Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles
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| Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles | |
| Missing image FFCCbox.jpg | |
| Developer(s) | Square Enix |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Release date(s) | February 9, 2004 |
| Genre | Role-playing game |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen (T) |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo GameCube |
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is a video game for the Nintendo GameCube. It is the first Final Fantasy game on a Nintendo console since Final Fantasy VI, as well as the first Square-produced game on a Nintendo platform since Super Mario RPG. Since Sony partially owns Square Enix, the company that makes the Final Fantasy series, it seemed extremely unlikely that Final Fantasy would ever be published on a Nintendo console again. However, Square (now called Square Enix) created a second party studio which included people who had worked on the Final Fantasy games for PlayStation to make Final Fantasy games for Nintendo consoles. This new Final Fantasy game features many new gameplay elements previously unseen in a Final Fantasy game, for example, real time fighting, as well as being the first RPG to incorporate GameCube-Game Boy Advance compatibility. The game was released in North America on 2/09/04. It was scored by Kumi Tanioka.
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Gameplay mechanics
The game can be broken down into three general things players can do: explore, interact and fight. Like all good RPGs, these will constitute the bulk of the game.
Exploration
In FFCC, players assume the role of various young adults who must venture out into the wilderness in a caravan to protect their village from a poisonous gas cloud called miasma. They must find magical trees, called 'myrrh trees,' out in the wilderness that produce one magical droplet of 'myrrh', magical water every two game years. These droplets of water ward off the miasma, and must be taken back to the village to recharge the town's crystal, which also wards off miasma. The trees are, of course, guarded by a host of creatures bent on killing the caravanners. The passage of time seems to play an important role in the game, for as the years progress the challenges the players face grow increasingly stronger.
Interaction
Like the other games in the Final Fantasy series, the story involves a character or group of characters journeying great distances throughout the world to complete a central quest, although many smaller quests will arise along the way. In the process, they will meet dozens of exciting people, fight off exotic creatures, discover hidden treasure and unfold a dramatic storyline. In FFCC, movement in the game is similar to the third-person follow-cam mode found in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. This type of movement is where players will spend the majority of their time. However, with more than one player, the movement must be restricted to keep all the players on the screen at the same time. Because of this technical fact, an aura given off by the 'crystal chalice,' which carries myyrh, restricts characters to staying on-screen, otherwise the miasma rapidly damages the character.
For movement across large distances, the players go to the "world-map" view, which is a highly zoomed-out view of the world which players use to venture from town to town and other far-away locales.
Combat
Combat in FFCC is real-time and takes place in the regular movement mode, much like in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker or Secret of Mana. The button layout is relatively simple. Pressing the L and R buttons scrolls through a list of actions that are executed with the A button, and the B button is used for miscellaneous actions.
Role-playing elements
Character types
A big part of all role-playing games is selecting the type of character you will play. There are four races (character classes) that players can choose from in FFCC, each with its own unique strengths. A well-balanced party will draw upon the strengths of each race, which makes the game ideal to play with four players. The races are:
- Clavat: Clavats wield swords.
- best defense
- 2nd best magic
- Lilty: Lilties wield spears.
- best offense
- 2nd best defense
- Yuke: Yukes wield hammers.
- best magic
- cast spells 2x speed
- Selkie: Selkies wield rackets.
- best agility
- charged attack 2x speed
Experience
At the end of each dungeon lies a myrrh tree and a selection of prizes. These prizes, called 'artifacts', permanently increase one stat, that is strength, defense, magic, maximum health points, or number of activity slots, by one. In addition, artifacts encountered inside the dungeon temporarily increase the stat the artifact controls by one, until the player exits the dungeon. Notably, in this game, spells and skills are not learned- special items called magicite must be acquired once per level to cast specific spells.
The story unfolds as the players journey from territory to territory, talking with people and completing quests set before them. Cut scenes are also a big part of RPGs, and FFCC is no exception. These movie-like breaks in the game further enhance the story and often come at critical points in the game (after the party completes an important quest or arrives at a new area for example). It is likely that much of the story will involve discovering the mystery behind the miasma – what (or who) is causing it, understanding the nature of the trees and magic droplets and watching your characters grow from a party of children into adults.
One interesting role-playing aspect of FFCC is that the players can and should interact with their in-game parents. The players actually choose the occupation of their parents at the start of the game, and based upon this occupation the parents will aid the players in various ways. Blacksmith parents for example will make new equipment for the players, merchant parents will sell rare items, alchemist parents can make potions, and so on.
Additionally, players will have opportunities at the end of each dungeon to write home or send gifts to their parents. Players with good relationships with their parents are more likely to receive gifts from them in return, as well as gain discounts on their wares.
Multiplayer and connectivity features
The most unique aspect of FFCC is that up to four players can play at once utilizing a Game Boy Advance connected to the GCN via a link cable. When more than one player wishes to play the game, each player is required to play with a GBA. Multi-player mode allows several things to happen:
- Players can cast larger spells by working together to join their magicite crystals in different combinations.
- Players use the GBA to switch between various attack commands, spells, items and equipment. This allows the game to proceed uninterrupted when one player wants to make an adjustment in the middle of a battle. However, this also means that monsters will continue attacking the defenseless player who is navigating the menus.
- When the players enter a dungeon or a cave (which happens quite often in Final Fantasy games), each player's GBA screen will show different information. A map will appear on one player’s GBA, and a radar showing monster locations will appear on another. Players must therefore communicate the information to each other to venture safely through each dungeon, which adds a unique interactivity element to playing FFCC.
- The GBA also has the added benefit of clearing away information clutter from the game screen itself, so that players can get a clear view of the game without obscuring the screen with excess information.
Sequels
An FFCC game is in the works for the Nintendo DS and the upcoming Nintendo Revolution, both of them expected to take of their respective system's built-in wi-fi hardware for online play.
See also
External links
- GameFAQs entry for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles (http://gamefaqs.com/console/gamecube/data/34053.html)
- Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Shrine (http://www.ffshrine.org/ffcc/ffcc.php)
Template:FinalFantasy serieses:Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles ja:ファイナルファンタジー・クリスタルクロニクル