CrossCode

In-game, players solve puzzles using different elemental tools, such as this shock charge.

CrossCode is an action role-playing video game in which the player controls the character Lea from a two-dimensional top-down perspective. Players explore an overworld, where they can either engage in combat, or solve puzzles, which is sometimes required to progress.[1] During combat and while solving puzzles, the player can instantaneously switch between different "elements", each granting Lea different puzzle-solving and attack abilities.[2][3] As the game progresses, the player unlocks more elements by visiting different dungeons, each of which culminates in a boss fight.[1][3] The game's options menu allows the player to customise the difficulty of both combat and puzzles.[1]

The combat system involves attacking enemies in real-time using either a melee strike or a ranged ball launch. Players can also dodge or block enemy counter-attacks. Attacking earns experience points and circuit points. Experience points increase the player's statistics, and circuit points can be spent on a "circuit board" that allows the player to choose between different ability bonuses. When fighting, the player has a "rank" which increases until they cease battle, rewarding them for unbroken continuums of combat. Higher ranks let the player gain rare items and heal faster.[1][2]

Puzzles involve the same ball launching mechanic used in combat, sometimes requiring the player to hit items in a certain order or time limit. They comprise in-game items, such as switches, boxes, ice pellets, barriers, water bubbles, and fans. Depending on the current element the player has equipped, puzzle elements can react in multiple ways.[1][3]

Players can also use both in-game money and a bartering system to buy items,[1] which can also be found in hidden chests scattered across the overworld.[3] Items can either be food that is used to grant temporary buffs to the player's ability, or clothing that is equipped in their inventory. The player can also complete multiple side quests, such as obtaining items, hunting for treasures and racing opponents, that grant additional bonuses.[3][1]

In CrossCode, players primarily control a mute character named Lea as she plays a fictional massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) known as CrossWorlds. It takes place in a physical environment on the moon Shadoon, where players control artificial "Avatars" that can regenerate at will and interact with in-game attacks and items.

Development of the game was started in 2011 by German studio Radical Fish Games.[4] In February 2015 it was introduced as an Indiegogo project, seeking €80 000 in crowdfunding alongside a web-based demo version.[5] The game's early access version was released for Linux, macOS, and Windows on Steam later that year.[6] Initially, the game was envisioned as having a 2016 release date, but development "just took much longer than expected", so it was delayed several times. Although it was initially intended as a crowdfunding reward, the Steam early access release allowed the developers to have a continuous source of income to keep working as needed, and employ player feedback to add more features and balance the game.[7][8]

Due to the story's importance, the team worked first on gameplay elements, then on the game map, only adding narrative content once all other elements were completed. Around half of the story was delayed until the full release, to allow players to experience the gameplay during early access, since "people only play the story only once mostly".[9] Crosscode's gameplay elements were based on a "lot of different inspirations". The ball-throwing mechanic was taken from Yoshi's Island, while questing and exploration was inspired by games such as the Xenoblade series.[8][4] However, to prevent it from being a clone of older games, the developers tried to "look at them from a game designer perspective", and not blindly copy their mechanics.[10] They also added features that were not possible in classic games, such as a three-dimensional physics system.[9] Although the game's party system did not have a major impact on gameplay, it was added to fit the MMORPG setting of the narrative.[4]

The graphical style of the game was influenced by old SNES games such as Chrono Trigger and Terranigma.[8] The developers decided to keep the style largely "like in the old games", in contrast to more graphically distinct independent games such as Hyper Light Drifter. However, they still chose to add a few modern graphical elements such as shadow maps, based on their previous experience in the RPG Maker community.[9]

The crowdfunding campaign also included a Wii U version, which was envisioned as using the system's web development toolset, but it was later delayed to prioritise the Steam version. After the Wii U was discontinued, the publishers Deck 13 collaborated with the developers to compile the game's JavaScript code into a version compatible with other consoles, as they could not run it natively due to technical and licensing restrictions.[8]

CrossCode received "generally favorable reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic.[18] IGN Japan scored the game 9.5/10, labelling it a "masterpiece", and German outlet PC Games described it as a "huge, motivating adventure [that] bows with dignity to genre classics of the 16-bit era".[3][22] Conversely, GameSpot reviewer David Wolinsky called it "overly ambitious and complicated", criticising the puzzles and navigation, but still praising the combat.[1]

Reviewers largely praised the game's combat, with Wolinsky describing it as "deep and deceptively tactical". Writing for IGN Japan, Shohei Fujita appreciated the rewarding nature of its difficulty, stating that the player would cherish the wisdom gained after an intense boss battle.[22] Nintendo Life reviewer Mitch Vogel enjoyed the game's circuit board system, stating that it "ensures that you feel empowered to play CrossCode the way you want to play it".[23]

Critics generally found the puzzles in CrossCode challenging, but were divided on their quality. While Vogel praised the "heightened focus on more complex puzzle design",[23] and Jenny Jones of Push Square referred to the puzzles as "tough but satisfying",[25] other reviewers were sometimes more negative. Wolinsky claimed they could sometimes be "obtuse and annoying", making progress "halting and confusing", but he praised the ability to adjust their difficulty.[1] Though he commended them as "fair and logical", PC Games reviewer Felix Schütz stated the site repeatedly encountered "puzzles that we only crack after dozens of attempts, although we had long understood the principle".[3] GameStar criticised the side quests, stating that many of them "degenerate into lengthy collecting and offer only meager rewards".[2]

Most reviewers positively commented on the game's narrative. Schütz found the MMORPG-like companions amusing, and stated the game "has serious and touching moments to offer".[3] Praising the "game within a game", Vogel described it as "a unique and interesting way of approaching storytelling".[23] Although he appreciated the overall narrative, Fujita stated that it "should have been deeper", claiming that the premise of the game lead to some missed opportunities.[22]

Multiple gaming publications praised the game's artstyle, with Schütz stating it "awakens wonderful memories of 16-bit classics such as Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana or Terranigma at first glance", and Vogel calling it "pleasingly fluid" and "packed with all kinds of detail and colour". Reviewers playing the game on the Nintendo Switch had minor issues with the game's performance; Vogel noted that "the framerate takes a dive that... is quite noticeable" during busy moments, and Schütz considered the port "a little unclean here and there, but the problems... not so serious that one should therefore advise against buying".[3][23]

• Official website