• Add Review
  • Subscribe
  • Nominate
  • Submit Media
  • RSS
"Out of all the fanmade remakes or sequels to the NES game Crystalis out there, this is the only one that's actually happening."

Presentation
Crystalis was one of my first and favorite games on the NES back in the early 1990s. I decided to make it an RpgMaker project, rewriting many parts of the story while preserving the main storyline, dungeons, events and gameplay. So it could be considered as an oldschool game and fan-made remake of the original game.
Please note that this project is a remake, not a copy. It is to the original Crystalis what Oath in Felghana is to Wanderers from Ys: new story, new art style, new gameplay, etc.

Background storyline
1987: Scientists working under the Velyagun Empire accidentally create thermonuclear weapons. The Empire plans to develop and use these weapons to wage war against the great countries of the continent, all fighting for technological superiority.
1997: Tension climaxes between the most powerful countries and over half of the civilized world is ravaged by thermonuclear war thus resulting in the Earth’s axis shift. The surviving groups of soldiers and scientists struggle savagely for domination. Experiments are run by mad scientists on various animals to create armies of mutants. And yet the population tries to rebuild villages and live as best they can.
2007: A young woman, Misae, alchemist Xevu's pupil, manages to create the first weapon that can rival with post-apocalyptic weaponry: an elemental sword that draws on the magical powers of the spirits. Under the guidance of her master, she'll travel to the four corners of the continent to gather the powers of the other spirits and fight the evil Empire.

Gameplay
-Similar to the original game (itself similar to The Legend of Zelda and the Ys series). You move in 4 directions with the arrow keys and use three other keys to attack, charge your sword's power level, cast spells and bring up the subscreen.
-Action RPG gameplay lets you and your opponents attack at close range or at a distance with various spells and magic attacks.
-You can level up, buy and equip armors and accessories, use various items in the subscreen, find key items to reach new areas and find new spells and new swords throughout the game.
-The game relies mostly on the fun of exploiting your swords' power levels' attacks and solving puzzles inside dungeons. Most enemies also have specific elemental weaknesses you can take advantage of.

Latest Blog

Ditching the world map? ...and other ideas.

While I was working on Halloween Wars I thought about several design decisions I took about Crystalis and questioned them. My first intent about this remake was to make it as close to the original as possible despite trying to enhance it gameplay wise.

And so I'm considering to get rid of the world map.
Right now the world map's purpose is to travel between the main areas and to give you a glimpse at unexplored, nearby locations.
The original game instead features large outdoor enemy-filled areas that link the main areas to each other. I'm leaning towards doing that as it would offer more in terms of exploration, puzzles, enemy variety and it could soften the difficulty curve.

I'd also like to remake most dungeons. Most of them are enemy-filled labyrinths and feature only one or two puzzles. The original game did that, but that is something I'd like to change.
I'd like to make the dungeons shorter but have each room be more significant by having one of the following purposes:
1- battle area (enemy filled).
2- gate (meet the requirements to advance further).
3- challenge (a puzzle of some sort or an exploration segment).
4- loot (a treasure chest).
5- boss.
6- save room.
I believe it would be better for every room to have a distinctive feature and be memorable.

I've also been wondering whether I should add new equipment or not. Instead of each piece being a simple upgrade of the last one, I'd rather have more pieces with unique effects that would be more or less effective depending on the situation. Players would toggle armor and accessory more often, just like they do with swords.

Recoding the battle system to clean it up a little would be nice.
I could also add sword combo attacks that have different speeds and ranges.
And allowing the player to turn without taking a step.

What do you guys think about these changes?

Posts

I knew about all of these issues when I tested the game myself. I will try to fix them as best I can for a future release. Here are the explanations for now:

1) Projectile appears in the upper left corner of maps: The Move Event command is in fact written before the Graphic Change command, but I noticed that it needs at least 0.1 seconds of Wait between the two commands for the Graphic Change to take place after the projectile had been moved to Misae's location. I didn't add Wait.
There is a second issue with this. If at anytime an enemy character stands in that corner while the charged shot is activated, it will take damage. I designed maps and enemies in order for it not to happen.

2) Enemy sprite lingers after death: I believe this is caused by a Change Graphic event directed at the enemy happening at roughly the same time as it suffering the finishing blow that reduces its HP to zero or below. I'll look further into this. Maybe a simple graphic change to a blank sprite would fix this.

3) Gem counter doesn't update: I really tried to fix this yet wasn't able to. It might happen anytime a counter's variable is updated. I had this happen with MP at the red save points and with treasure chests that hold Gems.
However although the counter (actually the images) doesn't update, the variable does. So the next time any other variable is updated, HP damage for instance, all of the other counters will update.

4) No projectile when releasing the attack key after a charge: It happened to me whenever I pressed and held the attack key too soon (like 0.1 second) after a first charged attack. In order to avoid this, you currently have no choice but to make a normal slash again after your charged attack, if you see what I mean.

5) Item use during boss battles and MP use: This would be the only issue I would rather not change right now. I think there are 3 red MP-recovering save crystals in the demo and I will always put one before a boss battle. Regarding the MP wasting LV3 charge issue, I'd rather have the players polish their skills and staying focused on the charge gauge and level to avoid unnecessary use of the LV3 shot. Since LV1 and LV2 charged attacks don't cost any MP, players can always release the attack key before reaching LV3 if their and the target's location would make the shot miss.
Yet I'm glad that you shared your experience about this and I will definitely consider changing it if it becomes an issue for many players (when I think about that all I have to do is post a second version of the game that includes the desired changes. Yeah, why not ^^).

6) Unable to get away from "death spots": This is what happens with Collision with Hero-activated damage. I just had an idea on how to fix this for direct contact with enemy sprites... I'll try and report back.

7) Will do. That should be easily fixed with an equipment check.

Thank you very much for this in-depth report, Kazesui. What did you think of the game in itself?
I'll tell you right away that you would probably want to avoid using "change event graphic" for most cases if you can avoid it. Using a switch for the projectile graphic would probably fix the problem, but a 0.0 wait would also suffice.

The problem is that a move command assigned to any event will overwrite any previous move events in progress, which leads to lot of bugs in ABS games unless special care is taken. This pretty much means that you should probably use switches for graphics rather than "change event graphic".

As for the problems with the counters, you should be doing them an entirely different way. Stuff like gems and mp only needs to be updated when using a spell or collecting a gem, so instead of using a million parallel process events, you should call the common events responsible for handling these things instead at the end of collecting a gem event or upon having performed a spell or level 3 charge.
This will more safely assure that things are done as they're supposed to, as well as minimizing lag.
Having many parallel processes which call "show picture" commands is generally bad and should be avoided whenever possible.

I can get the thing about wanting to polish player skills or so, but just mentioning since it was more annoying than anything, especially since the level 3 felt very useless itself. Maybe it would feel more worthwhile if you made it somewhat stronger somehow so that it wouldn't feel like such a waste.
(I'll admit that the level 3 fire charge also seemed inferior to it's first 2 tiers)

As for the game itself. I never played crystalis so I don't know if you're trying to be close to the source or something, but the story just doesn't feel any engaging at all. You do seem to make some attempts, and the dialog doesn't seem that bad in it's essence, but dunno.. maybe not executed well enough or so? I don't know. I'm no story expert.

I dig the music in the background, really reminds me of those good old games. It provides for some of that good old atmosphere (which might be mostly nostalgic).

While I didn't like the first boss battle too much (not intuitive enough), I think the boss battles are generally good. Problem is that it's very easy to die in them because it's not that easy to notice when you're about to die. Turning the hp red, or playing some "almost dead" sound effect when you have 25% health left might remedy that. A lot of the times I died was because or repetitive unavoidable attacks without time to notice just how fast my hp was dropping. Apart from that I like how you handle the bosses.
It's also good how you start variate with the normal enemy behaviours a bit later on.

Also, I hope you will do something with those snow tiles on the world map. They stick out a lot in a bad way, since they don't blend with the surrounding tiles. Other than that, I really like how the world map allows you to travel quickly from place to place while giving you a sense of where you're going.

All in all, it didn't feel like a bad game, but it didn't quite captivate me either. This could change if "dungeons" (or whatever you'd call them) and enemies get even more interesting later on though. Gameplay wise it's "heading" in the right direction.
Alright, thanks for the pointers! You're being a big help :)

I as well feel like the story and screenplay lack quality in this first demo. I didn't put a lot of effort in it as opposite to gameplay and level design. Hopefully it'll get more interesting later on once the plot really sets itself and with the introduction of Velyagun's Finest Four (the main antagonists).

As an interesting fact for everyone I would mention that enemies' behavior are designed with consideration of the elemental charged attacks: for any given type of enemy, some charged attacks are more likely to land a hit than others. For instance, the Fly enemy in the swamp can easily be killed by carefully timing your charge to release a LV2 wind shot right when it gets 1 square away diagonally from Misae.
Therefore some charged attacks that may seem less useful right now could become the best assets against later foes.
Just started playing this and got through the rescue of Ruby so far. Here's some initial feedback, which I'll continue to add the further I play.

The ABS system works great here, better than most others I've seen. I usually steer away from action rpg games on the computer because of trying to memorize so many keyboard commands, but you've managed to keep it simple and yet effective. Just using SHIFT, Z, and X for example.

The music and graphics work very well here as well, and I felt as if I was sucked into the world of Crystalis once again.

Some things to point out:

1. I felt the first boss was more about luck than skill. Since his hands were out most of the time, you had a very small window to get in and hit him without taking damage, so I basically just spammed attacks and healed. Not sure if you want to alter the pattern where his hands are down a little longer, or if this was the intent. I guess I was looking more towards strategy versus just endurance.

2. I couldn't figure out how to get my herbs in the item list to work.

That's it for now. Great game so far, looking forward to playing more.

Edit: Figured out how the items work. Access menu and press the ESC key on the item of choice. Also, the world map is probably my biggest gripe so far, since it really clashes with the rest of the game's look and feel, but it's certainly not a deal breaker and probably makes it easier in developing new areas.
So, I played through most of your game, and while I really enjoyed it, there was one thing that bothered me quite a bit. When you are using the healing spell, MP is reduced, even when you are at full HP. I ended up running out of MP very often because of this, and had extremely hard times against bosses.

However, other than that, there weren't too many other major issues. And I loved that you copied the bug boss from the original. I ended up playing through my (GBC) version after playing your game.
Yep, in the swamp area myself, and had my ass handed to me. Damn pesky mosquito creature!

Going to have to employ some careful tactics now. Because of the direction the story is taking over the original, I'm curious to how some of the previous game's science (ie., the tower, technology, etc) will play into this.

I think what I miss most is the introduction, which was one of the reasons I fell in love with Crystalis back in the early 90's. Maybe a sort of homage to that introduction can be added as a sort of cut scene when certain plot threads are being revealed.

On a side note, this was one of the first games I had played that involved "death". Even if they were minor NPC's, I remember how freaked out my brother and I were to see dead bodies in an NES game. Ah, the memories. However, I am enjoying the direction you are taking this story, so it will be interesting to see what else occurs.
Thanks for the comments, guys. I appreciate it.

I'll definitely add some more cutscenes. I already planned to make one introducing General Kelbesque and the Velyagun Fortress between Chapters 1 and 2, but the sprites and mapping weren't done at the time (and still aren't).
I like your idea about the introduction. I'll definitely make one to introduce the setting and plot in a future release.

Gameplay wise there are some issues here and there that I'll definitely fix.

All the bosses have patterns except for the Nosferatu who teleports and summons bats randomly. If you're having a hard time against a boss, my advice is to try to stay in safe spots or keep dodging until you figure out the patterns.

By the way, I'd like to know how much time it took you all to finish the demo. My best is about 1h20, which is quite fast, but that of course is because I know everything about this game ^^
I've been playing it off and on, but I'd venture about 1 hour so far and just beginning the swamp. It seems there may not be much beyond that, so you're estimate of about 1 and 1/2 hour may be about right.

Edit: Well, I beat the Swamp Bug, got the Gas Mask, entered the Poison area of the swamp, but how do I get passed those flames? I've used wind attacks on them, but nothing.
im enjoying this so far im at the wind cave few things thoe

1. i dont like hwo u cna start with lvl 2 and 3 charge atacks i kinda wish u had to earn them like in the original

2. hit box on slimes (as in when they hit you) is a bit odd not sure if u can do anything about it thoe

3. foes drop to little money imo
@amerkevicius: I didn't get a notification for the edit on your last message, which explains why I only answer now. To pass the flames that block your path you have to throw wind gusts at the flame pillars. These are usually a few steps away from the blocking flames. When there are several pillars to extinguish, you'll have to quickly snuff them all before the flames regenerate.

@aceina: Thanks for playing!
1. Starting with level 2 and 3 charges available was intended because Misae doesn't need rings or bracelets to be able to draw and cast the elemental spirits' powers. I also altered the original game's world, story and "rules" so I could include elemental spirits in it and make them the source of characters' magic powers. These changes allow me to add new bosses and plot twists to the original story.

2. Hit boxes are calculated by the engine's default X,Y position check. Whenever an enemy starts to move, the engine considers its current position to be its destination, even though most of the enemy's sprite is still on its starting position. This system has its flaws but it is much less trouble than programming a custom and complete pixel movement and hit detection system.

3. Foes do drop little money in the demo yet you don't really need to buy anything (except for 2 key items that cost 50 and 100 Gems) to finish it. It seems that many players usually grind up and gather lots of money to buy everything and to feel "secure"...
Yet I hope that players will try to play this game in several different ways, like to rather focus on learning the enemies' and bosses' attack patterns and discover the most effective battle strategies.
There is much more to this game than leveling up to increase your attack/defense and relying on a maximum of medical herbs to survive (not that I think you play like that, but to explain why I believe money shouldn't be a concern to players).

Thanks for your comments ^^
so when is next update to the game?
It'll take a while for the next demo to come out... A few months, maybe several, but definitely not a whole year.
You can look at the progress report at the top of this page.
Expressing a sigh of relief. I was afraid you had given up on this. I'll prob pull it out here in the next few days to try the wind gust. I swore I did something like that before, but may have not been positioned correctly.
! UPDATE !

Hey there fellow makers and players! I was able to work a few hours on the project today, mostly to fix glitches, graphics issues and suggestions made earlier. I want to thank everyone who played demo 0.1 and left comments. I really appreciate it ^^

Demo 0.2 is now in production. I'm not sure if your save data from demo 0.1 will be compatible with it though, because there will be adjustments and new cutscenes added to the first part.

Demo 0.2 will include:
-More battle actions and strategies with the addition of two new elemental swords and the Paralysis magic spell.
-Those who took up the Great Quiz Master's challenge will get a special reward even if they did not get a perfect score.
-Emperor Velyagun, his Finest Four and their dark schemes will be introduced.
-Several new exciting boss fights await, including General Kelbesque, Savella the sadistic witch and the fiery-tempered Amazon Queen Aryllis.

Also make sure you check my progress report at the top if this page: I will update my next development activity so you guys know exactly what I'm working on at the moment. I am currently looking for a 2k3 chipset with tents (inside and outside) for the Amazon camp mapping, preferably from Mack&Blue or of a similar style.

EDIT: After coding two different "helper system" templates I decided not to implement one. Although possible, it would have been too time consuming to code and not that useful anyway. So there won't be Stohm helping you beat enemies on Mount Saber. I might implement a special Boss Rush mode for the completed game though, where you could play as other characters than Misae.

@amerkevicius: Alright! Let me know if you need further help in these parts.
I went back and used the wind on the actual torches. Earlier I was trying to use wind on the stand-alone flames, which is why it didn't work. Fought Pyro, had to use regular attacks when he was done at my level because it took too long to try and use wind, and he never really stood still.

Completion time was around the 3 and 1/2 hour mark, but I did a bit of level grinding to ge there, which was why my time was probably so high. The only real gripe I have is the world map clashes with the rest of the game and doesn't fit very well. Perhaps a better selection of tiles for the world map would work better.

Awesome job with bringing your own version into the classic.
I can't wait to play this game!!
I really did enjoy the demo!! I can't wait for the whole game to be released!! I know custom graphics can take a looong time. But so far, this is definitely an amazing action-RPG. This must have taken a long time too (Events and all). I am looking forward to future updates of this game. Good Luck!!
The original Crystalis is one of my favorite games and I have a keen interest in this project. How is the development going so far, Avee?
Feedback

-lovely eventing.

-control scheme a little awkward. If you're going to make entr, del, and 0 into action buttons, please consider making wasd into move buttons.

-Mortarmech's attacks sometimes slip out of synch. He'll deploy a fireball, start the fuse, deploy another fireball, and fire when that one lands. Also, sometimes when you're in stabbing position and his hands are returning home, they'll clip past you and do no damage.

-Laughing is typically written as 'Hehe' rather than 'He he'

-not sure where to go after being dropped in the first town, and can't find any hints after combing the place a couple times.
@XBuster and Zadok83: Thanks for the support! It always cheers me up to get feedback.

As you might have noticed at the top of this page, progress has been stuck at 20% on Mount Saber for a few weeks now. That is mainly because I've been working on other projects (mostly writing pre production documents) lately.
However I've been fixing glitches and tweaking stuff on Crystalis once in a while.

I'll soon be more active again in Crystalis' development and post updates, don't worry :)

- - -

@kumada: Thanks for the feedback and grammar corrections.

Controls:
WASD keys require a patch I do not want to apply. If I did, I would rather use JKL as action keys, as this setup would feel more natural to me.
I added numpad keys mainly for me, because I usually play with my left hand on the arrow keys and right hand on the numpad. Players can also use Shift, Z and X though, and I believe most RPG Maker players use this configuration.

Mortarmech's 3 attacks are not supposed to be synched, actually.

If you are stuck in Swann, you need to enter the eastern forest to go see Xevu. If you are stuck in Reave, enter the church and speak to the Priest.
If you are stuck in Brynmile, enter the pub.
Cutscene dialogs always tell the player what to do or where to go next.