Gaming Target - GameCube: Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles

Written by Kyle Williams on May 19, 2003

Hands On Preview: Ah, what sweet music comes from the paring of Square & Nintendo.

This title marks a milestone for gaming. Final Fantasy, the series that started on a Nintendo platform, is finally returning to one. Through a joint publishing deal, Square Enix and Nintendo are teaming up on several titles including new Final Fantasy Tactics and Mana titles for the GBA and this brand new Final Fantasy adventure that is coming exclusively to the Nintendo GameCube. While story details are scarce, as is typical with any new Final Fantasy title, we've known a couple of things about this game for a while; The first is that it is going to support up to four players, the second is that it is going to feature GBA connectivity.

The question that has been floating around about Final fantasy Crystal Chronicles is, УJust how will it take advantage of the GBA link?Ф Basically, you will use your Game Boy Advance or Game Boy SP to access the typical role-playing-game inventory management screens and maps. With four GBAs or SPs and four GameCube GBA link cables, you and three friends will be able to play through the title together. Even without all of the gadgets and gizmos you will still be able to enjoy Crystal Chronicles. However, no one is answering how the inventory management is going to happen without one of the Game Boys.

After spending some time with the game, I found that the Game Boy Advance works very well as a controller for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles. This is primarily due to the very simple combat and spell interface. At any given time, your character will be able to perform one action, be it executing an attack, casting a specific spell or using an item. You can scroll through your list of available actions using the two shoulder buttons and add or remove items from the list by using one of the menus on your Game Boy screen. This may sound a little bit simplistic, but all of the depth in the combat system comes from the teamwork that this title is promoting. By you and your comrades charging your attacks and centering all of your targeting reticules on the same enemy, the final attack becomes more than the sum of its parts. Defeating the game's bosses will require you to work with your teammates and not only concentrate everyone's attacks, but also cover each other's backs.

All of the four player action is made possible through the fantastic Game Boy Advance. By moving the inventory and character management off of the GameCube monitor and onto the GBA screen, FF Crystal Chronicles is making it possible for three players to keep the action going while the fourth manages their inventory. In these instances it will be up to the three players to keep the fourth safe, but the computer will prod him along so that the party can continue to make progress through the level.

While the draw of this title will be the four-player adventure, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is not a multiplayer-only title. Maybe the CPU will pick up the slack (hopefully the AI won't suck) or maybe you'll just have to go the distance alone (which would suck). As of E3, no one is talking about how exactly the single player mode will play out which has me mildly concerned. Hopefully, before Crystal Chronicles releases this holiday season (God willing), this will all be tooled to everyone's approval.