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  Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon
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Wii love the ChocoboWith a franchise as massive as Square Enix’ Final Fantasy, spin-offs are inevitable. Some of these are extremely well-crafted (such as Tactics and Crisis Core), though the majority border mediocre (like Mystic Quest and Dirge of Cerberus). One oft-forgotten entry in the Final Fantasy universe is Chocobo’s Dungeon, a fairly rote dungeon hack starring the series mascot, the Chocobo. Almost ten years later, Square is revisiting their dungeon crawler formula with Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon exclusively for the Nintendo Wii. Ignorance is bliss?At the onset of Chocobo’s Dungeon, our hero Chocobo and his partner Cid, get transported to the town of Lostime, while searching for an artifact called Timeless Power. The residents of Lostime believe the key to happiness is forgetting the past, and so the ominous Bell of Oblivion takes their memories whenever it tolls. Rafaello, a boy who can make dungeons out of people’s minds, aligns himself with our heroes and together, they set out to retrieve Lostime’s memories. Each of these dungeons is grid-based, and can be maneuvered with the d-pad or the nunchuk, whichever you prefer. As you navigate the randomly generated levels, Chocobo will encounter monsters and traps. The battles may be turn-based but they still move along at a good pace. There’s only a couple of commands to choose from (Attack, Item, and Special Attack) so you don’t have to worry too much about careful strategics. Although the enemies will respawn quickly, they’re reportedly not a huge challenge; thanks in part to the simple battle system and in part to the ample amount of health upgrades found lying on the dungeon floor. Hardcore dungeon hackers who are used to Shiren the Wanderer for example, may find themselves quite underwhelmed by the relative lack of depth and difficulty. But that makes the game all the more accessible for a broader audience. Play your cards rightThe Final Fantasy job system makes an appearance, and seems to be in full effect. Chocobo can assume the role of classic classes such as Black Mage or Thief, and each affects his stats and abilities. The Black Mage’s magic gets incredibly potent as he levels up and can take out most enemies quickly. Knights have great all-round stats but will hunger quickly, something that must be taken into account. You will have to keep an eye on Chocobo’s SP (Special Points), as using the job-specific abilities will drain it. There are ten jobs in all, from Dragoon to Scholar, and each has its own adorable costume. When you’re not braving the minds of Lostime’s citizens, you can expect to find an ample amount of things to do in the city itself. The city acts as your hub, and is where you’ll do your shopping and access minigames. Locations in Lostime include a church which grants access to previously cleared dungeons, a farm where you can get mail and do some fishing and a forge where you can craft better weapons. The minigames include basic activities like darts and shooting galleries, as well as the Pop-up Duels seen in Chocobo Tales. The Pop-up Duels are an addicting and deceptively deep minigame, and can fortunately be played online with friends. Pop-up duels consist of drawing cards from a pre-made deck and matching them with an opponent’s. Each Pop-up card has Attack and Guard Zones and attacks can be blocked if your Guard Zones are in the right spots. With a multitude of cards to collect, the Pop-up Duels should once again contribute greatly to the game’s longevity. Each minigame, of course, finds a way to utilize the Wii’s IR functionality. Chunky but definitely cuteVisually, Chocobo’s Dungeon uses the same super-cute character design of previous Chocobo games. Different dungeons have varied aesthetics – appropriate as they represent the minds of different people. A strange gripe is that in pop-up duels the graphics seem to mimic Chocobo Tales on the DS, so the character designs have a much lower polygon count and just look less sharp overall. On the audio front it’s a pretty typical Final Fantasy affair, although the heinously cute cries of ‘Wark!’ coming out of the Wii remote’s speaker may be a little off-putting for some. It’s unlikely that Chocobo’s Dungeon will provide the epic RPG experience Wii owners have been crying out for, though it should still prove to be a worthwhile experience. It’s accessible enough for genre newcomers to get into, and the stiffer challenges of the game’s closing stages should provide for the more hardcore fans. We won’t have to wait long to find out; Chocobo’s Dungeon hits the shelves on July 8th, 2008. |
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| At a glance |
| It's unlikely to be the epic RPG Wii owners have been clamoring for, but it should prove to be a worthwhile experience. |