Guardian's Crusade

"A knight and his Baby"

It's ironic that this game was released in the same year FFVIII was. Both are good games in their own rights, but I'm here to judge Guardian's Crusade, a game that's rarely ever heard, but one that shouldn't be missed out.

Story:
At first, it's basic: the hero must get Baby to his/her mother atop God's Towers. Well, more then halfway through, you'll see the story take a dramatic course and see just how addicting it is. It's wonderfully written (thanks to it's near spotless translation) and easy to understand, so you won't have to worry much of deep thinking like the FF games offer.
8/10

Gameplay:
The RPG battle is real simple to control. You usually start off with Knight, then Baby, then the enemy, usually Nehani the fairy randomly comes to hurt enemies or heal allies. It's very simple commands, so you can follow along pretty easily. The living toys also liven up the battles. Each of the 70 toys uses their own style of attacks and some can even been used outside of battle like as maps or diggers. You can create your own stragety with them. I just wish you control Baby instead of ordering it. Not to mention loading time is so short, so it's all good!
9/10

Graphics:
The graphics compare to most games is not good. It looks more N64-ish then PS1. But there are some parts of the world that just screams pretty, notable God's Tower. But I'm more gameplay over graphics. The whole world is awfully light, even the dirt. The colorings remind me of markers for some reason. But the FMVs are awesome. Sure, not as good as the FFs, bit it still stands on it's won in terms of graphics. I just wish they put more FMVs into the game.
8/10

Music/Sound:
Compare to most game, GC wouldn't stand a chance. The music all sounds very midi-like and it might be, but the musi itself it VERY catchy. I can think of so many locations wit very good music. I recommend you listen to Kuldos' temple and God's Tower for such examples. t's also nice that each location has their own themes that fit them so well. The sound isn't always the greatest, but they show clearly and they sound great.
10/10

Baby:
The little monster gets it's own section. Besides being an RPG, it's also a tamagotchi style game. You take cae of Baby and if you treat it well, it'll help you greatly in battle and have a more better liking to you. If not, the baby will be angry at you and even hurt you. It'll also fetch for you and you can scold or praise it for what it has found. Heck, you can even send it to a gym to train to raise it better. Taking advantage of all this for Baby was an excellent idea and one I personally enjoyed. If you like taking care of creatures, you'll love it. I know I did.
10/10

Overall, a winner. A gem in it's own right. Although a bit short compare to most RPGs, standing about a good 20 hours, it's still thrilling in it's own right. Sure, there are many cliche parts and you might even know what's gonna happen, but it still clutched my heart and I had many emotional moments with it. Don't be afraid because the disk is pink, it's a true jewel and I'm glad it's part of my PS collections.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/08/03, Updated 04/08/03