ALICANTE – January 24, 2025.

At 4MHz, we are delighted to announce a very special event for all retro gaming enthusiasts. On February 15, the 4MHz development team will exclusively present Malasombra, their ambitious project for the NES console, with a talk and a special showcase for attending media outlets.

After more than five years of development, Malasombra promises to be an unforgettable experience that combines the essence of classic 80s games with modern design and mechanics. Set in a world of legends and fairy tales, the game will take players on an epic adventure full of challenges, magic, and emotions.

The event will feature exclusive content and key details being revealed for the first time:

• Promotional material: Attendees will have the opportunity to discover the game’s cover art and see the physical edition, including the cartridge, instruction manual, and other elements that are part of the project.
• Insights into its development: 4MHz will provide a detailed look at the game, as well as the technical and creative challenges they have overcome during these years of work.
• Exclusive content: The official trailer will be screened, and never-before-seen images and sequences showcasing the depth and richness of this epic adventure will be presented.

An unmissable event for retro gaming enthusiasts
The presentation, which will last approximately 50 minutes, will include a talk by the 4MHz team, who will share their experience creating this ambitious project for the NES. At the end of the event, attending media will have the opportunity to obtain exclusive images, interviews, and informational material about Malasombra.

The Museo Arcade Vintage, recognized for its dedication to preserving and showcasing video game history, is proud to be the chosen venue for this significant announcement, solidifying its status as a cultural landmark in the world of retro gaming.

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Datos del evento:

📅 Date: February 15, 2025
📍 Location: Museo Arcade Vintage: Fábrica Rico, Carrer les Eres 74, 03440 Ibi, Alicante (Spain).
⏰ Time: 12:00 PM.
🎟 Admission: Free with your museum ticket. For media representatives, accreditation is recommended.

For more information about the event and accreditation:
📧  info@museoarcadevintage.com
📞  692 20 20 30

About Malasombra

Malasombra is a new video game in development by the 4MHz team for the NES console. Set in legends and fairy tales, it presents an epic adventure with an exciting story where nothing is what it seems. This ambitious project is now in its final stages of development, slated for release in the second quarter of 2025.

A terrible curse, a forbidden grimoire, an evil sorcerer, wizards, princesses, witches, bounty hunters, palace intrigues, and magic—lots of magic—await in Malasombra. You play as Pirou, a humble apprentice magician who watches as the evil sorcerer Malasombra steals his beloved on their wedding day, while turning all the guests into frogs. Pirou must gather the pages of a powerful grimoire, which will grant him new abilities through transmutations, in order to defeat Malasombra, rescue his beloved, and undo all the harm the sorcerer has caused to the kingdom.

Malasombra is currently in its final stage of development. Programmed in C and Assembly, and conceived for a physical release on cartridge as well as a digital version, its release date is confirmed for the second quarter of 2025.

The 4MHz team has a solid track record in developing video games for 8-bit systems and producing physical editions. Among their most acclaimed titles for the Amstrad CPC are Adiós a la Casta I & II, El Tesoro Perdido de Cuauhtémoc, Profanation 2, Baba’s Palace, and the internationally celebrated Operation Alexandra. Without a doubt, this is another great production from a team that knows how to deliver excellence.

Synopsis

In a beautiful and faraway place, the celebration of the royal wedding between Astrid, the princess of the kingdom, and Pirou, a young apprentice magician, is cut short by the irruption of Malasombra, a sorcerer with a grudge against the king for condemning him to banishment some time ago due to his perfidious advice.

Malasombra turned everyone present into a frog except for Pirou, who managed to repel the spell with his humble apprentice wizard’s wand, and kidnapped Astrid, as revenge for so many years of suffering in exile.

Determined to save his beloved, Pirou sets out on a dangerous adventure full of challenges and dark secrets, determined to face any obstacle to restore peace and win Astrid back.

Development

Malasombra began its development in March 2018 with several concept tests and scenarios for Amstrad CPC. During the first months of work, the project was maturing the story and growing in dimensions, until in October 2018, graphical and programming tests began on NES. After the first satisfactory results, the team decided to migrate the project to another platform, becoming an exclusive development for NES. A very complicated decision for the whole team, as it meant leaving the comfort zone, but with the certainty that it was the right decision given the ambition deposited in the project.

Since the end of 2018, 4MHz has been working exclusively on this project. This has been a huge challenge for the whole team, as they have had to learn in depth the ins and outs of the NES, a system unknown to everyone until now. On a technical level, a whole new engine has been developed in C and assembler, based on Nesdoug’s Neslib. Several exclusive tools have also been created to facilitate and accelerate the development process. All this has involved many hours of study and testing, as well as tackling new ways of working and documentation.

Physical and digital edition

Since its inception, 4MHz has been committed to creating high quality physical editions, and this project is no exception. However, bringing Malasombra to cartridge format has represented a considerable technical challenge, due to the advanced knowledge of electronics and NES hardware required.

Today, the team has succeeded in developing a fully functional prototype cartridge that incorporates two key innovations:

1. Battery-free storage: The cartridge allows you to store games without relying on battery-powered WRAM memory, eliminating the need for future replacements.
2. Exclusive mapper: An innovative system has been designed to replace the specific chips of classic mappers, circumventing current supply problems, and guaranteeing Malasombra’s full compatibility with modern emulators.