Cris Tales Reviews
While the cinematic procedures required some aspects of time travel - which also is part of the combat in this game, it has been well presented as it was mostly inspired from many existing JRPG titles. Some of the dialogues are not recommended to be skipped as there is no other way to determine the outcome of the given context. Customization of equipment also feels a bit lackluster. Despite these little hiccups, it would serve to become a genre pioneer for tags such as ‘Cris Tales like’ games due to its uniqueness in mechanism among many other RPGs out there. Visuals that look like popup artbooks and fully voiced dialogues allow you to enjoy it to the fullest.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Cris Tales starts so good that It felt like it could be a GOTY contender, the gameplay mechanics are classic but feel new and complex enough without being confusing, the art style is a sight to behold and the characters are really charming but the use of random encounters and unbelievable number of times they hinder you progress, sucks some of the joy out of the game.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Cris Tales is a fantasy adventure akin to a fairy tale in both narrative and setting. It’s an amazing experience accompanied by memorable characters, an addictive battle system, and wonderful discoveries. Every moment of the gameplay pushes the RPG to new heights, which is only hindered by lengthy load times and lack of direction for some missions. However, if you’re looking for a callback to retro RPGs, this is one game you absolutely need to play.
Cris Tales is a beautifully crafted JRPG who knows how to innovate based on the most classic premises of the genre. Join Crisbell and her friends as they save their kingdom from the Empress of Time as we use the power of crystals to learn from the past, act in the present, and change the future, all simultaneously. We are without a doubt one of the most interesting JRPGs of the year, totally recommended for fans of the genre.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
I'm happy that it was worth waiting for Cris Tales: It's a wonderful game that shows me the consequences of my decisions immediately. I love that with Cris Tales, as well as the tactical combat that allows me a lot of freedom.
Review in German | Read full review
The graphics are colorful and beautiful, the story mostly motivating and at its core a turn based combat system with some clever time manipulation. Cris Tales got the whole package and every fan of RPGs should check out this amazing indie game.
Review in German | Read full review
I would avoid Cris Tales on the Switch until there’s been some patching done or you’ve tested it on another platform.
Cris Tales sets a high bar when describing itself as a love letter to some of the best JRPGs of all time, but indie studio Dreams Uncorporated manages to exceed expectations by delivering a charming game with unique and challenging combat mechanics and a gorgeous artstyle. The characters are interesting, and the ability to peer into their past and future makes you care even more for them – especially the protagonist and its allies, which will travel alongside you during the game’s 20-30 hours of gameplay.
Cris Tales is a stunningly gorgeous indie, with art that’ll make your jaw drop. However many of its time mechanics are relatively skin deep, and it lacks the kind of depth its art inspires. It’s also not the epic it claims to be. It’s a love letter to classic RPGs, if within that same analogy those classics are the full novel.
Cris Tales utilises traditional RPG mechanics but applies a wonderful time-manipulating twist across all facets of its design. The narrative, the combat, exploration – everything is based around altering time and it really makes for a brilliantly unique experience. It also just so happens to look beautiful too, which is always a plus. There are a few things that let it down, such as the unforgiving save system, the high encounter rate, and the loading times. Thankfully, these problems don’t stop Cris Tales from being an utterly engrossing RPG experience and one that I certainly look forward to re-visiting again in the future.
While Cris Tales has some bumpy aspects in its combat and doesn't pull any punches, it remains a stellar RPG that pays tribute to great titles of the past while still building forward to make a modern hit in the present.
So while Cris Tales’s story and gameplay may come up a bit light for some, it manages to provide a fun, unique experience that, rather than simply imitate the games that came before it, takes inspiration from them and strives to build something unique.
Cris Tales is definitely a praiseworthy effort from Colombian studios Dreams Uncorporated and SYCK, both of whom have crafted a JRPG adventure worth playing through from beginning to end. This game proves that even JRPGs can transcend their origin country, becoming a worthwhile and memorable experience, even with some of its issues.
Cris Tales bills itself as an “indie love letter to classic jRPGs.” Instead, it so completely misunderstands what makes them great that it comes across like a creepy kidnapper letter composed out of letters cut from various magazines. This is a game that looks fantastic while doing everything at least a little wrong; entire mechanics are outright broken, bugs can strike and render certain battles unwinnable, and stats randomly see massive rises and drops that make it impossible to tell how powerful your characters actually are. Add in Cris Tales‘ slow movement speed and insistence on making you run around doing busy work and you have a recipe for a truly painful experience.
"Cris Tales" is too faithful follower to JRPG both in good and bad ways. It has beautiful visuals and unique game systems, but some parts such as long loading time and no auto save function need to be fixed.
Review in Korean | Read full review
Cris Tales is an homage to the JRPG genre that delivers a worthy tale across time and space. With a gorgeous aesthetic and great characters, Cris Tales builds an interesting world but also never takes full advantage of its combat systems. There’s so much to love about Cris Tales but it stays far too close to an homage and a game that never attempts to stray away from the confines of what we know a JRPG should be.
A graphically wonderful JRPG inspired by the classics but with an interesting additional twist.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Cris Tales is worthy of praise for its gorgeous art design and originality to its gameplay design. The time mechanic gives the game its own identity which will likely net it a dedicated fanbase hungry for a new JRPG that is traditional but different. But being classic it’s not without some classic flaws with irritating random encounters and tedious backtracking. But if you can overlook these niggles you’re in for a game well worth spending your Summer with, or any other season of the year for that matter.
Cris Tales is a game that fans of the genre should check out themselves, as it tries to offer a different approach to the genre.