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Nintendo fans rejoice! It's been a long time since Square released a game on a Nintendo console. And although this one carries the "Final Fantasy" name that Xbox and GameCube fans so covet, the multiplayer-centric "Crystal Chronicles" isn't exactly what people expect from the series. No turn-based fighting here. But on tonight's episode of "X-Play" you'll find magic, gorgeous graphics, exciting gameplay, and multiplayer fun -- all in one bucket.

Chapter one

A mysterious mist called miasma envelopes the world of "Crystal Chronicles" and sucks the life out of all it touches. This insidious haze has pushed together the four peoples of the world to live their lives together under the protective glow of giant crystals. Each year, however, the crystals begin to lose their sparkle and must be purified with mystical myrrh gathered from trees around the land. Naturally, players join one of these crystal-cleansing sojourns and take their town's crystal chalice, a bucket, and set out to keep their town alive.

The story fades into the background here. In fact, this game's not much for subplots or side quests. You're given a structured game: find a dungeon, kill everything in it, fight the boss, rinse, and repeat. Every three dungeons constitutes a year of traveling, after which you head back to your hometown to prepare to set out again. Back at home you receive gifts from your family and you upgrade your equipment. Additionally, the myrrh trees in each dungeon replenish every two years, and returning to previously defeated dungeons offers new areas, more treasure, and harder encounters.

Not what you think

At first glance, "Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles" looks easy to classify: It's a "Gauntlet" clone. But gameplay couldn't be more dissimilar. "Gauntlet" is essentially a fast-paced, top-down, four-player shooter while "Crystal Chronicles" is more deliberately paced and much closer to an RPG.

Moreover, the game features a number of ingenious design touches that force competing players to work together. And as you've no doubt heard by now, players need a Game Boy Advance and a GameCube link cable if they want to partake in the multiplayer quest.

If players stray far from the bucket, they lose health. Bearing the bucket is a lame job, but there are other player interactions that make up for it. Most important is spell and attack fusion. Each character can equip magic spells or hold down the attack button to use charged-up melee attacks. When charged, you can target attacks and spells on any location in range using a cursor. When multiple characters overlap cursors and let go at once, their attacks or spells fuse into a more powerful attack or spell.

Additionally, you have to cooperate in real life. Each player is given a different tool. One player gets a map, two get useful enemy and treasure radar, and the last guy gets helpful enemy information. The whole experience is great, resulting in the telltale sign of multiplayer fun: yelling.

There are no experience points. Instead, all permanent stat upgrades are taken from artifacts acquired in the dungeons. As they play multiplayer, each player has a secret goal on their Game Boy Advance. If they carry out their ulterior motive well, they'll get bonus points and first dibs on the artifacts collected in the dungeon. Fret not, every adventurer eventually gets an artifact. But the difference between getting a plus-one in defense and plus-three in magic often depends on who aspired to achieve their secret goal.

One is a lonely number
Single-player doesn't require a GBA; you can use a normal GameCube controller instead. Most of the gameplay features are available in single-player, but in a limited capacity. The bucket is hoisted about by what looks like an airborne, furry pig called a moogle. It lets you bash enemies to your heart's content, but this convenience has a price. You can fuse two spells into a new one by yourself, but many of the game's better spells are unavailable. The single-player campaign is a solid, three-star experience, but it feels limited and eventually becomes repetitive.

Real production

Yeah, yeah, it's not a real "Final Fantasy," but that doesn't mean it doesn't look like one. "Crystal Chronicles" is as gorgeous as you'd expect a Square game on the 'Cube to be. It has an art style similar to that of "Final Fantasy IX," meaning everything is cute, colorful, and Muppet-like. Every lush storybook locale is lovingly rendered, and enemy animations are smooth. The music is fantastic as well, featuring folksy, Celtic fare that perfectly matches the pace of the gameplay.

Put the myrrh in the bucket

If you're looking for the typical turn-based "Final Fantasy" experience with cinemas that last for days, you won't find it here. It's not worth rushing out and buying four GBAs and link cables (you'll probably never use all that equipment ever again), but it's a must-have if you and your friends already have most of the required hardware and love multiplayer gaming. There's no other title quite like it.

"Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles" (GCN)