Crystalis (NES)

[nesfan]

A couple of weeks ago, I ordered a copy of Neutopia for Turbografx-16 from Amazon. But it's got an unusually long estimated shipping time. Amazon says it won't be here til the 15th! So I figured I'd fill that time with another Zelda-esque game that I've had sitting around, Crystalis. This game is awesome! Sometimes I can't believe this is a NES game. It feels way ahead of its time and simply calling it a "Zelda clone" does it a disservice. I mean, Zelda didn't have much aside from its dungeons, overworld, and the occasional old man in a cave. Crystalis has dungeons, a vast world, old men in caves, several populated towns with inns and shops, several swords that correspond to different elements, and even a power meter for your attacks reminiscent of Secret of Mana. I had a feeling I was gonna like this game but all of that stuff seriously impressed me. There are a couple things that bug me about it though. For one thing, the hit detection. It often feels like you gotta be right on target with your attacks or you're gonna miss a lot. It takes some getting used to but it's far from unplayable. Another thing that bugs me is your character's invincibility frames. Or lack thereof. Sometimes it's easy for an enemy to just ram into you and drain your health. It's pretty difficult at times but I can't wait to see what all Crystalis has to offer.

[nesfan]

Crystalis lost my save! I’m sad now...

[nesfan]

After saving a new game and resetting it, I see now that the battery went dead. Guess I won’t be playing this anymore until I get it replaced. That’s a bummer.