Tower defense titles seem to be all the rage this generation. Square-Enix is definitely not taking a back seat because they just released Crystal Defenders R1 on WiiWare. R1 is “Round 1” which means its part one in a series of downloads coming to the Wii. Yeah, a game that came in a full package on XBLA is being gimped for the Wii by basically cutting 2/3’s of the game out. Not a good strategy on Sqaure-Enix’s part, but hopefully they have more plans for this series with the next installments.
Crystal Defenders R1 Is a tower defense game plain and simple. It has a basic premise, try to protect something that is at the end of some sort of pathway. You have a few different characters you can spawn and level up with cash, and seven classes you can choose from to help destroy all the monsters before they reach the end. The best part about all of this gamers get 13 "new" stages compared to the XBLA version. But while it is cool that you’re getting all new levels the unfortunate part is that about 10 of them are showing you each unit type and how to use them. This makes Crystal Defenders R1 pretty much a tutorial package.
The visuals and music are my favorite part about the Crystal Defenders series. It features a classic Final Fantasy style of art/music which brings you back to the days of the SNES era. The artwork used is nicely detailed and full of bright and vibrant colors that just pop out of the screen. Music has a wonderful melody about it that is typical of any Square-Enix title.
Newcomers to the series will find this a fun and delightful title to play around with. But veterans won’t find anything new here and should stick with the 360 version of the game. You’re looking at 800 points for a tutorial. Unless the other releases (R2, R3 or however far they go) are free, it is very hard to sell this to someone. Getting new levels is a cool feature; it just doesn’t sell this title well enough to be recommendable.
Pros: 13 new levels to try out, easier for newcomers, wonderful sound and visuals
Cons: 800 pts for a tutorial? Possible other release could be just as much
Sound: 3.0
Control: 3.0
Graphics: 3.0
Fun Factor: 3.0
The Info: Platform: WiiWare, Publisher: Square Enix, Developer: Square Enix, ESRB: E, Players: 1, Price: 800 Wii Points ($10)
Related Links: Terr has the scoop on the hot new DLC coming out soon, check it out! make sure to also see the Top 5 reasons gaming is better than work. And dont forget to check out the Weekly 360 and Wii downloads.
