PSP - final fantasy 7 crisis core Review

Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core for the Playstation Portable (PSP) follows the story of Zack, a character mentioned but never really seen in the beloved Final Fantasy VII game for the Playstation. You can make sense of this game even if you are not familliar with the Final Fantasy seven story but you will miss out on the backstory and origins of some of the characters. The game takes place several years before the events of Final Fantasy seven and you play as Zack, a hyperactive young member of Soldier. An elite unit that protects the shady Shinra Electric Corporation's interests.

The graphics and sound for this game are quite good on the PSP and there are decent voiceovers for the characters. If you are a fan of Final Fantasy seven you might miss the ability to level up your materia to mondo levels, or have trouble with getting used to the battle system but then the game really is a stand alone with a different play system. It is possible to create materia once Zack becomes a Level one member of Soldier and if you complete all the mini missions you can build up magic attacks more than capeable of defeating the bosses. If you want a nice leasurely bump into monsters game this is too fast paced. I drove myself crazy trying to switch between weapon mode and spell mode and item mode during my first few battles but it takes practice to master. Then there is the very different limit break system that uses a slot wheel system to decide when Zack wil level up or an ability will improve. You will either like these features or get angry with them.

I highly reccomend either investing in the game guide or downloading a walkthrough from IGN or one of the other game sites to help you through all the mini missions, limit break questions, and little  things crucial to the storyline you may miss on the first time around. (One of which is the cart for flowers Zack builds for a certain special someone... oops haha spoiler.) I think the storyline is a bit tragic in a way, I wanted a little more from it.  But then that's part of the drama of the Final Fantasy saga.

If you are a Final Fantasy VII fan this is a must have game. And if you are a general all around fan this is a great game to pick up for your PSP. I confess I actually ended up liking Zack and Angeal a little better than Cloud (what? traitor! Aack!) But it is one of the better games for the PSP along with Valkrie Profile and Star Ocean. Reccomended.