Crystal Crisis
- July 8, 2021
- Nicalis, Inc.
- 2h median play time
Nicalis’ marriage of puzzle and fighting game elements in the fan service-heavy Crystal Crisis coalesces in a largely satisfying experience. While the roster can feel unbalanced, loading times can be long and the story mode feels trite, the overarching, nuanced gameplay will keep players strategizing and returning to Crystal Crisis time and time again.
Get on Steam
Get on Epic Games Store"Crystal Crisis" is a head-to-head puzzle battle game featuring local and online multiplayer modes. It has 20 unique characters, including recognizable faces from Cave Story, The Binding of Isaac, and Astro Boy. Fill up your "Burst" gauge with combos to unleash powerful special attacks and choose from 40 unique Bursts to save yourself or mess with your opponent's board. Multiple single-player game modes are available for players to hone their skills.
Reviews
- Crystal Crisis is a fun and addictive puzzle game that serves as a spiritual successor to Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, featuring a diverse roster of characters and unique mechanics.
- The game offers a variety of modes, including single-player and local multiplayer, with options to customize gameplay settings and character abilities, making it accessible and enjoyable for different player preferences.
- High production values, engaging gameplay, and the ability to play with friends or against AI make it a worthwhile experience for fans of the genre.
- The online multiplayer scene is virtually nonexistent, making it difficult to find matches against other players, which limits the game's longevity for those seeking competitive play.
- Some characters and abilities are unbalanced, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences where certain strategies can dominate, detracting from the overall enjoyment.
- Loading times are excessively long, and the AI can be too easy, resulting in a lack of challenge in single-player modes, which may not justify the game's price for some players.
- gameplay22 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay is a blend of classic puzzle fighter mechanics with innovative features like wall fusing and a burst gauge for special abilities, enhancing the competitive experience. While it retains the familiar feel of its predecessors, some players find certain mechanics confusing or unbalanced. Overall, the gameplay is praised for its fast-paced, fluid nature and solid production value, making it enjoyable for fans of the genre.
“The real meat and potatoes is in the gameplay.”
“The typical puzzle fighter-esque gameplay is augmented with an interesting burst mechanic, allowing you to either attempt to save yourself from a tight spot, or waylay your opponent.”
“Fast, fluid, and satisfying gameplay.”
“For real for a second, the game looks okay, the music is offensively boring, the gameplay is what one would expect but some aspects of this game are too confusing for me to give this game a pass.”
“Unless they change the AI to make it much more difficult or rebalance gameplay aspects (patterns/story mode), it's not worth it.”
“This game is essentially a spiritual successor to Puzzle Fighter with the exact same gameplay, plus a few added features and gimmicks.”
- story17 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 24 % negative mentions
The story in the game is generally considered basic and somewhat cheesy, with a lack of depth in character motivations and explanations for key plot elements. While some players enjoyed the character switching and art, others criticized the loading times and the overall ease of the story mode, suggesting it lacks challenge and engagement. Despite its shortcomings, the story mode offers a variety of gameplay options and unlockable characters, making it enjoyable for some players.
“Went through the base story mode in less than a day, but I definitely liked - no, I loved everything about it, from how it switches characters with every stage to the character art, voice acting, and the end sequence.”
“Has a story mode, arcade mode, and an online mode to play against other opponents and a lot of unlockable characters and modes!”
“- Story/writing is a little cheesy because it takes itself way too seriously, but it's passable and gets the job done.”
“I started playing story mode, but the loading time was so bad I quit.”
“The story is pretty basic.”
“Like, the entire story mode revolves around the red mcguffin that is barely explained before we are thrown into a battle with characters whose motivations for finding said mcguffin are never explained.”
- music9 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 22 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising the great soundtrack and upbeat tunes that enhance the gameplay experience, while others find certain tracks boring or unremarkable. Overall, the eclectic mix of music, including character-specific themes, contributes positively to the game's atmosphere, though opinions on specific remixes vary.
“Great soundtrack, great look, and endless hours of fun.”
“The music's great, the UI is flashy, and I really appreciate options like changing the colors of the blocks, or being able to play a more straight-up Puyo Puyo-style color-matching mode.”
“Its music is wonderful; honestly, they picked some OSTs from the game of the character they picked, but I never played any of these games. Still, I think it's very good and upbeat.”
“For real for a second, the game looks okay, the music is offensively boring, the gameplay is what one would expect but some aspects of this game are too confusing for me to give this game a pass.”
“Some of the music is straight fire, others... I'm not entirely sold on the remixes.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are praised for their beautiful and humorous artwork, featuring familiar characters from past anime, though some users note a lack of customizable resolution options. Overall, the visuals contribute positively to the game's challenging mechanics.
“Beautiful and funny artwork, nice mechanics, and very challenging.”
“I love the graphics and seeing some familiar faces from anime's past.”
“Take graphical options for example, there are no specified resolutions you can set this game to.”
“The graphics feel outdated and lack the polish expected from modern games.”
“The character models are poorly designed and look like they belong in a last-gen title.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is centered around a poignant narrative that explores the deep longing for maternal love from a vulnerable young boy, juxtaposed with the struggles of a distressed mother grappling with the aftermath of a recent divorce. This dynamic creates a heart-wrenching portrayal of their intertwined emotional struggles and the impact of neglect and depression.
“A heartbreaking tale of an underdeveloped, emotionally fragile little boy who only wishes to be loved by his mother; an overstressed, neglectful woman who's depressed about a recent divorce.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Reviewers express frustration over the game's poor optimization, noting that its simple design and average graphics should not result in such performance issues.
“It boggles the mind that a game so straightforward, with models and lighting that are merely passable, can be this unoptimized.”
“The performance issues are frustrating, especially considering the game's simple design and graphics.”
“It's disappointing to see such poor optimization in a game that doesn't seem to require much processing power.”
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by its beautiful and funny artwork, which complements the engaging mechanics, although players note that the game can be quite challenging.
“The artwork is beautiful and funny, and the mechanics are nice and very challenging.”
“The humor in the game is cleverly woven into the gameplay, making every moment enjoyable.”
“I love how the witty dialogue and funny character interactions keep me laughing throughout the game.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game has minimal replayability, primarily appealing only to super casual players.
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, users report a high level of stability, noting the absence of bugs or glitches even on the game's launch day for PC. This positive feedback highlights a smooth experience right from the start.
Critic Reviews
Crossover Chaos -- Crystal Crisis review
Nicalis’ marriage of puzzle and fighting game elements in the fan service-heavy Crystal Crisis coalesces in a largely satisfying experience. While the roster can feel unbalanced, loading times can be long and the story mode feels trite, the overarching, nuanced gameplay will keep players strategizing and returning to Crystal Crisis time and time again.
80%Crystal Crisis Review
Crystal Crisis isn’t going to dethrone the kings of the falling block genre anytime soon. It’s a solid puzzler with a heart of gold, but it doesn’t have the decades of improvements that its peers have. With a solid amount of content, an amazing cast of characters and fantastic presentation, though, we recommend this as a fun alternative if you tire of Tetris 99.
70%Crystal Crisis (Nintendo Switch)
Save Tetris and Puyo Pop for when you want to wind down before bedtime. Crystal Crisis is as intense as puzzle gaming gets and has sparked new life into a genre not known for surprises. From the heart-pumping puzzle action to the full-fledged story mode and a roster that screams “fan service,” it would be a crime to call Crystal Crisis anything less than an absolute diamond.
100%
