Crisis Core impressions

[Hailinel]

Because I am a consumer whore, I ended up buying Crisis Core after work. After getting rebuffed earlier by the PSP's retarded need of a charged battery to install a firmware update and subsequently waiting while the thing charged, I've played through the first portion of the story. And well....

Where Crisis Core excels is in its presentation. The game looks fantastic on the PSP screen, and the voice acting and music are typically high quality Square Enix. Given how cutscene-heavy the game is, at least in the early going, this is definitely a good thing. The dialogue coming out of characters' mouths is another story, but it's passable. For those that don't know, the game takes place in the years prior to Final Fantasy VII and centers around Zack, a character that was only seen in flashbacks during the original game.

On the other hand, at the center of the gameplay is the game's combat, and it's definitely a love it or hate it affair. The X button is the general action button, which is used for attacking with the sword, casting magic, and using items. These actions are cycled between using the L and R buttons, while the circle button is the quick-return that shifts back to the attack command. Square dodges, and triangle is a guard button. There's definitely a basis for some good combat in terms of an action RPG, but so far, it's been pretty pedestrian. I know it's still early on in the game, but the enemies for the most part don't put up that much of a challenge. In most situations, all that's been required is hammering the X button to use melee strikes, made all the easier by the fact that the game auto-targets enemies for you.

Another aspect of combat is a reel mechanic. Essentially, as you fight, a three-slot reel will spin, and depending on how the reels align, you'll be temporarily granted a positive status effect. Occasionally, after a gauge is fill, the game will zoom in on the reels, and the result is a permanent level up to Zack or one of his materia. It's a little hard for me to describe how this is handled because the reels are passive; I'm so focused on hitting the enemies that I don't really pay attention to how the reels spin because I don't have any control over them.

It's very difficult for me to say anything truly positive about the combat at this point. Frankly, the highlight (or lowlight, depending on how you view it) of my experience in combat thus far was taking on a fire-element boss. During the course of the game, thanks to the reels, my Blizzard materia leveled up four times. To win the boss fight, all I did was hit R to cycle to the Blizzard spell, and then hit X, casting it repeatedly at the boss and doing hundreds of points of damage a hit until he fell down. I didn't have to guard, dodge, or anything. Granted, I'm playing on Normal as opposed to Hard, but seriously, there wasn't any challenge to it at all.

On top of all of this, you earn gil as you defeat enemies, and buying items is as easy as opening the menu and selecting the shop option. The shops you can access depends on your progress in the game, but you can literally stop at any point outside of combat and buy more items as long as you have the cash to spend. Even Dirge of Cerberus, a game I enjoyed, limited item shops to certain points in the game. Crisis Core's method of selling items just seems a bit on the generous side.

I don't know. Maybe things will change, but so far the gameplay has been severely underwhelming. I'll keep playing it because I'm interested in how the story will turn out, but if you're more interested in playing a solid action game for the PSP, with or without the FFVII trappings, I'd recommend either just renting the game through Gamefly or skipping it for something that plays better.

[duxup]

Sounds like a rental.

[D-Mon DRV]

My question is... is it enjoyable if you haven't finished the original FF7?

[Dethbunny]

My question is... is it enjoyable if you haven't finished the original FF7?C'mon... as if ANYONE hasn't finished FFVII.

[Shifty Pete]

My question is... is it enjoyable if you haven't finished the original FF7?C'mon... as if ANYONE hasn't finished FFVII.*raises hand*

[Hailinel]

As for whether or not you need to beat FFVII to enjoy Crisis Core, it's a little early for me to say. Since the game takes place before FFVII, then what happens in FFVII itself shouldn't really matter. On the other hand, since the game is designed to be an FFVII prequel, it holds more appeal for people that are familiar with the story.

[Randolph]

As the game ends where FFVII begins, I suppose, if SquareEnix was smart, they would make FFVII available in some new affordable fashion to try to hook in people new to the games universe as of Crisis Core. However, at some point SE was hit on the head with the Sega stick, so they don't know their ass from their head anymore, and will do no such thing. If the story in this is as good as they say, more recent gamers into RPGs would likely be willing to buy FFVII of the playstation store, and play it on their PSP/PS3 to see what happened next. But yeah, SE would rather they be forced to pay upwards of $80 for it off auction sites, which SE will not see a penny of, which is patently retarded. Oh well.

[GaijinDevil]

After reading your impressions, there's no way I'll ever play this. It sounds like the combat is completely devoid of any challenge or requires any skill at all on the part of the player, so this sounds more like: Final Fantasy Advent Children: Mash X To Proceed Story Edition. And the random slots sounds lame and totally counter to the strategy involved with most rpg's, be they action or turn-based.

I haven't read the Gamespot review, but I noticed it got a 9.0. I plan to go look who reviewed it and add them to my "nutjob fucking space cadet reviewers who are NEVER to be trusted" book.

[Randolph]

Kevin reviewed it, Gaijin. He seems pretty hit or miss these days, I don't think NMH needed a 9.0 either, but I'm willing to chalk it up to different strokes for different folks. It seems the combat is lifted right out of the Kingdom Hearts "press X to win" strategy book.

[GaijinDevil]

Kevin reviewed it, Gaijin. He seems pretty hit or miss these days, I don't think NMH needed a 9.0 either, but I'm willing to chalk it up to different strokes for different folks. It seems the combat is lifted right out of the Kingdom Hearts "press X to win" strategy book.

Really was Kevin huh? Hit or miss is being kind. And :D at him giving No More Heroes a 9.0.

[faits]

Sounds like it would have been better off as another Advent Children style movie, if the story is so strong and the gameplay is so weak. I'm all about strong stories in video games, but if the gameplay isn't there why make a video game to begin with?

[Maverick]

Sounds like it would have been better off as another Advent Children style movie, if the story is so strong and the gameplay is so weak. I'm all about strong stories in video games, but if the gameplay isn't there why make a video game to begin with?
Well it sounds to me like the gameplay development on this game was pretty low budget, so they went with something quick and cheap. A game, you can get away with lower quality visuals, and thusly they could spend less on it for likely a similar amount of sales.

[Dkittels]

Question: Is there a Hard Mode available from the first time you put the game in the PSP?

[Alidar]

Question: Is there a Hard Mode available from the first time you put the game in the PSP?

Yes.

[Dkittels]

Question: Is there a Hard Mode available from the first time you put the game in the PSP?

Yes.

In that case I require hard mode impressions.

[GaijinDevil]

Just watched a buddy play the game for half an hour. Yeah..... it's awful. Looks good (although way too similar in design to the FF characters in Kingdom Hearts, which I thought were intentionally goofy-looking to match the Disney motif), sounds good, plays like Sunday leftovers.

He's mad at me right now because I told him Square fucking owned him (again), but once he gets over being ass-hurt about wasting forty bills, I'm sure he'll agree.

[GaijinDevil]

And while it's debatable which is more important in an rpg.... battle system or story, those two facets ARE the most important parts of one. The fact that Crisis Core's battle system is so bad means it's at best half an rpg. You have limited control over what happens in a battle and the game is soooooo fucking easy that it doesn't matter anyway! I can see people's comparisons to Kingdom Hearts, but at least you could get your ass kicked in that game.

[Torrim]

As somebody who owns four versions of the original Final Fantasy, I am barred in all fifty states from expressing my opinion on "value" when it comes to square enix. Seriously. Don't listen to me.

But I've heard that it's quite a good game. I'll take the complaints with a grain of salt because when it comes to anything Final Fantasy, I'm usually the polar opposite, but thanks for the impressions.

[GaijinDevil]

As somebody who owns four versions of the original Final Fantasy, I am barred in all fifty states from expressing my opinion on "value" when it comes to square enix. Seriously. Don't listen to me.
But I've heard that it's quite a good game. I'll take the complaints with a grain of salt because when it comes to anything Final Fantasy, I'm usually the polar opposite, but thanks for the impressions.

You've nothing to fear, not on this subject at least. I'm trying to think if I'd even buy four copies of the same game, and I can't think of one. Ever.

[faits]

As somebody who owns four versions of the original Final Fantasy, I am barred in all fifty states from expressing my opinion on "value" when it comes to square enix. Seriously. Don't listen to me.
But I've heard that it's quite a good game. I'll take the complaints with a grain of salt because when it comes to anything Final Fantasy, I'm usually the polar opposite, but thanks for the impressions.

You've nothing to fear, not on this subject at least. I'm trying to think if I'd even buy four copies of the same game, and I can't think of one. Ever.
Dustin would buy four copies for Ninja Gaiden (or 1ooo copies if it came to that)

I have two copies of FF1 (NES and Dawn of Souls) and three of FFVI (SNES, Anthology on PS1 which was stolen and then the GBA version)

[JonathanL]

What I've read indicates that the game starts off a bit rough, but the story, world, and characters are great, and even the battle system becomes interesting eventually.

[GaijinDevil]

What I've read indicates that the game starts off a bit rough, but the story, world, and characters are great, and even the battle system becomes interesting eventually.

He's already ten hours in, and seeing as the game's main quest has been logged at 15 hours (gaf time) and 20 hours (Lamespot time), he's anywhere from 50% to 75% done with the game.

Also, the sidequest (the one I saw at least) sucked and are all pretty much the same according to my friend. Who am I kidding, though? I hated this game before I laid eyes on it, I was just thinking I may eventually be proven wrong about the new Squaresoft. Not this day, however.

[JonathanL]

What I've read indicates that the game starts off a bit rough, but the story, world, and characters are great, and even the battle system becomes interesting eventually.

He's already ten hours in, and seeing as the game's main quest has been logged at 15 hours (gaf time) and 20 hours (Lamespot time), he's anywhere from 50% to 75% done with the game.

Also, the sidequest (the one I saw at least) sucked and are all pretty much the same according to my friend. Who am I kidding, though? I hated this game before I laid eyes on it, I was just thinking I may eventually be proven wrong about the new Squaresoft. Not this day, however.

That's a bit more helpful to know.

[Hailinel]

After playing further into the game, it's getting better. The last boss I just fought was significantly more challenging than just smacking the shit out of it with Blizzard. That said, the fight still wasn't that difficult due to my Cure materia. I'm starting to see some actual nuances to the combat, but it's still pretty much an X button fest.

[FooManChu311]

Kevin reviewed it, Gaijin. He seems pretty hit or miss these days, I don't think NMH needed a 9.0 either, but I'm willing to chalk it up to different strokes for different folks. It seems the combat is lifted right out of the Kingdom Hearts "press X to win" strategy book.

Really was Kevin huh? Hit or miss is being kind. And :D at him giving No More Heroes a 9.0.

I don't know if I can fault him for giving NMH a 9.0. The game had a few faults but honestly my main complaint was a few one hits that some assassins brought forward were quite annoying, otherwise the game had a simple, yet interesting premise and story, the side jobs were random but still kinda fun and addicting, and the assassin side jobs were decent, but I would have liked to see more expanded levels and I guess a more varied design. I wouldn't score the game less than an 8.0, and I would have probably labeled it an 8.5. Kevin does seem to be extra friendly on the 9.0 scale it seems though.

As for Crisis Core, I got it from CC, but I am waiting on my copy from Sony Style to ship before I return my copy to CC so I can be assured I got the game for basically nothing. If the combat is as simplistic as KH, I think I'll have fun with it, combined with what seems to be a very cool backstory on one of my favorites on the psone.

[Dethbunny]

I'm enjoying it so far.

[Torrim]

What firmware does it require your PSP to be?

[Alidar]

What firmware does it require your PSP to be?

I don't have it on me now, but I think it's 3.80.

[Dethbunny]

What firmware does it require your PSP to be?

I don't have it on me now, but I think it's 3.80.3.73 comes with the disk.

[Alidar]

What firmware does it require your PSP to be?

I don't have it on me now, but I think it's 3.80.3.73 comes with the disk.

Ah, I must be thinking of God of War then.

[N3MO]

My complaint so far is how random leveling is. I have yet to level up in several hours and it's making progress a drag. And playing missions in hope of getting those levels I should be getting by now is bothersome.

[D-Mon DRV]

[quote="D-Mon DRV":3rhqp8e5]My question is... is it enjoyable if you haven't finished the original FF7?C'mon... as if ANYONE hasn't finished FFVII.*raises hand*[/quote:3rhqp8e5]

I just got to disc 2 last night....

:(

[D-Mon DRV]

Kevin reviewed it, Gaijin. He seems pretty hit or miss these days, I don't think NMH needed a 9.0 either, but I'm willing to chalk it up to different strokes for different folks. It seems the combat is lifted right out of the Kingdom Hearts "press X to win" strategy book.

Really was Kevin huh? Hit or miss is being kind. And :D at him giving No More Heroes a 9.0.

I don't know if I can fault him for giving NMH a 9.0. The game had a few faults but honestly my main complaint was a few one hits that some assassins brought forward were quite annoying, otherwise the game had a simple, yet interesting premise and story, the side jobs were random but still kinda fun and addicting, and the assassin side jobs were decent, but I would have liked to see more expanded levels and I guess a more varied design. I wouldn't score the game less than an 8.0, and I would have probably labeled it an 8.5. Kevin does seem to be extra friendly on the 9.0 scale it seems though.

As for Crisis Core, I got it from CC, but I am waiting on my copy from Sony Style to ship before I return my copy to CC so I can be assured I got the game for basically nothing. If the combat is as simplistic as KH, I think I'll have fun with it, combined with what seems to be a very cool backstory on one of my favorites on the psone.

For the record, I don't read GameSpot reviews anymore... unless they're written by Kevin. In this case, I don't have a Wii, so I really can care less about what score the game got.

I did, however, beat the game about a month ago. While it did have its share of bad points that really overweighed the good, I believe that No More Heroes sets itself up for a great sequel. If the developers can tone down the shitty parts, it has the potential to be quite a series.

I'm guessing Kevin was just one of the guys that fell in love with it instantly. Personally, my main "gotcha" feel was the fact that it was so damn bloody...especially with it being a Wii game.

[Hailinel]

My complaint so far is how random leveling is. I have yet to level up in several hours and it's making progress a drag. And playing missions in hope of getting those levels I should be getting by now is bothersome.I can't say the same. In the four to five hours I've clocked so far, I've leveled up six times. It's a crap shoot, but the levels seem to come to me when I need them.

[Alidar]

I'm about 14 hours in, but I've been hitting the sidequests heavy (28% so far). It's weird. The side quests are repetitive, it's essentially a button masher (with a dodge thrown in here and there), and I didn't even think that FF7 was the best game ever. Still, it's addictive. It may have something to do with the side quests taking 4 minutes or so, which is nice because the other game I'm playing now, Majora's Mask, essentially demands that I find a 2-hour block to play it each time. It's also easy, on normal mode. I can do hard missions without much trouble at all. The only exception is one where birds have a fast unannounced attack that does 2400 damage... when I have 2200 max HP. What's up with that?

Also with the missions, they're repetitive. I think there's 300 in the game, and they keep reusing the same 10 maps over and over, with certain parts closed off. However, random battles take place at set points, where there's an intersection or a wider place in the path, and once you learn how they happen you can avoid a lot of the random battles in missions. The only open area, the plains, is the exception with a battle every two steps. Feels like Suikoden IV.

The one advantage of this game is the characters. They weren't that good in FF7 due to how they were used and the translation, but with Crisis Core and Dirge, they're adding a lot of depth to them and are helping them realize the potential that they wasted away ten years ago.

[Systems_id]

My complaint so far is how random leveling is. I have yet to level up in several hours and it's making progress a drag. And playing missions in hope of getting those levels I should be getting by now is bothersome.
There is a hidden experience counter in the game so leveling isn't completely random. Still, it is kind of weird that they went this route.

So far I'm at the part where you have to build the wagon for Aerith and I'm liking it a lot. Most of the time combat is mostly button mashing but a lot of the bosses require a decent amount of strategy. The materia fusion is pretty interesting as well, mixing all kinds of combinations is a good deal of fun. I thought the DMW would bother me with it's sheer randomness but it really is exhilarating when you get a null magic status after being pounded by magic attacks. The soundtrack and sound in general is really awesome as well. Probably the best game on the PSP at this point.

[Hailinel]

I'm not sure what to do now. I'm near the end of the game; all I have left are the final few boss fights, but I get creamed by the boss I'm on in two hits. I'm not sure if there's a strategy I'm missing or I just have to go back and level up in the side missions or what.

[GaijinDevil]

Friend just beat it. He cried at the end, which for him is a little surprising but not when I consider that he's such an FF geek. I cried too, but it was from laughing too hard at him for crying.

So the post mortem..... he basically thought the gameplay was borderline shitty, but that the story and characters are huge if you're an FF fan. So in other words, it's Square's version of Smash Brothers. Only this would've been better served as a movie instead of a game. As a movie, he'd give it an A-, with the game attached, it's a C.

edit- oh yeah, and even though he only died a handful of times throughout the game (and most of those were in boss fights), the cutscenes aren't skippable, which is flat fucking stupid, but classic Square sucking themselves off on how great their cutscenes are.

[D-Mon DRV]

Finished. Review is up.

http://www.gamer20.com/gamehub/crisis-c ... eview/1264 (http://www.gamer20.com/gamehub/crisis-core-final-fantasy-vii-psp/review/1264)

- About the battle system, at first it's all about smashing X, but after you reach a certain point in the game, that doesn't do anything anymore.
- In general, the battle system--mainly leveling up--is really complicated.
- The story is amazing.
- If you liked FF7, the ending is worth every penny you spend.
- Best RPG available on the PSP

[Alidar]

I'm at the final save point now (and yeah, the final boss just randomly takes a stupid jump up in difficulty, like many classic old school RPG's). I'm working on side missions (50% or so done), and my feelings on them changed. Specifically, they aren't exactly easy anymore. I'm at a point where I simply NEED to dodge, and heal asap if I get nicked. Some of the missions are just crazy, like the vacation ones in Costa Del Sol, or insane like the 1000 trooper battle. So battles do get better later on, it just felt that the difficulty was too easy for too long, since it's not the longest game if you don't tackle the many many side missions. The 5-minute side missions right at a save point does make this very much a pick up and play kinda game, which is good seeing how it's portable and all.

Also, since Dustin asked about hard mode, I found this:

The US Version has the option of playing in Normal or Hard Mode. So what's the difference? Hard Mode REALLY IS HARD, and veteran gamers have said they are having trouble with beating it when they chose it initially.

It looks like all enemies have new specifically customized boosted stats. I have looked at several enemies, and HP values went up as much as 5x the normal value. The same applies to their other stats. A few bosses I have checked had HP x3.25 or x3.75 their normal value. The same may apply to their other stats as well. Either way, Hard Mode is .. a LOT HARDER than Normal Mode.

Note: You can select Hard Mode in New Game+ also, even if you only beat the game on Normal Mode. This makes Hard Mode easier and more playable.

[Dkittels]

I'm at the final save point now (and yeah, the final boss just randomly takes a stupid jump up in difficulty, like many classic old school RPG's). I'm working on side missions (50% or so done), and my feelings on them changed. Specifically, they aren't exactly easy anymore. I'm at a point where I simply NEED to dodge, and heal asap if I get nicked. Some of the missions are just crazy, like the vacation ones in Costa Del Sol, or insane like the 1000 trooper battle. So battles do get better later on, it just felt that the difficulty was too easy for too long, since it's not the longest game if you don't tackle the many many side missions. The 5-minute side missions right at a save point does make this very much a pick up and play kinda game, which is good seeing how it's portable and all.

Also, since Dustin asked about hard mode, I found this:

The US Version has the option of playing in Normal or Hard Mode. So what's the difference? Hard Mode REALLY IS HARD, and veteran gamers have said they are having trouble with beating it when they chose it initially.

It looks like all enemies have new specifically customized boosted stats. I have looked at several enemies, and HP values went up as much as 5x the normal value. The same applies to their other stats. A few bosses I have checked had HP x3.25 or x3.75 their normal value. The same may apply to their other stats as well. Either way, Hard Mode is .. a LOT HARDER than Normal Mode.

Note: You can select Hard Mode in New Game+ also, even if you only beat the game on Normal Mode. This makes Hard Mode easier and more playable.

Cool.

Might pick this up someday after all.

(like in a future where I'm not expecting a bunch of other games already)

[JonathanL]

I'm a bit into the game so far, and aside from some annoyance with Zack (when will they stop making these ridiculous characters, these elite warriors who act like total children?), it's pretty fun. It's stupid easy, by and large, but I find I enjoy the battle system, since it's so tactile, but obviously still turn-based. It also looks great, and it's been quite a long time since I've played an original game built as a full experience for the PSP. The generous save points also mean my game is constantly saved.

[Hailinel]

I'm a bit into the game so far, and aside from some annoyance with Zack (when will they stop making these ridiculous characters, these elite warriors who act like total children?), it's pretty fun. It's stupid easy, by and large, but I find I enjoy the battle system, since it's so tactile, but obviously still turn-based. It also looks great, and it's been quite a long time since I've played an original game built as a full experience for the PSP. The generous save points also mean my game is constantly saved.That's really not much of an issue later on. Zack actually matures over the course of the game, as opposed to a lot of other man-child protagonists.