Very disappointing, and this is coming from an avid FF and KH fan.
Final Fantasy Crisis Core. I was very excited to finally be able to play this game. I had heard so many good things about it i was sure it was going to be a masterpiece, but it was a complete disaster. I dont even know where to begin, and i know im going to get so much hate for this review, but i honestly found this game very lame, boring, and repetitive. And this is coming from a HUGE Kingdom Hearts/ Final Fantasy fan!
First of all, the story is good on its own, but irrelevant in almost every way to the original. Dont get me wrong, i loved Zach's character, and i found the end of the game very touching and sad. But the rest of the characters are lame. Genesis, Angeal, Sephiroth,( who has the worst boss fight in the game ). One of the cool parts of the story was when Zach met Aerith and Cloud, and obtained the buster blade from Angeal! I mean, it also seems to be insanely unbelievable. Your telling me some fat scientist is the final boss and makes Sephiroth look like a weakling? No way.
Combat. HORRIBLE. I cant even explain. Imagine Kingdom Hearts, but much more slow paced and much more boring. You have no control over your leveling. You level up with this thing called the DMW, a wheel that spins like a slot machine. Depending on what numbers you get it levels up your materia and overall level. It can also trigger limit breaks which you have no control over whatsoever. What kind of RPG is that?! You can level up 3 times in one fight, and then go a few solid hours with no leveling at all. It all just seems unbalanced, and threes really no point to go back and fight enemies to level up because you dont gain EXP. Crisis Core is not exactly linear, but the side missions are very, very lame. Most of them are the same areas, almost the same concept. Run through the area, fight, run, fight, find final enemy, fight him, get reward. Its just very repetitive and boring. Dont even get me into the combat itself. Combat just sucks. Most fights can be won very easily without even moving, just mash one the attack button until you win. To make things even easier, you can roll behind your enemy and get critical after critical until it dies. You can buff Zach up with HP+ and STRENGTH+ to make it even easier! Just a plain, stupid, repetitive system that i honestly cannot stand.
I completed the game, and the ending of the game is supriseing very good and sad! You most likely already know, but im not going to spoil it. The graphics and the cut scenes in Crisis Core look amazing, but that doesn't save it for being about as interesting as a wet sponge. i mean the game is lenthy but its the same thing over and over! The story managed to keep me interested. The replay value is just out of the question and im not even going to make separate paragraphs like i usually do with my reviews, this game doesn't deserve it.
PROS
+ Very likable main character
+ Visuals and music, as always from final fantasy
+ Good story on its own.
+ Perfect Ending
CONS.
- Terrible, boring, repetitive combat.
- Lame new characters.
- No control over limit breaks and leveling
- Almost not relevant to the original in any way.
- Side missions are awful.
THE VERDICT
Story 7/10
Combat 2/10
Soundtrack/Sound effects 8/10
Visuals 8/10
Replay 3/10
Overall 6.0
Keep in mind this is MY OWN OPINION, i know i going to get tons of hate for this. I love Final Fantasy and KH but this game just didn't vibe with me. Combat completely ruined the game for me. But who knows, you might like it.