Developer: SNK Publisher: SNK Release: 07/90 Genre: Action RPG
Action RPGs did not have a good go of it on the NES in the early years. Deadly Towers and Hydlide, despite their ambition, were the type of titles that would make you hate video games. But in short order the genre would hit its stride with the likes of Willow, the Magic of Scheherezade, and Faxanadu giving gamers the action they wanted. SNK were a prolific publisher on the NES, balancing their output between arcade ports and original titles. But they were one of the last I expected to craft a RPG. And you know what? I wish they created more. Crystalis is not just one of the best action RPGs on the system but one of its best games overall.
In 1997 (heh) Earth has been ravaged by war. The destruction caused by these conflicts has caused the planet’s axis to shift and people to evolve into mutants. These mutants cause further devastation and humanity to almost go extinct. To prevent this from ever happening again the survivors create a tower in the sky with the power to protect or destroy the world as a safeguard against further calamity. One hundred years pass and mankind is in the process of rebuilding. But the Draygonian Empire, with their magic and technology aims to activate the tower and rule the world. A lone warrior emerges from cryogenic sleep with no memory but will slowly learn his purpose as he fights against the Draygonian Empire.
The story in Crystalis is more involved than in most 8-bit titles. Most titles around that time merely populated its towns with characters designed to move you from point A to B. There are many memorable NPCs and each of the game’s eleven towns has their own little story and problem. There is a large cast of recurring characters some of whom have growth of their own. The four sages guide you on your journey in addition to other heroes like yourself. There are even a few emotional moments that come out of left field that will hit you in the feels. SNK have done an excellent job of crafting a memorable and varied world better than its contemporaries.
Crystalis has benefited from the years of refinement in the genre. The most important is 8-way movement. With this the game feels fluid. Your default movement speed is very fast and with the rabbit boots you can platform with the best of them, not that it is called on much. You gain experience and level up and the game forces you to grind at points. There are numerous points where you need to hit a minimum level to damage enemies and bosses. The grind is relatively quick and painless but still there.
Combat is focused on the four elemental swords you acquire throughout the game. All swords can charge up for a stronger attack and with the proper items you will attain three levels of power. More than likely you will rely on charged blasts exclusively. To balance it out level 3 attacks use massive amounts of magic. Each sword, aside from being more powerful than the last, also has secondary functions. The sword of wind can blast through stone walls while the water sword can freeze lakes to create bridges. Even the sword of thunder which you earn late in the game will destroy iron walls. These functions help keep them relevant until the end game. The only odd quirk that slows the game down is the need to remain stationary to charge your attack. But it is so fast it is a minor quibble.
Magic focuses on utility and the game gives you an array of tools to play with. Unlike most titles just about every spell sees heavy use throughout the game, some in ways you might not expect. Aside from healing damage and status you receive the teleport spell early on. Paralysis works on enemies and NPCs too. Flight is learned at the end of the game. However there are a massive number of areas it opens up for some cool equipment. The change spell is the most fun. With this you can turn in to one of four characters. A surprising number of NPCs have unique dialogue depending on your appearance which was mind boggling for the time. The most important is telepathy, the game’s way of giving you guidance without outright spelling it out for you.
Despite all of the tools at your disposal this is still very much an action RPG. The “puzzles” if you can call them that boils down to finding the necessary item or spell. The game is generally good at providing hints and if you truly need help your telepathic friends will almost spell it out. For the most part the game is linear until its late stages. While there are usually two or three areas open to you the game gates them in different ways. The dungeons grow in scope the point they rival some of the biggest 16-bit action RPGs with epic boss battles capping them off. The focus is squarely on the action and thankfully the game excels at it.
My only problem with Crystalis is its interface. The game revels in giving its enemies elemental weaknesses which necessitates frequent weapon switching. It grows tiresome by the midpoint and only gets worse toward the end. Granted the NES only has two action buttons but the game could design around it. Although the action is quick the game still manages to be challenging. Until you over level an area damage is heavy. Bosses can kill you in a few hits you must walk a tight rope between using magic for healing or sword attacks. Because you must grind you will hit the max level of 16 long before the end. But the game still puts up a worthwhile fight until its conclusion.
In Closing
SNK knocked it out of the park with Crystalis. Nearly every aspect of Crystalis seems as though it were designed to avoid the pitfalls of its contemporaries and it does so easily. This is easily one of the best games for the system and one I wish SNK would follow up on.
