Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Remastered Edition

 Switch
User Score
4.5

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 94 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 94
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 94
  3. Negative: 55 out of 94

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  1. Lcremer
    Sep 4, 2020
    0
    Micro transactions and loss of content from the original game. Better off just playing the original.
  2. quesse
    Sep 4, 2020
    1
    I haven't written a Metacritic review in 6 years. I'm coming out of my shell to describe how much of an absolute disaster this remake is for those of us that remember the original gem. Years ago I gathered 3 of my friends and we would spend many Friday nights continuing our journey with the two Gameboy Advances I had and two others we scrouged up from other places. I invested in 4 cablesI haven't written a Metacritic review in 6 years. I'm coming out of my shell to describe how much of an absolute disaster this remake is for those of us that remember the original gem. Years ago I gathered 3 of my friends and we would spend many Friday nights continuing our journey with the two Gameboy Advances I had and two others we scrouged up from other places. I invested in 4 cables for all of us to play.
    It was a magical experience. It was fraught with tension as roles were defined (tank, healer, DD) and we pursued the best for our classes. It was an incredible adventure as we each hit the town and did our best to equip ourselves for the next level. It was heart-warming as we encountered and experienced events together. Hair-pulling as we realized our Gameboy SPs couldn't be charged when the link cable was in place.
    Most of the magic has been deleted from the game. For those that never played the original, it might seem that there is some magic left. However, it is a poor reflection of what once was. Local multiplayer should have been the sole primary focus of the remake and sadly, it was completely discarded.    … Expand
  3. FinalAluxes
    Aug 29, 2020
    3
    No local multiplayer, online play limited to dungeons and region-locked (cannot co-op in towns, join the same caravan, on experience the world map events as a group) and only the host's progress is updated after a dungeon, making it tedious to play the game from start to finish with a group of friends, and content that could be experienced as a group on GC is now unavailable.
    Load times    No local multiplayer, online play limited to dungeons and region-locked (cannot co-op in towns, join the same caravan, on experience the world map events as a group) and only the host's progress is updated after a dungeon, making it tedious to play the game from start to finish with a group of friends, and content that could be experienced as a group on GC is now unavailable.
    Load times are also worse than the Gamecube version and some bosses have framerate drops that weren't present on the GC version.
    It's serviceable if you wanted to play the game solo because they added some quality of life improvements to solo play, if you don't mind worse frame rate and loading times than the GC ver, but cannot recommend for multiplayer play, especially if you were planning on doing the entire game with a set group of players.    … Expand
  4. Resonaire
    Aug 28, 2020
    3
    I played the og FFCC and was excited to play this remaster. But after giving the demo an extensive shot I'm afraid it fell very short of the co-op experience it supposedly sets out to deliver. To start, there's no local coop play, its region locked, and the online multiplayer that is available is cumbersome, problematic and doesn't actually allow you to join your friends as a singleI played the og FFCC and was excited to play this remaster. But after giving the demo an extensive shot I'm afraid it fell very short of the co-op experience it supposedly sets out to deliver. To start, there's no local coop play, its region locked, and the online multiplayer that is available is cumbersome, problematic and doesn't actually allow you to join your friends as a single caravan.
    As a solo game its great and the added features and content are a plus. But if you come expecting to join up with your friends to have a joint adventure you'll quickly find out you don't actually integrate into the same caravan, rather you can only join each other in dungeons. Furthermore only the host story progresses, forcing your group to have to complete each dungeon up to 4 times so everybody's story advances. You don't travel nor share cutscenes together, nor can you explore towns nor trade items. It's more akin to you completing your solo campaign with occasional "guns for hire" helping out in dungeons than a coop campaign like we remember. Even then the game forces you to disband after every dungeon and reconnect as long as you can all be in the same map area... an additional condition that slows down gameplay.
    For a game who's simple gameplay and quirky charm relied on giving players the chance to embark on a "caravan with your friends" this doesn't even technically allow that. So if you wish to experience the game as a solo playthrough, you'll have a blast. But if you hoped to adventure with your close friends or family you're better off skipping this entirely.    … Expand
  5. Courgette38
    Aug 29, 2020
    2
    I had great memories of the original game. Great coop adventure in a very Final Fantasy-esque setting. Boy this "remaster" is a let down. No physical release in Europe or USA, no local coop mode (the very essence of this game), online coop is super poorly designed (when it works at all), only host get progress for his chalice, 50+ euros worth of DLC day one, for a remaster, this must beI had great memories of the original game. Great coop adventure in a very Final Fantasy-esque setting. Boy this "remaster" is a let down. No physical release in Europe or USA, no local coop mode (the very essence of this game), online coop is super poorly designed (when it works at all), only host get progress for his chalice, 50+ euros worth of DLC day one, for a remaster, this must be some kind of joke surely Square Enix ?… Expand
  6. Forquilla
    Aug 30, 2020
    1
    The original game is actually fun, but this review is about the remaster edition, which is one of the worst remasters I played, I give it a 1 because the 0 is for warcraft 3 reforged.

    In the original game, with local co-op, every player was a member of the village and everyone would advance the story together. In the remaster, you have to play every level 4 times if you are 4 players,    The original game is actually fun, but this review is about the remaster edition, which is one of the worst remasters I played, I give it a 1 because the 0 is for warcraft 3 reforged.

    In the original game, with local co-op, every player was a member of the village and everyone would advance the story together. In the remaster, you have to play every level 4 times if you are 4 players, and you can't access your friends villages for their professions.
    Also the matching system is kind of annoying, we had to host a new game and find it for everytime we wanted to do a dungeon. It would have been waaaaay better to make a game seasion in the main menu before loading the game, and then everyone becames part of the host village and everyone advances, share cinematics, gets mail, and have to complete the levels once, as it used to be on the original game.
    Again with the matching system, we were making the game with the "private game" option, and still somebody randomly joined us O_o so we had to cap the game to 3 players even in private.
    You need to pay multiple nintendo onlne or ps+ just to have a half done matching system, that constantly gives the error "This feature is not available right now, try later".

    About the quality of the remaster, they only upscaled the game to 1080p without updating the resolution of the textures, witch makes everything very smooth on the edges, and pixalted inside. Why take the effort to add voice acting if you leave the visual quality half done? Because this the game still looks old, but the worse is that even looking old, the nintendo switch version runs with very low fps and sometimes even freezes!

    Overall, totally disappointed with this remaster. It already felt half done before launch when they announced no local co-op, but even with 3 switches with nintendo online subscription and 1 of the with the original game, the experience was horrible, way worse than expected.
    I played this game 15 years ago with 3 GBAs and 1 gamecube with 1 original game (so aprox. same setup) and it was one of my favorite games ever. I think is way better to just take out the dust of the old consoles and play the game again with them.    … Expand
  7. InkwolfXVII
    Sep 15, 2020
    3
    Some major caveats before buying this remaster. The local multiplayer mode has been removed completely and the online mode is region locked. Therefore, I am unable to play this game with any of my friends with whom I was planning to play this for weeks. Even outside of that, online multiplayer is limited to dungeons and often laggy, which is pretty damning when you consider the games magicSome major caveats before buying this remaster. The local multiplayer mode has been removed completely and the online mode is region locked. Therefore, I am unable to play this game with any of my friends with whom I was planning to play this for weeks. Even outside of that, online multiplayer is limited to dungeons and often laggy, which is pretty damning when you consider the games magic system relies on coordination and precise timing.

    There are some nice to have quality of life improvements to the game. Inventory space is unlimited now for instance and they added a helpful minimap. But the number of flaws in the original game which SHOULD have been adressed, but were not, far outweighs these. These are mostly minor annoyances like the 7-character limit for character names, the unresponsive menus, unskippable repetitive cutscenes, Mog getting easily tired in Solo mode, etc. None of these are dealbreakers, but they show an overall lack of thought and care that went into this remaster. Also, microtransactions have been added in. These are mostly cosmetics or progress skippers and forgoing them won't really influence the overall experience much, but it's a noteworthy bit of added on disappointment.

    There was an opportunity to take a promissing but flawed game and polish it up into something really good here. Sadly, that's not what this is. This is a very bare bones remaster that adds little outside of the lackluster online functionality, and instead takes away some of the key features that made the original interesting to begin with. It is not a bad game in it's own right and you can definitely have some fun with it in solo mode. It is a horrible remaster though and the heart of the game, the multiplayer, only works under very specific circumstances.

    I would also like to note that I contacted the Square Enix customer support over my issues with the multiplayer (before I found out it was in fact region locked) and only received unhelpful copy-paste answers that didn't commit to anything. Apparently they are "aware of the issue" but "can not promise any fixes for it".    … Expand
  8. MNecromancer
    Sep 26, 2020
    1
    You would only get this game for the coop and this game has coop like GTA: San Andreas or The Binding of Isaac has coop. A friend can show up and help out, but they're not a part of the story. They can only stay for the duration of one dungeon. They are a ghost. They feel useless. They are useless. The game experience would have been exactly the same without them. You can't even tell ifYou would only get this game for the coop and this game has coop like GTA: San Andreas or The Binding of Isaac has coop. A friend can show up and help out, but they're not a part of the story. They can only stay for the duration of one dungeon. They are a ghost. They feel useless. They are useless. The game experience would have been exactly the same without them. You can't even tell if they're picking up items or not most of the time. Total ghosts. It's just awful.… Expand
  9. Polarthief
    Sep 6, 2020
    0
    Put simply, they ruined a great Gamecube multiplayer gem. Multiplayer is in absolute shambles; this is an utter disgrace. If you want to play single player or with randoms (but why the hell would you do either of those things???) then sure, the game's fine, but they just really had to milk those mobile bucks and ruin the entire experience for everyone. Do yourself a favor and go buy thePut simply, they ruined a great Gamecube multiplayer gem. Multiplayer is in absolute shambles; this is an utter disgrace. If you want to play single player or with randoms (but why the hell would you do either of those things???) then sure, the game's fine, but they just really had to milk those mobile bucks and ruin the entire experience for everyone. Do yourself a favor and go buy the original, 4 cheap GBAs (recommend SPs), and find 4 link cables. You'll have a much better time than you would with this modern day butchered remaster.… Expand
  10. Latorn
    Sep 2, 2020
    4
    The charm of the original has been stripped bare from this remaster. Do yourself a favour and download the new free version of FFXIV instead.

    Crystal Chronicles had its flaws when it launched on Nintendo's gamecube, but the co-op was unforgettably fun. Setting out together, making progress together, and returning to towns to see families and growth has been stripped away. You won't even    The charm of the original has been stripped bare from this remaster. Do yourself a favour and download the new free version of FFXIV instead.

    Crystal Chronicles had its flaws when it launched on Nintendo's gamecube, but the co-op was unforgettably fun. Setting out together, making progress together, and returning to towns to see families and growth has been stripped away. You won't even get a letter after helping a friend in their world and if you plan to play in a group of four, you will be playing the same dungeons four times over to make progress.

    Even simple things like continuing to help your friend progress in their world is unavailable, and instead after each multiplayer session the lobby needs to be closed and remade.

    I was very excited for this remaster, but disappointed with the souless imitation we recieved. FFXIV truly is the last bastion of quality Final Fantasy.    … Expand
  11. JoneS_ark
    Sep 3, 2020
    1
    Was really looking forward to this remake. Me and my friends were really looking forward to playing this together, only to realize there is no local play. Me and 1 other have internet while the last has none, so he won't be able to join. And dungeon only come on Square Enix. Get your crap together.
  12. Grobob
    Sep 9, 2020
    1
    This game was originally made to be played with friends, the whole gameplay has been designed for multiplayer. So why this version doesn't include decent multiplayer ??
    And I'm not talking about the lack of local co-op, which is already a strange decision from SE, this game does not include any way to play with your friends.
    ''But wait, there actually is online multi'' you may ask. You can    This game was originally made to be played with friends, the whole gameplay has been designed for multiplayer. So why this version doesn't include decent multiplayer ??
    And I'm not talking about the lack of local co-op, which is already a strange decision from SE, this game does not include any way to play with your friends.
    ''But wait, there actually is online multi'' you may ask.
    You can join or invite people while doing a donjon and that's it. You can't invite people to join your team and travel through the game together.
    So that mean, if you want to discover the game with your friends, it is absolutely impossible, you will have to beat the game separately because finishing a donjon only make the host progress.
    It is impossible, by any mean, to have the original experience back. This game should add value to the original one, but it took away what makes it interesting.
    The only way to enjoy it would be to play it solo, but if that's not your intention, do not buy this game !    … Expand
  13. swilksss
    Oct 6, 2020
    0
    I was so happy to see this game was remastered and just released! I was delighted to see it was actually 'remastered,' not just a laggy emulator (cough cough Mario Sunshine). I was completely stunned to realize this game was missing the best part.
    and (as the other reviews here would agree) only reason to, which the original was all about, was missing.
    The original Crystal Chronicles    I was so happy to see this game was remastered and just released! I was delighted to see it was actually 'remastered,' not just a laggy emulator (cough cough Mario Sunshine). I was completely stunned to realize this game was missing the best part.
    and (as the other reviews here would agree) only reason to, which the original was all about, was missing.

    The original Crystal Chronicles on Gamecube was built around LOCAL MULTIPLAYER (read: selling more Gameboy Advances and $15-25 adapters which were unlikely to be used for another game). To play more than single player, it required each player to have a GBA plus an adapter to plug into the Gamecube. Did the GC version really need to force players to use GBAs? Probably not... but ultimately it was a neat gimmick and great fun when you finally get 4 people playing together. Ok, fine Squarejoonix, you want to sell hardware....which made sense during their exclusive deal with Nintendo/Gamecube 17 years ago, but not today; I doubt they profit from Switch/PS4/phone sales.... Ok whatever I like pain and suffering and the original game so I bought 4 Switches and 4 copies of this game. Wait what... I can only play certain dungeons together? There is no traveling together? It's just a lonely world for each player where you can choose to play online/multiplayer at certain areas. I felt so betrayed I made an account to share this review. (i didnt really buy 4 Switches, just 1 copy of this game, but I didnt think it was possible to omit local multiplayer).
    I won't even mention the $50 of DLC and content missing from the original GC release.

    So, it feels like a very very lonely game. Sometimes you can meet up with other people. The original was a very very social game. This doesn't make any sense...Other than that Squeenix thought it would be more profitable to make each player buy a copy of the game instead of adding local multiplayer. I really hope these poor reviews decimates their sales, since Squeenix took another dump over another fond part of my childhood.

    I guarantee this game would have net positive review, critic and user, IF IT ONLY HAD LOCAL MULTIPLAYER. FOOOK YOOU SQUEEENIX.    … Expand
  14. a49000
    Aug 28, 2020
    4
    Very disappointed. I have been waiting this game for years, and expecting high quality remake like FF7.
    SE just screwed up this gem.
    1) Local Co-op is removed. Can you believe SE decided to remove existing feature from NGC version since 2003? 2) Multiplayer is region locked. It’s already 2020. 3) Button config is old-fashioned. Remake does not mean copy-and-paste money-capture HD    Very disappointed. I have been waiting this game for years, and expecting high quality remake like FF7.
    SE just screwed up this gem.

    1) Local Co-op is removed. Can you believe SE decided to remove existing feature from NGC version since 2003?

    2) Multiplayer is region locked. It’s already 2020.

    3) Button config is old-fashioned. Remake does not mean copy-and-paste money-capture HD version. Game company has the responsibility to make the game fits to today’s environment and setting.
    The original button config is designed for GBA, player needs to do everything such as attack, defense, spelling magics etc in an single “A button” and switch different modes by L and R.
    But NS/PS4 have much more buttons compared to GBA, why don’t you just use them!? It will be fine by just coping the button system from DS.

    4) Language. Well, it depends on what region are you in. I believe players in HK and TW are disappointed as there are no Chinese subtitles.
    I am Hong-Konger, in order to connect to multi-player in Asia (Ya, Region locked), I could only buy JP version instead of English version which I can understand.

    Conclusion: My childhood and memories are ruined.
    Don’t buy this unless you really really love FFCC.
    I hope SE can see our messages and make improvements in the coming patches.    … Expand
  15. Knildragon
    Aug 29, 2020
    3
    I'm not really sure what went wrong in development but the best way to enjoy this game was with friends. Yes it was fun solo, but not the best experience, so I don't understand why story progression with 1 caravan and 4 party members was removed entirely. My girlfriend and I prefer the gamecube to this; less load times, skippable cut scenes... Reminds me of when ff14 was first released... T_T
  16. Ian_Was_Here
    Aug 29, 2020
    4
    This remake completely ruined the multiplayer, which is the whole point of the game.
  17. Pooples
    Aug 31, 2020
    1
    If you're feeling nostalgic, just pop on a Youtube collection of the soundtrack, which remains a classic.

    Even for Square, who's been screwing up most of their ports for like fifteen years at this point, this one's egregious. The whole point of this game is the multiplayer. To play 4 players, you need four Switches, four online accounts, and four copies of the game to play 4 player    If you're feeling nostalgic, just pop on a Youtube collection of the soundtrack, which remains a classic.

    Even for Square, who's been screwing up most of their ports for like fifteen years at this point, this one's egregious. The whole point of this game is the multiplayer. To play 4 players, you need four Switches, four online accounts, and four copies of the game to play 4 player simultaneous. (I understand local multiplayer is similarly broken). OK - I have three friends with the first two, and we agreed, for nostalgia's sake, to grab the third. Huge mistake, shoulda read the reviews.

    To be clear, there's basically no reason to play this game without the multiplayer. (Without the nostalgia goggles, if I'm being honest, there aren't a whole bunch of reasons to play it at all.) In any event, our foursome loaded up the game, and... in a game expressly about adventuring together, there's no way to adventure together. You can run a single dungeon together, after which point you can either run it again, or break up the party. Oh, also, only the host gets credit for beating the dungeon, so if you want everyone to advance you'll have to have player 1 host the dungeon, finish it, break up the party, then REPEAT 3 TIMES FOR ALL OTHER MEMBERS OF YOUR GROUP. Oh, and if you remember the towns, where all your characters had their own little hub that each of you could visit, and you shuffled equipment and crafting? Hope you like doing that completely on your own.

    I'm not a "demand a refund" guy but this was egregious enough that I looked up the Nintendo eShop refund policy (no refunds, confirmed). I'm also not a "post a negative Metacritic review" guy, but this was infuriating enough that I actually made an account. Square should be legit ashamed.

    At least there's (strange, off-putting) voice acting, though.    … Expand
  18. Masamune1997
    Aug 30, 2020
    1
    No couch co-op, plain and simple. Was super looking forward to playing this with my wife, not about to buy another switch just for this game.
  19. Therobgoblin
    Aug 30, 2020
    2
    The fact that the remaster feels like a chopped up version of the original is just a huge disappointment.
    Only the host can progress through the story and since you can't host the town instances, your friends will hit a hard cap for equipment and can only get so strong, and as gear really plays a big part because you don't really level up this leaves a bad aftertaste when you leave all of    The fact that the remaster feels like a chopped up version of the original is just a huge disappointment.
    Only the host can progress through the story and since you can't host the town instances, your friends will hit a hard cap for equipment and can only get so strong, and as gear really plays a big part because you don't really level up this leaves a bad aftertaste when you leave all of your friends in the dust.

    This is, of course, unless you play every instance several times one after another, it's either that or it will be like your friends never even started playing.
    As this is a game heavily based on multiplayer, the remastered version just tears this fundamental part to pieces and thus you're better off trying to get a hold of a gamecube, four gameboy advances and link cables and battery packs and just duke it out the way it should be played.    … Expand
  20. Pommelz
    Sep 2, 2020
    0
    Actually, I wanted this game for years, and even with the multiple delays I was still very exciting without even a bad word. If it would be released half a year later, I would still be fine with it.

    First things first, I played this game when I was 12-14 with multiple friends, and it was great. The only downside of the GCN version was the hard setup with one link adapters and one GBA    Actually, I wanted this game for years, and even with the multiple delays I was still very exciting without even a bad word. If it would be released half a year later, I would still be fine with it.

    First things first, I played this game when I was 12-14 with multiple friends, and it was great. The only downside of the GCN version was the hard setup with one link adapters and one GBA per player. It was really hard to get all that equipment as a child, but it was still doable and me and my friends enjoyed it so much.

    I was really looking forward to the switch release, and since I live with 4 flatmates, this was the perfect time to relive this moment. I mean, the game is a cooperative experience, the gameplay alone is okay-ish but the magic is missing. Even the design is clearly for multiple players. Okay, I gathered my people really excited to finally enjoy FFCC on the switch many many years after the original, to figure out there is no more local multiplayer. Even during the singleplayer start there's something missing, usually it would show all the characters, but it's only you alone. We discussed if we should get the game for the other switches(everyone has one) but after doing research, we decided against it, because you can only invite friends for dungeons and can't really travel together. The game is about travelling together and to live adventures with your friends, both was executed poorly.

    Honestly, Square Enix, I had so high hopes, and I am so heavily disappointed. I bought your games for years over and over, and you still didn't learn after other poor remakes to listen to your audience. I will never do the same mistake again, I would consider this remake as disappointing as warcraft 3.

    I'd rather enjoy my memories than go back to the remake, even doing the hassle with multiple emulators would be more enjoyable for me than this game.

    btw. I've seen a lot of bad remakes in my life, but this one made me create a metascore account and leave a bad review, never done that before. I regret that I bought the game without checking before if local would be there, just assuming because it was there and is the games core it doesnt mean to stay there. Really poor decision Square Enix    … Expand
  21. LeesanJP
    Aug 29, 2020
    1
    Is a full price port, region locked, im living in japan and I can not play with my brother and friends in Spain. Loading times super long for outdated graphics. Don't buy it until Square fix this **** or discounted it under 30 US dollars or so...
  22. SoulAssasin
    Aug 29, 2020
    3
    This game was ruined for me because of the removal of local multiplayer. Online multiplayer is not a sufficient compromise as the progress made by the host isn't shared with the player who joined. Anyone who played the original remembers how much of a nightmare local multiplayer was because of the required gba to gamecube adapter, but that would've been preferable to the product we're nowThis game was ruined for me because of the removal of local multiplayer. Online multiplayer is not a sufficient compromise as the progress made by the host isn't shared with the player who joined. Anyone who played the original remembers how much of a nightmare local multiplayer was because of the required gba to gamecube adapter, but that would've been preferable to the product we're now presented with.… Expand
  23. Vile-Okami
    Aug 29, 2020
    3
    This game already had a ton of problems and SE just made it worse. Can't believe it took this long to come out, because this game is trash.
  24. Lorixs
    Sep 10, 2020
    1
    I can overlook no local multiplayer....I can overlook the terrible match matching system. I got used to the fact that only the host progresses....it sucks but I got used to it. But what pisses me off is if you select "friends only" you should only play with friends! Not this nonsense of if your party doesn't fillnip within 10 minutes it opens up to anyone. That is such a stupid featureI can overlook no local multiplayer....I can overlook the terrible match matching system. I got used to the fact that only the host progresses....it sucks but I got used to it. But what pisses me off is if you select "friends only" you should only play with friends! Not this nonsense of if your party doesn't fillnip within 10 minutes it opens up to anyone. That is such a stupid feature that kills the game for me. I don't like playing with randoms… Expand
  25. 2one10
    Sep 17, 2020
    1
    They took out the most crucial feature of the game which was the local multiplayer mode. No matter what excuse they come up with can justify this. This remake was completely useless.
  26. loomsden
    Dec 21, 2020
    0
    Completely destroys the entire vision and magic the original game had, it was meant to be multiplayer but they destroyed every multiplayer mechanic and feature that made the game great. You only connect to other players in dungeons and only the host makes save data progress. No families and friends, no end of year celebrations, nothing. Do not buy unless you plan to play alone. MetacriticCompletely destroys the entire vision and magic the original game had, it was meant to be multiplayer but they destroyed every multiplayer mechanic and feature that made the game great. You only connect to other players in dungeons and only the host makes save data progress. No families and friends, no end of year celebrations, nothing. Do not buy unless you plan to play alone. Metacritic is a joke for rating it as high as it did.… Expand
  27. Inspirefitness
    Sep 8, 2020
    4
    The game seems buggy and the multiplayer is a joke. Its a shame to see how this remake has been treated compared to a lot of remakes that have come out these last few years.
  28. Astram
    Sep 5, 2020
    4
    Absolutely a disappointment! I had high hopes for this game, but I can warn everyone who hasn't gotten the game to NOT get the game.

    If you plan on playing this game as a solo player, this game might be alright for you. However, if you're like me who wanted to play this game with friends/family -- you'll be disappointed by miles. The game's multiplayer system is a map-by-map basis.    Absolutely a disappointment! I had high hopes for this game, but I can warn everyone who hasn't gotten the game to NOT get the game.

    If you plan on playing this game as a solo player, this game might be alright for you. However, if you're like me who wanted to play this game with friends/family -- you'll be disappointed by miles.

    The game's multiplayer system is a map-by-map basis. You will not be traveling with your friends on this journey meaning that you all will have to play the same map multiple times for everyone to progress through the story.

    They should have allowed the option for mog to carry the chalice in multiplayer because let us be honest, no one wants to hold that thing.

    The game is very easy, simple, and lacks challenge. I haven't reached hard mode yet, but from what I've heard from friends/family is that it has limits and it's very disappointing. If you're looking for a challenge, this isn't it.

    If you're looking for fun, this is lacking by miles. The gameplay is very simple and lacks depth. You can pretty much speed through the game without too much difficulty.

    I'm not sure what Square Enix was thinking, but the team behind the remaster did not think about us as players and fans of the franchise when they remastered the game.    … Expand
  29. Kistella
    Aug 30, 2020
    4
    I was so happy to find out this game was going to get a remaster for the switch. I played a lot of it with friends of mine when I was younger, and was looking forward to sharing that experience with new friends of mine.

    I'll be honest. If you are wanting to just get it to play solo, It is a wonderful and awesome game! But removing local co-op in a game that started with it, that is    I was so happy to find out this game was going to get a remaster for the switch. I played a lot of it with friends of mine when I was younger, and was looking forward to sharing that experience with new friends of mine.

    I'll be honest. If you are wanting to just get it to play solo, It is a wonderful and awesome game!

    But removing local co-op in a game that started with it, that is now on the switch is a huge blow to me. A large part of the marketing for the switch is that you can play local co-op in some games. The fact they took it out of a game really hurts the game play and experience of the game for me.

    Then there is the lag issues in multiplayer. We have very good internet here. and me and my fiance were playing beside each other. the delay between him moving, or me moving was pretty big.

    To me, They ended up messing up a HUGE part of what makes this game what it is.    … Expand
  30. critic183748
    Sep 8, 2020
    2
    I got this game thinking it’d be light, fun, and nostalgic to re-play this game with my significant other (we both have fond memories of the original from our childhoods), but little did I know the multi-player (like many have said) is just broken. No character progress for other players, no experiencing the story mode with other players, no local co-op option, no ability to level multipleI got this game thinking it’d be light, fun, and nostalgic to re-play this game with my significant other (we both have fond memories of the original from our childhoods), but little did I know the multi-player (like many have said) is just broken. No character progress for other players, no experiencing the story mode with other players, no local co-op option, no ability to level multiple professions at once anymore...the list goes on. I’m so angry and disappointed I didn’t read the reviews beforehand! If the emphasis of your remaster is in multi-player features, why implement it in a way that just breaks what the game even was in the first place? I’d honestly rather just have the local co-op instead of this half hearted online cross platform option if it had to be one or the other—and with no way to refund the purchase, it’s my loss. I really hope SE chooses to update this edition and add back the local multiplayer option.… Expand
  31. numcapsscroll
    Oct 21, 2020
    0
    They released this game in Oceania with non-functioning multiplayer for the entire region. After a week or so, the Final Fantasy Twitter account states that "some" people were unable to connect, they are taking the game down from online stores in the region, and will work on fixing the issue. Downplaying the issue big time, as if they would stop selling the game if only a small number ofThey released this game in Oceania with non-functioning multiplayer for the entire region. After a week or so, the Final Fantasy Twitter account states that "some" people were unable to connect, they are taking the game down from online stores in the region, and will work on fixing the issue. Downplaying the issue big time, as if they would stop selling the game if only a small number of us couldn't play. This was approximately six weeks ago.

    In the six weeks since, nothing has happened. It has never been fixed, it has not been acknowledged by FF Twitter again or any other outlet Square Enix has at its disposal (the more popular SE Twitter never even retweeted what FF said even though it retweets everything from subsidiary accounts on a daily basis, hmmm). Nothing on Twitter, Facebook, no reporting on local gaming news sites even. It's as if the game never released here in the first place.

    Square Enix is a billion dollar corporation that couldn't figure out multiplayer for an entire region. I frequently play games online, from New Zealand, that were made by teams of single-digit size that work perfectly fine. Square Enix apparently can't figure it out, and after they realised they couldn't figure it out, couldn't be bothered to fix it.

    Oh, and can't play with my friends locally either because SE saw fit to remove any ability to play multiplayer without connecting to their servers.

    Square Enix is a joke of a company. This game is a joke as well.    … Expand
  32. Zerotactiful
    Sep 3, 2020
    0
    First Ever Game Review:

    Multiplayer was why my 4 friends bought this game. Guess who doesn’t want to run dungeons 4 times in a row? The caravan experience doesn’t exist. I didn’t need voice acting or any changes to mechanics. I just wanted modern remote couch co-op where I can experience the entire game with friends start to finish like the old days. Just another reason to look up    First Ever Game Review:

    Multiplayer was why my 4 friends bought this game. Guess who doesn’t want to run dungeons 4 times in a row? The caravan experience doesn’t exist. I didn’t need voice acting or any changes to mechanics. I just wanted modern remote couch co-op where I can experience the entire game with friends start to finish like the old days.

    Just another reason to look up reviews and wait to buy games until some other sucker gets shafted like we did. I’ll probably never play the new version I am stuck with. Bye bye 30$.    … Expand
  33. SickStylz1984
    Aug 29, 2020
    0
    Habe das Original auf dem Gamecube nie gespielt. Da ich ein großer Final Fantasy Fan bin, habe ich gedacht, holst dir mal crystal chronicles.... 30 Euro in die Mülltonne.... Die Steuerung ist umständlich. Man merkt das es auf den gba ausgelegt war. Ich finde man hätte die Steuerung modernisieren können. Crossplay is ne nette Idee, wäre da nich der regionlock. Generell gibt es keineHabe das Original auf dem Gamecube nie gespielt. Da ich ein großer Final Fantasy Fan bin, habe ich gedacht, holst dir mal crystal chronicles.... 30 Euro in die Mülltonne.... Die Steuerung ist umständlich. Man merkt das es auf den gba ausgelegt war. Ich finde man hätte die Steuerung modernisieren können. Crossplay is ne nette Idee, wäre da nich der regionlock. Generell gibt es keine Einleitung für den Multiplayer. Das Spiel erwartet das man sofort weiß wie es funktioniert. Der Krug nervt tierisch. Vor allem mit randoms.... Ich kann meine Enttäuschung gar nicht in Worte fassen. Mein Tipp, lasst die Finger davon!!! Wenn Ihr doch gucken wollt dann testet die lite Version.… Expand
  34. FatNiceGuy
    Aug 30, 2020
    2
    Remaster nothing is remastered ... graphism are the same, loading screen are the same time than on gamecube and you can’t play a local game with your friends. Square Enix is scamming us
  35. vodkaffee
    Apr 12, 2022
    1
    this is the first FF mainline or spinoff in my life that i absolutely hated to play, which is sad because this remaster is way way worse than the original, just emulate the DS FFCC
  36. Zethor
    May 25, 2021
    4
    A horrendous remake of an incredible game. Little more to say; the addition of online was a great one, but it came with so many ridiculous conditions that the game, while incredibly fun, came with a plethora of annoyances as well.

    The free version is also one of the biggest teases I've ever seen. Don't offer a free version that isn't a demo if you're going to make those players able to    A horrendous remake of an incredible game. Little more to say; the addition of online was a great one, but it came with so many ridiculous conditions that the game, while incredibly fun, came with a plethora of annoyances as well.

    The free version is also one of the biggest teases I've ever seen. Don't offer a free version that isn't a demo if you're going to make those players able to play almost every main game dungeon, but make them unable to finish the last dungeon with the host. That just ruins the experience for the host and the person playing on the free version. I'd rate this remake even lower if it didn't have such a legitimately good game as its base, with some actually great QOL changes.    … Expand
  37. Monkeyspaceman
    Apr 3, 2021
    1
    How can you remaster a game, tailered for local multiplayer and remove the local multiplayer.
  38. Roxby2
    Jun 25, 2021
    0
    Huge disappointment. The entire IDEA of this game was local multiplayer with friends. If you don't understand that Developers, you should find a new career.
    I feel like a local multiplayer patch is 100% necessary. If not, just delete the game from the store.
  39. acesded
    Aug 4, 2021
    0
    The multiplayer functionality is terrible, and without this experience preserved you ruin the core thematics and aesthetics of the game. Belongs in the trash. Refunds to everyone.

    @LegendaryBlade

    "If SE ever patches in local multiplayer I will come back and edit my review back to a 10." - Me, Just now

Awards & Rankings

23
#23 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2020

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
  1. iMore
    Mar 5, 2021
    90
    This is an absolute must have for fans of the franchise, but also a fantastic game for those new to the series. Multiplayer and crossplay both work incredibly well, and offering both an inexpensive full version and a free lite version means everyone can play together, regardless of their device or budget.
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  2. SpazioGames
    Oct 8, 2020
    58
    Not the best Final fantasy to choose for a re-release and not the best remaster at all, with cumbersome online multiplayer and n o local co-op. Better save your money for the next entry in the franchise.
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  3. DarkZero
    Sep 21, 2020
    60
    Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition is another classic FF game that featured a lot of revolutionary features for its time. Unlike other re-released FF games that aged like fine wine, however, Crystal Chronicles’ antiquated controls and half-step multiplayer additions don’t nearly stand the test of time, especially when there are so many games available that do loot-based dungeon-crawling far better and far more streamlined. For many modern gamers accustomed to the faster pace and tighter controls of said games, Crystal Chronicles may feel like an old relic that requires a hefty amount of patience. There’s no lack of charm in the visuals and character designs, and getting four synchronized party members together that can effortlessly chain spells together to unleash a powered-up super spell can lead to a decent time, but it also shows that some old games can be harder to revisit due to the rapidly-evolving technology surrounding videogames.
    Read full review
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