Games Ex has beaten in 2016:
61. Rusty|PC-9801|1993|platformer|3h 46m|7/10Rusty is a platformer developed by C-Lab in 1993, for the Japan exclusive computer PC-98. (At the time of this writing, I don't think an English version or translation of Rusty exists.) Although Rusty is commonly accused of being a "Castlevania clone", the game does differentiate itself in some significant ways. As a matter of fact, I have to believe that Konami took some ideas from Rusty for their later installments of Castlevania published post-Rusty.*
One way that Rusty stands out, is that is full of cinematic cutscenes, often long ones, with quite detailed graphics. Granted many of these scenes are ecchi oriented in nature, they still obviously convey a detailed plot. Unfortunately I can't read Japanese, so I have no idea what the plot is really about. But I think it's safe to say, that our green haired heroine (Rusty Sprinkle) is on a quest to save young ladies captured by a vampire, while slaying legions of his undead minions and eventually the vampire himself.
Gameplay primarily consists of standard jump and whip action, as seen in Castlevania. You've got your secondary magic items, and the ability to whip-and-swing Indiana Jones style. However there's one big difference between Rusty and Castlevania. Rusty's levels are often (but not always) very large and recursive, almost maze-like at times. This is compounded by the fact that Rusty requires finding hidden keys to proceed through these oft-labyrinthine layouts. It's not fun to reach the end of a stage only to discover you missed a key halfway though, and now you've got to backtrack and search for it. To make matters even more difficult, there's a timer, and if you run out of time before you find that missing key, you die. Whereas the timers in Castlevania games were just a means to score more points, in Rusty the timer is your second greatest nemesis.
What's your greatest nemesis? The unpredictable and stilted jump mechanics. It's difficult to describe in words, but let me just say that jumping correctly in Rusty is not something you can ever take for granted. As one example; you will die a LOT due to trying to simply jump off a rope over spikes, and having the game's wonky jump physics arbitrarily decide if it wants to let you do that or not. Eventually this inconsistent jumping aspect made me rage, primarily in the clock tower area with an auto-scrolling screen, filled with ropes, hidden keys, and spikes galore.
And while we're on the subject of difficulty, I'll be quite sincere. For me Rusty was far more difficult than any Castlevania I've ever beaten before. And folks I've beaten a LOT of Castlevania games. The main challenge is due to the unpredictable jump mechanics, trying to find hidden keys before the timer expires, and getting hit by enemies that appear out of nowhere and fly through walls to hit you. Indeed if you are a Castlevania veteran and want a raw challenge, you'll find it in Rusty. With limited lives and a villainous timer, restarting stages is something you'll do often. Granted you get infinite continues per stage, but trust me, these stages are often long and complex, and redoing them over and over gets tiresome. But at least Rusty's levels are well varied, with modulated pacing, and plenty of surprises.
Why put up with the difficulty? Because Rusty is a pretty game with an AMAZING soundtrack. Yes the graphics are above average for 1993, but I can't stress how awesome the OST is. Rusty had three different composers and they utilized the PC-98's sound hardware to its maximum potential. Also beating a stage reveals the saved hostages in revealing sexy poses. You know, if you're into that sort of thing. Best of all, if you're a Castlevania fan, this is like playing a long lost Castlevania entry, albeit a sadistic one. If you don't mind a little backlash from Rusty's whip, you'll have a good time.
For more information about Rusty:
http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/rusty/rusty.htmhttp://www.giantbomb.com/rusty/3030-28250/https://www.mobygames.com/game/rusty*"Fans of the Castlevania series will notice a number of curious similarities between Rusty and Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. Both have anime-style artwork, and Rondo of Blood was the first Castlevania game to use this style. The cutscene for the first level of both games prominently features tombstones in a graveyard; both first levels start in a ransacked town and the bosses of both first levels are a flying wyvern type of enemy. The second level of both games are both in rainy forested areas. Each game features a level in a cathedral with a very prominent bell. Both games feature rescuing captured women as the main plot point. Some enemy designs are also similar; for example, the third form of the bone golem boss in Rondo of Blood looks very much like a larger, recolored version of a common enemy in Rusty. There are probably a bunch of other similarities as well. The remarkable thing is, Rusty was released a couple of months before Rondo of Blood was released, so it is wrong to say that Rusty copied Rondo of Blood. In fact, it is possible that Konami was involved in the development of Rusty in some way; perhaps it was an abandoned project that was sold off. Of note, the final boss looks like it inspired the design of the final boss of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, which was released a few years after Rusty." - http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc98/955896-rus ... ews/159414