The final way is the CG cutscenes. These are once again some of the best in the industry and are thoroughly amazing. On the PSP screen, we are looking at Advent Children quality CG and some of the scenes literally took my breath away. It should also be noted that the CG characters look remarkably like their in-game counterparts. Final Fantasy X was a huge disaster in that regard with the CG and in-game characters generally not matching at all. All put together, the game is amazing to look at and since I have a PSP-2000, I tried the game outputting via component to my TV and it held up very well at a larger scale.

What I really noticed and appreciated in this game is the art style and design elements of the game. Since Final Fantasy VII was from so long ago (10 years), there was a general look and feel of the universe. Advent Children fleshed it out substantially and this game represents that look in a great way. As Zach progresses through the game, his uniform, hair and appearance change to suit what has happened to him.

Other characters also undergo changes. It is a really nice touch and a great change from the relatively static character models we have seen in other Square Enix titles. The world around Zack is filled with amazing amounts of tiny details, and while it is not very interactive, you can at least look at it and feel that it is a real world. The team responsible should be congratulated on the care they took with this world. I am sure there were lots of eyes on this project and high amounts of pressure to ensure the world was consistent and they definitely delivered.

On the audio front, Crisis Core also performs at a top notch level. Much of the game's story moments are fully voiced ,and aside from a slight dislike I had of Aerith's voice for no reason at all ,everyone sounds great and suits their character. Sephiroth is brooding and melancholy, Genesis is mysterious and aggresive, Angeal is sombre and noble and Zach begins full of life and zest and ends sounding like he is being weighed down by his problems and worries. The music (especially the theme played in Aerith's church) is very good and brings across the tone of the Final Fantasy series. I felt shivers when I first heard Sephiroth's anthem playing. The developers knew that song was synonymous with the series and used it at different times to great effect.