Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles - The Ring of Fates
Nintendo DS

FF:CC - Ring of Fates Official Site
http://na.square-enix.com/ffccrof/

IGN - Info/Review
http://ds.ign.com/objects/682/682869.html

Gamespot - Info/Review
http://www.gamespot.com/ds/rpg/finalfantasycrystalc/index.html?tag=result;title;0



Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles - The Rings of Fates only recently launched in North America.  After years of knowing about the game's existence, dating about as far back as E3 2004 BEFORE the Nintendo DS even launched it has had quite a period of development.  I picked it up a day or two ago the moment my store got it in as I did enjoy the Gamecube FF:CC a bit and for a long time really wanted to see how such a game with a single player focus would work out; considering how awkward the connectivity system in the GCN game turned out to be.

Anyway, the game starts off following the adventure of two kids, twins in fact, named Yuri and Chelinka.  Apparently, they possess a skill/ability where a mysterious power between them can be tapped into only when they're together allowing them to accomplish objectives they otherwise couldn't handle separately.  A lot regarding their past is held in mystery throughout the start of the adventure as the game's first half hour to an hour is more an introductory/ tutorial period, introducing you to the game's mechanics, the game world and those closest to Yuri and Chelinka while laying the foundation for the game's plot.

The story gets a bit more detailed than that but I'd be getting into spoiler territory by elaborating.  Admittedly, the game's outset was almost a chore to get through because of how much time the game spends walking you through everything.  You can choose to ignore tutorials and the like if you wish but you're involved in a lot of trivial things starting off as you push on in your adventure.  However, after that first half hour or 45 minutes or so, things began to get a lot more interesting and I'm pretty hooked on the game after learning some team oriented techniques and having crafted some decent equipment early on in the game.

What I do like however is the magicite system in this game compared to FF:CC on the GCN.  While it is a bit of give and take (the fact that magicite you find isn't permanent) you do keep whatever magicite you find in stages even after leaving them.  In this game, when you find or buy magicite, you keep a stock of it in your inventory meaning you can keep a number of fire, blizz or thunder or magicite on person.  However, each use of the magicite depletes that stock and combining magicite for more powerful attacks (having one character cast fire and another combine their fire with yours will result in Fira) will deplete the number of magicite needed to cast that spell; in this case for Fira, two will be depleted.

With that said, the combat system in the game has much more freedom compared to FF:CC as you can perform aerial maneuvers and even ride on top of enemies or hang on aerial enemies and attack them while you're in close proximity.  I only have two characters at the moment, but with the way it's look each character will control radically different from the other, especially since the characters are based on the four races introduced in FF:CC: Clavat, Yuke, Selkie and Lilty.  Each one has their own standard abilities and special skills to help both clear out enemies and solve puzzles that another race may not be able to handle.  Yukes, for example, have a skill that involves using the touch screen to thread magic to areas of the environment revealing new pathways or uncovering secrets.

The game differs quite a bit in some areas from the original but the influence and standard orientation of things is still pretty much there. With that said, it also still retains a playing style more associated with dungeon crawlers than most real time RPGs where key points in the game world act more as hubs to dungeon areas where you'll encounter enemies, solve puzzles and fight bosses but it's still quite a bit more elaborate than the original FF:CC by comparison.

Anyway, so has anyone managed to give the game a try as well?  Though I might have it wrong (the game anyway) I thought one of the members here imported the title when it first launched in Japan last year.  Though I'm still fairly early in the game, I have some qualms here and there despite it being an enjoyable package overall.  Graphics are pretty decent for the DS, probably on par with if not exceeding Final Fantasy III and the voice acting strewn throughout isn't too bad either.  Unlike the original FF:CC however, none of the music thus far has been as good or memorable save for the theme of the game's second town; but even that's taking things a stretch.  However, I do like that upon equipping items your character's appearance changes along with them so you can customize your party members (per their race's attributes, of course) and have them looking pretty formidable compared to their ragtag apperance early on in the game.

I do agree the game is fairly easy, the only challenge mainly coming from bosses for the most part.  Though there is the occasional moment that one of them "bomb" type enemies manages to hit me with something when I'm fighting a group of enemies.  Anyway, I have no real qualms with the magicite system as I think it works well, certainly compared to the original FF:CC.  However, it does feel like that due to how items such as that are used alone the game should have gone for a pro-touch screen control setup like Phantom Hourglass or Ninja Gaiden.  A lot of the more critical gameplay points are touch screen controlled anyway so it kind of feels like that they went half and half and sacrificed a bit of intuitive control by not taking that route.  I definitely find myself quickly relying on my thumb or index finger to coordinate magicite attacks and the use of items so it would make sense for the game to have taken that route, indeed.

Not sure about all this jungle business though as I myself have only recently completed the boss battle at Mt. Vaal. The one after the kids' father is killed and you're out to find out where Alhanalem and Meeth have disappeared to.

Just beat the game a few hours ago...man, if you guys stopped after or before the jungle, you have so much more of the game to play and it really does get better as it progresses.  My only problem with it throughout however is that the paths on many floors in the dungeons aren't all that obvious.  There were quite a few moments where I had to be resourceful and either use my party members as stepping stones and the double jump ability of my Selkie to reach areas that I otherwise couldn't have any other way as far as I could tell, and some of the maneuvers I pulled seemed a bit too complex to be part of the normal flow of play.  I'm sure most would know what I mean come the last three dungeons in the game.

Anyway, I really liked how the story tied up at the end although it was all bitter sweet considering the circumstances of what happened.  Definitely turned out better in that regard than I expected seeing as how light hearted and cheery it all started out.  I also had no idea that you can play the multiplayer mode solo, which is what I'm going through right now.  Might I also add, that this is one of those games where you need to save you end game file to another slot, otherwise (similar to games like Wind Waker) you'll overwrite your starting file with a secondary quest type file.

But yeah, took me 12 or 13 hours in all, though the highest armor I could find was Mythril and the highest weapon being "Dark" so I'm sure I missed out on a lot of stuff, and that just concerns Yuri.  Only one other party member was upgraded nearly as high with Dragon type armor and a mythril based weapon.  Great game...as far as DS games go however, $40 still feels like a tough pill to have swallowed for the game; but I've been waiting on it since 2004 so I splurged anyway.  Next up, Ninja Gaiden: DS.