We’ve had the game which largely introduced the West to the role-playing game, we’ve had the sequel in the form of the fi lm Advent Children and we’ve had the horribly awful thing that was Dirge Of Cerberus. And to fi nish off the Compilation Of Final Fantasy VII we’ve got the prequel annoyingly constrained to the PSP.

Obviously, Crisis Core is an RPG and RPGs are games that traditionally you spend a lot of time on, it’s possible to log well over 100 hours in Final Fantasy XII alone. But when you’re playing an RPG on the PlayStation 2 or the PlayStation 3 you can do it in opulence, stretched out on the sofa in front of a big television and a bucket of crisps and biscuits within scooping distance. And this makes the RPG experience very pleasant indeed.

Take all that away, shrink the television and kick the munchies bucket to the corner, because when you’re playing an RPG on the PSP everything changes for the worse. You need two hands to hold the console, which means you can’t stuff your face, you have to hold it pretty close to your eyes because the screen just doesn’t compare with a 40-inch HDTV and be prepared for getting an incredibly sore back from staying hunched over as you try to block the light refl ecting off the screen for numerous hours of the day. And as your hands cramp, claw-like around your dinky handheld you can dream of happier times defeating Slimes, in comfort, in Dragon Quest.

If ever there was a game that was more suited to home sofa gaming than being on a handheld that’s main boasts are its mobility and Wi-Fi connection then this is it. It’s not suited to short bursts of gaming, though the liberal amount of save points tries to sway that argument, and breaking up the story only leads to you forgetting what’s going on and where you’re supposed to be going. And it never uses the Wi-Fi, so really Crisis Core just feels like it’s on the wrong console.

Which is a shame because despite all our grumbling it is a really, really good RPG. It’s pleasant being back in Midgar, entertaining to see familiar characters, pleasing on the eye because everything looks so good and fascinating because you’re getting to see what happened before Cloud and Co saved the day all those years ago in the future.

The story concerns Zack, the Soldier who Cloud models his life on after having his memory messed with in Final Fantasy VII, a likeable young member of Shinra’s elite military group. Shinra is at war with Wutai (where Yuffi e comes from), but during the confl ict a large number of Soldiers and one of their top members, Genesis, go missing. Zack is sent in to fi nd out what happened and is accompanied by everyone’s favourite evil ‘hurl a comet through the sun’ dick, Sephiroth. Only here he’s a good guy.

It’s bizarre plot twists like that that keep the story ticking along. You’re never sure where it’s going next and when some of the characters start growing wings, one-winged-angel style, you can only sit back and relish in the Advent Children-quality cut-scenes and the strangeness of the plot. The cut-scenes are, as usual for a Final Fantasy game, incredible, it just would have been nicer to see them on a much, much bigger screen.

Unlike most Final Fantasy games the combat is not turn based. It’s much more action orientated than that, and kind of like a less mashy version of Kingdom Hearts’ fi ghting system. You’ve still got the option of attacking with Zack’s sword or using magic, depending on what material you have equipped and deft controls of the L and R buttons will see you casting elemental spells and using special attack moves.

In the top-left corner spins the Digital Mind Wave. It’s basically a fruit machine and when three identical pictures of people you’ve met line up, you’ll earn a Power Surge move. These change depending on whose pictures line up, so Aerith gives you a health boost while Angeal, Zack’s commanding offi cer, will let Zack perform an incredibly powerful barrage of hits. If you’re lucky the DMW will get on to the summon reels and you’ll get to see some guest appearances by Ifrit and the Bahamuts.

When it gives you good stuff, the DMW is brilliant, it’s not so good when you’re up against some weak enemies and it decides you really need some health and it plays through a small cut-scene that you can’t skip. You can’t skip any of the cut-scenes, which can be a pain at certain points in the game if you die.

Despite these faults, Crisis Core is still very enjoyable, it’s just you have to suffer a bit for that enjoyment, or go on a really long train journey for about a week, that might just about justify playing an RPG on a PSP

Tim Empey