One of the best RPG's on the PSP
As said above Crisis Core is a prequel to Final Fantasy VII so this means you won't be playing as Cloud anymore, this time around you'll play as Zack Fair(A character that was briefly mentioned in the original FFVII) A SOLDIER member who is aiming for the top. Throughout the story you will encounter a variety of new easy to get attached with characters, but the game also has some of the fan favorites from the original including Cloud, Areith(Aeris), Tifa, And of course the imfamous Sephiroth. And though I haven't given actuall in game references of the story(To avoid spoilers) I can happily say that it's one of square's best.
The gameplay of Crisis Core is actually quite different from other RPG's out there. First off fighting takes place in pretty much real time in which the player has a list of commands which he can cycle through using the shoulder buttons in which he can choose from which varies depending on which you skills you have equipped at the time which some examples can be Fire,Blizzard,Thunder and all that typical final fantasy stuff.(If you've played kingdom hearts then you'll notice that this game has alot in common with it fighting wise.) One of the most original and cool gameplay mechanic this game has is the DMW(Digital Mind Wave) Which is basically a slot machine like thing in the upper left hand corner that is constantly spinning using SP(soldier points) that you obtain by killing enemies. In the Three slots are portraits of characters that you meet throughout the game as well as numbers ranging from 1 to 7, If two portraits of a character are matched then the DMW will enlarge on the screen in which one reel is left spinning and if it lands on another portrait of that same character then you will do a limit break resembling that character also if two numbers are matched up then it will upgrade a current skill that Zack has equipped and if it lands on triple 7 then you upgrade Zack himself, though this is a pretty big change in gameplay it actually works out quite well except for wondering if the DMW is ever going to land on a triple 7 to level you up it's an enjoyable and creative way to level up.(Believe it or not but the DMW has even more to offer than this but to avoid spoiling it for you I won't say anything more about it) Aside from playing through the story you have a large supply of missions that you can do to level up and get new equipment which believe me if you're planning on beating the game on hard you are going to need it.
Crisis Core will bring you a variety of new and beautiful music scores, which in my opinion are some of the best music tracks in the series. The voice acting in this game(Given what they are used to work with) is very good and the voice actors really portray their characters well. The graphics in this game are hands down the best on the PSP with well designed characters and monsters not to mention the absolutely amazing CGI(Computer Generated Imagery) cutscenes that will definately hold the PSP's best graphics for at least 2 more years.
Overall Crisis Core is definetely a worthy prequel to FFVII, and if you own a PSP this is a must play even if you don't like the Final Fantasy series at least rent it. This concludes my review of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and I hope you enjoy playing it.