Rishabh Borde
‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ holds a special place in the annals of Final Fantasy history. While we today know the franchise as a cultural and commercial behemoth of the JRPG (Japanese Role Playing Game) genre, this was not always the case. Despite its successes throughout the 90s, the franchise and its creator Square was struggling in the early 2000s after the failure of ‘Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within’.
In order to secure funding for the next game in the franchise, Square partnered with Nintendo for ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’. The game went on to be a thumping success, revitalizing the ‘Final Fantasy’ series for the new decade. Now, after nearly 17 years since the release of the original game, ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ is getting the full remaster treatment. Read on to find out everything we know about the upcoming ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition’.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition Gameplay: What to Expect
In ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ players take control of intrepid adventurers in a fantasy world where magical crystals protect the world’s towns and cities from the all consuming and ruinous Miasma. These crystals require a rare fuel known as Myrrh, which is only produced in a special type of tree. The player character explores the world gathering Myrrh inside a vessel and must protect it from enemies in order to bring it back and replenish the crystal that protects their home village.
The webpage for the game describes it as follows: “FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES Remastered Edition follows a young group, known as the Crystal Caravans, as they embark on an epic journey to search for myrrh, a precious and rare liquid needed to cleanse and maintain a crystal protecting their world from the deadly gas, miasma.”
You begin the game in the character selector with options for gender and race. The world of ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ is home to four distinct races, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. The human like Clavats are hardy and capable of magic, the nomadic Selkies are the masters of special abilities, the humanoid Yukes possess vast knowledge and magical potency and the childlike Lilties who are the most powerful of them all. You can also choose your character’s family profession, which can provide access to new items and facilities.
In singleplayer, you navigate the world map with your Caravan, stopping to explore various towns and dungeons you discover. The towns act as hubs for various shops and crafting/upgrading items and equipment. Sometimes, your journeys will trigger certain story events in which you encounter other travelers and their caravans.
The combat in ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ consists of classic hack and slash gameplay with chainable combo attacks and special magical attacks. The damage you deal depends upon your equipment as well as your character attributes and statistics. Magic can be used to deal damage, or it can be used to inflict debilitating status ailments. Fusing multiple magic spells together can also give rise to entirely new effects.
Despite its solid RPG gameplay and narrative, the biggest draw of ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ was its focus on multiplayer gameplay. The game was designed for multiplayer from the ground up, but the limited technology of its time held it back to some extent. To initiate a multiplayer session, the Nintendo GameCube console had to be linked up with each individual participant’s Game Boy Advance (GBA) using the GBA link cable. The players would then use their Gameboys as controllers for their respective characters.
The upcoming ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition’ fixes this issue with an all new online multiplayer mode that even features cross-platform play. This will certainly make the multiplayer experience better than ever before in the series. Other improvements include significant enhancements to visual fidelity as well as sound design, all new voice overs for the characters, new dungeons to explore, new bosses to battle and new costumes for customization.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition Developers: Who Are the People Behind It?
The original ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles’ was developed by Game Designers Studio, a shell corporation founded by Square to allow them to develop games for Nintendo without impacting their work for Sony’s platforms. The game was published by Nintendo exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube console. The remastered version ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition’ is being published by Square Enix.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition Release Date: When And Where Can I Play It?
While initially slated to launch sometime in 2019, the release of ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition’ was later pushed back to January 23, 2020. However, the game has been delayed yet again and now a summer 2020 release is being targeted. It will be available to play on a variety of platforms including Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, iOS and Android.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition Trailer
You can watch the trailer for ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition’ right here:
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