CrossCode

CrossCode is an action role-playing game developed by Radical Fish Games and published by Deck13. The game's development began in 2012, and was later introduced as a crowdfunded project on Indiegogo. Following a three-year long early access beta phase, CrossCode was released for Linux, macOS, and Windows in September 2018, for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch in July 2020, and for the Xbox Series X/S as one of its launch titles in November 2020.[1] It received generally positive reviews from critics.

CrossCode
Developer(s)Radical Fish Games
Publisher(s)Deck13
Director(s)Felix Klein
Programmer(s)
  • Felix Klein
  • Stefan Lange
Artist(s)
  • Thomas Fröse
  • Felix Klein
  • Fabrice Magdanz
  • Dillon Martin
Writer(s)
  • Felix Klein
  • Stefan Lange
  • Henning Hartmann
Composer(s)Deniz Akbulut
Platform(s)
Release
  • Linux, macOS, Windows
    September 20, 2018
  • PS4, Switch, Xbox One
    July 9, 2020
  • Xbox Series X/S
    November 10, 2020
Genre(s)Action role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

Synopsis

CrossCode is a retro-inspired 2D action role-playing video game set in the distant future, combining 16-bit Super NES-style graphics with a fast-paced combat system and puzzle mechanics. Players control a mute character named Lea as she plays a fictional MMORPG known as CrossWorlds.

Plot

The game begins with a young woman called Shizuka Sakai fighting her way to rescue her brother, but once she finds him, he dies in her arms. Some time later, a girl called Lea awakens inside a cargo ship with no memories of her past and is informed by a man called Sergey Asimov that she must play the MMORPG "CrossWorlds" in order to regain her memories. Once reaching the game area, she befriends another player called Emilie and the two explore the game together, eventually joining the "First Scholars" guild.

During a raid with the First Scholars, Lea is dragged away and trapped into an off-limits area called the Vermillion Wasteland, where she is confronted by Shizuka. In the occasion, Lea learns that she is not human but an artificial intelligence called an "Evotar," based on the memories of Shizuka. After escaping back to the cargo ship, she also learns that Sergei used to work on the creation of CrossWorlds in the Instatainment Company along his friends Gautham Ranganathan, Shizuka and her brother Satoshi. These friends also took part in the Evotar project until disappearing years before the events of the game. Once Sergei discovered Lea, he decided to help her recover her memories in an attempt to look for them.

Back in the game area, Lea reunites with her friends and locates Satoshi and Shizuka's hideout. She learns that they, along with Gautham, were forced by a man called Benedict Sidwell (who financed the Evotar Project) to participate in a scheme to create Evotars based on CrossWorlds' players and extract valuable information for him. She also learns that the real Satoshi is already dead but left behind an Evotar based on himself. With help from her friends, Lea storms the place where the server containing all Evotars is located in order to stop Sidwell's operation. Upon Lea reaching the top of the tower she finds there, Gautham challenges Lea to a duel. After she defeats him, he gives her access to the server, before committing suicide in atonement for cooperating with Sidwell. With his plans foiled, Sidwell accepts defeat and flees.

Having secured the Evotars' data, Lea spends some time with her friends before she is also logged out from the game while Sergei attempts to convince the executives of Instatainment to allow the Evotars to keep existing inside CrossWorlds. The game then ends with two possible outcomes. In one of them, Lea's friends are informed by Sergei that Instatainment refused his proposal and confiscated all Evotar data, thus they will never see Lea again. In another, Sergei's proposal is accepted by Instatainment thanks to one of its stockholders whom Lea befriended in the game, and her friends are eager to reunite with her.

Development and release

CrossCode is an action role-playing video game developed by German studio Radical Fish Games and published by Deck13. Development of the game began in 2012.[2] It was later introduced added as an Indiegogo crowdfunded project in February 2015 alongside a web-based demo version,[3] being released for Linux, macOS, and Windows in early access on Steam later that year.[4] It was officially released out of early access on September 20, 2018.

Initially announced as one of the stretch goals of the crowdfunding campaign, the Wii U version could have been possible thanks to the system's web development toolset, but was later put on hold to prioritize the Steam Early Access version.[5] It was eventually released for the Wii U's successor, Nintendo Switch, alongside the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles, on July 9, 2020.[4][6] The game was included in the launch lineup for Amazon's Luna cloud gaming service on October 20, 2020.[7] An updated version featuring the high frame rate options was released on November 10, 2020 for Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X, suppoting 4K resolution on the latter, and is available free of charge to existing Xbox One players.[1]

The soundtrack was composed by Deniz Akbulut, with an official soundtrack released by video game music label Materia Collective on September 6, 2018.[8] A 2-disc vinyl edition by Materia Collective was announced on June 26, 2020.[9]

Reception

CrossCode received "generally favorable reviews", according to review aggregator Metacritic.[10] The game won the award for "Most Fulfilling Community-Funded Game" at the SXSW Gaming Awards.[19]

References
  1. Deck 13 Spotlight [@Deck13Spotlight] (November 10, 2020). "Yup. CrossCode is a launch title for @Xbox Series X/S. Comes in glorious 4k and with 120FPS mode" (Tweet). Retrieved November 10, 2020 – via Twitter.
  2. "Contact". Radical Fish Games. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  3. "CrossCode". Indiegogo. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  4. Tarason, Dominic (August 10, 2018). "Action RPG CrossCode levels up out of early access September 20th". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  5. White, Lucas (July 2, 2020). "CrossCode Interview: Radical Fish Games on Console Ports and What's Next". Siliconera. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  6. Romano, Sal. "CrossCode for PS4, Xbox One, and Switch launches July 9". Gematsu. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  7. Caswell, Tom (September 24, 2020). "Every game coming to Amazon's Luna at launch". DigitalTrends. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  8. Farrell, Reilly (August 9, 2018). "CrossCode soundtrack coming this September". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  9. "CrossCode 2LP soundtrack up for preorder form Materia Collective". Blip Blop. June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  10. "CrossCode for PC Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  11. "CrossCode for Nintendo Switch Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  12. "CrossCode for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  13. "CrossCode for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 25, 2020.
  14. Wolinsky, David (July 9, 2020). "CrossCode Review - A Lot Of Ambition". GameSpot. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  15. "CrossCode - レビュー". IGN. Ziff Davis. September 26, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  16. Vogel, Mitch (July 16, 2020). "CrossCode - The Zelda-Like RPG You Never Knew You Wanted". Nintendo Life. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  17. Schütz, Felix (July 9, 2020). "Crosscode im Test: Auch auf Konsolen ein grandioses Action-RPG". PC Games. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  18. Jones, Jenny (July 6, 2020). "Mini Review: CrossCode - Fast-Paced Action RPG with Beauty and Brains". Push Square. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  19. Khan, Zarmena (March 17, 2019). "God of War Takes Home 'Game of the Year' at SXSW 2019 Gaming Awards". PlayStation LifeStyle. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
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