Cris Tales is a Colombian-developed title that merges inspiration from the team’s favorite JRPGs with their experiences living in Colombia to create something unique. Today, we’re extremely excited to give you the chance to play some of what Dreams Uncorporated and SYCK created in the demo, now available on PlayStation 4.
Cris Tales will let you experience past, present and future both in and out of the game’s turn-based combat – and to sometimes remarkable results. In combat, you’ll be able to push your enemies into the past or future to see another version of them and to alter their powers. Play around a little bit with status effects, and you might find some interesting results!
In the demo you’ll experience the beginning of Crisbell’s journey in Crystallis. You’ll witness the awakening of her unique power to see the past, present and future simultaneously, and meet the first of her companions: Matias, Cristopher and Willhelm.
As the demo opens, you’ll find yourself in Crisbell’s hometown of Narim. The town’s central feature is a large cathedral within which Crisbell first discovers her unique powers. This cathedral is also one of the first places you might notice the developer’s Colombian heritage making its way into Cris Tales. Built inside a canyon of the Guáitara River in Colombia’s southern region of Nariño you’ll find the gorgeous Santuario de Las Lajas.
This towering Gothic cathedral was built to defy gravity and rises within the canyon itself. It’s a man-made wonder within the natural wonder of the canyon itself.
After visiting the Cathedral, Crisbell discovers her time powers and meets Matias, her friendly froggy companion. Matias can aid Crisbell by hopping into the past or future to do small tasks or help Crisbell learn information that might impact her present. This bright yellow frog also comes from Colombia – Matias is inspired by Colombia’s rana dorada, or golden poison frog. This endangered species of frog finds its home on the Pacific coast of Colombia in the Chocó Rainforest.
If you find yourself face to face with one of these cute critters in the rainforests, snap a picture, but maybe don’t touch them – their glands contain enough poison to kill two African bull elephants. Historically, the residents have used this poison on their darts during hunts for food. If things get rough in Cris Tales, maybe you can feed Matias to your enemies?
Matias isn’t the only golden part of Cris Tales though. St. Clarity is inspired by the port city of Cartagena in Colombia. The dress you’ll see in St. Clarity is inspired by the bright, flowy dress of this port city and beach destination, and the main gates of the upper terrace of St. Clarity reflect the golden yellow city gates and clock tower.
When you reach St. Clarity in Cris Tales, you’ll see a grave disparity between the city’s working class and the rich. The lower section of the city experiences flooding and pulls directly from the flooding that occurs in areas of Colombian cities with poor drainage systems. In Cris Tales, you’ll have the option to do something about the problem, if you choose.
Check out this gameplay spotlight of St. Clarity for more:
While we’re not quite ready to dive deeply into the other locations of Cris Tales like the festive town of Neva Tulira and its bird-people, or the working-class city of Cinder inside an active volcano, rest assured that those locations and stories continue to pull from Colombia’s rich and diverse heritage.
We can’t wait to share more about these areas, the game’s story, and how this endemic fantasy world of Cris Tales is coming together in the coming months. In the meantime, please check out the demo and if you like it, tell your friends and come chat with us on Discord. We’re always happy to talk. Happy gaming!
