Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reviews

• A Great Prequel

  
  By A1D2NDKVAS8NG1 on 2008-04-24
  I can't believe I am the first after weeks of this game being released to make a review!
  
  Nonetheless, here we go.
  
  This game is amazing for a portable game. The graphics and sound are just far above what you expect when you think portable gaming and they actually tied the story to the original well too.
  
  Gameplay: The Gameplay is top notch. Not only do you explore towns, talk to NPCs and have the Final Fantasy experience you would expect, but there are also side missions that act as a quick fix incase you don't have enough time to actually focus on the story. You can play these whenever you find a save point and they serve as a nice way to get you some extra potions and experience. Interactivity is similar to what you would find in the classic game as far as finding items by exploring the environment and seeing unique sights because you were curious enough to explore every nook and cranny. There are even side missions like having professor hogo making you face huge monsters in an attempt to kill you because you disturbed him. The Story is what shines the most in this game, and it is by far one of the most engrossing stories of the series.
  
  Graphics: This game seriously looks like the first Kingdom hearts on the PS2. Their facial expressions and animations are the best you can find on a portable system to date. This game could be ported to the PS2 and considered to have gorgeous graphics. The CG scenes are on par with Advent Children.
  
  Sound: The Voice acting is actually pretty good, and the music from Final Fantasy VII that was redone for the game isn't bad either, but the new music to the game is pretty forgettable. I honestly can't stand the shinra building's theme, which feels like it is 10 seconds long and just set to loop. This is one of the game's biggest strengths and downfalls at the same time.
  
  Replay Value: You could speed through the story and still expect hours upon hours to be spent doing side missions. The story itself takes a good amount of time to beat. Expect to invest maybe 30 hours into this game.
  
  This game is a fantastic deal. Expect to have a blast with it and you wont be disappointed.
  
  SPECIAL NOTE: There are some things to this game that you might want to take into consideration. I started playing this game on my old PSP then early into it bought the new model. The difference is HUGE. The load times on the new PSP are cut not only in half, but takes the load time from up to 18 seconds at some points to maybe 3-4 tops. There is also a very low amount of blur when Zack is running around on the screen on the new one compared to the old one. The new screen is brighter, higher refresh rate and the load time on the new one is way shorter. The new PSP is almost a must for this game otherwise load times will destroy the experience.
  
  
  

• Crisis Core

  
  By A2NOJVQUPKPTEI on 2008-05-05
  Since the other review is very lengthy, and covers pretty much everything, I'll keep this short and sweet. If you're a fan of the Final Fantasy series (particularly VII) then you should buy this game. If you don't have a PSP, this game is worth buying one for. I didn't have a PSP, this game came out, I bought a PSP to play it, I am extremely happy with my decision. I do recommend playing through Final Fantasy VII first as you will appreciate the characters, environments, and cameos a little more. If you do happen to play this first, I can almost guarantee you'll be shopping for a copy of VII when you're done.
  
  

• Spectacular

  
  By AJKWF4W7QD4NS on 2008-05-31
  I was never too fond of RPG's when I was younger, no matter how much I loved video games. Final Fantasy VII changed that, along with how I looked at the genre, as I, like many others, became addicted to the game's emotional storyline and well-rounded characters. Since then, we have seen a number of tie-ins, spin-offs, and even feature films based on the Final Fantasy VII universe, and now, Crisis Core has finally arrived. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is a prequel to the game, where you play as Cloud's old friend and partner Zack, and uncover secrets and revelations that are full of surprises, and lead up to the events of Final Fantasy VII. First off, the game is is simply gorgeous to look at. Not just the cut-scenes, which themselves are beautiful and stunning, but even the in-game graphics look great, making this undoubtedly the best looking RPG to hit the PSP, and the game's voice acting is even better. The game's combat system is also worth mentioning because it isn't quite turn based, and isn't quite real time. Instead, it is a fast moving system that is quite fun in itself, even if it may come off as a bit too easy for some. Leveling up and performing Limit Breaks is now determined by the slot machine-esque DMW system, which is a fun little twist as well. There are familiar characters abound as well: Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, and of course, Sephiroth. The game's story wonderfully weaves into FFVII mythology, and offers some new perspectives on Zack and Sephiroth, and those respects alone, Crisis Core is worth picking up. All in all, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is a stunning achievement that is an absolute essential addition to your PSP library, and needless to say, if you love everything Final Fantasy VII and you own a PSP, you have to pick up Crisis Core.
  
  

• Critical review, includes the good and the bad

  
  By ABOJRY1SK4J on 2008-09-07
  First off I will just say I loved the game, but there are a few areas I'm going to note on in my review that could have used a bit of work. So don't think this is any sort of hate-bashing review, because it isn't.
  
  First I will cover the scales. 1 is the worst, 10 is the best
  
  Story: 10 - Accurate and informative. Takes you back and reveals the FF7 history
  Battle System: 6 - I will explain this in detail below as to why it is a 6
  Game Mechanics: 8 - Decent convenience factors added such as stores and missions from the main menu
  Replay Value: 5 to 8, situational based - Will explain below
  Graphics & Visuals: 10 - Top notch for a hand held
  Game flow: 8 - This is how often you actually get to play the game without being interrupted by cut scenes or movies
  Mini-games: 7 - Some are enjoyable, others are very tedious after a while
  Over-all: 8.5 - Extremely enjoyable, has a few faults, but none detract too much from the overall enjoyment.
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  Further Explanations of above noted sections, note these are going to be the faults I found, that doesn't mean this game is bad, it just means it has these faults as any game has a few:
  
  Battle system-
  
  You may be asking why I rated this so low, well... while the non turn-based elements that they incorporated into this game are good in theory, in practice they are a bit cumbersome in places. The first place they missed a bit here, was the DMW system. Now you might be thinking, "Yes, I have read about how people don't like the system". The problem is, it is not that I don't like the system, I just think that they could have polished a few elements with it. I will name these polish points as "smudges".
  
  First smudge - 'phase modulations', you will on countless occasions run into a situation where you are JUST about to finish off the last monster and end a battle when you get forced into one of these phase modulations. Sure it's cool the first few times to finish off the monster with a cool attack, but after this happens 20+ times it will start to irritate you because you just want to kill that last monster and move on. A lot of the times when this happens you will get either a useless result out of it, No result, or a longer attack that finishes off the monster but was a waste of time since you were just about to deal the killing blow with your sword. The useless result factor comes into play when you get a buff to an element that was already maxed/buffed before the phase modulation. They also on occasion added flashing images while the DMW is spinning the middle image. These images cannot be bypassed after seeing them a first time, which wastes even more of your time. This also leads into my next area to cover.
  
  Smudge two, Phase Modulation Attacks - Aside from not being able to skip the aforementioned images the attacks that come from the DMW also cannot be skipped. The summon attacks you get can be skipped, however only certain ones. Why SE (Square-enix) chose to punish the player like this by making them watch the same attacks over and over without the option to bypass them after the first few times is beyond me. It just adds even more wasted time to what could have otherwise been a good idea, if only they added an option to skip these after the first time it would have been MUCH better. Do you as a player honestly -WANT- to sit through the same 5-10sec long attack sequence over 50 times throughout the game? I didn't either. You can also land a 'late' phase modulation attack which will occur after you've killed all the monsters. That means you will have to watch the sequence anyway, even after the battle should have ended.
  
  That is it for the things that could have been fixed with the DMW, the next aspect that didn't seem to work quite as well as it could have, would be the pace of the battles being too fast to actually execute needed commands. You will be left running and dodging just so you can use a healing item, or curative spell. It isn't hard to scroll over to items or a spell, but with the speed of the battles and the constant attacks coming from the monsters it makes it very difficult to pull off. Far more difficult that it needs to be. This adds to the 'cumbersome' factor that I mentioned above.
  
  Replay Value elements mentioned above:
  
  This game has replay value, that I won't deny, however depending on how you played the first time through it could either have great replay value, or almost none at all. If you went through the game the first time just to see the story and play the game casually then the second play-through with the New Game+ will be enjoyable. However, if you spent time getting levels, powerful items, and doing all the missions then your second play through will be so easy that most replay value will be taken out. The only remaining value at that point would be to watch the story a second time. While this is enjoyable the rest of the game will have almost all of the challenge removed. I don't recommend a New Game+ if you went through and made your character a powerhouse. If you fit this category then you will get more replay value if you simply start the game over from scratch.
  
  Finally, I am going to cover missions. Since this is one of the major side-quests/mini-games in CC. This is also why that section only received a 7. Mission, these were a GREAT idea, HOWEVER, poorly implemented. Why do I feel these were poorly implemented? I feel SE wasted far too much time working on the quantity of missions, but didn't spend as much time working on their quality. As you play through them you will notice there are only about 10-15 maps total that get recycled over and over again in different ways. There are some places where dialogue is also recycled. However there are very few missions where you actually get dialogue, and only one mission where you get dialogue scenes in every sub-mission. The lack of dialogue adds to the fact that they didn't have any real storyline added to the missions. It was pretty much just: Accept mission, collect items in a recycled map, find and fight mission objective boss/monsters, rinse and repeat. After the first 150 or so missions of doing exactly what I just mentioned it will get painfully tedious. All tedium could have been removed had they just cut the missions in half, to say 150, and used the rest of the time adding quality to them. In other words, adding storyline or making a larger selection of maps. Personally I don't care if they recycled the maps, but I wish they added some sort of storyline to missions so that they weren't just the same exact thing repeated over and over again x300. In fact, after the 153rd or so mission I started to get more enjoyment out of reading the Shinra briefs you get when selecting the mission than doing the missions themselves.
  
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  Phew! Now with all of that out of the way (Sorry I am long winded) I'll get to the actual review since I covered a lot of things above this might be shorter than the above areas.
  
  CC, being the prequel to the very famous FF7 delivers what I consider to be a KO punch as a game. The storyline does not disappoint you, if you were playing this game in hopes to learn what happened before FF7 then you will not be disappointed. The flow of the story I felt was very smooth and well organized. From the development of bonds such as you will see Cloud and Zack form, to Sephiroth's descent into insanity. All of this in recognizable locations from FF7 that have been redone in stunningly beautiful graphics. The game starts out right away grabbing you firmly with a great action movie sequence done in what can only be described as PS3 quality graphics. I was shocked at just how detailed and realistic this was for a hand-held system. The real-time graphics (what you see when you are running around fighting, etc) are not as high quality as the movie sequences, but they are still amazing. The movies give the graphics a 10, while the real-time graphics get an 8. They are still visually amazing for a hand-held system.
  
  CC has also added something new to familiar elements such as materia. They have added what they call a materia fusion system. While I found this system to be a bit more confusing that it needs to be you can easily find information about it online and it adds a bit of an interesting twist and gives you something to work toward in strengthening a certain materia with specific stats. If you just wish to experiment it will provide plenty of that. However if you plan to seriously work on it then I'd highly suggest reading up on it because it is very difficult to figure some things out on your own.
  
  Phoenix downs in this game have also received a slight change in functionality. Since you are the only one that will be fighting monsters and bosses instead of using it on a fallen comrade you either use it on yourself during battle, or out of battle. What this then does is give you a buff called "raise" that does not go away until you die. When you die this buff instantly revives you with full HP. Very helpful for certain bosses, what this basically means is, if you have enough phoenix downs you can survive indefinitely as long as you always keep one active on yourself.
  
  The battle system, as mentioned above, goes off of the new DMW system. Which is something like a slot machine. Most of which consists of random results and overall not one of the most enjoyable aspects of the game. Adds a bit too much of a clunky and at times very interrupting element to the game. It is also incorporated into how you level up. Now, while I was not overly thrilled with how you level up in this game, I've learned that it is far from random. The level up system goes based off of what would seem like random DMW spins, but there is still hidden EXP that comes into play. When you get a certain amount of EXP over what you need for your level the DMW will have a 100% chance to hit the level up spin. This was confirmed when I was cursed and fought for about an hour, then after the curse wore off leveled up 5 times in a row.
  
  I didn't much care for the "Activating Combat Mode" and "Conflict Resolved" messages before and after every battle. Had they given you the option to enable or disable these then it would have been alright. The problem here is that after these messages happen for the 500th time they will start to either get stuck in your head, give you a headache, or just become -really- irritating.
  
  CC brings back an old element that you might have seen in other games you may have played. The ability to break the traditional 9999 values that we've been accustomed to, with the use of special accessories and materia fusion. With the right items you can get your HP to 99,999, and your MP and AP to 9999. Furthermore you have the ability to do upwards of 99,999 damage with a single attack. It all depends on what you have equipped and what abilities you use.
  
  In CC you get two combat bars other than your HP. The other two would be your MP, and your AP. MP should be self-explanatory, it is used to cast magic spells. Your AP is used for special attack materia, one such example is an attack materia that has you spin in a circle and attack all enemies around you in a 360 degree strike. There are many many other different types of attack materia that do all sorts of things, but you'll have to find out for yourself.
  
  The musical score in this game has been mixed up a bit. There is old and recognizable themes, some that have been revamped, and others that have not been. This is mixed with a all new musical score that personally I found to be enjoyable. I am one for nostalgia, so I personally would have liked to see more of the old FF7 music in this game, but that's just me.
  
  So what this all boils down to is a very solid game, it has a few places where it could have been improved upon, some places where painful tedium could have been removed, and a few irritating elements that could have either been redone, or completely removed. However no game is going to be perfect in every aspect, this one makes up for the few issues with a compelling and immersive storyline, an overall nostalgic feel, high quality and breath-taking graphics, and a cast of enjoyable characters, new and old. I highly recommend this to anyone, as it is one of the best games for the PSP.
  
  
  
  
  

• Just barely short of perfect!

  
  By AN9J46667D80O on 2008-07-18
  Ah, the Final Fantasy series. Who can forget fine games like Final Fantasy VI, Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XII?
  
  Of course no one can forget Final Fantasy VII. This is largely because Square-Enix won't let us forget it. We have games like "Before Crisis" and Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus, and of course the incredibly well-done movie Final Fantasy VII - Advent Children (Limited Edition Collector's Set) (go find my review of it and vote it helpful! Please? I'll be your friend! ^_^ ). Now into this fray of Final Fantasy fantasticness, we have "Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII".
  
  Now, I never played "Before Crisis" (though neither did anyone else), and I haven't played "Dirge of Cerberus" either, so I can't compare this to those.
  
  What I can do is say that this is one hellishly good game! The graphics are amazing. The music reminds one of the music from the original game without directly copying it (except for in a few places). The plot, at least so far, is compelling and interesting. Further the game really opens up the world we were introduced to way back in 1997.
  
  The game isn't perfect. I still haven't found away to remove the annoying subtitles, and I do have to join in the complaints about how all you really have to do to win is press "X" a lot. Plus having the DMW screen pop up every few moments gets old. I'm also really sick of "Active Combat mode activated" message you get when you go into, well, active combat mode.
  
  That said, this is, without a doubt, one of the finest games on the PSP, joined in competition only by God of War Chains of Olympus (which I also enjoyed). It's probably one of the best RPGs I've ever played.
  
  Overall, if you like good action, great graphics, nice music and a plot you can chew your way through, then buy this game! If you don't like those things, well, heck, why would you buy ANY Final Fantasy game? :)
  
  
• Not really an RPG
  By A2JCEJAE2CCWSL on 2009-01-20
  If you are a FF7 fan, you probably have the game already, if not then get it. If you like RPG games in general and wondering about whether to get it or not then read on.
  
  RPG is my favorite genre (along with turn based strategy games) and I picked this game up thinking that it would be good. However, as some other reviewers mentioned the combat is not enjoyable from an RPG fan perspective. It quickly turns into button mashing. I played it for more than 10 hours and barely used any spells (except healing) and had no problems in getting through the battles by just hitting the sword button over and over again. They could have at least added combos to make the combat more interesting but alas. You just need to evade now and then with another push of a button and that's it. I think RPG lovers who enjoy strategizing in battles will find the combat extremely dissatisfying.
  
  Second, there is very little character customization. You can only choose your equipment and spells. There are no skill trees, character classes etc. That's another blow if you are looking for an RPG game.
  
  In sum this is an action/rgp game, and unfortunately the action elements are not very satisfying. Get it if you like action rpgs (Kingdom of Paradise is another game to consider), look elsewhere if you want a more traditional rpg.
  
  
• Great Game
  By A30ZI2K1LIZO7O on 2008-06-30
  If you have been a fan of previous Final Fantasy games, you will enjoy this game. The combat is different, but the game is still a blast. This is an excellent game for the PSP. If you own one, this is one of THE games to get for your handheld system.
  
  
• Amazing Core!!!
  By A3P84WNEICSXMH on 2009-03-12
  Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is one amazing experience from start to finish!
  Set years prior to the events witnessed in Final Fantasy VII and Advent Children, you will learn the meaning to the words Cloud spoke to the Buster sword in the wastes outside Midgar!
  Visually, this is one masterpiece of a game, the game graphic's look like they could have come right from the ps2 and the CGI cut scenes are on par with Advent Children! Its hard to believe this is a handheld game you are playin!
  The Game play is fun, think old school FF games with random battles meets 12's real-time fights! Materia also makes a return with hundreds of magic to collect! New to the series is the DMW wheel which adds a freash random outlook to the battles, giving Power-ups, heals and Summons. The DMW wheel is the new limit break system. As well as used to level up Zack our hero. There is no experience points in Crisis Core, though when three 7 land on the slots Zack will level up! Its random, sometimes you wont level up for awhile, tho you could level up 2-3 times in no time!
  The music is good too! Alot of Nobuo Uematsu original score has been remixed, leaving the newer songs to sound flat and dull compared to the older tracks!
  There is also alot of SOLDIER side missions to do, 300 in fact! which you do not have to do to complete the main quest but do help with finding items and leveling up Zack so he doesn fall behind! They may seem to be repeatitive at times, but they are still fun and nice to do for items outside the story progression! Some will take 1-3 mins while some a fair bit longer. One mission at least will take over an hour to complete!
  The ending to this game is what it is all about, never before have i seen such an emotional ending in a video game.
  All in all this is a beautiful game to behold! While it may not be for everyone (be they a FF fan or not) it is an amazing gaming experience that should be had by all PSP owners, and those thinking of buying one. Expect at least 30+ hours from Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7!
  
  
  
• Good and bad
  By A1WP7RDNYLWTU2 on 2008-09-17
  I took my time with this game and beat it in 35 hours. It was enough fun to play through. Get ready to repeatedly mash the same button over and over. Also, the camera angles are terrible. Side "missions" are necessary to level up but can get pretty boring just running around fields and caves looking for fights. Some side quests are so easy they are pointless and others are more difficult. Overall I enjoyed it, but look forward to improvements on the next one.
  
  
• Ok but not a classic.
  By A3O3CQT0BW6Y20 on 2008-09-07
  I'm very familiar with the Final Fantasy series and I've brought alot of the versions dating back to the original playstation. I played this game for a few hours and to be honest its kinda childish and silly. Its not at all capturing like the original FFVII. Alot of running around hacking, slashing, button mashin like some of the other review submitters have posted. Not much strategy needed which makes for a boring game. I've been playing FF Tactics War of the Lion for almost a year now and I prefer to play that more than this. Too much hype and I think the makers of this game were looking for a way to take advantage of the FF name and the enormous fan base. This game has alot of holes in it and its missing the key ingredient that the early version of FFV II possesed; player involvement. I didnt "feel" any attachment to any character in this game unlike Cloud and Aeris. I wish I would have rented this game before or read more previews and reviews. Die hard final fantasy gamers will probably by it for the namesake but not much else. I doubt that I will even play it through till end. Rent it first, buy a reduced price trade in copy, or borrow it from a friend first.
  
  
• Must have FF7 companion
  By A2WJGW3BF6MPMH on 2010-01-03
  I was excited when this game came out, being a huge FF7 fan. I gave this game 5 stars even though it does have some issues.
  
  The combat can be fun, if a bit repetetive. The boss fights can be challenging and make you work for it unlike most of this generic fights in the game. The graphics are top notch for a psp game. I'm not going to go into a huge amount of detail here cause I actually beat this game a bit ago and it's not the freshest thing in my mind.
  
  The story can is a bit of a mixed bag. It is essentially a direct prequel to the events in Final Fantasy 7, albeit starring Zack instead of Cloud. To me the most interesting part of the story is it gives a fair amount of detail on some of the murky events that happened before FF7, particularly Sephiroth becomes a more fully fleshed out character than he was in FF7. The story is not really as epic or broad is traditional final fantasy games, it really focuses on 4 main characters (with Aerith who makes a nice appearance)
  
  Overall I thought this game was great. If you are a fan of FF7 you owe it to yourself to buy this game.
  
  
• Wonderful Prequil!
  By A39ELYKVI0NKO on 2009-09-01
  This is my first PSP game. I bought Crises Core and Dissida around the same time, Crises Core first and Dissidia with the bundle and I found that I love Crises core first.
  
  I am a female Junior Level University student and bought my PSP to keep me entertained during breaks and with Crises Core, it really is entertaining. The battle system which is all knew for the Final Fantasy Franchise and the awesome graphics are a plus. The game mode is a little bit strange to me because I am still used to the traditional Final Fantasy wait for your turn style of fighting but this is just as good.
  
  The only thing I don't like about it is that sometimes you control your chacter with the fight movements since its auto-lock on like in Kingdom Hearts. The thing I don't like about auto-lock on is that if there is an enemy that is close by you and the auto-lock on is on a further enemy, you have to hit the one closer to you. I also miss the old fighting style of the FF games because I am a strategist and the FF games do take a bit of thinking even if it is very little compared to other games.
  
  The best thing is that you don't even have to PLAY FF7 in order to understand this game.
  
  
  
• Handsome boys' story
  By A32WY3RGFMW9O1 on 2009-08-29
  This game has a unique random upgrade system, which means that the more you fight the more chances you get update. This system is hated by many people, but I think it is OK. I found this "random" systm was not really random. Anyway, this game is very good and you can't miss it if you are a FF7 fan!
  
  
• Took me by surprise
  By A2TD92Q4VZIVK7 on 2008-08-29
  I am one of those people who was never able to get into RPG's like the final fantasy series, all the characters to manage and tedious micromanaging gameplay just isnt for me. Back in the day however my brothers played Final Fantasy 7, and over time I caught onto the story and enjoyed it for what it was worth without playing. That being said, Recently I got my hands on this game, and with only a limited knowledge of Final Fantasy and several negative preconceived notions, this game simply blew me away.
  
  Most of what I knew about Final Fantasy was that Sephiroth was a very very bad man, and the reason I starting playing it was to find out why. However, an hour into the game i found myself finding new areas of interest, mainly Zack. The story follows his ultimate ending, and his journey along the way. This journey made for one of the coolest video games i have ever played. I found myself caring about the characters in this game more than in any other game, and when the ending finally came i even found myself getting choked up. Story aside, the game is perfect as far as gameplay is concerned. It has just enough complexity to not burden you, yet offers alot of depth and options as to appeal to the hardcore people out there. For people who enjoy action games like Devil May Cry or God of War, the gameplay and combat will bring you right at home (although nowhere near as fast or as complex... but thats also a good thing)
  
  I have played many videogames since my NES back in the day. Many were decent, some outright bad, and afew necessary of mention. This is one that deserves mention. If you own a psp you should own this, if you dont... its certainly reason enough to look into getting one
  
  
• Hard mode nets it 5 stars
  By A2OEQWI54AG13B on 2008-08-23
  So in the US version of the game, bad voice acting replaces the Japanese version, but no worries because the addition of hard mode in the US version makes this superior. Plus, it's good to know what the characters are saying, haha.
  
  Basically, Crisis Core is a very solid companion piece to FFVII, and while the story has some glaring inconsistencies with the original game (such as, while Genesis seemed like an incredibly important character in Crisis Core, he's not mentioned once--by Sephiroth, Cloud, or anyone at Shinra, in Final Fantasy VII, which is unbelievable considering all he does here), the gameplay helps make up for it. On Normal mode, the game's too easy, and the player need only press X most of the time. But on Hard, the challenge increases tenfold, meaning fast reflexes and good strategy are necessary to win, especially early on.
  
  It's true the game's a little linear for an RPG, but Crisis Core is perfect for the PSP because the missions are great to do while on-the-go. And for the story's faults, Zack's character is infinitely more likable than Cloud's which makes the events surrounding him all the more interesting.
  
  
• Too easy? NO.
  By AV8WWKAUIUPH1 on 2008-08-23
  For those of you who are saying this game was too easy, you are dead wrong. All you did was play through the story, that's it. That's the easy part. Once you get to missions it starts toughening up. Let's put it this way, when I completed the final mission which was only a boss with 10,000,000 HP my character was so strong that I defeated the final bosses of the story in 1 and 2 hits. But the final boss of the mission took me well over 15 minutes with constant healing, constant uses of Phoenix Downs, and each hit of mine dealing 99,999 damage. And that wasn't even the hardest part of the game. There were missions before that that were much harder. Yes, the missions are kind of boring since almost all of them are exactly the same (fight to the final enemy of the mission and beat it) but the enemies in the later missions are amazingly strong. I'm talking about if you don't have the costly punch materia (99,999 damage) it will take you about 10 minutes to kill one enemy.
  
  Basically what I'm trying to say is that if you venture PAST the story you will find this game to be quite difficult.
  
  
• One winged angels fly in circles
  By A3JF8GQ8WA7U6K on 2008-07-03
  To brass tacks on the quick: The game is entertaining and beautiful, but ultimately relatively shallow. I won't go into the storyline, but what's there is a decent tale presented by a cast you don't see long enough to really empathize with. So that leaves the gameplay.
  
  Hack and slash with simple dodge and block buttons make for easy, repetative gameplay. Which is most of what Crisis Core is. Sure, there's magic and barrier spells and the DMW (don't worry about what it is, since it's completely random and more of a background feature than a prime component of gameplay despite how integrated it is)...but what it comes down to, ultimately is that it's a hack and slash game with a few more options than most for customizing your brawler. This is FINE and actually very fun when you're cruising through the main storyline...it is intolerable when it comes to doing the awful, redundant missions. A bare minimum of effort was put into the hundreds upon hundreds of copy-paste "missions" the game has available to you and they are pure drudgery in the interest of obtaining the game's most powerful and interesting items, equipment and materia.
  
  The negative tone here makes it sound like I don't like Crisis Core, which is of course, untrue. I think the game is gorgeous, fun to play and a blast to tool around with customizing Zack and his magic, strength or fused materia. I just wish it had more variety available in the sidequests since the main storyline is brief and the remaining gameplay after that is uninspired.
  
  Play it, but don't be surprised if you can't bring yourself to beat all the extra missions.
  
  
• No Doctorate Necessary
  By A1J1L81RQS9F8W on 2008-06-17
  There are plenty of reviews about the latest Square-Enix Final Fantasy game: "FFVII: Crisis Core," so this reviewer will focus more on explaining why the game is so popular, and why you don't need a PhD in Final Fantasy lore to enjoy it.
  
  Final Fantasy VII was a block-buster hit when it came out, and it comes as no surprise that a game which has sold more than 10 million copies as of this review has many, many devoted followers. The franchise as a whole may be the best-selling Role-playing Game (RPG) franchise ever. When Squaresoft decided to make a film about the flagship title in the FF franchise, people flocked to see it. When they announced that they were making a prequel to FFVII, fanboys and girls everywhere exploded with joy, but the game rises above mere "fan service."
  
  Even if you've never touched a Final Fantasy game, you won't be lost in a series of cliches, in-jokes and references to past plots and characters.
  People will rightly point out that the game does make some references to past games; FFVII cameos and events occur occasionally. Nonetheless, these moments rarely are integral to either the story or the gameplay. On the contrary, the game's plot is new, and as a prequel, the game's timeline fortunately precludes most of the drama and plot-twists of it's chronological predecessor. This means anyone can pick up this game and be able to appreciate and understand the vast majority of the story. In short, the game is a stand alone novel, and while some background knowledge can add further depth to a few dialogues and events, even a novice will be able to follow the rather straight-forward story.
  
  The gameplay is much the same vein. Many things--such as materia--will seem strange to newcomers, but the helpful tutorials (and instruction booklet) should help you overcome any confusiing parts of the game.
  On the other hand, if you've played Final Fantasy games before--especially the seventh in the series--then you need no introduction to the game: it plays very similarly to FFVII (with a few minor tweaks for the PSP.)
  
  Plot battles and CG movies are usually short, and perfect for a bus ride, waiting room, or any other brief moment during which you decide to use your portable gaming system. The main story itself is fairly robust for a portable RPG. I clocked in at around 20 hours, but I had neglected almost all of the side-quests, extra dialogues and the dozens and dozens of optional "Missions." Add those in and one can quickly burn 60 or more hours in a playthrough. As if that's not enough for a bargain game, you can even play a "Game+" mode which carries over some items from your previous save.
  
  In conclusion, FFVII:Crisis Core is very accessible to new players, yet it offers enough fan candy that "veterans" to the series won't be disappointed. In addition,it's a great game, as most of the reviewers here have already said. It is fun to play, lengthy for a PSP game, and has lots of extras to keep its replay value above average. I highly recommend this game to any with a PSP; it's truly a must have game.
  
  
• Pretty humble
  By A170EKHHP2S51Q on 2008-08-04
  Unfortunately the gameplay is very repetitive and bland. The bummer is, it does have a decent story, and it's really neat to play in the FF7 era again. The graphics are beautiful. It's very bittersweet. The feel is great, it's so nice to see Aeris alive again and such.
  
  The problem is, the gameplay is just button mashing, the "missions" are bland and boring. There's no gameplay. It would have been better to just release the material as some sort of movie, or better yet, just re-release FF7 for PSP like they've been doing with so many other titles.
  
  Really, you can skip this one, unless you're really such an FF addict that suffering through boring gameplay is worth it just to get some final fantasy 7 into your veins.
  
  
• Not your mama's FFVII
  By A2QUDHRJ0CFP8N on 2008-05-29
  I do enjoy the graphics and story behind this game. However, this is not the traditional RPG play. I was disappointed with the Kingdom Hearts style gameplay. I like the old school rpg. People cannot join your party, and the fighting gameplay is different. Instead of choosing the action and waiting for it to play out, you have to run around to fight. During boss fights it can actually be difficult.
  
  But I am not the greatest gamer out there!
  
  
• Great game overall with minor issues
  By A2JXS1JII6SAUD on 2010-02-10
  I enjoyed playing Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, especially as a fan of the original Final Fantasy VII. I mostly played for the storyline and to see how things played out, which made the game quite interesting to me. I enjoyed the gameplay and the way in which combat is designed. There are a few things, however, the led me to give the game four out of 5 stars:
  
  1. Missions
  
  Way too many of these (300 in all). I've never understood why the Final Fantasy series has to give the side quests more priority than the main story line. If you go and take on the side quests in their entirety before beating the game, then you will be so ultra-powerful that with one or two hits you can finish off any main storyline enemy or boss. I personally would like to see the game be the most difficult part, with the side quests leading up to the ability to defeat the game, but not dominate it. Also, the missions aren't presented in order of difficulty as the game progresses. You end up having to fight through easy missions that are quite boring for the level of character you have developed.
  
  2. Costly Punch
  
  Costly Punch makes the game too easy. For those who don't know, it's a punch that causes 99999 damage. Sure, I don't have to use it, but why not? There's no other way to get past the missions if you don't.
  
  3. Materia Fusion
  
  What a confusing mess. I spent a lot of time collecting "Chocobo Feathers" so I could give a couple of materia 999% HP. Luckily, there is a lot of online help regarding what to fuse together to get what you really need, otherwise, I would have been lost. I didn't enjoy this part of the game.
  
  4. More questions than answers
  
  I was left with more questions after completion of the storyline. If this game is supposed to fill me in on what happened, then why leave a gap of 4 years that we know nothing about? I'll leave it at that.
  
  Besides all these things, I really did enjoy the game! I realize no game is perfect, and the above issues are no reason not to buy and enjoy this game. It certainly will entertain and is worth playing.
  
  
• Amazing game for anyone
  By A6UN73GHJZIXB on 2010-02-03
  Crisis Core: FF7 is simply fun. The gameplay gives you 90% of time on story + combat. You will work on side missions (huge amount) and story to gain items instead of spending day and night searching. The side missions aren't long individually, but it will take you more than maybe 30 hours (my friend spend 70~80 hours) to complete everything! The control is simple but fun. The game is not too hard so you won't stuck at the middle of somewhere... unable to complete the game or enjoy the story. Cut scenes are amazing... It's about same quality as "Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children". Movements are lively and detailed. Sometimes I didn't play games for days but I'm able to catch up immediately any time I turn on the device due to the tie control of the game. However, if you're looking for a challenging fighting/action games, this will disappoint you.
  
  
• The best game that I've played for the PSP
  By A2VZENN3AP6M7Y on 2010-02-02
  I'll start off by saying that I am not a Final Fantasy fan. In fact, I used to make fun of people that played any game in the FF series. I thought that the only people that play these games were single men and women that couldn't get a date in real life and so they would play these games and to live out their fantasies. Boy was I wrong.
  
  I decided to buy this game after reading reviews on Amazon and Gamespot. The moment that I saw the first image pop up on my PSP screen, I was memorized.
  
  Graphics 9/10: The graphics are the best that I have seen for the PSP so far. The cutscenes look like they were pulled straight out of an XBOX game. The in game graphics are equally impressive with their stunning visual effects and incredible color-filled environments.
  
  Gameplay 9/10: The controls are very simplistic, and believe me when I tell you that this is a good thing. The Right and Left triggers are used to move the camera from right to left and the x button is the primary fight button. In fact, there are only three buttons that you will have to push during a fight. X to use an item, the triangle to defend, and the square button to evade. You will also have to push the D pad right and left to select your items, but that's it. The control scheme might be simple, but it's still a lot of fun.
  
  Replay value 8/10: There are enough unlockables and side missions to keep you busy for quite some time. I would say that you will probably spend 40-60 hours playing this game.
  
  Sound 8/10: The musical score is fine, but I found some of the classical music during the in game cutscenes to be a little strange. There are times when you are watching a sad scene unfold before your eyes while listening to...happy, go lucky tunes that sound as if they were pulled from a top 40 classical album. A little odd, but for the most part, the musical score is uniqly impressive.
  
  All of this is great, but I can't tell you about this game without mentioning its biggest flaw. Every time you die, it takes you back to the main menu. This is so infuriating that I wanted to throw my PSP through the window on more than one occasion. However, though this might be undeniably aggravating, you will find yourself loading the game again and again because you just can't get enough.
  
  Overall, this is an excellent game that will impress FF fans and non fans alike. Take it from someone who hated the series at one point; if you own a PSP, you must play this game.
  
  
  
  
  
• Entertaining Game, Lovely Graphics
  By AVZZIE871EWI8 on 2009-12-28
  Plot-wise, Crisis Core functions as a prequel of sorts. The action follows Zack and tends to detail the events that took place *before* the original Final Fantasy VII. If you enjoyed that game, you'll definitely enjoy this one-- you'll be meeting some of the same characters and fighting some of the same enemies. Including finding Vincent in the basement of ShinRa mansion. Instead of wandering a map for said enemies and experience, you'll be going through "missions" accessed in the menu.
  Graphics-wise, it's *very* pretty. There are some amazing video sequences in it.
  My main gripe with the system is how you level up and gain limit breaks-- it's generated by "chance" by the CPU, graphically represented by spinning dials, like those of a slot-machine. It tends to hinder control of the flow of battle, which is probably a good thing, because otherwise Zack is rather overpowered... though, that doesn't make it any less irritating.
  In general, however, it's a pretty entertaining game.
  
  
• true to the original game + great new battle system!
  By A1IO1BTXUZR5KM on 2009-12-02
  This game rocks on every level, from depth of story to the vast amount of unlockable secrets and side missions - be prepared to take a few hundred hours to squeeze all the goodness from this one.
  
  Some of the most noteworthy points are the yummy new music, fantastic (as always from square) CG scenes, well developed plotline (especially when you consider how most sequels and prequels turn out - LOOKING at YOU, GEORGE LUCAS!), the new materia fusion system, and real time battle system - YES, I said BATTLE SYSTEM. Don't worry folks, this is still VERY much an RPG, and if you TRY to play it like a button masher, you will not only wear out your psp for no reason, you'll also fail the game miserably once it gets into the more difficult stuff.
  
  Bottom line is, true fans of the original FFVII will LOVE this game and gleefully gobble every bit of it like I have. It's a can't-miss.
  
  
• Crisis Resolved?
  By A3SVZOUOJ3XHN0 on 2009-11-06
  Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
  
  The PSP hasn't had too many notable breakthroughs in the past few years and has clearly been in a fight for its life as the Nintendo DS continues to flourish. However, as the Xbox has shown us with the phenomenal success of Halo: Combat Evolved, one game can be the ticket to victory or just another limp paddle stroke along the slowly moving river. Does Crisis Core prove to be the PSP's bread and butter or another nameless title to be left in the dust?
  
  Crisis Core offers the same tickles and thrills of a fan fiction story line. It incorporates most of the cast from Final Fantasy VII and adds a few forgettable new ones. Following the exploits of Zack Fair, the game sets the scene for those of you who have or are about to play the original Final Fantasy VII. It's interesting to see Cloud out of the limelight for once, and have the focus redirected on a more energetic, optimistic and let's face it, overall better protagonist. Aside from the fan favorite characters, Crisis Core experiments with adding some new faces to the legendary title. The first unmemorable face is Zack's mentor, Angeal. Angeal is a wise, reserved soldier who tries to impart his wisdom onto Zack and as a result ends up frustrating the vibrant youth and forcing the player to continue pressing the "skip scene" button. Cissnei, a Shinra turk, is yet another among the forgotten, acting as a secondary and painfully unnecessary love interest. Most of Cissnei's dialogue is like butchered Shakespeare, out of breath, rushed and no where near poetic. Honestly, if Cissnei as a romance was that important to Square Enix the writers should have invested more thought into her or not had her in the plot at all. Of course not all of fresh characters go by the wayside, in fact one sprite in particular contributes a brilliant performance and the cornerstone conflict of the story. Genesis, is arguably the main antagonist of Crisis Core, and gives the original Final Fantasy VII villain, Sephiroth, a run for his money. Misunderstood, bitter, and a man of artistic words, Genesis steals the show as a truly complex, mysterious and intriguing character who leaves the player to speculate if his motives are really right or wrong. But, if you are like most veterans of the series, you are purchasing this game for one and only one reason, to have another show down with the menacing First Class Soldier, Sephiroth. Sephiroth takes second fiddle this time around and acts more as a morally conflicted partner than an actual "villain". I often found myself waiting and watching for Sephiroth's epic fall to the dark side, much like anticipating Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader in the Star Wars series. However, I felt somewhat cheated. Sephiroth's fall was portrayed way too fast and resulted in an uninspiring, yet expected, show down with Zack at the foot of Jenova.
  
  While the story may be a hot/cold experience for most, the one solid thing about Crisis Core is the gameplay. Mirroring similar traits from Final Fantasy XII, Crisis Core has the protagonist roaming around the battle field selecting attacks from a menu located in the bottom right corner. While this gameplay was not well received by the gaming community, I personally think it is a huge feat for a portable game. All the traditional aspects of an RPG are here. Magic can be quickly selected and thrown at enemies and heavy physical attacks, though time consuming, result in a rewarding blow. Overall, the game is merely a fast fingered traditional RPG that allows the player more freedom in dodging enemy attacks (Finally!).
  
  Crisis Core doesn't only succeed in gameplay, but in the visual field as well. The environments in the game are astounding, delivering the nostalgic and beautiful ambience of the original title, revamped spectacularly taking advantage of the PSP's impressive graphics. From character models to high-action battle effects, the visuals in Crisis Core put PS2 graphics to shame. In particular, Square Enix's mastery of the CG rendered clips are well worth the price of admission alone.
  
  Lastly, the audio in the game can be viewed as a mixed experience. While the music is extraordinarily composed and adds unparalleled intensity to battle sequences and complete despair in those unexpected plot twists, the voice acting just can keep up with the pace. It isn't always the voice actors' fault, but downright ridiculous and often embarrassing dialogue. The actors did the best the could with what they were given, but most times it seems like all the good lines were given to Genesis. Don't get me wrong, the story still isn't that bad, but just beware. You'll have to suppress some of those corny scenes from your memory to enjoy the plot thoroughly.
  
  Altogether, Crisis Core is one of the best portable experiences on the market today and is well worth those twenty some hours it takes to complete. The story is interesting, the gameplay innovative, visuals breathtaking and the sound up to par with other titles in circulation, make Crisis Core a definite success for the PSP and another compelling chapter in Final Fantasy VII mythology.
  
  
• Crisis Core FF7: PSP's greatest experience
  By A22J30YBA54K8S on 2009-10-21
  Crisis Core is hands down the most fun I've had on the PSP since Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories came out years ago! I had put down my PSP for the last 3 years because of the lack of games. Now that Crisis Core finally has the "Greatest Hits" packaging, I jumped on the bandwagon and picked up the game. I was extremely happy!
  
  FF7 is one of the greatest games I had ever played from my childhood, and Crisis Core stays faithful to the overall feel of the original game which inspired this prequel.
  
  The Battle System is very fun and deviates from the traditional RPG games but definitely does not sell the title short. If anything, Crisis Core will only help you fall in love with the Final Fantasy VII series all over again.
  
  I just finished the game and am playing the original now. I'm going to go back and load the "game cleared" saved file in CC after I beat FF7.
  
  Good luck, and don't hesitate picking up this game.
  
  
• A very awesome game
  By A22T18ZIVH95V on 2009-10-13
  This game is awesome. i was surprised by not only how long the game is but how awesome the game looks and plays. it is definitly a gud game. i was a little reluctant to buy it but after awhile i did and i was blown away by how awesome this game is.
  
  Pro's
  +Graphics
  +Length Of Game
  +Characters
  
  Con's
  -No way to skip scutscenes (but why wuld u want 2?)
  
  
  
  
• fun, but repetative
  By A38AYDOFT0XHV0 on 2009-10-11
  If you're a fan of FF7, and want to find out how many of the characters met, this is the game for you. If these things don't matter to you, go ahead and skip it. The game play is repetitive, and the missions do get boring, but if you can trudge through, you will be rewarded with an ending that is one of the most touching in FF history
  
  
• Crisis Core is an RPG Masterpiece!
  By A2H0I2X9N4L9GD on 2009-10-09
  Crisis Core is one of the greatest RPGs on any system. From the moment you start this game till the final cutscene, it is obvious how much love and effort (and big bucks!) went into making this gem. The story and character development is some of the best you'll ever experience, is is truly impossible to put this game down if you get into the story. Characters show real emotion and development, and their relationships and struggles feel very real (something most games can't accomplish, even on next-gen consoles!). If you're a fan of FF7, this game is an absolute must, it adds so much to the story and makes you question whether you really knew your favorite characters (Sephiroth is one example, you finally get to know him before he became a monster and find out what exactly drove him to madness). Overall, story, graphics, music, controls, everything is brought together perfectly to create a truly cinematic experience from start to finish. Moving on to the technical aspects of the game...
  
  Although some reviewers criticized the nontraditional battle system, it actually suits the game very well; however, you need to play this game on the most difficult setting to get the most out of it (otherwise it's too easy). Also, I would recommend not doing missions unless it is necessary to gain strength for bosses, otherwise you might become too powerful and breeze through them. The later missions are truly challenging and rewarding, I recommend you give them a try after finishing the the main story, there are more than a few surprises to be found! I've spend over 50 hours on this game and only completed about 60% of the missions! Finally, if you liked this game, you will probably also enjoy these PSP games: Jeanne D'Arc, Brave Story: New Traveler, Star Ocean 1 and 2, and Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth.
  
  

• Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions
• Dissidia Final Fantasy
• God of War Chains of Olympus
• Star Ocean: First Departure
• PSP 3000 Core Pack - Black