Ok this game is a true and rare gem. It has zero hype, crap for a budget, and on a system that everyone thought would be dead by now. Not to mention it is actually the sequel to one of the WORST PSP games to date, Astonishia Story. Regardless of it's heritage, Crimson Gem Saga has proven to be the one of the best RPG experiences to be found on a handheld in my opinion.

Firstly, the voice work and translation are top notch. Atlus has taken over publishing for the US release and it has done the game wonders. The characters do not feel forced in any way. The only time a corny line comes out of any of the characters mouth's is when they intentially want to make you uncomfortable. The game has a very "Disgaea" like charm to the dialogue where the characters say witty things that make you chuckle, and a few 4th Wall breakers that are hilarious.

The art style is nicely done. These are not your typical half assed, pixelated garbage sprites. These are beautifully drawn sprites. The environment is done the same way but with one flaw(more on that later). Everything in the game's world feels consistant.

The Story:

I have not beaten the game yet, nor do I think I am anywhere close. Yet so far I am liking the storyline. THe game deliberately plays into RPG stereotypes. What I mean by this is the Quest system. You will freqently gain tasks from random NPCs that will progress you through the story. The catch is, in order to complete one, you might have to complete several. The actual characters are spokenly frustrated by this as well, poking fun at the tedium of RPGs of old. The selection of characters are the typical misfit bunch of rag tag passerbys. The main Character is Killian, where the story surrounds around his random misfortunes. This guy has some serious bad luck, or at least he plays into RPG stereotype main where he complains about his life's situation WAY too much. This actually doens't get annoying, for the other characters/NPCs point out his complaining as annoying to them(one of his main gripes is that he was only second in the Academy he attended, bested by his arch rival). There is also his rival(who name alludes me at the moment) who is just such a jerk it is impossible to be fond of him in a Seifer esque way. There is Spinel, who will no doubtedly become everyone's instant fav character of the team. She is a elfish "treasure hunter"/dagger for hire. She is a bit comic relief for she constantly brings trouble upon Killian, sometimes even on purpose. There are other good characters as well, a fist fighter, Hammer wielding Cleric drunkard/ex-monk, a foulmouthed mage, etc. These guys form the most awkward bunch of heroes I ever did see. Yet they all brilliantly compliment each other's RPG staple.

Gameplay:

The game is a bit close to traditional FF turn based combat. You have your choices...

Attack Item Special Escape Defend

Typical RPG fair, right? Yet I think most reviews of the game neglect one ofthe most important parts of CGS's battle system. What makes CGS a bit different is the Critical system. Whenever your character scores a critical, if you time your button press right, you will execute a combo attack. What this most closely relates to is Legend of Dragoon's combo system. The main differences are CGS's is simpler, you only press X, and you only can do it during Critical hits. Through Items, equipment, etc you can actually increase the odds of your criticals, making yourself more likely to get them in battle.

There is also the Preemptive/Ambush mechanic. If you touch an enemies back first, you get a free swipe at ALL enemies in the battle upon start. If the opposite occures, the enemy gets to attack your team upon battle start. When an Enemy has spotted you an exclamation point pops above his head. This means get to him as quick as possible(not run) because if you try to run they WILL catch you. Enemies run twice as fast as you and if the icon leaves the top of the guy's head they will get an ambush on you.

Another thing that helps you out in battle is that you get a bountiful supply of items. Many reviewers complained about the game's difficulty. Yet I just think they failed to utilize the fact you can rack up on items from weaker enemies, then face off against harder ones with all your specials, eliminate them relatively quick, then heal up again after the battle with items. This is a slightly different strategy then most JRPGs. Also there are customization items for weapons and equipment. I relate this to a wattered down FFX weapon customization. You can put gems on a weapon and give it certain attributes to complement enemy weaknesses. Only draw back is each weapon has a limit of 3 slots and once you placed them they cannot be removed. There is stuff like: ICE +1, Fire +2, STR+5, HP +25, etc. These really can turn the tide of battles.

Another thing I found SO rewarding from this game is exploration. The game designers know that RPGs are famous for items being hid in strange places. Right at the begining of the game, if you take the time to explore the first city and find a women hiding in a bunch of trees, she will award you 10,000 gold. This is ALOT at the beginning of the game allowing you enough to boost up Killian with some new armor. This clause exists throughout the game. Killian will frequently open up boxes beside a Bank and find things like: Gas Mask, Gas BOMBx20, Dynamitex10. He will then go on to comment on it like "Oh GOD! Someone was planning on robbing the place or something!" Or he will find:Unstable Explosivex100  next to a his academy saying "WHO PUTS EXPLOSIVES NEXT TO A SCHOOL!!!?!!?!?" These are awesome finds yet sometimes it is not so good. Sometimes the game wants to teach you the meaning of "curiosity killed the cat". Twice so far in the game I have stumbled upon a dungeon or secret well that drops you in an area that is far pass your actual current skill. This was a bit unsettling at first but it grew on me as I am much more careful about where I step.

The game also allows you to save at ANY time other then when you are in battle. The only draw back is that you only have 3 save slots.

Leveling up is standard fair in this game. THe higher your level the higher your stats. Move selections are a bit different. This way of learning abilities is most similar to Xenosaga series method. You pretty much have a skill tree of sorts. As you keep winning battles you gain SP. SP can be used in order to learn new abilities for the entire team. What is annoying about this is that SP is a group effort so you have to teach the entire party moves from one pool of SP. Not to mention the game has rather greedy moves that eat up majority of your points in no time. In order to unlock a move you have to first reveal what it is. This requires SP as well. So pretty much it goes 50SP to show me that this slot is "FIRE SPELL" then another 80 to learn it. As you go farther across the tree these prices get hefty.

After falling in love with the combat mechanics and such in this game, it has one rather annoying draw back. Earlier I spoke of the awesome sprites and the lush backgrounds. The thing is the sprite directions and background art don't exactly match up. What I mean by this is the world is on a tilt while you are on actual NSEW directional paths. This means when running you cannot just hold down in one direction or another, but you have to zigzag to the destination. The directional movement is a bit broken because it moves at least 25% faster then just moving up, down, left or right. This makes judging how to make contact with enemies without being spotted a bit challenging.

Overall:

As my PSP RPG hiarchy goes as of now....

Jeanne D'Arc

Crisis Core:FFVII

Crimson Gem Saga

Disgaea

FF Tactics

Crimson Gem Saga is that certain mix of new and old that gives you both the nastalgia of a classic and the excitement of what is to come. Even though I have not completed it yet I would give this game 9.1, regardless of the game's outcome from what I have played of it so far. It is fun and enjoyable, and appeals to my inner FF senses.

Man, I wish I could get into handhelds..I really do. I hear about a ton of really good PSP and DS games, I just wish they'd let you play PSP games on your PS3. I honestly don't see a logical reason why you can't. Oh well..

Also..just curious, what do you mean when you say,

"The game has a very "Disgaea" like charm to the dialogue where the characters say witty things that make you chuckle, and a few 4th Wall breakers that are hilarious."

What do you mean by '4th Wall breakers'?

@Phrancheyez

4th Wall= the understanding of non existance. That you exist in a parallel reality that is fictional or not real.

In Disgaea, the characters were known for saying things like "This is a GRIND FEST SRPG, GET WITH THE PROGRAM!" comments and the like.

in the very beginning of Crimson Gem Saga, Killian wakes up late for his ceramony. He runs downstairs to the inn keep and talks for a bit. The inn keeper tells him he can make it to the bash. At that moment a little box pops up saying NEW QUEST! GRADUATION or something. Killian asks " Hey, what was that that just popped up on my screen?" The inn keeper replies, "So you are going to dawdle AND break the fourth wall.......sigh" lol ^^

this game deserves more spotlight. it is truly the Crimson Gem Saga of the PSP....

I laughed at the part where everybody thought the PSP would be dead by now, and I thought the same thing when I bought mine on launch day lol!!

But here I am, planning to buy another once the PSP GO comes out :) I'm glad it survived.

I wish i had a psp, theres so many games on the psp i want.

what do you mean there are only 3 save slots. Isn't it limited by the amount of free memory on your Memory-stick?

whoa astonishia story was a fun and great game, and should be in everyones psp rpg collection. and then secondly sweeeet this game is gonna rock

agreed, this game is awesome, i really enjoy the music