Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core (PSP) - PC and Console Games (Square Enix)

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Customer Reviews of Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core (PSP)

triantha
Bath, England
16th August 2008

I like it...a lot
Well, as you can see in the other reviews, there are quite a few negative issues that some people have with this game. However, I love this game. I've nearly finished, and when I do, I'm going to play it again. To me, thats the mark of an excellent game.

This is not a turn based, strategic battle system affair like its parent game, but rather an action based game. I love the hacky-slashy combat - which to me seems perfect for an impulsive "leap before you look" type like Zack. The battle is complicated by the DMW (Digital Mind Wave), a slot wheel that spins to dole out bonuses. This is presumably meant to represent Zack's SOLDIER enhancements, as it releases limit breaks, levels him up, and deals out random smaller bonuses. Personally, I like it. The system evolves throughout the game with more characters added and even extra reels. By the time that mini cutscenes about the characters are added I was impressed that square had managed to keep the whole thing fresh.

The real star of the game is the characterization, with all the characters exactly as you would wish them to be. The story is superb - mad as ever, thanks square! - although some of the cutscenes that repeat 1997 history have lost a little of their sheer horrified amazement. I would highly recommend this game to anyone who enjoyed FFVII purely for the chance to meet Zack Fair, who is probably the best character in the FF series for a long time. The story will tug your heartstrings all the way through :)

It's also great to see a game so well adapted to the PSP. It fits sony's system perfectly, with lots of bitesize missions to do on the bus/train. I personally prefer doing lots of different missions to level up Zack and get new items than the traditional FF method of leveling...finding the monster that gives the most exp and killing it over and over and over....
In this way, leveling is taken care of for you while you search out new materia and equipment.

All this without even mentioning all the mini-games, side missions and materia fusion system. The music and graphics are also outstanding. Quite simply, I think this is a stunning game.

Kborom
North Yorkshire
9th August 2008

Random Levelling - what's all that about??
Good game this, story line and cut scenes are superb and feature many of the stars of the FF series, probably the best storyline you are likely to get!!
The game itself can be seen as an action game with inventory and magic control together with an almost completely random element which is the DMV which controls levelling (of Zak and also materia equipped), some special attacks and also special temporary statuses (for instance MP-free materia usage). This is almost random as a curse status stops the DMV and fusing certain materia will increase the probability of certain DMV instances - but generally it is random.

This didn't work for me, as winning boss battles could depend upon the DMV coming up trumps so I regularly had to refight bosses until the DMV came good and then the boss battles were easy. As I prefer to beat bosses first time or at least be able to work out how to beat them from one go this was not ideal, you can get wiped out in seconds so end up running round avoiding the monsters until the DMV wheel stops.

The other element to this game which you could completely miss/ignore is fusing materia to give status improvements but this again needs alot of though and practice (unless you use google ;)) to get right. I enjoyed this as about 75% through the game I realised that this was a very powerful and quite enjoyable element which made the mission trawling easier.

Overall a very enjoyable and polished game, with some depth if you want it, but the random levelling didn't work for me. FF fans will love this, Cloud as a new recruit makes an appearance, and alot of the signature FF elements are here.

Craig J. Fairweather
Scotland, UK
31st July 2008

A Contrasting Opinion
If I may offer a different view for potential buyers interested in this game, I'll try to be quick.

As a large and long time fan of FFVII (my first FF experience) I was sorely dissapointed to find that the weakest aspect to this game was the story. Three factors contibute to this fault: horrendous dialogue; over the top cheesy US voice acting; and character motives that have no real understanding behind them. It creates a frustrating and at times offensive experience, particularly for those that enjoyed and cherish characters realised in FFVII.

Surprisingly the main draw for me, and the reason I score this game so highly, is the gameplay in here. I wont specify the mechanics but suffice to say it is a great offering and will quench your needs whether you want a long sitting or a quick fix on the bus to work- you will get hooked.

The star of the show (for EU gamers only) is the hard mode, which really turns the story mode and the side missions (all 300 of them) into a real challenge right from the start. I relished this challenge right till the end as it really kept the combat interesting throughout my 30+ hours with Crisis Core.

The music, while well produced, is at times relentlessly repititous and considering most of it is heavy metal/ techno hybrid buzz it really can get dull after time or even right off the bat depending on your personal tastes. Battle sound effects are top notch, however environmental noises are virtually non-existent.

To conclude, Crisis Core's shallow story will no doubt appease younger fans and satisfy those who found Advent Children to be the best thing sinse sliced Sephiroth. However, disregarding the excellent gameplay- which I believe warrents a purchase for action/ RPG fans- those who regard the franchise dearly should perhaps approach this game with caution, as there will no doubt be fans who wish that the game that started it all had remained as a single classic.

Comments are valued,

Cheers.

Luke B. Taylor
England
27th July 2008

Zack Rulez!
This game is absolutely fantastic. It gives many hours of great gaming and fun. The story line is fantastic, the graphics are sound, the gameplay is superb and it has absolutely everything a great rpg and final fantasy game should have. This is a must buy for any rpg or FF fan. If you've seen Final Fantasy Advent children this is the prequal and happens 2 years before the film.

Sir Squidshaker
UK
27th July 2008

Swing and a miss
// ---- Out of Mana.co.uk ---- \\

Crisis Core acts as a prequel to Final Fantasy VII and focuses rather disjointedly on the events before Cloud joins AVALANCHE and the original game which shook the late 90s begins. If you've not yet given it a go but consider yourself a moderate fan of FFVII, then you'll probably have a few questions. Does FFVII:CC weave a narrative worthy of merging into the oncoming plot traffic of its predecessor? Does it whisk you back a decade in time and fill you with warm, nostalgic memories of a time spent staggering between glorious pre-rendered works of art and whirling random encounter transitions? Are some of the darker elements of the plot handled with a degree of mystery and subtlety? The short answer to all of these questions is a faintly dejected `not really'.

Advent Children hardly set the stage for reassurance. Whilst the visuals and action were bang on form; the pacing was sloppy, the introduction to the final encounter was about as epic as a cucumber sandwich and for some reason Square lovingly topped the whole experience off with the kind of whimsical 'feel good' ending usually confined to daytime movies about mischievous runaway moppets.

The trend of outstanding CG effects remains strong and character models and overall animation in the glorious array of FMV sequences rival anything showcased in the aforementioned movie spin-off. The musical score as we've come to expect from anything made by Square fluctuates between varying levels of greatness. The voice acting however... well, let's just say three out of four isn't bad.

It's not that there's much particularly wrong with the English dubbing besides the odd awkwardly delivered line tripping over the clumsy dialogue like it's an obese cat sleeping in a doorway, the issue is that there's not much right with it either. To make matters even more distressing, we've been outright denied the opportunity to switch to Japanese audio with subtitles.

The combat system is very much your straightforward hack and slash picnic, Press X to hit target with sword until said target collapses in a heap, and Press Square to perform a roll-stroke-dodge combination which can be used to cavort out of danger (or often into it, should you get a bit carried away). You can also scroll through a selection of spells and skills which you've either found on your escapades or created using Materia Fusion. It all seems perfectly acceptable until the fetid abomination which is Crisis Core's limit break system rears its ugly head, anyway.

The DMW (that's `Dull Meter Watching' for those in the know) System does away with all that overrated nonsense everyone keeps banging on about, baloney like fast paced combat, strategy, customisation and fun and instead replaces them with a much more desirable spinning wheel.

If the battle designers of Crisis Core are to be believed then not only is the brutal crucifixion of strategy in games long overdue, but also slot machines are apparently a vastly superior form of entertainment far beyond our human comprehension. The best approach is to just go along with it. Struggle against the flow of the DMW and you'll have gnawed the corners off your PSP sooner than you can say "modulating phase", though it's difficult not getting a little deflated/annoyed/homicidal when it happens on the very last badly injured enemy.

Nonsensical happenings crop up now and then leaving you scratching your head or twisting it in a lupine manner trying to work out what on earth just happened. On one occasion, Zack had to save a village due to be bombed, from being bombed twenty seconds sooner by what I can only assume was a secret invisible rocket-launcher located in another dimension. To save the day, our dashing hero strikes the rockets with his sword, forcing them to rather smoothly split in two as if they were forged from Danish pastry. The entire scene makes absolutely no sense and worst of all forces you to partake in hideous `QuickTime' events a la shenmue. These silly attempts to crowbar in needless gameplay elements with no thought for context breaks flow and calls into question just what in Gaia possessed the designers to implement such sloppy game elements in the first place.

Overall, Crisis Core is saved by its gorgeous visuals and stunning FMV sequences but underneath all that you can't escape the sinking feeling that you're plodding through a shallow and often befuddling stab at an action RPG.

The Good
- Impressive FMV sequences
- Masses of quick side-missions which can easily be picked up when on the go

The Bad
- The tiresome DMW System ends up slowing down gameplay the point of agony
- Clunky dialogue and voice acting
- Fragmented story Frisbees immersion straight out of the window
- Side-missions suffer from `Quantity over Quality'
- Many scenes are lacking in the dark atmosphere which made the original stand out from the RPG crowd of the 90s
- Some real odd moments of nonsensical happenings