Crystar

This review and game comes with a content warning for thematic reasons: anxiety, depression, suicide, and infanticide, some of the above involving minors.

For when I weep, then I am strong. In Crystar, battle through Purgatory as Rei to help save her sister in this Action RPG. Switch freely between four playable characters, and uncover each one of their pasts to see the sorrows they have endured. Whatever you do, don't dry your eyes. You'll need your tears to summon your Guardian and overcome the true villians of Purgatory!

Crystar will likely not receive as much attention from a wide western audience, which is unfortunate. Even though it might just look like another game featuring teenage anime girls, that didn't make the narrative any less compelling. What made Crystar's story so impressive was how it always kept me on my toes. Always introducing new plot points when I kept thinking I had everything figured out. While there was a lot to keep in mind, everything that happened in the story made sense. The narrative of Crystar is worth experiencing because of how real and relatable it is. It's just a shame that th...

Crystar pairs an original and compelling story with fairly average gameplay. The repetitive nature can become tedious, especially during the later parts, but the narrative concept is interesting enough to push the player to guiding Rei to the end of Purgatory. This is one of those games where the recommendation would have more to do with the level of personal interest in the story than anything else as that's the most noteworthy feature in an otherwise good but unremarkable action RPG.  The game taking place in Purgatory seems fitting since the enjoyment is a lot more pleasurable than Hell, bu...

Preceded by a bombastic anime trailer, Crystar takes you on a gut-wrenching adventure through the afterlife. You play as a teenage girl called Rei who is summon

I love niche Japanese RPGs and Crystar has been on my radar for a long time so allow me to tell you if it was worth the wait.

Gemdrops' Crystar puts players in the role of Rei Hatada, a young girl fighting through Purgatory to rescue her sister. RPGamer examines whether the game is able to break out, or finds itself stuck in limbo.