Dark Witch Music Episode: Rudymical

Dark Witch Music Episode: Rudymical (ルディミカル♪ 魔神少女音楽外伝, Rudymical♪ Majin Shoujo Ongaku Gaiden) is a rhythm game developed by Esquadra. First released on iOS and Android OS as Dark Witch Music: Rudymical, a retooled version of the game was released for the Nintendo Switch. It is the first Dark Witch game to appear on either platform, as well as the first Dark Witch game that was not initially developed for the Nintendo 3DS. On October 18th, 2021, the switch version of this game has been ported onto Steam under the same name.

Gameplay
Rudymical is an expanded version of the Rudymical mini-game from The Legend of Dark Witch 2. The player controls either Zizou Olympia, Sola, or Rudy, and slices Boing Boings to the tune of several songs. The player will also have to watch for fireballs, which can only be avoided by leaping over them. Each player has a lifebar, with the enemy losing health as the player destroys Boing Boings and the player losing health if they are struck by a Boing Boing or fireball. Play continues until one player is defeated.

The mobile version uses a two "button" format: touching the bottom half of the screen will cause the player to slice, while touching the top half of the screen will cause the player to jump. The Nintendo Switch version, taking advantage of the different input method, uses a four-button format; the game gradually adds complexity as the difficulty increases, with Easy only featuring Red Boing Boings (Right button), Normal and Hard adding Blue Boing Boings (Up button) and Fireballs/Lasers (Down button), and Lunatic adding Green Boing Boings (Left button). The Switch version is compatible with all Joycon configurations.

When the player slices a Boing Boing, they will be rated "Good", "Great", "Perfect", and "Perfect" with stars around the lettering, dependent on how close to the proper timing that the player is. The player will be ranked at the end of the round, if the player achieves an "A" Rank or high, they will be rewarded with a Syega, which will unlock alternate designs for the player characters once enough have been gathered.

Songs
Rudymical is heavily based on The Legend of Dark Witch 2, featuring all of the bosses and (with the exception of Franzer) their stage themes. Progression is identical to Dark Witch 2, with players fighting the eight Ich researchers, followed by four additional bosses, and finally a double-battle against Franzer. After Franzer is defeated, the player character receives their ending.

The player starts with the following:
 * Icke (Mathematics Researcher) - Physics Laboratory - ♪Differential, Infinitesimal
 * Kuito (Military Researcher) - Japonesque Night - ♪Hello Samurai Ninja
 * Klinsy (Hemisphere Researcher) - Saint Ciro - ♪Illusion Andante
 * Herbert (Alchemist) - Maya Caves - ♪Take a Walk
 * Mari (Dimension Researcher) - Pasta Sandland - ♪Fight the Sandstorm!
 * Urken (Time Researcher) - Myrant Street - ♪Wet Sunrise
 * Litty (Psychic Researcher) - Santamaria Manor - ♪A Manor for Real?
 * Rudy (Nerve Researcher) - Playground Forests - ♪Sweet Green Love

The following are unlocked after defeating Ich:
 * Codino (Elite Student) - Toscana Cathedral - ♪Happy Times
 * Stoj (Moody Beast) - Lake Adria - ♪Eat EVERYTHING!
 * Blad (Broker) - Pei Ruins - ♪Oh-ho, what's this...?
 * Pelusa (Legendary Beast) - Port Campania - ♪Left hand is for grabbing cash

The final stage is unlocked after defeating the additional four stages:
 * Franzer (Empress) - Vilhelm Castle - ♪Duel! / ♪Reach for your wish

Reception
Critics and players had a mixed reception. It received a 53/100 on Metacritic. Criticism was thrown at the poor difficulty scaling and the overall short length.

Trivia

 * Blad bounces her Boing Boings off of the ceiling, in reference to her Bound Ring attacks in The Legend of Dark Witch and The Legend of Dark Witch 2.
 * Rudy exclaims "YATTANYA♪" whenever she clears a stage. This is a variation of the Japanese phrase "Yatta!" ("All right!"), similar to Zizou ("YATTANE!"), Sola ("YATTA-!"), and Riva ("YATTAWA!") in Dark Witch 2.