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Video games come in many different varieties. There are titles that you pick up every now and then and play to kill some time, there are games that you play through over a collection of evenings or a weekend and then set on the shelf almost forever and then there are games like Crisis Core. A game that is pick-up-and-play, gaming-on-the-go friendly yet with top-notch production values and an epic storyline that's ready when you are.

Rarely do I burn 36 hours in a game, finish it and feel like I had just scratched the surface. In fact, I had just scratched the surface, with the game ticker showing just over 50% completed. The last area of the game was so engaging I couldn't just keep myself from diving head-first into the final confrontation. Minutes later, after the credits and storyline rolled out, I saved my game and restarted on Hard difficulty at level 56 (99 is the max) without a thought.

I'm just going to dive right into my only problem with Crisis Core and get it out of the way. The mission structure in Crisis Core, basically the game's version of RPG grinding, is so addictive it's easy. If you play through the missions, and I assure you you'll lose hours upon hours in these bite-sized moresels of missions, you'll quicking become much more powerful than the storyline in-front of you. While this is hardly a huge problem, purist may want to consider starting the game on "Hard" difficulty right from the beginning, just to be sure you'll get the proper experience.

Wait this is...an Action RPG?

The first time a battle kicks into effect and Zach unsheathes his sword for battle, anyone who's comfortable with the FFVII fighting system will be either pleasantly surprised or absolutely abhorred. I read very little about Crisis Core before diving into is and was absolutely thrilled when I found out I could fully control the combat. While the combat is still instanced and is triggered as you navigate the 3D world, it somehow keeps it's Final Fantasy roots throughout in a wonderful blend of Action and strategy.

Crisis Core utilizes three basic meters while in combat. Hit Points (HP), Magic Points (MP) and Action Points (AP). Your physical actions and the type of materia you decide to use will drain from your AP. Dodging or Blocking with the face buttons will utilize AP while yellow materia will also drain from AP. Green materia, among others, like your classic fire, blizzard and thunder spells, will drain MP. This should be pretty basic to anyone who's played an RPG in the past.

Welcome to the DMW

If you harken back to your experience with Final Fantasy, you'll definitely recall being able to call on any summon you've unlocked at the expense of MP, at any time. This is where Crisis Core takes a pleasant turn for the chaotic using the new Digital Mind Wave (DMW) As you scamper through Combat Mode slashing and blasting your enemies, a slot reel of memories is spinning in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. This wheel will randomly stop at the faces of characters you've met throughout your travels in-game along with three numbers that spin independently. How these numbers stop on the reel will determine an attribute on the battlefield. There are numerous battlefield attributes that fluctuate throughout every battle, like no AP loss or no MP loss, even temporary invicibility (until the wheel stops again). Furthermore, if the DMW lands on two 3's, your 3rd equipped materia will level up once (level 5 max), if you land on three 3's, then the materia in your 3rd equipped slot will level up twice. Three 7's and Zack, the main character, levels up.

The wheel can also stop on three identical pictures, say three Sephiroth's, and trigger a special ability related to your past with Sepiroth that Zack will unleash on his enemies. Beyond all that, there will be times that the DMW will trigger memories from the storyline you may have missed or would never see without these flashbacks. These snippets of story, intertwined with the battle sequences keep you from losing interest from beginning to end.

The DMW also completely controls summon casting as well, which may turn some off for a moment. While it's disappointing that you can't just call on Moogle or Bahamut whenever you damn well please, it's significantly more awesome when Bahamut pops up on the wheel just in the nick of time and saves your ass. All in all, the DMW for limit breaks is a fantastic addition and I could go on for pages all about it.

By the way, there's a story here..

Many of the questions that fans of FFVII have are answered here and it's eloquently told with a fantastic combination of in-game and CG cut scenes. Final Fantasy fans will be thrilled to hear that even though this is a wholly portable experience, the voice work is also absolutely fantastic throughout.

Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core will actually make you want to go back and re-play Final Fantasy VII. Something that I haven't desired to do in years. I may or may not do it but just remembering the feeling of wandering through the pre-rendered environments for the first time in FFVII was worth placing Crisis Core in my portable tray.

Conclusion

Crisis Core is a title that should not be missed by anyone who has a PSP, has access to play a PSP, has ever played an RPG, breathes air and drinks water. I walked in expecting it to be good and it turned out whole-heartedly exceeding my expecations.

5 out of 5