Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers (Wii, 2009)

This is a fun action-adventure game that can be quite memorable if you keep an open mind.

The open world is very large and there are lots and lots of places to visit and explore. Controlling Layle with the Nunchuk, you can travel to exotic locations and make interesting discoveries. A quick shake of the Wii Remote whilst on the move will perform a roll move that will get you to your destination even faster. The exploration or 'adventure' side of the game is quite enjoyable. In select areas lie treasure chests full of gil and other valuables that can be obtained. With no map, you may sometimes find yourself scrambling to figure out where to go next. But part of the game is about exploring on your own.

What may seem weird is the fact that you can't jump on demand. Rather, you will need to go up to a wall that you can climb, and wait for a message to pop up before you can ascend. Same goes for ladders where you'll need to go up close and then press A to fly upwards. When there's a considerable distance in between two points (such as rocks and other platforms), you'll need to aim the cursor at the screen and look for a blue icon to pop up on the other side of the gap. Only then will you be able to perform a long jump that will get you across. Additionally, when you get knocked back by an enemy, you can press A right before falling to recover gracefully. It's quite different to be sure, and particularly when it comes to jumps, I suppose it spares some frustration in having to time things carefully.

You'll observe plenty of townsfolk on your journey, and I was pleased to see different areas feature a good number of people, as it adds some realism. You'll also be able to visit shops and make useful purchases that will assist you in your quest. Instead of weapons or special abilities, there's a simple accessory system that will improve whatever stats your character already has.

Aside from the adventure portion of the game, there's also the "action" or combat element. As touched on already, Layle has been endowed with is the ability to manipulate gravity. Your powers allow you to grab enemies and throw them around, or use different parts of the environment to cause damage. Battles take place in real-time, as opposed to something more linear and systematic. Enemies in the area can only be controlled after you first overpower their strength. To do this, you aim your cursor at the target, and wait for the radial gauge to fill up with energy. Once it goes, you can press and hold B, then swing in one of four directions to send them flying. If you swing upwards, you can carry them above your heads, and walk around before throwing them at will.

Battles are very motion-driven which you may find to be fun or repetitive. Initially, it may seem that you only have a limited set of moves, but the game actually allows for much experimentation and even creativity in the heat of a battle. You'd be surprised with some of the different things you can do to make things a little more interesting.

If you can find it at $30 or less, I strongly suggest you pick it up. It may not be what you're expecting, but it's still a fun game that Wii owners should seriously consider trying.

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Visit Wiiloveit.com for a full review of this title, as well as other releases:
http://www.wiiloveit.com/​games/final-fantasy-crystal-ch​ronicles-the-crystal-bearers--​-wii-review

game itself was great as long as your not looking for a two player game like we were. the story line was cool the gameplay was cool but we got it to play togethor and two people cannot control the bmain charector at the same time they should have just left it one player. very dissatisfied with the two player functionality and i wont fall for it again on any game ff creates in the future. Long Live Sephiroth!

Very good game. My first FF game and wont be the last one. Magic, adventure and good story. Using the Wiimote is great with the Crystal Bearar power

The game wasn't too bad and game was brand new as described. I was expecting the game to be a little more like every other final fantasy. Main character should be using a sword instead of magic.

Fun game to play. A lot of little mini games to keep your interest. This is my first purchase for the wii and well worth the price.