise from video game magazines, who focused on the graphics and two different modes of play. A common complaint was Cauldron's excessive difficulty. The following year, Palace released a direct sequel titled Cauldron II: The Pumpkin Strikes Back.