HUSTLERION PRESENTS
WAKING THE FIRST CRYSTAL
Reading the local art manifest…
Your gold baton grows after every boss. Finally, a pension plan you can hit things with.
THE SHORT VERSION
MAKE IT TO DAWN.
- Move
- A / DLeft stick / D-pad
- Jump
- SpaceA · hold for height
- Attack
- JHold X · swing the gold baton
- Crouch
- SStick / D-pad down
- Dash
- KB · brief safe roll
- Use / burn
- EY button
- Pause
- EscStart / Options button
Defeat bosses to extend your baton. Burn all five ledgers. Score and weapon upgrades carry over. Solo: the next district grants one life (max five). Co-op: each district starts the crew with three lives each. Hardcore: one hit eliminates you until the next district; in co-op, watch surviving teammates. Collect the six HUSTLE letters in each district. Empty HUD slots show missing letters. Check doors for bonus chambers.
ANOTHER DIMENSION. SAME BAD LANDLORDS.
THE FIRST BAD DEAL.
Before history, in the HUSTLERION dimension, someone dug up the First Crystal. The Syndicate built a cult around it. Then they invented membership fees.
Rook collected those fees until he found his own name in the ledgers, between “oxygen rental” and “being difficult.” He took a gold telescoping baton to the complaints desk. The desk has since withdrawn its complaint.
The Crystal changed the collectors. Meth Monster guards the first book. Furnace Widow keeps the second warm. Ledger King keeps the third book and a suspiciously small crown. Undertow waits in the Drowned Arcade. The Creditor runs the Black Sun Mint.
Recover Spark. Break the cult’s grip on five districts. Burn every ledger. Check the side doors: even ancient evil needs a snack cupboard.
The world is young. Your invoice is already late.
YOUR HANDS. YOUR BAD DECISIONS.
SETTINGS
Sound & effects
Keyboard
Select an action, then press a key. Escape cancels. Conflicting keys swap. Changing an action removes its alternate keys.
Escape always pauses. Modifier keys and browser shortcuts cannot be assigned.
Controller
No controller detected. Connect one and press a button.
Menu controls stay fixed: A / Cross selects, B / Circle goes back. Start / Options pauses.
Offline profile
Stored only in this browser. This does not create an online account or send email.
Progress saves after each district. Continue preserves earned progress and starts at that district’s entrance. A new run keeps every district you have opened.
Settings and your best score stay in this browser.
BRING TWO BAD INFLUENCES
THE CREW
Lead a crew
Co-op keeps running when you open a menu or switch tabs. Your controls are released while you are away. A disconnected player has 30 seconds to rejoin the same crew.
KEEP YOUR PLACE IN THE UNDERWORLD
ACCOUNT
SIGNED IN
Your guest save stays separate. Signing in loads this account’s progress.
Account progress saves after each district. Guest saves remain in this browser and are not uploaded when you sign in.
MADE FOR THE NIGHT SHIFT
CREDITS
Setting & storyHUSTLERION. Rook’s last collection.
Ansimuz artworkWarped City and Warped City 2 · CC0. City scenery. Rook and the regular enemy sprites.
Original generated artworkBoss animation atlases, collectible icons and district buildings, created for HUSTLERIK. Separate from Ansimuz and its CC0 notices.
Collectible generation record ↗
Music & soundCathedral of Debts, the creator-approved HUSTLERION Suno score. Foley from Kenney, rubberduck and EZduzziteh; small game cues synthesized at runtime.
GameOriginal level layout, gameplay logic and interface. Inspired by classic DOS platformers.
Full credits, licenses & media sources ↗
TAKE A BREATH
PAUSED
Take a breath.
THE LAST COLLECTION
DEBT FREE.
All five ledgers are ash.
- SCORE
- SECRETS
- LETTERS
- DEATHS
- TIME
A LIGHT WENT OUT
COULDN’T LOAD THE DISTRICT.
The local game files could not be loaded.
Keep the game folder together and open it through the local launcher.
The crew leader chooses the next run.