Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII

Note: This review contains spoilers for Final Fantasy VII and Compilation of Final Fantasy VII

Before I actually played Final Fantasy VII, I had watched the Advent Children film and played Crisis Core when they first came out. The first time I played Crisis Core, just over a decade ago, I liked it in spite of a general lack of context. Of course, my memories of the game faded over time and after finally playing the original Final Fantasy VII, I decided to go through Compilation, which originally ended with this game. Now that I’ve finished my second playthrough, I remembered why I liked it in the first place, but now I also see more flaws, both in the story and gameplay.

Seven years before the events of Final Fantasy VII, Zack Fair is a SOLDIER 2nd Class hoping to work his way up to First. While Zack trains under his mentor, SOLDIER First Class Angeal, they learn that another First Class and Angeal’s childhood best friend, Genesis, has betrayed Shinra and defected along with a number of other SOLDIER members. Zack is then ordered to participate in the final battle of the Wutai War, where he is saved by the legendary SOLDIER First Class, Sephiroth. Once the mission is over, however, they realize that Angeal has also defected from SOLDIER. With their ranks thinning, Zack is determined to help SOLDIER find their missing members and figure out exactly what’s going on.

Zack wants to become a SOLDIER First Class.

Given that Crisis Core is a prequel, it attempts to expand on the events leading up to Final Fantasy VII, though mainly from Zack’s perspective. For the most part, the game succeeds in this endeavor, fleshing out Zack’s character beyond the flashbacks in the original game by showing his previous friendship with Sephiroth and the influence he had on Cloud, an infantryman. It was interesting to see how the Genesis War hardened Zack as a person while still giving him room to remain optimistic, as well as how he channels the game’s main legacy theme through the transfer of the iconic Buster Sword between Angeal, himself and Cloud, especially given what the Buster Sword now represents as a result of this game.

Sephiroth is also fleshed out a little, depicting his more good-natured and competitive side before his discovery of his true nature at Nibelheim causes him to go mad. He’s made a little more sympathetic from his interactions with Zack, so it adds a little more depth to his character. However, that didn’t really change my perception of him that much due to his extreme and irredeemable actions in Final Fantasy VII.

Sephiroth gets fleshed out in this game.

Both Zack and Sephiroth’s backstories are also expanded on through the formal introduction of Angeal and Genesis. Of the two, Angeal is the more interesting one, since his actions and motivations felt more complicated out of a sense of conflicting loyalties to his friends. After learning the true circumstances of his birth and exiling himself as a monster, he still feels a sense of duty to protect the planet from monsters. Even in death, he still acts as Zack’s mentor, passing down the Buster Sword while telling Zack to protect his honor.

Angeal is a good addition to the cast.

The Nibelheim Incident, a pivotal moment in both this game and the rest of the series, is recreated very faithfully, down to Nibelheim’s layout and the exact dialogue spoken by the characters in the flashbacks from Final Fantasy VII. After this sequence, the story also attempts to fill in the gaps between it and Zack’s inevitable death, as well as Zack passing his legacy down to Cloud, while also wrapping up the Genesis War, or so it seems. As for Zack’s actual death, it’s handled pretty well. Though his last stand against an army of Shinra troops is pretty “anime” compared to the original Final Fantasy VII, he is visibly exhausted during his canonical death, which leaves room for this game’s interpretation to work.

The Nibelheim Incident is pretty faithfully recreated.

As a prequel, Crisis Core also does its best to tie into Final Fantasy VII as seamlessly as possible. This includes making a slew of call forwards, including, but not limited to, mention of Shinra’s space program with Cid preparing to pilot the rocket and a conversation involving the construction of the Seventh Heaven bar in Midgar’s Sector 7 Slums. The player gets to name the bar during this conversation and choosing “Seventh Heaven” causes the planner to make very specific and on-the-nose references to how the bar appears in the original game, including its owners and its purpose as a front for Avalanche. Additionally, I liked that the post-credits scene, rather fittingly, leads directly into the beginning of Final Fantasy VII, even faithfully recreating part of the opening FMV while adding context from Crisis Core.

While I still enjoyed the story, I did notice some more glaring issues this time around.

Crisis Core’s central conflict, the Genesis War, builds off the mystery of Genesis, who was previously only seen in the secret ending of Dirge of Cerberus, where he was physically portrayed by Gackt. This buildup made me genuinely curious who he was, but I felt let down once he was explained. Genesis serves as the main antagonist and an obvious analogue for Sephiroth, but unlike Sephiroth, he isn’t a very interesting or sympathetic villain. His motivations are entirely selfish, as he’s suffering from genetic degradation over a wound that was his own fault, but when he’s unable to easily acquire the Jenova Cells that might stop it, he immediately decides to take the whole world down with him. Every single time he comes back into the story, he also recites a passage from LOVELESS, his favorite poem, and can’t not relate every situation to it.

Genesis isn't as interesting as the game wants us to think he is.

Genesis is also retconned into the Nibelheim Incident as part of the catalyst for Sephiroth’s descent into madness by showing up and explaining the mysterious Project G, hinted at in the collectible G Files from Dirge of Cerberus, and the follow-up, Project S, which led to Spehiroth’s creation. I wasn’t very fond of this retcon, since Sephiroth’s discovery of his true nature was already perfectly understood in Final Fantasy VII, so it felt both redundant and unnecessarily complicated to shoehorn Genesis into the equation.

Accompanying Genesis is Hollander, a Shinra scientist presented as a rival to Hojo. There’s potential in such a character, but Hollander ends up an unremarkable villain due to a general lack of charisma. As such, he ends up forgettable in spite of his large role in Genesis’ side of the story.

Interestingly, Crisis Core had the opportunity to touch on the Wutai War, a crucial event referenced in Final Fantasy VII, yet nearly glosses over it, only showing the final mission and a younger Yuffie as a form of referential fanservice. Any lasting effects are only glanced at in optional missions, so it seems that this affair will stay a mystery for the time being.

On a lesser note, Crisis Core expands on the canonical relationship between Zack and Aerith. While I liked these scenes, it also felt like the game took the relationship for granted. They’re shown in a relationship and that they miss each other when Zack is away at Nibelheim, but I wasn’t sure I got the sense of them falling in love with one another. By contrast, Zack’s interactions with Cissnei, a Turk who debuted in the Japan-exclusive Before Crisis, are sometimes playful enough to give a sense of possible romantic chemistry, even if nothing will ever come of it.

The relationship between Zack (right) and Aerith (left) is taken for granted.

After the TPS style of Dirge of Cerberus, the gameplay of Crisis Core returns to the RPG roots of Final Fantasy VII, but has a more action-oriented take on combat since Zack is the only player character. Though the combat system is unusual, you quickly get used to it. Instead of a menu, the player uses the PSP’s shoulder buttons to scroll across a bar with immediate access to all of Zack’s equipped Materia and items. Zack can have up to six Materia equipped at a time, but passive Independent and Support Materia don’t appear during combat. The two combat-related Materia types, Command and Magic, each have their own associated costs, with Magic requiring MP and Commands requiring AP; AP is also expended whenever Zack dodges or blocks.

While that’s simple enough, this game makes up for the lack of party members with the introduction of the Digital Mind Wave (DMW), essentially a slot machine that constantly spins in the upper left corner until the three reels land on different portraits and numbers from one to seven. Each spin costs 10 SP, which Zack continuously earns throughout the game. Once the reels stop spinning, Zack can gain a status effect based on what numbers appear, either by having three of the same number or at least one seven, in which case it depends on the position of the sevens(s).

The combat screen. Notice how the DMW slots are
physically connected to Zack's HP, MP and AP.

If the left and right reels stop on the same portrait, a Limit Verge (aka Modulating Phase) will trigger and the reels will take over the screen while the action pauses. During this time, the DMW might also show a short flashback related to the character whose portraits are displayed or one to five stills of a previous scene from the game. If the center reel then matches the left and right reels, Zack will gain HP, MP, AP and SP depending on the numbers that appear, then perform a Limit Break related to the character portrait. If the portrait is blank at that point in the game, Zack will instead perform a generic Limit Break.

During a Limit Verge, the DMW may instead enter Summon Mode or Chocobo Mode, which starts a new set of reels. If the three reels line up during Summon Mode, the Summon in question will use its special ability. Chocobo Mode is similar, though instead the center reel must once again match the other two reels. After a certain point in the game, the DMW may also enter Genesis Mode, which adds Genesis’ portrait to the DMW until either Zack dies or the current Chapter ends, whichever comes first. As the DMW represents Zack’s emotions, certain story events may cause specific portraits to show up more often.

Crisis Core also solves a major issue I had from Final Fantasy VII, the random battle system. Instead of random encounters, enemies now have specific spawn points that are generally easy to figure out.  Once you learn them, you can potentially skip unnecessary encounters by hugging the correct walls on the map. This helps immensely if the player decides to tackle the optional missions, which can allow Zack to obtain powerful and exclusive equipment and Materia.

One notable addition is Materia Fusion, which allows Zack to combine two Materia, and later items, into new Materia. This system is very useful for obtaining otherwise elusive Materia, though I found myself using it a lot less on my second playthrough due to the rewards and treasures from optional missions giving me more of what I wanted. Still, this system had a notable influence on the Kingdom Hearts series, with the similar Command Melding in Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (also for the PSP).

An example of Materia Fusion.

I observed during my second playthrough that despite a fresh new save and a gap of 11 years, the game somehow felt easier the second time around. Zack’s level at the final boss was the same, 47, yet I completed the game in 29 hours instead of 42 and that was even with nearly 50% of the 300 optional missions completed, including one that takes about an hour to finish. I also realized that, in a way, the game was designed around the PSP’s portable nature. For instance, the optional missions are generally pretty short and the save points during the campaign are placed pretty well and somewhat generously. Some aspects of the game are also streamlined by making them readily accessible through Zack’s phone, including online shops that replace a traditional shop system (though Zack must be on a save point to access optional missions).

Additionally, Zack can receive email from various characters and NPCs. If they aren’t spam, these emails can explain important lore, show some of what’s going on in the world or open access to more missions. If there’s one thing I wasn’t a fan of, however, it’s that you sometimes need to find certain NPCs at certain locations at certain points in the story to start receiving email and potential quests from them. Though a lot of them don’t really matter in the long run, it’s something to keep in mind if you want to read as much as you can.

Of course, there are plenty of actual annoyances within the game design. For one thing, the camera isn’t the worst, since the presence of only one analog stick means using the left and right shoulder buttons, but there’s no way to control the camera during combat, since it automatically adjusts according to Zack’s position. This doesn’t really get in the way of combat too much, but there are times where Zack can go behind something and you can’t see him until the camera manually adjusts. Additionally, when going through narrow doorways, it’s possible for the camera to flip itself and cause you to start running back into the room you just left.

This camera also plays a part in why the stealth section in Modeoheim is a little sloppy. You have to get to an underground facility by dodging three Shinra infantrymen, but the camera can make it hard to reliably keep track of everyone at all times. It also doesn’t help that if you fail enough times, the game takes pity on you and removes the threat entirely, meaning you don’t even get the satisfaction of succeeding properly.

The most annoying thing about the combat, however, is actually the DMW itself. Not the idea, since it’s actually interesting, but the fact you’re at the mercy of the completely random nature of it. Random status buffs are one thing, but this system also includes random level ups, as well as any of Zack’s memories tied to a character, which also only occur during a Limit Verge. If two of the numbers in a Limit Verge are the same (between one and six), then the Materia equipped in that slot will level up. If all three are sevens, however, Zack levels up. Apparently, Zack’s level ups aren’t completely random, as the chance of it comes up whenever Zack gets enough EXP, but the EXP counter is hidden from the player, so it certainly feels random. Either way, it’s very frustrating when the stars seem to perfectly align, sometimes with the center wheel realigning itself, but then you get nothing out of it. The DMW adds an unnecessary degree of luck that you have to deal with no matter how skilled you are or how high Zack’s level is.

The only way Zack can level up in the game.

While fighting a boss, they may occasionally use an unblockable attack accompanied by an unskippable animation, both of which are painful in situations when you’re low on health and couldn’t heal in time or you’ve repeatedly seen the same animation. The player can skip Summon FMVs, so why not these boss attacks? Also, Zack’s last Materia selection sticks between battles, so it’s possible to waste MP, AP or items if you’re not careful.

As previously mentioned, Zack can participate in 300 optional missions to obtain potentially powerful Materia and equipment. However, these missions quickly feel repetitive thanks to their often-similar objectives and exiting within the same handful of maps, just with different parts of them blocked off. You also quickly realize that since the spawn points are set in stone, it’s quite possible to accidentally enter another combat encounter immediately after finishing one just because you took two steps in the wrong direction. Fortunately, you can still flee unwanted encounters by running against the edge of the encounter area, though you might still take damage in the process.

It gets increasingly repetitive from here.

For a PSP game, Crisis Core holds up pretty well visually thanks to its stylized graphical style and clean UI. The characters and environments made a good transition to this system, with faithful recreations of previously seen parts of the world of Final Fantasy VII. However, there are some obvious uses of Advent Children assets and footage, as well as time when pre-rendered FMVs are better at capturing the scale of the action rather than the in-game engine. On a minor note, I did notice that the basement of the Shinra Manor had a different layout than the one seen in Final Fantasy VII. This might be due to the significant upgrade in the hardware compared to the PlayStation, but it’s worth mentioning for those who care about continuity.

The voice acting is generally pretty good, especially from the returning voices, including Steven Burton as Cloud and George Newbern as Sephiroth. Rick Gomez’s take on Zack also does a good job at capturing his evolving personality and the proper emotions in each scene. Interestingly, Oliver Quinn takes over for Robin Atkin Downes as Genesis, which I didn’t really mind, since he did a great job despite my personal feelings on the character. The original score by Takeharu Ishimoto is amazing, with plenty of memorable tracks, and complements the returning tracks by Nobuo Uematsu very well.

With all of its faults, Crisis Core remains one of the better titles on the PSP. The exploration of Zack’s character was handled in an interesting way and the combat, as well as the game design in general, takes full advantage of the mobile nature of the platform while remaining mostly fun to play. It’s an easy recommendation for Final Fantasy VII fans, but if you’re not attached to the story, you can still find some enjoyment in the gameplay.