|
Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles
Nintendo (
12 March, 2004 )
Video Games |
| Our
Price |
: |
£
29.99 |
|
List
Price
|
:
|
£
39.99
|
|
You save £10 (25% off) |
| Prices
subject to change. |
usually dispatched within 1 to 2 weeks. |
| |
|
| |
|
Its Final Fantasy...but not as we know it  |
|
So, Final Fantasy, back to Nintendo after all these years. Sure, there was that brief affair with Sony, but we can forget all that-provided , of course, that Crytal Chronicles blows its final Fantasies VII and onwards out of the water. It doesnt? Ah...
The Final Fantasy games, renowned and revered for their intricate storylines, deep character development and general pretentious goodness. Crystal Chronicles is to Final Fantasy as Dark Alliance is to Baldurs Gate. Its not a bad game per se, but its just not what anyone expected. It is, at its core, a hack and slashing dungeon crawl, and no amount of weak plot can disguise that. Its about as polar opposite to the FF games of yore as a game can be, and frankly it does nothing to help alleviate the GameCubes reputation of a kids console by taking such a successful sreies and changing it so bizarrely.
Technical problems abound with CC. In order to enjoy the game at its best, youll want to be using the multiplayer mode. This can only be achieved if every player uses a GBA with connector to the GC as well as their controller. The GBA handles all the dull menus and such freeing up the TV for more pretty monster bashing. A nice enough idea, but why is it used? The cost is phenomenal, over £300 for four players. The actual implementation is useless because you have to look away from the screen to see the GBA, so why bother anyway? In the middle of a fight, the last thing you want to do is put aside your controller to fiddle with the GBA and find that life saving potion. It all smells like Nintendo desperate for somebody to make use of the much vaunted but little used GBA/GC connectivity.
So why three stars then? Well, as I said, its not a bad game. The graphics are simply stunning and, with three friends, its quite a laff. However, Id give the graphics and the friends up for a real FF storyline any day. Remember that feeling when Sephiroth ran Aeris through with his (impractically lengthly) sword? Well, you wont get any of that here. But, if youre looking for a top dungeon crawl, you cant go far wrong with this. Just dont set your expectations too high.
|
Its Final Fantasy...but not as we know it  |
|
This game is mainly designed to be a multiplayer experience for 4 players, each with their own GBA and link cable. You can play it on your own, of course, but the single-player game is lacking in almost everything that made the other FF titles great. The only area in which this game excels is the graphics, which are beautiful. However, the art design has returned to the style of FFIX rather than the more realistic, adult characters as seen in FFVIII, FFX and FFX-2. The gameplay has been horribly simplified so it now resembles a weak clone of the Zelda games; its really more of an action game with RPG elements, like the Zelda series (only nowhere near as good). But probably the worst fault is with the storyline, what there is of it. FF games are known for their complex, involving and emotive plots, but the story here would barely cover the back of a matchbox. Plus, if you are expecting a 60-hour marathon like the other games, you will once again be disappointed. Ive nearly finished it and have been playing for just 17 hours, despite taking part in a number of side-quests. Its not an absolutely AWFUL game, but compared to the other FF games its a real comedown. The complexity is gone, the story is gone, the characters are flimsy and childish, the whole thing is over fairly quickly...not what we were expecting or hoping for, Im afraid. Worth trying if you have the requisite number of friends/GBAs handy, but otherwise Id suggest sticking to The Wind Waker, or the Playstation/PS2 Final Fantasy games, which are all far superior to this.
|
GameCube Game Of The Year To Be!  |
|
Finally the fantasy has returned to Nintendo! I must admit the only RPGs I have ever played are of the Pokemon series, but from what I have read at ffcc.nintendo.com & its squareenix.com link I managed to discover that Crystal Chronicles is a very user friendly RPG. You dont have to know everything about the previous FF games on the PS or ES versions either. The new Cube adventure which is to be released on the same day as Final Fantasy X-2 will flourish with originality, not seen in any other Fantasy game before. In this comeback,the developer,The Game Designers Studio, have included a bountiful variety of exclusive extras all listed below;
1.One to Four Player using a GBA connection with your free GBAGC link cable. You need 1,2,3 or 4 cables depending on how many people are playing.
2. If you have no friends dont worry, using the GBAs link feature makes a area radar appear on its screen, you can choose to summon many information packed miniscreens as well later unlocking the Caravan Racing bonus game.
3.Design your own character! Choose from 4 alternate species; Clavats, Selkies, Lilties, or Yukes.
4. You can choose to be either a boy or a girl, so you can hop aboard for a ride in the caravan whatever sex you happen to be!
5. Customize & decorate your pet Moogle.
6. Explore a wonderful fantasia of disbelief in full 3D, in a kingdom that spans the whole length of a majestic river.
7. Send presents to member of your family.
8. Have the option at the beginning to choose what career your parents have.
9. The seventh installment of the Final Fantasy series for a Nintendo console. Beating the Ps FF7 in all areas imaginable.
10.ITS NINTENDO!!! GOD DAMN IT! LIFES A GAME & YOUR IN IT!
|
|
