action role-playing
An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre.
Definition
The games emphasize real-time combat where the player h ...
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
developed by
The Game Designers Studio
(also known under its American brand name SquareSoft) was a Japanese video game development studio and publisher. It was founded in 1986 by Masafumi Miyamoto, who spun off part of his father's electronics company Den-Yu-Sha. Among its early emp ...
and published by
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
for the
GameCube
The is a home video game console developed and released by Nintendo in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in PAL territories in 2002. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 (1996), and predecessor of the Wii ...
. It was released in 2003 in Japan and 2004 in North America, Europe and Australia. A remastered version for
Nintendo Switch
The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...
,
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
was released in August 2020. A spin-off of the ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' series and beginning of the series of the same name, ''Crystal Chronicles'' was the first title in the franchise to be released for a Nintendo
home console
A home video game console is a video game console that is designed to be connected to a display device, such as a television, and an external power source as to play video games. Home consoles are generally less powerful and customizable than ...
since ''
Final Fantasy VI
also known as ''Final Fantasy III'' from its initial North American release, is a 1994 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' s ...
'' in 1994.
Players take on the role of adventurers who travel in a caravan gathering mystical fuel for crystals which protect the world's settlements from the destructive ''Miasma''. The single-player campaign has the player escort the vessel carrying the crystal's energy, defending it from enemies and solving puzzles to progress. Multiplayer, which uses
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
units connected using the console's link cable, has up to four players protecting the vessel.
Deciding to partner with Nintendo for game development following severe financial problems created by the failure of '' Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within'', franchise creator
Square
In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90-degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length adj ...
formed the Game Designers Studio as a
shell company
A shell corporation is a company or corporation that exists only on paper and has no office and no employees, but may have a bank account or may hold passive investments or be the registered owner of assets, such as intellectual property, or s ...
to develop for Nintendo hardware without impacting games for
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
platforms. The development team wanted to create an accessible gameplay experience focusing on multiplayer. The music, written by
Kumi Tanioka
is a Japanese composer and pianist. Born in Hiroshima, Japan, she graduated from Kobe University with a degree in musical performance, and began working as a video game composer in 1998. She joined video game developer and publisher Square tha ...
, made extensive use of
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
and
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...
s.
Upon release, the title was positively received by journalists, and was nominated for multiple awards. Reaching high sales positions in Japan and the West, it went on to sell over one million copies worldwide. The remastered version saw generally mixed reviews, with many faulting the change to online-only multiplayer, and by-then dated gameplay mechanics. Subsequent entries in the ''Crystal Chronicles'' series have released for Nintendo consoles, beginning with '' Ring of Fates'' for the
Nintendo DS
The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...
.
Gameplay
''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles'' is an
action role-playing game
An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre.
Definition
The games emphasize real-time combat where the player h ...
where players take control of a group of adventurers who travel the world searching for rare trees which produce "myrrh", used to fuel crystals protecting the world's settlements from the poisonous Miasma. Players are guided through a repeating series of events which dictate their progress through the game and its story. The adventurers set out from their village, travelling to the trees guarding the vessel which gathers the myrrh, exploring dungeons in which the trees reside, then returning home to renew their village's protective crystal.
Players choose their avatar character from one of four races; they can be male or female, each with four pre-set body types. Each race has specific strengths, such as the human-like Clavats having high defence and magic
statistics
Statistics (from German language, German: ''wikt:Statistik#German, Statistik'', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of ...
and the nomadic Selkies being able to use special abilities with less cooldown time. Each character's attributes are further customised by choosing the profession of their family, which gives the character access to unique facilities and items each time they return to their home town. Players navigate the world map with their Caravan, and enter town and dungeon environments discovered during the journey. In towns, the player can freely explore and use the available facilities to create and upgrade both items and equipment using materials and blueprints gathered during their journey. The player can also encounter other caravans and travellers, triggering story events. Items used to support the player are both bought in shops and received as gifts from the player character's family.
While exploring dungeons, players are confined to a safe zone created by the vessel, fighting enemies in a style similar to
hack and slash
Hack and slash, also known as hack and slay (H&S or HnS) or slash 'em up, refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee-based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such as ...
games with actions assigned to command buttons; actions can be chained together into short combination attacks using equipped weapons to increase damage and charge up magic abilities. Magic can be used to damage enemies or trigger status ailments, with multiple spells able to fuse and create new effects in battle. The elemental affinity of the player's attacks can be changed using crystals found in dungeons. Certain elemental affinities are necessary for crossing into new zones otherwise blocked by streams of Miasma. Instead of an
experience point
An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experi ...
system, character attributes and statistics are increased by completing challenges in each dungeon session which award skill points, and Artifacts found in dungeons which can be equipped to a character.
In
single-player
A single-player video game is a video game where input from only one player is expected throughout the course of the gaming session. A single-player game is usually a game that can only be played by one person, while "single-player mode" is usuall ...
, the player controls one character guarding the Moogle-held vessel from monster attacks while navigating dungeons. The game's
multiplayer
A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...
allows up to four players to join in a local gameplay session; multiplayer relies on the
GameCube
The is a home video game console developed and released by Nintendo in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in PAL territories in 2002. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 (1996), and predecessor of the Wii ...
console linking with the
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, 2 ...
(GBA) link cable. All players are displayed on the screen, while their GBAs both control their characters and allow functions such as shopping in towns and performing battle functions. Character attributes are increased in the same way, except that the necessary points are given to the best player during that session. In battle, players can raise attack meters using standard attacks in succession, and combine individual spells to create more powerful versions for higher damage. The link cable can also be used in single player, allowing the GBA to be used both as a controller and a second screen displaying radar information. The type of radar and what it shows is determined by the color the player's Moogle—one of a recurring ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' race—is painted during stays in towns and visits to the adventurers' hometown.
Plot
''Crystal Chronicles'' takes place in an unnamed fantasy world inhabited by four races. The player takes control of a caravan hailing from the village of Tipa, in which members of the world's four races come together to help its mission. 1000 years before the game's events, the world's sustaining Great Crystal was shattered by a
meteorite
A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or Natural satellite, moon. When the ...
carrying an alien lifeform called the Meteor Parasite. The Parasite generated a poisonous vapour called the Miasma, which kills anyone it touches. Fragments of the Great Crystal ward off the Miasma from surviving settlements, but require renewal using myrrh, an energy harvested from magical trees using magical vessels protected by dedicated caravans. The Tipa caravanners go on missions across the world to gather myrrh, learning the world's history from travellers and characters found in other settlements.
The caravanners eventually reach the home of the Carbuncles, an ancient race who guided the world's races to the Great Crystal fragments before going into hiding. After hearing of their adventures, the Carbuncles direct the caravanners to the source of the Miasma, asking them to destroy the Meteor Parasite. The caravanners fight the Meteor Parasite, but before they can kill it are transported to an unknown realm. There they meet Mio and her evil counterpart Raem, metaphysical beings born following the Great Crystal's destruction. Raem attacks the caravanners, merging with Mio to increase his power, before being finally destroyed. Mio and Raem separate and fade away, then the caravanners are sent back to Mount Vellenge to destroy the wounded Meteor Parasite. The world is freed from the Miasma—allowing the four tribes to begin rebuilding civilisation—and the caravanners return home.
Development
''Crystal Chronicles'' was the first original ''Final Fantasy'' title to be developed for a
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
console since the release of ''
Final Fantasy VI
also known as ''Final Fantasy III'' from its initial North American release, is a 1994 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' s ...
'' in 1994. ''Final Fantasy'' developer
Square
In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90-degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length adj ...
had broken with Nintendo in 1996 to develop ''
Final Fantasy VII
is a 1997 role-playing video game developed by Square for the PlayStation console. It is the seventh main installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series. Published in Japan by Square, it was released in other regions by Sony Computer Entertai ...
'' and future mainline entries in the series for
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
's
PlayStation
is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...
platforms, resulting in a long-standing enmity between Square and Nintendo. In 2001, following the financial failure of the feature film '' Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within'', Sony purchased a stake in the company amounting to 19% of shares. After considering their still-poor financial situation and wishing to keep their staff from leaving, Square decided to begin developing titles for Nintendo consoles once again. Sony, whose rivalry with Nintendo had softened with the appearance of Microsoft's
Xbox
Xbox is a video gaming brand created and owned by Microsoft. The brand consists of five video game consoles, as well as applications (games), streaming services, an online service by the name of Xbox network, and the development arm by the na ...
on the console market, agreed to the partnership on the condition that it would not impact development of titles for the
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...
. This resulted in the creation of "The Game Designers Studio", a
shell company
A shell corporation is a company or corporation that exists only on paper and has no office and no employees, but may have a bank account or may hold passive investments or be the registered owner of assets, such as intellectual property, or s ...
for Square's Product Development Division 2 co-owned by Square and
Akitoshi Kawazu
is a Japanese game designer, director, producer and writer. After joining Square (video game company), Square (later Square Enix) in 1985, he went on to become a central developer for the first two ''Final Fantasy'' titles, then acted as creato ...
, a staff member famous for his work on the ''
SaGa
is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...
'' series.
Development of the new project began in late 2001. The title was developed with the aid of Q Fund, a fund set up by Nintendo's
Hiroshi Yamauchi
was a Japanese businessman and the third president of Nintendo, joining the company in 1949 until stepping down on 24 May 2002, being subsequently succeeded by Satoru Iwata. During his 53-year tenure, Yamauchi transformed Nintendo from a hanafu ...
to help first-time developers for the GameCube and GBA consoles. Kawazu acted as the game's producer. The director was Kazuhiko Aoki, a veteran of the ''Final Fantasy'' series who had worked on ''
Final Fantasy IX
is a 2000 role-playing video game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth game in the main ''Final Fantasy'' series. The plot focuses on a wa ...
''. The artwork and character designs were created by Toshiyuki Itahana, who had also worked on ''IX''. During the game's development in 2003, Square underwent a merger with
Enix
was a Japanese video game publisher that produced video games, anime and manga. Enix is known for publishing the ''Dragon Quest'' series of role-playing video games.
The company was founded by Yasuhiro Fukushima on September 22, 1975, as . Th ...
to become
Square Enix
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...
, though the nature of the merger meant operations at the Gamer Designers Studio continued as normal. Square Localization Specialist Aziz Hinoshita stated that the game was originally meant to be an offshoot of ''Final Fantasy'', and once the series was established it would drop the connection to that series and would be called "''Crystal Chronicles''". It was the only title ever developed by the company for the GameCube.
Similar to his ''SaGa'' games, Kawazu wanted to promote player freedom. The basic concept was to build a game around use of the link cable. Kawazu explained that using the GBA would "introduce different elements of gameplay". He later stated that this type of multiplayer meant "the entry was a bit high" for potential players. The battle system was initially going to use the series' recurring
Active Time Battle
In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based.
Real-time
Real-time games have game time progress cont ...
system, but instead chose a purely action-based system to allow more people to enjoy the gameplay. Leveling based on
experience point
An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experi ...
s was also removed to create an level field for players. It was initially planned to include a human sidekick character, but upon considering its impact on multiplayer, they changed it to the current Moogle system.
The game's event planner was Masahiro Kataoka, a Square staff member who had previously worked in that capacity on ''Final Fantasy IX''. The central plot details of the Miasma and role of Crystals were established early on, based around the wish to keep players together. Each race's defining traits were influenced by the designers' decisions about their combat options, with story-based additions coming from the planners later in production. The narrations which accompanied new areas were written in the style of journal entries, designed to both fit the theme of a caravan and introduce a new area to the player. While previous ''Final Fantasy'' games were driven by their narrative, ''Crystal Chronicles'' was driven by its gameplay; the narrative was instead communicated through basic storytelling and environmental narrative. Despite this shift, recurring elements from the ''Final Fantasy'' were included. The many encounters players had along the way were important to Kawazu, with the scenario designers "pushing themselves as far as they could" to fill the game world with these encounters and accompanying lore. Most of them were created well after production had begun.
Itahana heard about the project while he was attached to ''
Final Fantasy XII
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. The twelfth main installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open wo ...
'' during its early production, and transferred over to work on ''Crystal Chronicles''. The scenario was already decided upon, with Itahana working from their briefs. A recurring theme in his artwork was the phrase "
Memento mori
''Memento mori'' (Latin for 'remember that you ave todie'
Music
The soundtrack to ''Crystal Chronicles'' was primarily composed by
Kumi Tanioka
is a Japanese composer and pianist. Born in Hiroshima, Japan, she graduated from Kobe University with a degree in musical performance, and began working as a video game composer in 1998. She joined video game developer and publisher Square tha ...
arranger
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...
Hidenori Iwasaki
Hidenori (written: 秀典, 秀憲, 秀則, 秀徳, 英則, 英徳 or 英智) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese sound effects editor
*, Japanese manga artist
*, Japanese ice hockey player
*, Japan ...
provided one additional piece of music. Prior to ''Crystal Chronicles'', Tanioka had worked on the score of ''Final Fantasy XI''. Beginning work on the score in 2002, Tanioka and Iwasaki decided to exclusively use period instruments. The soundtrack makes extensive use of many
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
and
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...
s such as the
recorder
Recorder or The Recorder may refer to:
Newspapers
* ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper
* ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US
* ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...
, the
crumhorn
The crumhorn is a double reed instrument of the woodwind family, most commonly used during the Renaissance period. In modern times, particularly since the 1960s, there has been a revival of interest in early music, and crumhorns are being play ...
and the
lute
A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted.
More specifically, the term "lute" can ref ...
, creating a distinctively rustic feel. Tanioka said that the idea came to her while looking at illustrations of the game world, which gave her the idea of making "world music", where the tracks would "not elimited to a single country or culture". She also credits Iwasaki with doing "fantastic technical work" that brought her vision to life. The live music was performed by the Roba Music Theater, whom Iwasaki and Tanioka had seen perform. In addition to performing, the musicians made suggestions about the use of instruments.
The game features two vocal themes; the opening theme "Kaze no Ne", and the ending theme "Hoshizukiyo". Tanioka originally composed a longer version of "Kaze no Ne", but to keep the opening at a reasonable length she had to shorten it. The Japanese versions are sung by
Yae Fujimoto
, known as Yae, is a Japanese singer, mainly known outside Japan for having performed the theme songs for the GameCube role-playing video game ''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles''.
Biography
Yae is the second daughter of the singer and musici ...
, while the English versions are sung by
Donna Burke
Donna Burke is an Australian voice actress, singer, narrator and businesswoman. She is also known for her vocal work on songs produced for video game series such as ''Metal Gear'' and ''Final Fantasy''.
Biography
Burke graduated from Edith Cow ...
. Burke also provided narration for the English version of the game. The lyrics for both "Kaze no Ne" and "Hoshizukiyo" were written by Kataoka. Describing her localization of the songs, Burke felt it was a challenge as Japanese is a more compact language than English, meaning she needed to "pad
he lyrics
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
out about 30-40%". Rather than a direct adaptation, Burke's work carried a similar message using altered words.
A soundtrack album was released under the
Pony Canyon
, also known by the shorthand form , is a Japanese mass media publishing company founded on October 1, 1966. The company publishes mainly physical home media on compact discs, including music, films and TV shows and video games. It is affiliate ...
label on August 20, 2003. It included all of the music from the game with the exception of the English versions of "Kaze no Ne" and "Hoshizukiyo". ''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: A Musical Journey'' was a European promotional album which was given alongside the game on March 11, 2004 as a pre-order bonus. It contains six tracks from the soundtrack, including "Kaze No Ne" in both Japanese and English, the only time the English version has been released. It was published by Nintendo of Europe. "Kaze no Ne" was released as a single by Pony Canyon, featuring "Kaze No Ne", an arranged version, and two other songs by Yae from her album ''Blue Line''. The single was released on July 30, 2003.
Release
The game was officially announced at the
Jump Festa
is an annual party or exposition in Japan, all about manga and anime, sponsored by Shueisha, publisher of the various ''Jump'' anthologies which are Weekly Shōnen Jump, Jump Square, V Jump, Saikyō Jump and Shōnen Jump+. The exposition was sta ...
event in Japan in December 2002. A Western release was announced in April the following year. The game was among those shown by Square Enix at the 2003
Electronic Entertainment Expo
E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publisher ...
, alongside a number of other titles including ''
Final Fantasy XI
also known as ''Final Fantasy XI Online'', is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), originally developed and published by Squaresoft and then published by Square Enix as the eleventh main installment of the ''Final Fantasy ...
Unlimited SaGa
''Unlimited Saga'' is a 2002 role-playing video game developed and published by Square (rebranded as Square Enix in 2003) for the PlayStation 2 as the ninth game in the ''SaGa'' series. It was released in 2002 in Japan and 2003 in North America a ...
'' and ''
Drakengard
''Drakengard'', known in Japan as is a series of action role-playing video games created by Yoko Taro. The eponymous first game in the series was released in 2003 on the PlayStation 2, and has since been followed by a sequel, a prequel and se ...
''. ''Crystal Chronicles'' was released in Japan on August 8, 2003, after being delayed twice. The game came packaged with a GameCube-GBA link cable for use in multiplayer. In North America, the game was released on February 9, 2004, in Europe on March 12, and Australia on March 19. The game was published worldwide by Nintendo.
''Remastered Edition''
A remastered version, titled ''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Remastered Edition'', was released in 2020. The remaster includes enhanced graphics, new and arranged music, thirteen new dungeons, voice acting, and cross-platform online multiplayer. The game was released for
Nintendo Switch
The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...
,
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
mobile platforms. The port's online engine environment, dubbed STRIX Engine, was licensed from ''
Fantasy Earth Zero
''Fantasy Earth Zero'' was a 2006 massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed for Microsoft Windows. Originally developed by Puraguru (now known as Vanillaware) and Multiterm under the title ''Fantasy Earth: The Ring of Dominion'', i ...
'' developer SoftGear. Originally scheduled for a release in January 2020, it was delayed past the original planned release so the development team could further polish the game. The game was released online worldwide on August 27. A physical cartridge for Nintendo Switch was released only in Japan. A free downloadable Lite Version, acting as a demo covering three dungeons, was released alongside the retail version. Players of the Lite Version can join multiplayer sessions with retail version owners, allowing them to experience all thirteen dungeons. The Lite Version was developed late in full production, when the majority of the remaster was in place.
Producer and director Ryoma Araki talked with senior staff about remastering older games after finishing work on another project. Araki had joined Square Enix originally after seeing ''Crystal Chronicles'', and so when the chance came he expressed his wish to revive the game for a modern generation. While they had the option to remake it, Araki wanted to keep the game faithful to the memories of earlier players, both evoking nostalgia and assuring them that ''Crystal Chronicles'' was returning unchanged. Itahana returned, creating new lead character designs, but due to positive fan memories the original player designs were kept intact. Itahana worked on the new designs with Rubi Asami, who had previously worked on ''
Mobius Final Fantasy
was an episodic role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix for iOS, Android (operating system), Android, and Microsoft Windows. It was released in Japan in June 2015, and released internationally in August 2016. The player con ...
''.
Araki estimated that around half the game had been remade rather than remastered due to the number of changes and additions. When consulting Aoki and Kawazu, Araki was asked to keep the project faithful to its roots and update it for modern players. In addition to enhancing the graphics, the team improved the AI character behavior. Along with the new features, many of the changes were small adjustments done to increase its playability for a modern audience. One of these changes was the timing system for casting magic, which was adjusted to both work through an online connection and be more lenient on players than the original version. The mimic mechanic, which allows players to appear as characters met during the story, was implemented as a way for players to continue travelling with favorite characters without breaking the narrative flow. Unlike the original, the remaster does not support local multiplayer. During production, the team had to choose between local and online co-op rather than having both, so they opted for online to allow the maximum number of people to play. Commenting on the delays, Araki said the team were prioritising a smooth playing experience, but he ended up being "reprimanded by a lot of important people".
Composer Hidenori Iwasaki was brought in to both compose new tunes and arrange the original themes, though this was originally unplanned. The remaster was planned to use the original score, but the team's passion for the project prompted the decision to also remaster the music tracks. Remastering the old score was very easy as the original sound files had been kept in "perfect condition". While they worked on the game for a year, remastering the original score took only three months. New themes were composed by Tanioka, who had become a freelance composer and performer in 2010. In order to recall her feelings to create new tracks, Tanioka listened to the original soundtrack. While the new themes were mainly for the additional dungeons, other tracks were incorporated into the rest of the game. The new boss battle theme, while more energetic and modern-sounding than the original score, was written in the same style as Tanioka's earlier work. Fujimoto and Burke both returned to record new versions of the opening and ending themes. Burke enjoyed redoing the English theme, as she had gained more depth and experience since the original release.
Reception
Japanese gaming magazine ''
Famitsu
formerly ''Famicom Tsūshin'', is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly formats as well as in the fo ...
'' praised the game's fairytale aesthetic and unconventional treatment of the RPG genre; journalists Shane Bettenhausen, Jennifer Tsao and Kevin Gifford ''
Electronic Gaming Monthly
''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (often abbreviated to ''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews.
History
The m ...
'' each gave the game high praise for its innovation in gameplay and graphical style. ''
Eurogamer
''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson.
Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...
''s Rob Fahey gave the game a near-perfect score, noting the clear production values and calling it "one of the best action RPGs" he played; his only major fault was the implementation of multiplayer and its potential problems.
Andrew Reiner—writing for ''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
''—was highly critical of the overall experience, calling the game "an experiment gone awry ..unfit to bear the sacrosanct ''Final Fantasy'' name". A second opinion given by Adam Biessener supported this view, with Biessener feeling that the game did little to distinguish itself from other similar titles. ''
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
''s Brad Shoemaker enjoyed the game despite faulting its high hardware demands for the full experience, and his publication later named it the best GameCube game of February 2004. Mary Jane Irwin of ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' also gave praise to its gameplay concepts and design, but noted a lack of replay value and the steep entry requirements for multiplayer.
Reviewers praised the game's art design and music, but most considered the story lacking compared to other ''Final Fantasy'' games. The gameplay was lauded for its implementation of multiplayer despite the hardware requirements and its detrimental effect on the single player campaign. A consensus in both Japanese and international reviews was that it was an innovative title, but with several flaws keeping it from being ranked among the best ''Final Fantasy'' games.
''Remastered Edition'' saw generally "mixed or average" reviews on both Switch and PS4. Jordan Rudek of ''Nintendo World Report'' felt that the single-player campaign lacked compelling content, and the multiplayer was hampered by the new additions to the point of making it worse than the original. ''IGN''s Seth Macy was very negative, feeling that the game only made the original frustrating mechanics worse and added new problems. Mitch Vogel, writing for ''Nintendo Life'', felt that the game would not appeal to a wide demographic and the new multiplayer functions sapped much of the original version's entertainment. Bryan Vitale of ''RRG Site'' felt it was still "serviceable" as an RPG, but showed its age and lacked polish on top of the frustrating online multiplayer functions. Kirstin Swalley of ''Hardcore Gamer'' was notably more positive, noting the age of its graphics design but otherwise finding it a fun and enjoyable ''Final Fantasy'' title. Reviews generally praised the art and music, but many faulted its archaic gameplay and unfriendly online multiplayer design.
Sales
During its debut in Japan, ''Crystal Chronicles'' sold over 179,500 units, reaching second place in sales charts. During the next two weeks, it first dropped to third place then rose to second place again. By 2004, ''Crystal Chronicles'' had sold nearly 355,000 units, becoming the twenty-eighth best-selling game title of the year in Japan and boosting GameCube sales for August. Following its North American release, the game was the best-selling title of the month. In the United Kingdom, the game was the best-selling GameCube title of its week of release, a position it retained during the second week. As of October 2007, the game has shipped over 1.3 million copies worldwide.
The Nintendo Switch version sold 48,957 physical copies during its first week on sale in Japan, making it the third bestselling retail game of the week in the country.
Awards and retrospectives
''Crystal Chronicles'' received the Grand Prize at the 2003
Japan Media Arts Festival
The Japan Media Arts Festival is an annual festival held since 1997 by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. The festival begins with an open competition and culminates with the awarding of several prizes and an exhibition.
Based on judging by ...
; it was given the award based on its multiplayer function and graphical achievements. During the 2004 National Academy of Video Game Trade Reviewers ceremony, the game was nominated for awards in the "Character Design", "Costume Design", "Game - Sequel RPG" and "Original Musical Score" categories. It was later nominated for the "Console Role Playing Game of the Year" award at the 2005
Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is a non-profit organization of video game industry professionals. It organizes the annual Design Innovate Communicate Entertain summit, better known as D.I.C.E., which includes the presentation ...
ceremony.
''IGN'' ranked the game in 2003 prior to its Western release as second in a list of the best co-op video games; while noting that the game's unusual features and chosen platform caused confusion within the ''Final Fantasy'' fan base, its multiplayer promised a high quality experience if other elements could live up to it. ''Eurogamer''s Rob Haines praised the game's approach to the inherent conflict between multiplayer gameplay and narrative, and despite its drawbacks called its multiplayer function "the most fully-featured implementation of Gamecube-Game Boy Advance connectivity ever created". Henry Gilbert of ''
GamesRadar
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', ''Edge'' and '' Computer ...
'', as part of a 2017 article ranking the best ''Final Fantasy'' spin-off games, praised the game's multiplayer elements and return to Nintendo consoles despite its extensive hardware demands.
Legacy
''Crystal Chronicles'' was the only original game developed by the Game Designers Studio, which had become a subsidiary of Square Enix following the 2003 merger. The Game Designers Studio was eventually renamed SQEX Corporation in 2005. It was later merged with
Taito
is a Japanese company that specializes in video games, toys, arcade cabinets and game centers, based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. The company was founded by Michael Kogan in 1953 as the importing vodka, vending machines and jukeboxes into Japan. It b ...
in 2006 following Taito's acquisition by Square Enix, and eventually dissolved entirely during consolidation of Square Enix's arcade businesses in 2010.
Multiple ''Crystal Chronicles'' titles were later developed for Nintendo's later consoles, with Square Enix's aim being to make full use of Nintendo hardware while developing the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise. The first was '' Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates'' for the
Nintendo DS
The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...
(DS). Two further titles were '' Echoes of Time'' for the DS and
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
, and '' The Crystal Bearers'' for the Wii. Square Enix also developed two ''Crystal Chronicles'' titles for the Wii's
WiiWare
WiiWare was a service that allowed Wii users to download games and applications specifically designed and developed for the Wii video game console made by Nintendo. These games and applications could only be purchased and downloaded from the Wii S ...
service; '' My Life as a King'' and its direct sequel '' My Life as a Darklord''. All the ''Crystal Chronicles'' games share the same continuity, creating a narrative spanning several millennia.
Kataoka would go on to work on the scenarios of multiple titles following ''Crystal Chronicles'' including ''
Final Fantasy X
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square as the tenth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' series. Originally released in 2001 for PlayStation 2, the game was re-released as ''Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster'' for PlayStat ...
'' and '' XII''. He eventually left the company and founded Studio Reel in 2012. Studio Reel and Kataoka would work together with Kawazu on the development of the 2015 title '' SaGa: Scarlet Grace''.