Although Square Enix has put a major focus on bringing out a number of modern day mainline and spinoff Final Fantasy titles on more powerful hardware, I was pleasantly surprised to see that they were willing to give the Switch a go with this reimagining of Crisis Core. The game is set to hit the Switch and other platforms this December, and like you, I’ve been wanting to get my hands on it. Tokyo Game Show 2022 is here, and lucky for me, Square Enix decided to bring the game along for the ride.
Note on Booth & Demo
The Crisis Core section itself took up a good chunk of the Square Enix booth, but it was actually quite compact. There were around 20 or so demo stations available between the PS5 and Switch. The PS5s were closer to the front of the booth, while the Switches were at the back. They also had the Japan only Collector’s and Hero Editions on display. Very cool.
Content-wise, the Switch demo and PS5 demo were, of course, identical. Unlike previous TGS demo areas, attendees were not able to choose which version of the game they got to play. It just came down to luck. I was hoping to check out the Switch version of the game (available in handheld mode only on an OG model), but I got to try the PS5 version instead. Also, for the record, I did NOT play Crisis Core on the PSP back in the day, so all of this is new to me.
The demo that was playable on the TGS show floor is based on the tail end of Chapter 2 of the original game. Of course, you take control of our hero Zach Fair through a series of battles culminating with a showdown against Ifrit. The demo itself is about 15-20 minutes long. Even if you die, which I embarrassingly did a few times, you can restart right from the beginning of the boss battle. Through this short period with the game, you’ll come across familiar faces like Yuffie, Sephiroth and others, which was really cool for newbies like me and veterans alike.
Gameplay
The controls here are a little bit complex, but you’ll get the hang of things rather quickly. On the PS5, X is used for dodging and slides, Circle is for items, Square is your standard attack, Triangle is for using your Limit Break, R1 is guard and R2 is for Dash. Magic based attacks can be used with a combination of L1 and the face buttons. Square is Fire, Triangle is Blizzard, Circle is Cure and X is used for the slot machine machine-like mechanic known as Digital Mind Wave. Locking on to enemies is handled with a press of the right stick and enemies can be cycled through with R1 and the right stick.
So, it seems a bit complicated when it’s all explained like that, and it kind of can be, however I found myself tearing up the bosses in the demo in no time. Everything felt extremely responsive and intuitive. If you’ve put any time into Final Fantasy VII Remake (I played for a few hours, for the record!), I feel things here are a bit similar. Additionally, if you’re in to action based combat, you’ll like what’s on offer here.
Visuals & Performance
Playing on the PS5, things looked absolutely fantastic. Character models (and their hair!) are extremely detailed, lighting and shadows are very realistic and the huge bosses look intimidating. The attention to detail is great, and really looks similar to what is on offer in Final Fantasy VII Remake. The framerate is also rock solid and I didn’t notice any dips whatsoever in the demo no matter what the game was throwing at it. Everything here was top notch.
While I didn’t get to try out the Switch version of the game myself, I did have a chat with our TGS partner in crime, Genki_JPN from Twitter about it a bit. While the game looks pretty good on the Switch, there are some instances of the game appearing a bit “jaggy” compared to the PS5 version, especially with close ups or during cutscenes. Obviously, with less powerful hardware, these kind of things are expected. Aside from some obvious differences in fidelity when compared to the PS5 version, the game still ran smoothly on the Switch.
Final Thoughts
I really enjoyed what I’ve played of Crisis Core on the TGS show floor. Of course, if you’re wanting to go for visual fidelity, picking up the game on one of the big boy platforms is the way to go. If you’re like me and the Switch is your go to console for a myriad of reasons, there’s no need to worry. Crisis Core on the Switch seems to be shaping up to be a respectable experience on the system. I can’t wait to see it on my Switch OLED!
But let’s turn things over to you guys. Are you excited about Crisis Core - Final Fantasy VII - Reunion? Are you planning on picking it up? For what platform? Sound off in the comments below, we’d love to hear from you!
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