Tips and Tricks

Being an expansive RPG, Crisis Core has many things it doesn't tell you, as well as areas to get a leg up on the game. This page of IGN's Crisis Core guide details the Tips and Tricks you need to know to make the most of your time in the game.

Use the list below to jump to the category of tips you're interested in:

• General Tips
• Combat Tips
• Equipment Tips
• DMW - Digital Mind Wave Tips
• Side Quest Mission Tips

General Tips

• There is no Chapter Select in the game. While Final Fantasy VII: Remake has one, both the Reunion remake and original PSP versions of Crisis Core do not. This means that unless you take advantage of your save slots, it will be completely impossible to return to an earlier point in the story without restarting the entire game. This is especially important for those wanting to get all Trophies / Achievements in Reunion!

• Save often! Every time you approach a new Save Point, or make significant progress you should save your game. This helps out especially in Reunion, where there are Trophies tied to the various minigames that you only have a limited window to attempt.
  • That said, also keep in mind that Reunion only has 30 save slots! This is not an issue on PSP, where you can have as many saves as you have space for on the Memory Stick.
• Get everything in the story missions! You cannot return to any non-side quest Mission location by the end of the game (since there’s no post-game state), so anything you miss will be lost forever eventually!
• If an object or character has an orange interact prompt, that means it will unlock a new Side Quest, Mission or Minigame you haven’t tried yet.
• There’s a woman on the ground floor of the Shinra Building who sells free drinks. Normally the first one refills Zack’s health, but if Zack is already at full health, he’ll get the Raise status, which means he’ll revive after being killed! That’s effectively a free Phoenix Down!
• Talk to everyone! Particularly in Midgar, there's many people you can talk to who will unlock things such as email addresses, side quests to participate in, and even new side quest Mission chains to try out at a Save Point. These will change after every Chapter too, so make sure to do a full sweep of Midgar every time you visit.

• There is a mid-game point of no return. After Zack returns from Junon, he’ll have to talk with Kunsel in the Shinra Building to progress the story. Make sure you’ve done everything you want to in the hub areas before doing this!
• While there is a New Game + feature, accessing it isn’t intuitive: you need to make a Save after watching the post-credits cinematic, then go back to the main menu and load that save.

Combat Tips

• Proceed with caution! Generally speaking, after a Chapter has concluded (marked by a screen of a character accompanied by the Crisis Core logo), the enemies in the next Chapter will be stronger than what you've faced thus far. Because of this, don't run into them unprepared: level up a bit with the side quest Missions and make sure you're stocked with the items you need.
• If you want to avoid random encounters (particularly during optional Missions), hug the walls to go around the edges of the combat area. This can be rather helpful for side quest Missions if you can only really handle the single, tough fight at the end.
• That said, don't avoid battles all the time! You get gil, SP and XP for defeating enemies, so avoiding battles frequently will mean you'll find yourself underleveled as you progress through the game.
• Use MP sparingly! You'll always want to have some MP in reserve, since Cure will be a regular spell to use, and some of the most useful Materia spells will also consume the most MP. You don't want to be spamming Fira only to be caught with no MP to heal yourself when you need it!
• All Materia, be it Magic, Command, Special or Support Materia, will have a short period where Zack has to stand still to perform it. Zack will be completely open to attack during this time, so make sure to get Zack out of danger at the right moment to make the most of the Materia!
• The above in mind, Cure Materia (and other spells) will make Zack jump backwards before casting it, which may be enough to keep him out of harm’s way and heal himself.
• The Battle Stance, unlocked after Chapter 6, by default uses the attack and dodge buttons at once, but it’s very easy to accidentally attack and kill an enemy you meant to hit with a standard attack. To avoid this, you can intentionally hold the dodge button first, then attack.
• The Battle Stance can be prepared in advance if you hold down the two buttons during an existing action, like an attack animation or the Activating Combat Mode screen. This is very helpful in chaining multiple Battle Stance moves together without wasting much time (and pre-empting the accidental attack issue described in the previous tip).

Equipment Tips

• Swap Materia out regularly. Materia can be upgraded by the DMW to a maximum level of 5 Stars, where they're at their strongest. Try and swap in new Materia after one has reached 5 Stars: not only will this increase your viable options, but they will have more powerful effects when you use them in Materia Fusion.
• Yellow Command Materia have increased damage if performed in the middle of Zack’s 5-hit combo. For this reason, try striking four times with the combo, then using the Ability for maximum damage!
• Use Materia Fusion! You regularly get lots of Materia from Chests for this reason, and knowing the right recipes can get you access to powerful Materia far earlier than buying them or finding them in a Chest first. You don't have to fuse anything either: the game will tell you what your combination will make, giving you plenty of space to experiment and see what you can make.
• Accessories can really help you out in a number of ways, including boosting Zack's stats, and providing immunity to certain status ailments like Poison and Silence. Make sure you equip them to either boost your play style, or compensates for your weaknesses.

DMW - Digital Mind Wave Tips

• While the DMW isn’t completely random, you still cannot rely on it as a method of getting out of a jam (say, relying on a Summon, since you can’t manually trigger successful rolls). With that in mind, you should prepare for battles as if you have no DMW at all, and treat anything you get from it as bonuses.
• That being said, lengthy boss battles are a possible exception, since they last so long that you’ll probably get certain DMW results eventually. As well, late in the game you’ll be able to buy Materia that increases the likelihood of rolling specific characters.
• Unlike the PSP original, Limit Breaks and Summons have to be triggered manually. This allows some strategy so that you can use them when you need it (especially important for Healing Wave).
• However, Zack can only have ONE Limit Break and/or Summon on call at once. If the DMW successfully rolls another Limit Break or Summon, it will replace whatever Zack has in reserve! So don’t wait on them for TOO long.
• Leveling up is completely obscured in Crisis Core, but despite being tied to the DMW, IT IS NOT RANDOM! Zack will still earn XP by defeating enemies, and once you have enough, the DMW will have a heavily weighted chance to line up three 7s and initiate it. You cannot get three 7s to appear in the DMW purely through waiting: you must have enough XP for it to happen first!
• If you get two of the same characters on the DMW (indicated by a flash), you may want to wait and see if you’ll get a Limit Break or Summon, which can really help during a fight.
• Limit Breaks and Summons give SP used to spin the DMW (10 SP per spin): Limit Verges give hundreds of SP, while Summons give thousands!
• If you happen to get a Limit Break that hits a single target, such as Octaslash, Murderous Thrust or 1000 Needles, it’s important that you target the enemy you want to hit with it first! Otherwise Zack may hit an enemy you don’t want him to.

Side Quest Mission Tips

• Side quest Missions are the primary way for Zack to level up and prepare for future story Chapters. If you’re finding certain story battles to be too tough, spend an hour playing these Missions to improve Zack’s abilities and get new Materia and Accessories.
• If you’re not having any trouble in the story Chapters, you may want to consider saving side quest Missions until after you’ve completed Chapter 6. This is when Zack picks up the Battle Stance: the more you use it, the more perks you unlock. Thus, saving Missions until this point gives you plenty of space to unlock them!
• When on optional Missions in Reunion, use spells like Cure instead of items like Potions. Your HP, MP and AP will be restored as soon as you finish the Mission, while Potions, Elixirs and Somas won’t!
• Make sure to fully explore optional Mission areas! Exploring away from the path leading straight to the objective Destination will often reward you with Chests, as well as simply more battles to get XP from.
• Every so-often you’ll unlock an optional Mission in the “M8: Zack the Materia Hunter” section. DO ALL OF THESE IMMEDIATELY. This will almost always lead to a Mission that has you add a new Summon to the DMW. Summons are incredibly powerful moves that can turn the tide of a fight or press your advantage, so you’ll want to have as many as possible to make the most of your battles!