Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII Reunion Feels Like Coming Home

When Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core was originally released for the PSP in 2007, it was one of the reasons I even bought a PSP in the first place and it quickly became my favorite Final Fantasy game. So, when I was offered the chance to demo the upcoming remaster, Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion at New York Comic Con, I understandably jumped at the chance.

The demo for Crisis Core Reunion takes a slice out of an early part of the game, when Zack first meets Yuffie, fights Vajradhara Tai and Wu then a few Genesis clones, and then gets pulled into a battle with Ifrit, the game’s first summon that you encounter. So, I’ll break it down piece by piece. First off, meeting with Yuffie was absolutely adorable. The HD graphics look good on her, she’s fresh and ready for action, even though she absolutely refuses to lay a hand on Zack, forcing him to fake being injured instead, before Naruto-running off into the distance.

Now, for the battle with the Genesis clones and Vajradhara Tai and Wu, who also looked very spiffy with their updated graphics. Combat is actually quite different than I remember, but definitely in a good way. While I was a fan of the game and enjoyed the original combat, the remaster feels like a much smoother experience, it’s much more fluid when Zack dips in and out of battles and feels far more natural overall. The basic combat system is still the same, action-oriented with Zack having free run of the arena, and a number of spells and items to use at any time.

As fans of the original can tell you, the most unique thing about Crisis Core, for better or for worse, was the Digital Mind Wave used in combat. The Digital Mind Wave or DMW is a series of slot machine wheels that are constantly going in a corner of the screen, giving Zack buffs and power-ups intermittently, channeling other characters’ powers, and occasionally allowing him to use summons and level up. It’s supposed to be the representation of the SOLDIER enhancements and powers that Zack receives, and while it worked well in theory, in practice it was damn annoying. I’m very pleased to say that the DMW was significantly less annoying in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion, to the point where I forgot it was there a few times. Make no mistake, the slot machine wheels are still in the corner of the screen for the duration of the battle, but they are far less obtrusive and do not keep popping up with messages every 15 to 30 seconds.

Every time I fight Ifrit in any Final Fantasy game, I wish I had the Shiva summon, and Crisis Core Reunion is no different. Fortunately, Zack is enough of a SOLDIER that he could handle him on his own. In contrast to the previous fights, Ifrit focused much more on dodging and using Materia, specifically Blizzard. Spells also feel much more fluid this time around, but I’m also willing to admit that my feelings on that may be swept up with my joy over the less intrusive DMW. Dodging worked like a charm, and the DMW still came in handy a few times with spins like Zack’s Limit Break and the No MP Cost in particular, which added a helpful random element to the combat and kept me thinking on my feet the entire time.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion’s new graphics look wonderful, as they should considering a bunch of assets are lifted from the Final Fantasy VII remake. The only thing that felt slightly out of place was the lip movement during voice lines, as characters like Zack and Yuffie were putting far more energy into their voice performances than their barely moving mouths were doing, but that might be down to dubbing over animations meant to match the Japanese dialogue more than anything else. Either way, while it was a little weird to watch, it wasn’t enough to take me out of the game’s experience.

While Crisis Core Reunion is a remaster and not a true remake, despite the various tweaks and miscellaneous changes to keep it more in line with the Final Fantasy VII remake, it manages to shake off the feeling of being just another PSP remake. The combat is different, yes, and it doesn't really feel like something we'd normally see in an AAA action-RPG, but it's refreshing rather than degrading. The game's PSP origins don't feel like a constraint to be broken free from, but rather a fantastic jumping-off point for a game that is so much more than that.

Overall, Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion was an absolute blast. It felt wonderful to be reunited with some of my favorite characters again, though it’s always a little jarring to see Sephiroth as a hero. The changes to the DMW gave the combat a much more fluid feel and honestly increased my enjoyment of it greatly, though it was a system that I already connected with. If you never played the original or only got into Final Fantasy VII because of the remake, Crisis Core is more approachable than ever before. For those who, like me, were fans of the original game, it feels like a long-awaited and much-anticipated homecoming.

TechRaptor previewed Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion at New York Comic Con 2022. The game is set to release on December 13th, 2022.