Crimson Gem Saga/Garnet Chronicle

*I’m too lazy to add pictures. Google (shall I spell it Googol?) is your very best friend.

I’d heard about this game a while back, but never really got around to playing it until recently. It’s great.

So a few days ago, I recalled this game that I’d wanted to play before it was even released yet – Crimson Gem Saga. It’s actually Korean, then translated into 2 English versions (Asian, then Atlus which is duh from USA) and Japanese (known as the Garnet Chronicle). Apparently, it’s the sequel to Astonishia Story, but I haven’t played that, so. |D I would play that just to see how the characters which also appear in Crimson Gem Saga are like there, but from the screenshots I see around the web, the concept art and graphics aren’t that pretty :c

I haven’t played the Asian version, but apparently the translation wasn’t quite as good, probably because er. We aren’t all native speakers, you know. (It’s somewhat more difficult to localise the whole tone of the translation too, I’d reckon.) So I started playing the Atlus version first, then I wondered how the voice acting for the Japanese version would be… I got sick of Spinel’s voice from the very start. Typical whiny American bimbo voice is do not want D: And that elf guy! I just can’t stand those kinds of voices D: But the rest were fine… I think.

I don’t think I’m even halfway through the game, but I believe this is the funniest PSP game I’ve come across so far. Or at least, for the Atlus version. It might be my lazy eye or my lack of mastery of Japanese, but apart from better voice-acting, I didn’t quite feel funny vibes which were quite as strong. Maybe it’s just because it’s in English… |D Oh yeah, the Atlus version also has more voiced parts! That’s a definite plus :DD

Well the humour is actually pretty Korean to me, because I’ve seen this kind of thing in one or two online Korean MMOs before (albeit badly translated since I’ve only played beta games). The characters sometimes break the fourth wall and make fun of RPG elements in the game, and at other times they’re just made out to be… tragic (this reminds me a little of Korean dramas, too). For example, once, I opened a treasure box and there were 50 potions which restore your HP and MP. But off went Killian (the main character) who got too excited about it, and he then proceeded to break 47 of them, leaving only 3 potions. At other times, there was a treasure box right next to a guest bed in an inn. Inside was a bomb, and the guy just had to go ‘What the heck’s a bomb doing here?!’ |DDDwwww

Speaking of treasure, you can find treasure almost anywhere, just like in Golden Sun, RPG-style. This saves you a lot of Gelder (read: $$$). You can find money (sometimes in abundanceww) and stuff not just in jars and chests, and while some are in actual treasure boxes, others might just be hidden in the background. See, you can even pick up clocks from … clocks, which cure you of sleep. There are also lots of little secrets (kinda like easter eggs) hidden here and there, which are pretty fun to discover on your own and this ups the replayability slightly if you aren’t the type that checks every little nook and cranny the first time you play a game. Or if you just want to go see how much of a challenge it is playing the game without all that free stuff :D

The gameplay seems a little more MMO-like to me than RPG-like, although the two mean around (pretty much exactly) the same thing. what I mean is, you actually have to stealth around in order to gain the upper hand in all your battles. Ambushing your enemies is actually very freaking important, because if you’re discovered, you will start to be chased in a matter of seconds. They run faster than you do, and them ambushing you hurts. A lot. A damn freaking lot if you’re of a lower level than they are. And characters like Henson have super low max HP, so if you didn’t heal them up before the battle you may just die. Of course, with this whole ambushing/stealth system, all battles are not random. That also means that you have to revisit the same maps to grind if you need to level up. It also means that you have to stealth around everywhere outside of villages and towns D:

Obviously, being a stealth noob like me means that half the time you fail at ambushing, and there is some frustration (agh that stupid thing turned around the millisecond right before I was going to ambush it. Again! ARGH). I do assure you though, it’s part of the challenge, and it’s not too bad after… a while. Yeah. Also, the pretty concept art and graphics make up for it by a lot! Story too, of course. And humour. Definitely humour.

When it comes to the art, I’m not sure who drew the concept art (yet), but it’s so pretty! It’s got some Kim Hyung Tae colouring going on, with 1000% fewer saggy boobs and ugh other stuff. At least for the few chicks you find in the game… And the faces are perfectly oval, while the ossans are macho as they always are, Kim Hyung Tae style! (Actually, who cares about those ossans geez why are they even in my party?! DD: ) The concept art pops up every time the respective characters speak (oh but the art’s only from the waist up), and in the Status pages. Not only is the concept art pretty, but the backgrounds and sprites are pretty darned detailed too! I’m actually quite impressed by quite a few of the maps.

Oops, I forgot to mention about the skills system. I actually went through the first little bit of the game without leveling my skills at all |D But anyway, the skills system is slightly unique as well. You’re given this whole map of skills, but apart from the first few that have been revealed, you’ve got to use up SP both to reveal them AND to obtain them. This is irritating, but I keep reminding myself, it’s part of the challenge… orz. Thankfully you can save and load at any point in time and space apart from battles (battles are turn-based btw c: ), so you can save some SP. You can unlock passive skills, (active) skills and combo skills. Combo skills can only be used when both characters have the skill and have consecutive turns (argh).

Crimson Gem Saga also has a somewhat tricky slots system for equipment. There are only three slots for each piece of equipment, and you can slot in different cards and gems which modify the elemental affinity/resistance or the actual stats it has. Although you can’t unslot these from what I know at least, it’s not too bad since you get plenty of cards and gems through battles anyway. Potions too. Which you need a lot.

Quests are pretty straightforward and RPG-styled, and there are random optional subquests at different points of the game. The subquests really do remind me of MMOs, i.e. ‘Go fetch _ of this and that!’ ‘Thanks! Here, have a ___ as a reward!’ while the actual quests are pretty much just checkpoints for the actual RPG-like plot. There are quite a few enemies I’ve met so far that are unbeatable (really unbeatable, unlike Lavos) till later, another traditional RPG thing. They never tell you before you meet them :C

Hmm… I guess that’s pretty much all I wanted to introduce about the game :D The characters have interesting personalities, but it’s more fun to discover them on your own through actually playing the game :D And I’m trying my best to level all the characters equally, although I do like using some of the characters over others.

May you have fun playing the game! :DDDD I’m still less than halfway through it though D:

Extra: These links may interest those who want to know more about the game :D For the first link, the last bit which Atlus commented on elves in bikinis (referring to Spinel) is especially amusing.

Edit: Hm, yeah the game gets a lot harder later on in the game, and grinding gets to be a pain. I see what those reviews meant now. Ho hum. Mana Khemia now kinda strikes me as a cross between Class of Heroes and Crimson Gem Saga actually, except you don’t roam the world in perpetual dungeon-mode or anything.