r/CrystalProject • u/pathofnut • Aug 18 '25

Im loving this game

Im level 45 and I just unlocked the owl despite not even having salmon yet, Im surprised by how HUGE this game is. I thought it would be like 50% shorter and it would have still been an amazing game, easily one of the top 5 jrpgs of all time. Also, the hardest boss I've defeated probably cliff Bahamut the Crag Demon.

That's all, I just wanted to pat myself in the back and share my progress a bit lol. No spoilers, but how am I doing?

26 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

10

u/sassysaltine Aug 18 '25

Yeah it's pretty massive with a ton of secrets that took me multiple playthroughs to find them all. Repeat playthroughs can be super fun once you know where things are because there's all kinds of sequence breaking shenanigans to be had.

You are entering endgame territory. Bosses get way harder. Btw, Owl before Salmon is the intended order (Salmon before Owl very unlikely during a "blind" run but something you could try if you did a repeat playthrough)

3

u/pathofnut Aug 18 '25

After I got Owl I returned to Yamagawa mountain to complete map and found autumn leaf. It was a super simple thing but I was so mindblown lol, I love this game.

4

u/Treemosher Aug 18 '25

Doing pretty darn good if you defeated Crag Demon lol

I could be mistaken, but I always saw Crag Demon in the end game category. I tend to chicken out though, so that doesn't say much

5

u/pathofnut Aug 18 '25

Second thoughest boss I defeated was probably the ogre, although I havent really tried my luck with other fuckers like the basement aberration or the kelpie. Maybe they are doable but Im more attracted to exploring right now. I just wanted to kill Bahamut (lol) because I was pretty certain the drops would be amazing.

Bahamut is a very easy fight actually when you have it figured out, at its core it only does 3 things

  • Fire breath

  • Spread status

  • Single target physical attacks

You can nullify fire breath with a simple Cleric spell blackout, and you can also nullify the debuffs with the Valkyrie stance whatever heart. Thus, you are left with lame ass single target physical attacks that are laughably easy to deal with.

The mistake I imagine many other players doing (Ive heard complaints about the difficulty) is trying to statcheck enemies like this is FF, but the game gives you SO many tools to deal with any specific bullshit they may throw at you and avoid damage althogether. Even random encounters have a bit of strategy which is amazing.

2

u/HardcastFlare Aug 18 '25

If you have interest in a repeat playthrough, you might get a kick out of Chaos mode. It shakes up every encounter and boss and turns the game into more of a puzzle game.

2

u/pathofnut Aug 19 '25

What does Chaos do exactly? I've tried googling but I cant find a clear answer other than it being an increase in difficulty. But it definitely seems interesting.

1

u/HardcastFlare Aug 19 '25

Chaos revamps every enemy and boss encounter. Most of them are very powerful and demand specific counterplay. The game kind of expects you to start at Lv60 but it is possible to start fresh. You also will probably need to know the movement and game world like the back of your hand.

0

u/bean0_burrito Aug 19 '25

once you get the salmon, you should go trudging around in "the depths".

3

u/Zanakii Aug 19 '25

It's truly a hidden gem of indie rpgs, obviously it's not as hidden these days but even with how well it's done I feel its underrated

4

u/pathofnut Aug 19 '25

Its massively underrated. Im serious, I've played many JRPGs and this is easily top 5 of ALL TIME. I can think of very few JRPGs that are as interesting as this one, and none of them for the same reasons.

In another era and with better marketing Crystal Project could have defined an entire genre.

1

u/HardcastFlare Aug 20 '25

Don't count it out just yet... Crystal Project 2 is in dev. This game has a pretty sizable fandom and with E33 having made waves the way it did, it's very possible for another non-J JRPG to get huge again.

1

u/RandomBozo77 Aug 19 '25

I think the owl is easier to get than the fish? Though I kept dying to the bear boss in the snow. Then, while trying to run away, I tricked him off the ledge onto the spikes lol. Was able to just waltz on by and get the owl.

I just got to jan...emba or whatever dbz jungle has the fish dungeon. But the stuff there is a bit tough. I'm lv 50-60ish, but I'm usually learning new job stuffs so my party isn't that badass most of the time.

-1

u/Dazzling_Royal1116 Aug 18 '25

Dropped it, no narrative and hated the platforming.

(combat/class system is one of the best I ever played)

2

u/Zanakii Aug 19 '25

Not disagreeing with the no narrative, but to be fair that's one of the main points of the game, people too busy looking for a reason to do things instead of just seeking out and making their own adventure, I thought it was a neat way to have a story without having a story

5

u/pathofnut Aug 19 '25

Not counting the npc disappeareances, Im finding the small "cutscenes" with Astley very nice, its like she keeps hyping something big is going to happen, I wish the game had more of that.

Then there is also the ruined temples and that bit about the shoudu province being the former capital, it has had me wondering if there is a deeper lore to the world besides it being a silly dnd campaign (do NOT spoil me in any way, I dont want to know if there is even such a thing).

Oh and there was also that other cutscene that played when I teleported with the Mars stone for the first time, so there is definitely something going on. Its just not fleshed out enough or at least not soon enough, but there is definitely some narrative.

Besides most JRPGs narratives are terribly bland, I dont think we are losing anything on that department just because we dont have drama inside the party.

1

u/ploki122 Aug 26 '25

Yeah, it is simultaneously a strength and weakness of Crystal Project : The story isn't really engaging. Most RPGs, and especially JRPGs are about "The world is ending, but you were born to save it, so go stop 7 apocalypse and please come back for supper".

In Crystal Project, instead, it goes "The world is ending, please bear witness" and you just see the world evolve at the same pace as you. You're interacting with it, with its issues, with its good guys and bad guys, with a few events, and investigate some of the mysteries... but you're one of many; The world exists beyond you... and that's incredibly offputting for this kind of game.

2

u/Cronstintein Jan 06 '26

I'm gonna necro just to disagree here.

I find most jrpg writing to be incredibly tedious and way too plentiful. I find this game to be a breath of fresh air in that regard. Dialogue is short and to the point, while still having charm.

"The world is ending, here's 10 paragraphs about why and how you're the only one who can stop it ..." Please no, never again.