Crystal Chronicles Review

I don't know if any of you Final Fantasy players out there feel dissapointed with Crystal Chronicles, but I can tell you that I am. I have reached somewhere beyond the 7th year (I know, it's not much) and to be honest, I'm quite tired of the game, it's more like a Zelda wannabe. There seems to be some basic characteristics missing, for example: WHERE ARE THE SUMMONS!?!? this was a vital thing in most (if not all) of the other FF. WHY SO FEW SPELLS!?!? I remember that on other FF you had at least 5 attack spells (fire, blizzard, lightning, earth and the best: ultima) and the list goes on and on...

The next thing I really hate is the spell fusion. There's nothing more frustrating than having to acces my command list to arrange it when 2 flying gargoyle thingies come to attack me so I can cast Gravity on both of them. Why not make another magicite called "Gravity"??? It seems that SquareEnix just wanted to simplify things in this game, but instead, they made it worse (not that the system was any bad in previous games). And I won't even bother to talk about the magicite dissappearing after you exit a dungeon....

Another thing that bothered me very much was when I got to a dungeon called Rane Te Ra (or somthing like that; it's the pyramid on the west continent) and I had to stand on a switch and wait until some skeleton mage fired a thunderbolt at me so I could open a stupid door, where's the logic in that!? (favor: if anyone can tell me how to open, on the second part of the dungeon, the door that has 4 white squares that glow once you step on one, and the blue defense/barrier/wall/door thing that has 2 "keys", one blizzard and one fire [you know, the things you have to cast blizzard or fire to deactivate it's defense so you can smash them afterwards] I'd be very gratefull)

Well, I won't ramble anymore but I would really like to know if there is anyone out there who is as dissapointed as I am...

Wait, your complaint is that you can't figure out the puzzles and there's no summons? You kids today.......

There were no summons before FFIII and yet the games were great without them. Sometimes I sorta wish they hadn't shown up at all. The simplified spell selection makes sense. It's a 4 player real time game, so having tons and tons of spells would just have people nagging about how the spell management is "too cumbersome and complicated since you only need like 4 spells". The magicite disappearing makes a LOT of sense, actually. If you kept all your magicite, there'd be absolutely no need to make enemies drop it. The point of it being there is to make you scramble for it. Friendly competition is what makes multiplayer games awesome. Who can kill the most monsters? Who gets to get the Fire magicite? This is REALLY backed up with the bonus points system and how it lets you choose the first artifact. My only real complaint with the game is the lack of strategy needed to beat up everything in your path. You can just hack your way through every boss without having to figure out their strengths and weaknesses. I guess it's kinda like Final Fantasy for button mashers. :D

Hehe, look, first of all, I'm no kid, so please don't asume things. Second, yes, ONE of my complaints is that there are no summons, I actually like them (not like you on the other hand). And the general complaint I have is that, since it's a Final Fantasy game, it should have more strategy (just like you pointed out), not just hack and slash. Since you have (I asume from your statements; please correct me if I'm wrong) played in multiplayer, you know that side of the game (which I don't) and to be honest, it sounds pretty good BUT, since (and I say again) it's a Final Fantasy game, it should focus more on the single player aspects. I didn't mention this earlier, but in the other final fantas(ies) you had a wide variety of players to choose from (in single player) and you could develop more than one at a time. In this Crystal Chronicles, you can work with just one at a time and, unless you have ALL the implements, you cannot transfer one item from one character to another. Now do you see why I am so dissapointed with this game?

Antoher question... Have you played it in single player mode and have you enjoyed it as much as multiplayer?

My compaint is NOT, however, that I can't figure out the puzzles. I want to solve them and since I'm not liking the game so far, I don't try very hard to get the solution. I just wanted some help figuring them out so I could enjoy, at least, the story (which I think is somewhat interesting).

Anyways, thanks for your comments DJzen ;)

Please don't double post, use the Edit/Delete button below your post if you want to say something else. I fixed this one for you. ~ Xander

I, for one, really liked it... okay... maybe not really like it, but it was pretty damn fun. Yes, it's true that many FF staples are missing from the game, but that doesn't make it bad. I also love spell fusion. The reason for the existence of spell fusion is to create more teamwork amongst the players. You've probably played multiplayer so you know what I'm talking about. Different timing to get different fusions is also great. I'm also a big fan of the connectivity and thought that it was implemented very well. The whole splitting of the map and bonus missions (pick up gold, don't cast magic) was awesome.

I feel that you're opinion is valid... in a way. You are saying that because FF:CC carries the Final Fantasy name, it should play more like a traditional FF (heavy on story, long single player game, etc). But the point is that this is a different FF. In fact, I think that many people share the same opinion as you do and that placing the FF name on this game has actually caused more harm than good. If you can see past the fact that it's not a single player game (it's not meant to be), that it's not like a traditional FF, then I think you will find a charming, fun, and addictive hack n' slash party game. Yes, I classify this game as a party game. Because of the nature of party games, they are not meant to be played alone. They are designed for multiple people to be playing. Of course, there is a single player mode, but other party games like Mario Party also have single player modes, but they certainly aren't as fun as when you're playing with a bunch of friends. The single player mode is thrown in as more of a requisite than a full blown feature. It's kind of like the offline mode for PSO.

Oh, and you can transfer items from one character to another... just trade. I get the feeling that you played through most of the game single playered which might be white you are so disenchanted by it. And if you did play multiplayer, perhaps you only played a segment with your friends. The game is much better if you play from start to finish with you friends, each keeping their own character. I played with two other people from start to finish, and it was incredibly fun.

I'm only saying "yes" instead of "so so" because I play it with three other people. I also liked the style, though I generally prefer more serious-looking games. No RPGs really live-up to what I want them to be (read: smutty love stories with a fantastical plot), but this one's been fun. I like that there's no set amount of years to play, you just push forward until you beat it. I think that's pretty innovative for an RPG.

i get the impression it was a good idea i didnt buy this yesterday and bought spirited away, dominion tank police and ninja scroll special edition animes instead.

i,m a complete anti-social shy loser so can i assume there is no point buying this game 4 single player mode? is it as disapointing as ff tactics advance and ff mystic quest?

I thought FF:TA was alright... not horrible, but not excellent either. FF:CC as a multiplayer is a gazillion times better. As a single player, it's not as good as FF:TA. So if you don't plan on play multiplayer, it's good you didn't get it at all.

*sigh* This would have been sooooo great if Nintendo had a decent online plan. Games like FF:CC and the upcoming Four Swords Adventure would benefit greatly from online play.

I liked it, it was disappointing though, fun but not everything you wanted from it.

If you want a game with epic cinematics and a complicated love plot, this game will disappoint you. If you want a menu driven combat system, this game will disappoint you. If you want a fast paced hack n slash, this game will disappoint you. If you want a complex attribute gaining system, this game will disappoint you.

If you like dungeon crawls, you may like this game. If you like traditional adventure games, you may like this game. If you like well done real time graphics, you may like this game. If you like intruiging plots with subtle twists, you may like this game. If you like mission based styles of play, you may like this game. If you like collecting things, you may enjoy this game. If you like GBA connectivity, you may like this game.

I really think that's all it comes down to.