Rusty Rabbit Review

I like a very good side-scrolling mascot platformer. I additionally love a well-designed and interesting-to-traverse Metroidvania stuffed with secrets and techniques and issues to find. Sometimes, these two worlds collide, and we’re given online game gems like Hollow Knight, Ori And The Blind Forest, and the perpetually underrated Yoku’s Island Express.

Hoping to uncover one other indie Metroidvania darling, Rusty Rabbit was a title that instantly stood out to me. The cool-looking mech-based fight mixed with flashy powerups and the hope of enjoyable, destructable maps to discover appeared like a components with the potential to lead to a memorable expertise.

Nonetheless, a recreation printed by NetEase, a studio with a spotty monitor document dotted by some questionable cell video games together with some precise standout console titles, wasn’t a assured slam dunk. Developer Nitroplus was much more of a wild card to the equation, beforehand specializing in a group of visible novels that served no indication as to the chops the staff needed to craft a stable Metroidvania.

With so many inquiries to be answered, I used to be nonetheless hoptimistic to leap into this hare-raising journey to see what the bunny enterprise was all about. After over 20 hours, nonetheless, Rusty Rabbit would not be my choose of the litter.

A Hare Of Narrative Intrigue

On the floor, Rusty Rabbit presents itself as a recreation that doubtless is not going to have a ton to supply from a narrative and world-building perspective. Initially presenting narrated textual content on static backgrounds for its introduction, there would not appear to be a lot happening on the earth of a grumpy, carrot-smoking, walnut whiskey-drinking bunny.

Rusty Stamp is a junk digger, which implies he spends his time delving deep into the bowels of Smokestack Mountain each day with the intention to scrap and accumulate as a lot trash as doable for him to carry again dwelling. Apparently, nonetheless, this junk speaks to Rusty, very like he additionally speaks to his beloved mech-suit named Junkster that he brings alongside for every expedition.

Because the story unfolds, Rusty meets, competes, and coordinates with a brand new gang of junk collectors on the town known as the BBs, which stands for Blitz Bullets, Sensible Buddies, Burrowing Bears, Black Berries. This new staff, led by their mysterious sponsor, Nether, desires to dig into the guts of the mountain, and the junk-addicted Rusty will not cross up an opportunity to see what sort of treasures he can discover additional under the floor.

Alongside the way in which, our furry hero begins to uncover cryptic notes hidden in mysterious terminals left behind by a now utterly vanished human race. A few of these messages appear to have been written by Rusty’s estranged daughter. This, after all, spurs him alongside to see if he can monitor down her present whereabouts.

What unfolds here’s a story that is fed to you in recovered messages and brief conversations with the city those who takes a reasonably sudden post-apocalyptic, science-fiction, and religion-filled tone, whereas additionally that includes a major quantity of rabbit lore that is at all times amusing to be taught extra about.

…this title managed to hit my feelings in a approach that I actually had not anticipated in any respect from my expertise within the early hours.

In some way, these rabbits have developed into hyper-intelligent, deep-thinking beings, so it is actually cool to find out how they’ve come to elucidate the world round them, their very own private struggles and doubts, and what motivates them to get out of their bunny beds each morning.

By the tip of my playthrough, I used to be fairly shocked that this title managed to hit my feelings in a approach that I actually had not anticipated in any respect from my expertise within the early hours. There’s a number of coronary heart right here, and all of it wraps up in a satisfying method by the sport’s conclusion.

24 Carrot Presentation

When he is not pillaging Smokestack Mountain, Rusty spends his time in a snowy village that serves as your hub world. Right here, you will discover a number of bustling companies to patronize, similar to a diner stuffed with Persona-like social hyperlink encounters with fellow residents, a bar to choose up new aspect targets, a common retailer to replenish your gear, and a church to be taught extra in regards to the spiritual views of its (debatably cult-like) followers.

Every thing round city feels cozy, and all of the rabbit buddies you encounter are adorably fuzzy and stylized. Rusty himself has a number of alternate fur patterns to unlock, together with new paint jobs to spruce up his mech with, too. Regardless of the gruff demeanor of your personal character, the sport is stuffed with loads of cutesy issues to take a look at, if that is one thing you are into.

Dungeons themselves are mildly generic taking a look at occasions, largely partly due to the selection to go together with a blocky, Steamworld Dig-type design that usually limits the paths and routing to tight, 90-degree, harshly angled corridors that disrupt each the circulate of motion and the attraction of the sport’s artwork design.

Nonetheless, stage theming is stable, and every of the 15 new biomes you attain is fascinating to take a look at when first found. From lava-filled forges, to flora-filled underground forests, to some shocking, narrative-serving stops alongside the way in which, seeing what space comes subsequent is at all times a very good time total.

The soundtrack here is a bit of a standout, starting from bluesy rock to upbeat, Persona-like bops. I took it upon myself to bump up the music stage in my settings to essentially be capable of hear each monitor all through—and likewise to drown out Rusty’s extremely grating, repetitive dialogue quips that can quickly drive you mad a couple of hours into the sport.

On the technical aspect of issues, I had a completely clean expertise with zero crashes or noticeable dips in efficiency. There have been a couple of situations of enemies switching animations abruptly with out transitional frames in-between that felt jarring at occasions, however nothing was ever egregious sufficient to take particular be aware of. General, Rusty Rabbit ought to run effectively in your {hardware} of selection and appears well-optimized.

Hopping, Skipping, Leaping, Digging

Rusty Rabbit is a side-scrolling Metroidvania mashed up with the dungeon-crawling loot and exploration of Steamworld Dig. Sadly, it hardly ever hits the gameplay highs of both of those classes.

Taking over the everyday online game trope of beginning you out with all of your talents then instantly stripping them away to be recovered as you progress, the majority of Rusty Rabbit is not tremendous enjoyable to expertise within the course of. Motion is actually gradual and clunky till you achieve your rocket boosters a number of hours in. Platforming and wall climbing are wonky and unsatisfying earlier than unlocking a jetpack means within the final quarter of the sport.

Fight is restricted to your melee digger arm at first till you subsequently unlock a twin-stick gun, sword, and hammer afterward. As you discover extra blueprints for weapons, new variations of every archetype might be unlocked for further harm and path-unlocking capabilities.

None of those really feel significantly participating in motion except for the sword, which is unquestionably how you will spend many of the recreation roughing up the generic and sometimes repeating robo-animals you will battle your complete time.

Every weapon comes with particular talents that really feel the identical in observe, and talent tree choices that enhance its assault or combo period, although none of those abilities are sometimes game-changers.

Generic fight and enemies might be partially excused in a Metroidvania if exploration is top-notch, however that is sadly not the case in Rusty Rabbit both.

Sure, recovered weapons and talents do technically provide the means to backtrack and attain new sections of every map, however you are sometimes not rewarded with something too thrilling outdoors a brand new blueprint piece or a random scrap of a automobile that Rusty can restore in his storage in his free time.

Unlocking new paths in a Metroidvania that have been beforehand inaccessible to you is a crux of the style, and it is simply by no means actually satisfying or necessary right here, making the sensation of thrilling development from a brand new merchandise fairly minimal.

There may be one dungeon in direction of the tip that requires your digger arm to be upgraded to a sure level to progress, but it surely feels extra like an arbitrary brick wall to drive you to grind for a few hours within the recreation’s “elective,” boring, random dungeons you will ultimately unlock as effectively.

I used to be clearing blocks simply because I felt the duty to.

I appreciated Steamworld Dig and its sequel so much and felt a compulsion to filter out each block on a map that I might earlier than progressing to a brand new space. It was a enjoyable, rhythmic course of that I used to be at all times as much as full with the promise of cool loot or cash to spend on new gear.

Right here, I used to be clearing blocks simply because I felt the duty to, with the everyday reward being some scrap I would not doubtless use for something, except for promoting off for extra therapeutic objects again and again.

Too Gentle And Cuddly

I believe it is an vital factor for sure video games to function a pleasant, extra accessible entry level to an in any other case notoriously demanding style. Consider a recreation like One other Crab’s Treasure, a Soulslike by definition with loads of challenges if you need one, but in addition a a lot more approachable design with tons of problem settings to toggle if you want to ease your self into the motion of the sport.

Rusty Rabbit is extraordinarily straightforward. Whereas this might be taken as a optimistic for somebody eager to dip their toes in the Metroidvania waters, the easy expertise simply is not backed up with sufficient different high quality style staples to make the sport very fascinating, as you one-shot most non-boss enemies all through.

Nothing right here is ever actually going to make you cease and assume in any respect.

Everything of the primary 10 hours right here is straight up Level A to Level B dungeon clearing. There are detours to take alongside the way in which, however you possibly can usually take a preliminary take a look at the map, take an informed guess of the place you want to finish as much as full it, and head on to the exit.

Gates block your development periodically and require an ID card to be scavenged to achieve entry to the following map part. These ID playing cards are at all times positioned extraordinarily shut by, making the search to trace them down really feel largely pointless and boring.

The latter half of the title does introduce some extra twisting and turning dungeon design together with a couple of new puzzles, however they’re solely as thrilling as grade school-level block pushing actions or flipping switches to open and rotate doorways. Nothing right here is ever actually going to make you cease and assume in any respect.

I am actually not exaggerating once I say that there was just one single occasion in my totally too-long 20+ hour playthrough the place I died enjoying this recreation. The offender was a reasonably painfully designed mini-boss with a moveset that featured a few heavy-hitting, but miserably telegraphed assaults. Whereas I used to be begging for a problem by this level within the recreation, feeling such as you’re taking harm from an unlearnable, random assault sample is just irritating, not rewarding.

The worst half is that to truly conquer this single tough opponent, I merely stocked up on therapeutic objects and tanked each single hit from the boss as I spammed an assault from my sword over, and over, and over. In the long run, it was a complete DPS, damage-swapping rock struggle the place I used to be in a position to come out victorious solely as a result of I had sufficient reserve HP to muscle by way of.

…will get you right into a rhythm and gameplay circulate state as you placed on a podcast and primarily autopilot your approach by way of one other map.

Genuinely, I by no means died one different time in my total expertise. Not from fall harm, environmental hazards, bosses, or dungeons stuffed with grunt enemies. I am good at side-scrolling platformers, however I am not an authorized Metroidvania skilled. The truth that this recreation and its boss encounters by no means as soon as made me wrestle and scrap to outlive is definitely a questionable selection in recreation design.

What this all finally boils all the way down to is a primary dungeon-crawling Metroidvania that turns into fairly senseless as you’re employed by way of it. Reality be instructed, I do not essentially hate the thought of a recreation that will get you right into a rhythm and gameplay circulate state as you placed on a podcast and primarily autopilot your approach by way of one other map. It is good to unplug and switch your mind off with a recreation like this sometimes.

Nonetheless, Rusty Rabbit actually would not carry a lot to the desk outdoors of this when it comes to gameplay and design to deem it way more than an inoffensive, easy, breezy, timewaster-type gaming expertise. I would wager all of us get within the temper for titles like this at occasions, so it is finally as much as you if that is the sport you wish to hop into or not.

Rusty Rabbit is not a foul recreation in any respect, however this can be very easy for the style it slots into. It fails at having any form of actual problem, memorable bosses, fascinating puzzles, or rewarding routing. The story is surprisingly lore-filled, intriguing, and emotional by the conclusion, and the forged of cute rabbit characters do lend a pleasant stage of attraction to the sport as you sometimes attain a circulate state of map clearing, dungeon-crawling, senseless enjoyable. Nonetheless, the sport overstays its welcome by the tip of its 20+ hour runtime, and there are higher choices should you’re searching for a extra accessible tackle the Steamworld Dig-meets-Metroidvania components. The entry price is low, nonetheless, so it is not one to utterly write-off should you’re searching for a breezy side-scroller to sink some free time into.