crisis core

Yeah, I know I know, I've been neglecting the blog for quite a while lately, but I have a bloody good reason (or excuse however you want to put it ^^;) :

Final Fantasy VII - Crisis Core

Basically this PSP game's been sucking many many hours of my time ever since I've begun spending my out-of-job life this week.

Sure, it's one of the many money-spinning offshoots that Square's been using to milk the beloved franchise dry, but make no mistake - this is probably the most anticipated piece of work to enrich the already fascinating world of FFVII after Advent Children.

Taking place 7 years before the events of the original game, the main protagonist this time around is Zack Flair, with many other familiar and unfamiliar characters thrown into the mix as well. Gameplay-wise, CC plays much like an Action-RPG - which means to say nothing like FFVII at all. I'm not going to go into an in depth review of gameplay mechanics, something which many game sites have already done, but what I can safely say is that even though you might need some time to get use to it at the start, the game becomes a blast to play once you do.

Having been a devout fan of FFVII from the moment I played it on my PC with the 4 CDs I 'borrowed' from my friend (no PS for me ^^;), CC brings back all the nostalgia and feelings I had since then. Because the game is basically a prequel, you sort of already know how things will end up, but that does not detract it from serving up a great storytelling experience complete with mind-blowing CG cutscenes and solid soundtrack. Above all, it provides an opportunity to flesh out the events which culminated in the original game and it does this with aplomb.

At the end of it all, I guess I just like to thank Square for actually seeing this game to production and providing fellow FFVII fans around the world another avenue to immerse themselves in the vivid world of Gaia.

Now for the inevitable FFVII remake, I might just get a PS3 if it actually does come out.. ^^;