JRPG fans should prepare themselves for the coming of Cris Tales, which bills itself as a love letter to the JRPG genre as a whole. This game takes inspiration from many popular JRPGs and combines great elements from them to create a completely unique experience based on the concept of time magic. Throughout their journey, players will use the protagonist Crisbell's time magic in order to solve certain puzzles or take down the many enemies they will face along the way. One thing which the developers are clearly focused on is the effect of choices the player makes in the game.
Though a lot of RPGs have claimed that the player's choices actually matter, not many have actually lived up to that claim. Usually choices simply result in a change later down the line or perhaps one of a few endings, but Cris Tales lets players see the effects of their actions right away. It is clear that the developers were huge fans of the JRPG genre themselves, and have strived to make this game everything they wanted from older games and more. For these reasons, hardcore JRPG fans shouldn't miss this title.
Time Magic in Cris Tales
Cris Tales lets players use time magic in a myriad of different ways. In combat, sending an enemy into the past or the future may effect their stats, making them easier to handle or, in some cases, more difficult to take down. While this mechanic is unique, where Cris Tales really shines is its out of combat use of Crisbell's time magic. While in certain areas, the player will see three versions of their surroundings at any given time, the past, the present, and the future. Crisbell herself always remains in the present, but gleaming into the past can provide valuable insight on how to achieve a future the player can live with.
This is the crux of Cris Tales, and there are numerous outcomes that the player can cause by their actions (or lack thereof). Enemies will require players to think outside the box in how to best manipulate time when in combat, and the many areas the player visits will shape themselves around the player's actions in a tangible and real way. Even small choices make minor changes to the world around the player, which helps minor decisions feel as though they carry some weight as well.
Cris Tales as a JRPG
Of course, Cris Tales doesn't shy away from classic JRPG tropes by any means. Players will need to grind experience to level up and increase stats, purchase and find gear to further power up members of the party, and train to learn new skills to use in combat. All of these elements will feel extremely familiar to JRPG fans, while the added nuance of the time magic mechanics keep things fresh and interesting. Other mechanics also help to keep combat a little more engaging than a typical JRPG. For example, the player will need to time follow up attacks and parries in order to deal or avoid extra damage.
Exploration will likely be a blast as well, as there are plenty of hidden secrets and treasures for astute players to find, while the beautiful level design will be more than enough to keep casual players preoccupied. That said, how Cris Tales holds up once its been released is yet to be seen, but from what has been shown so far, this is looking like a very strong indie title for those that love the JRPG genre, and is definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Cris Tales currently has a release date of 2020.