PrinceWatercress plays The Bugs Bunny Crazy Castle 3 - Part 1 of 18

It's been a while since I played the Crazy Castle series...so let's play another game!

Strangely, I found this one a bit easier compared to past games in the series. Maybe it's because I'm used to playing them at this point. Maybe it's because games had become easier and more accessible in general between the release of the second and third games. Maybe it's because of a combination of both of these things. Nevertheless, this one is easier, and I consider this one the best "jumping off" point for anybody interested in the series.

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If you've played the Crazy Castle series before, this game is nothing new. If you haven't played it before, this is a good starting point, as this game is - at least to me - noticeably easier compared to past games in the series. I'm not sure if this is because I've played and beaten the past games, or if it's just because the game was made beyond 1995, when games were getting easier and more accessible, but I didn't find this one as frustrating as past games.

Anyway, for those who haven't played any of the games in this series: think of this as a Lode Runner clone with licensed cartoon characters slapped on where you're doing more than just collecting everything and finding the exit while running away from enemies. The enemies have different behaviors, there are stairways that you can use to get from one place to another, there are doors that contain items and power-ups, and you can even fight back against enemies with things like bombs, guns and bows.

One day, Bugs Bunny finds an ancient book in an ancient shop. The book is titled "The Treasure of the Old Castle." Bugs begins to read and soon completely loses track of the time. The book reads "Somewhere in the Old Castle there's a treasure that will bring great happiness to its finder." However, the exact location of the treasure is a mystery...

Bugs sets off immediately to search for the treasure. As he leaves, Taz is looking through the window, watching him. Can you help Bugs find the hidden treasure in the Old Castle?

Unlike the previous games, which just takes place in the castle, the game is split into four areas. The first one is the Garden.

The game eases you into the action. The Control Pad is used to move left and right, climb up and down ladders like the vines in Stage 1 and also enter doors. As a matter of fact, the game tells you that you can use Up on the Control Pad to enter these doors early on in the game. Sometimes the doors will contain keys; other times, they will contain power-ups. The A and B buttons allow to use weapons

There are eight keys in each stage, and you can keep track of how many ou have by looking in the lower-right corner of the screen. This is where you'll also see how many of the stage's weapons you have, and whether or not you have the pickaxe or the sledgehammer, neither of which will show up until later.

Daffy Duck will chase you relentlessly, and if he touches you, you'll lose a life. Thankfully, you can fight back with weapons such as bombs, and you can push the 100t weight into him to defeat him. The weight will move a few tiles forward when you walk into it, which is nice if you have an enemy trapped near a wall.

The weapon here is the bomb, but other stages will have a different main weapon, such as the gun or the bow and arrow. By pressing A or B, you can lay a bomb if you have one, and if an enemy touches it, they will be defeated. Thankfully, you can pick a bomb up again after you've laid it down by walking into it.

The Up tile will launch you upwards. If you hit a ceiling, you will fall down. If you need to get to a platform, hold Left or Right when you are near it, and you'll suddenly descend in that direction. Once you get used to the timing on this, you'll be able to ascend and land on platforms like a pro.

The door with the lock on it is the exit. You'll need all eight keys to unlock it. Once you open it, you'll exit to the next stage, get an extra life, and get a password. The password keeps track of how many lives you have when you've cleared a stage, so it helps to get through the levels as well as you can without dying a lot.

Unlike the second game, entering a door no longer freezes the enemies for a few seconds. Also, you won't have as much slowdown here, and the game moves more smoothly than the second one did.

On the password screen, you'll notice that the game has a carrot counter. The game's passwords keep track of that, too, and if you collect eight of them, you'll get an extra life. You won't be seeing those until later, however.

Tweety debuts in Stage 2. He will move slowly and stop briefly every so often. Thankfully, he is easier to deal with than Daffy, assuming you don't go too fast.

The stairways will get you from one floor to another. If a staircase goes up, you'll need to press Up to use it; if it goes down, you'll have to press Down. While using them, enemies cannot hurt you even if they are using the stairways, but you will be vulnerable the moment you come out of them.

To use the pipes, press Up or Down depending on where the pipe opening is in relation to Bugs. Much like the stairways, you are invincible while in them, but you will be vulnerable again as soon as you come completely out of them.

If you stop while facing a slope that is going down, you will automatically move down the slope until you stop on flat ground.

The "W" tile is a warp tile. If you stop on it, you'll be taken to another "W" tile.

Unlike the previous games, you can pause with the Start Button, then move around on the map with the Control Pad to see where things, doors and enemies are. When you un-pause, you'll be back where Bugs was.

The vine is actually a staircase. Use Up on the Control Pad to go up it.

The moving green floor is a conveyor belt that will push you either left or right. Get ready to see these throughout the four sections of the game.

The carrots will start showing up in Stage 5. As mentioned earlier, collecting eight of them will net you an extra life.

Elmer Fudd will slowly move and stop to shoot forward. If the cork bullet he shoots at you hits you, you will lose a life. As you'll soon notice, there are three types of enemies in the game: the chasers (Daffy), the slow movers (Tweety) and the gunners (Elmer).

There are some floor tiles that look differently than normal, and if you keep walking on them, they will break down and eventually disappear. Sometimes getting rid of them will make it easier to get to certain areas, so pay attention to where things are in the level.

Stage 6 introduces the guns. When you use the gun, Bugs will shoot it. If the cork bullet hits a wall, it will turn back into a gun so you can use it again until you hit an enemy with it.