THIS IS THE TALE OF A BARBARIAN WHO WENT AGAINST THE TIDES OF FATE...
WHO FOUGHT DESTINY WITH COLD STEEL AND WON.

Clearly inspired by Swarzenegger’s first Conan the Barbarian flick, Rastan Saga is a superb highlight in Taito’s mid-80s arcade canon; a crisp, no-nonsense, 'Heroic Fantasy' action platformer with rock solid gameplay and one of the most memorable soundtracks of its era - a loud and epic 'Sword & Sorcery' ballad that complements the setting perfectly.

No pun intended, but Rastan Saga has a truly barbaric difficulty level... It may have no time limit, yet the entire game was quite clearly cut out for the elite. Today it still provides a phenomenal challenge; kudos is due to anyone who can make a way through to Round 4 or 5 without dropping a life, let alone finish it in one go.

The game's massive success saw it ported onto every known home computer format of the day, including the MSX2. Taito also mustered an excellent Master System port in 1988, but for some reason it was never released in Japan; resurfacing only in 1991 in the form of a Game Gear release. A sequel, Rastan Saga II, appeared in 1988 but came as a real letdown compared to the original.