Cris Tales

Cris Tales
Developer(s)	Dreams Uncorporated Syck
Publisher(s)	Modus Games
Platform(s)	Google Stadia Microsoft Windows Nintendo Switch PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5 Xbox One Xbox Series X/S
Release	July 20, 2021
Genre(s)	Role-playing
Mode(s)	Single-player

Cris Tales(stylized asCrisTales) is arole-playing video gamedeveloped by Colombianindie gamestudios Dreams Uncorporated and Syck, and published by Modus Games. It was released forGoogle Stadia,Microsoft Windows,Nintendo Switch,PlayStation 4,PlayStation 5,Xbox One,andXbox Series X/Son July 20, 2021.

Gameplay

Promotional screenshot showcasing combat. InCris Tales,the player can use Crystal Points to affect the stats of enemies.

The game is a turn-basedRPG,along with the ability to time jump, both on the map and in-battle, affecting the gameplay. Each playable character has their own unique abilities.

The primary game mechanic consists on the manipulation of time. The screen is split into three sections, showing the present in the center, the past on the left, and the future on the right. During the story, Crisbell must complete a series of missions with the help of Matias, where she must use her time powers to learn from the past and use it to save the present thus creating a different future. Depending on the player's choices, they could affect the lives of NPCs, thus resulting in one of three different endings.

In battle, Crisbell can summon the crystal powers to send enemies to the past or the future, altering their characteristics (e.g planting a potential poison attack as Wilhelm in the past will cause that enemy to be poisoned in the future). The battles are carried out using commands to select attacks, skills, or items, in addition to making the precise pressing of buttons during attacks, allowing more damage to enemies or receiving less damage.

In addition to the main story, the demo includes a Colosseum mode, where the player faces a horde of enemies, in order to test their skills. This mode appears in the final game near a later point in a post-launch patch.

Plot

Crisbell is an orphan girl who lives in the Narim orphanage. While she picked up a rose for Mother Superior, it is snatched from her by Matias, a talking frog, whom she follows to Narim Cathedral (inspired by theLas Lajas Shrine), in order to unleash her powers. After the events, Matias asks Crisbell to accompany him to visit his friend Willhelm, a time mage, who explains more about her powers.

Later, Crisbell is commended in a series of missions, until she finds the village farm in flames and invaded by goblins under the command of the Empress of Time, whose aim is to take over the Crystallis Kingdom. To avoid a disastrous future, Crisbell returns to Willhelm to ask for help, and he tells her about the Sword. Crisbell is determined to use the powers of the Sword, becoming a time mage herself.

With the Sword in hand, she returns to the farm to battle the goblins. During the battle, Cristopher, an elemental mage warrior who has been fighting the goblins, joins her. After a couple of battles, they are faced by the Empress of Time's minions, the Volcano Sisters. Crisbell must use the power of the time crystals to help defeat them. After receiving several attacks, the sisters retreat.

Development

The game was developed by theindieColombianstudio Dreams Uncorporated.It was officially announced atE3 2019,which was claimed as a tribute to classicJapanese role-playing games(JRPGs) likeFinal Fantasy,Chrono TriggerandPersona,among other franchises. Its launch was scheduled for November 2020,but was postponed to early 2021, in order to bring a better product.

In addition to the influences of the aforementioned JRPGs,Cris Talesshows influences fromColombian cultureandarchitecture.For its art style, the game was influenced by the works ofGenndy Tartakovsky,Mary Blair,Eyvind Earle,among others; while the character designs were inspired by the 2009 animated filmThe Secret of Kells.

Reception

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
Metacritic	NS:72/100 PC:74/100 PS4:70/100 PS5:69/100 XSXS:79/100

Review scores

Publication	Score
Game Informer	7.75/10
GameSpot	PC: 8/10
IGN	7/10
Nintendo Life	NS: 8/10
PC Gamer(US)	PC: 57/100
The Guardian

During its development withinearly releasegameplaylivestreams,Cris Talesreceived critical acclaim by specialized media.Hardcore Gamercited it as "an unmissable, gorgeous manipulation of time" and nominated it as theGame of ShowandBest RPGat E3 2019.Tom Marks fromIGNclaims that Cris Tales "looks a bit likePaper MariowithPersona 5's UI ", praising the concept, the hand-drawn graphics, and the time jump-based gameplay.

After its release,Cris Talesreceived "mixed or average reviews" onMetacritic,with an aggregated score of 74/100 for the PC version based on 29 reviews.Nintendo Lifepraised the premise for taking the classic JRPGs in gameplay ideas and art style, but criticized some aspects of the combat, calling it "frustrating".IGNpraised the cast and the art, but criticised the gameplay, citing it as "a clever time-traveling JRPG that’s held back by monotonous combat".A less favorable review came fromPC Gamer,which cited it as "a striking RPG that fails to deliver on its temporal premise".

The local media said that "Cris Tales is a game with an excellent premise, but one that has lagged behind remembering the past."

External links

• Official website