Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core

[Jeddy]

Right first off i would just like to point out i am a fan of (most) of the Final Fantasy series, yet i am bordering on fanatical about FFVII, So it was only natural that when i saw the advert for the prequel that i went out and spent a large sum of money aquiring the console and the game.

All in all to sum up, it was well worth it.

My first impretions (sp?) of the game could easily be summed up with one 3 letter word "WOW" normally followed by a copious number of exclamation marks.

The new combat system is fun, its real time, or atleast as close as a FF game can get. its not like in FFXII (curses and spits) where you can see the enemy and thusly avoid it, you walk into certain areas and text will flash up on the screen saying "Acvtivating Combat mode" this is when you generally open a world of hurt on the insolent fool who dare approach you with sword drawn, or something like that.

The controls during combat are simple, but still take some getting used to, im not sure if this is because id never even seen a real life psp before, or because the game its self is a little strange. the "X" button is you main attack button basically its more of an action button, you choose the action (Attack, up to 6 materia and items) with the "L" and "R" buttons. Also Triangle will block, roughly halving the damage taken or Square will dodge, with some snappy timing you can avoid all damage.

-- I managed to get pretty much to the 6th chapter just button bashing "X",

Story line wise, in the begining its great, they have gone to great lengths to maintain continuity in some areas, for example the maps are near identical, even down to the flowers in the church being in the same place, the play ground looking exactly the same. yet at the same time they seemd to forget the fundemental plot ideas they had already established.

I realise for the longevity of the story that new characters had to be Added, They are called Angeal and Genesis, who are good friends and fellow First class SOLDIER operatives with Sephiroth. The main character, Zack Fair, looks very similar to and seems to have a definate mentor like relationship with Angeal. Your first mission is to try and find out why Genesis nd a large number of 2nd and 3rd class SOLDIERs have gone missing, you later find at the end of this chapter Angeal leaves to join the person you find is his long lost friend.

The main plot annoyance of mine is how during the "nibeheim incident" when sephiroth first gets an idea of what he is, Genesis is the one to tell him, where as in FFVII he was the one to find work it out by himself.

Obviously through out the game you see the story unfold, both new and what we already knew, however as i see the end near im both sad, that i know whats coming and because i honestly feel this is the last addition to the FFVII story. yet at the same time there is a sense of releif as im getting annoyed at this Genesis arc constantly postponing the end.

however, this game is fantastic, not only is it incredible to play but there are breath taking pre-rendered sequences and fantastic in game graphics for a hand held, which seems comprable if not more powerful than my PS2.

I still liek the game, and i hope beyond hope one day we will be able to see either a rerelease of FFVII (which people have been saying for years) or a furthering of a game that has captured my imagination and that of so many thousends accross the world.

i look forward to reading your opinions on this game.

Regards,
Jeddy

 

[Paul]

Crisis Core is a great game . Ive had it for awhile and completed it afew times ( Got 100% on the Missions, All Genji Equip and other rare items ) . Its worth the time and effort

However the Leveling system is abit annoying, it all depends on the slots getting 777 ( Other enhancements come with other numbers, such as No MP cost and Invincablity for a short time ) but the level doesnt have such a large effect when you can improve your status with materia and equipment . Some fights need you to just hammer the enemys while others will have you have to block or evade or take heavy/fatal damage and some just have you praying for a summon/limit break to help you out !

Phoenix Downs are very rare, you can find them in levels but cant buy them anywhere . So you have to keep an eye on your remaining HP or risk loosing your reraise status costing you one of the Downs . However the Elixers arent as rare and you can collect quite afew of them ( Unlike other FF Games where you can buy Phoenix downs but can only find a couple of Elixers )

The Extra Missions are a good way to extend the games life, doing these missions allows you to collect items\materia\equipment and also allows you to level up or gain one of a kind items ( Backpack and Keychain increases your Max equiped Equipment by one each, you can also get shopping address or summoning materia ) . These missions include fighting Hojo's experiments to Exploring the northern caves

Crisis Core is a good game filled with great graphics and a great story, it isnt turn based like FF7 but you get to see some old faces and a look into how Shinra became so powerful and the historical events . Even Sephiroth can be likeable in this game

 

[La Patience]

Well I'm a huge fanatic about all the FF games and FF4 was my faverite (I have four different versions of FF4 and am eagely awaiting the DS port).

I like FF7 but Dirge of cerberus was a let down for me. still I get them anyway and am going to be getting crisis core whn i get back to newcastle. I have already heard the story and all but its FF so im bagging it.

What was wronf with FF12 any way. sure you may as well have ripped FF of its name but it was ok. I also have the spin offs like final fantasy tactic,tactics advance, tactics advanced A2.

my second fav is 9 becasue it went back to the roots of FF and the 6 (coz kefka was a real big boss much better the sephiroth) and then 7.