Incredible Crisis Review

For PlayStation

By Contributing Writer Harry Shepherd

Rating: Good
   Incredible Crisis is the kind of game that Sony promised gamers back when 
it used to publish games like Carnage Heart and Tail of the Sun, before the 
PlayStation went "mass market" and the closest thing we got to original games 
were Rugrats licensed cart games.   It's odd that this game comes from Titus 
(the creators of Superman 64), but clearly no one at Sony would want anything 
to do with an original game anyway... 
   It would be impossible to classify Incredible Crisis as a certain kind of 
game in order to let you know what it's like, so allow me to describe a 
typical gameplay scenario.  As you follow the day-to-day life of a Japanese 
family, you control the father as he does exercises in the form of a PaRappa-
style dance game... until a wrecking ball flies through the window and chases 
him down the hall (cue a Track and Field-style button masher, complete with 
hurdles that say "Wet Floor").
   Dad finally makes it into the elevator and appears to be safe... until the 
ball plunges through the doors and snaps the elevator cables, which results 
in another mini-game.  Before long, he's in an ambulance trying to answer 
insane questions to paorve that he doesn't have a concussion.  Get enough 
questions right and you're promptly thrown out of the ambulance, still 
strapped to the stretcher, into traffic...
   If you're thinking that the game's creator has a weird sense of humor, 
you're right.  These kinds of wacky events occur from the beginning of the 
game to the end.  This kind of unpredictability is refreshing in an art form 
where plot twists can often be seen coming a mile away.  To add to the mayhem,
it's all set to fantastic ska music courtesy of the Tokyo Ska Paradise 
Orchenstra.
   The mini-games aren't like those in Spyro or Ape Escape; instead, they 
seem like dozens of boss levels strung together.  Most of the mini-games have
a trick or gimmick to them, and once you figure out what you need to do, the 
battle is only half over.  Some of the games are easy in concept, but 
annoyingly tough in practice.  As frustrating as the mini-games can be at 
times, they are varied enough that you probably won't mind.
   My impressions of this game are hard to think about even when I'm playing 
it, just because I'm usually laughing so hard as it veers back and forth from
hilarious to bizarre, with very little time spent in the "normal" category.  
Incredible Crisis is an original and funny game if there ever was one.

Send your thoughts on this review to harry@mastergamer.com

     
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