Crusader of Centy 1994 By: Atlus

Overview:

This is a great but little known RPG for the Genesis, after the fashion of Zelda. The graphics and textures are great, and the game is very detailed and fun to look at. The music is simple and not bothersome at all. You fight in real time style combat, not turn based. There are a variety of monsters and traps out there to test your wit and skill.
With a large world to explore and controls that are easy to use, you can get hours of fun out of this game. Pick up animal friends to help you along the way, and learn to use them to their fullest.

Directions:

It's your fourteenth birthday! If you talk to people you'll learn that this means that you get access to the training grounds now, so that you can train to become a warrior. Completing the training grounds is the first thing you need to do in the game. Be careful, they're tricky. Talking to people is very important, as it is in most RPGs. Sometimes you'll need to talk to someone more than once to get what you need. Sometimes more than once in a row! Reading signs is also important.
Your health is displayed in the top left corner of the screen as apples. The word "max" is next to it whenever it is full. Whenever you take damage some apples will disappear. Picking up apples will refill your health.
In addition to the normal slash you get from just tapping A, you can hold A to charge your sword and release it when it's glowing to throw it. You'll have to learn this from someone before you can use it. They'll charge you for the lesson, so you may not be able to get it right away. The game's currency is Malins. You'll need these to buy things to help you on your quest, like skills and health upgrades. You'll mostly find Malins by cutting grass, opening treasure chests, and killing certain monsters. You can break all kinds of things with your sword, from grass to rocks to doors with big X's on them. Try to break everything! You can jump with B, but only in certain places. There are a few places where it's possible for you to fall into a hole of some sort and all you'll see is two white eyes (your own) in the darkness. You'll have to jump to get out of there. When you meet the hare and have your dog friend with you, you'll learn to jump. Now you'll be able to jump whenever you want. Just be careful that you don't jump into water that's too deep. You will lose health from that. There will be other abilities you can learn from people (or animals) in the game.
You can also climb things. If something has an unusual texture (like a climbing wall that looks like it's covered in ropes or vines) you might be able to climb it.
In the game you'll eventually talk to a fortune teller. Make sure that you have spoken to all of the people you want to speak to before you do that because, after that, you'll only be able to talk to plants and animals until you find her again! You will have animal friends that are crucial to the completion of your quest, and now you will be able to get them by talking to them. Some you'll pick up normally in the main course of the game, but others you'll have to find by going on other missions. Your first one is your very own pet dog! Go back to your house to get him.
When you have picked up animal friends, you can use them by going into your Start menu. When you are in that menu, you can move the cursor to an animal and a short description of what it does will be at the bottom of the screen. Now you can set that animal to A or B by pressing A or B respectively. If you want to remove an animal from one of the slots, then you go to the "Take Off" slots. There is a "Take Off" for A and and for B. Just select the "Take Off" that you want. Also, different animals will do different things in combination with other animals. This special effect will be displayed in a box on the animal menu.
Whenever you leave a town, a map screen will appear. The paths you can take will be lit up with yellow. Press in the direction you want to go. When standing next to an area with a name, press A to enter there. You will have to enter some areas before you will be able to pass them. After you have entered and gone through that way once, you'll no longer have to enter there if you don't want to.
You will have to face many monsters in your quest. Most can be destroyed with one hit in the beginning, but there will be bosses that are much harder. The first boss you will have to face is in Dahlia. There, in an old lady's house (that you'll have to find your way to by use of waterfalls), there will be a wolf. He will take many more hits to defeat than the normal monsters. Every time you hit him his health will be displayed below yours in green apples. This way you can keep track of your progress in defeating him! As you come to new places you will find new and harder enemies there.
There will be many puzzles and problems that you'll have to figure out. That's a lot of the fun in this game. Explore every corner and leave no stone unturned, unbroken, or unthrown.... whichever the case may be.