FFVII: Before Crisis
The Story
Six years before the explosion of the No. One Reactor incident, Shinra Inc. was a company that monopolized "Mako Energy". Prospering from the profits that the energy brought in, Shinra Inc. controlled everything including the government.
However, too many were sacrificed for Shinra's growth in power and wealth. The number of people who had grown hatred for Shinra increased and they formed an anti-Shinra group named, "Avalanche". Caring nothing about their methods, they went around carrying out their activities to eliminate the Shinra.
Faced with a growing threat, Shinra orders their special elite group "The Turks", who were responsible for carrying out the companies highly classified missions, to stop Avalanche. They were Shinra's only hope...
About the Game
FFVII: Before Crisis is a game that is (as you may have guessed from the title) based in the world of Final Fantasy VII. This mobile phone game is accessed and downloaded by paying a monthly subscription fee of 525 Yen. Ever since its launch on the 24th September, 2004, Square-Enix has been releasing episode after episode every few months. However, only certain models of Japanese mobile phones can gain access, namely NTT Docomo's Foma 90x i-series of phones.
So what does this game feature?
Episode & Free Mode
Playing as a new recruit in the Turks, you will be able to either play through the missions in the story based Episode mode or Free Mode. As the name Episode suggests, this mode is heavily story based going through the events that took place six years before the original FFVII game's story. The story is broken down into episodes which is then further divided into 4 or 5 missions. Depending on how well you fulfill certain conditions in each episode, you get ranked. By getting the top 'S' rank, you gain access to some special items. Free Mode on the other hand, you can play through missions that aren't story related. Here you can accumulate experience and obtain items that are exclusive to this mode and carry them over to Episode mode.
Rescue Missions
That's right! If the character you play gets knocked out (i.e. Hit Points fall to zero) then, you will have two options. First option is that you choose to give up. This gives you the option to restart the mission but in return, you lose rank points as a penalty. Second option is to be imprisoned. By choosing this second option, you will not lose any rank points but, your character will be detained in a prison until another player on your network comes to your rescue. If they are successful, your character is freed. If not, their character too will get locked up in another cell. Players have the option of going on a rescue mission when they first load the game.
Materia
If you've played the original FFVII game, you'll probably be wondering what's so special about Materia? Well, in this game, you create your own 
Materia by making use of the pictures you take with your mobile's camera. Whatever colour is dominant in the picture will create a Materia of that colour. For example, a close-up picture of a bright red tomato may give your a fire based Materia. At first, the Materia you create will only be at level one but will get more powerful as you equip it in battles. During battles, you may also call for backup from your comrades when the Materia Support gauge is full and get them to use their Materia. By combining three different Materias together by asking for backup from friends registered in your list, new summoning magic can be cast.
Rank Points & Point Exchange
Whenever you complete a mission, you gain Rank Points allowing you to make use of Training mode and unlock more powerful gear. You may also unlock new characters to play the game with. As your Rank Points increase, so does your character's rank over time. This allows your character access to some special bonuses as well as increase the number of Materia slots he/she has.
Golden Saucer is Now Open!
About a year later after the game's launch, the famous Golden Saucer was also added to BC's game service. FFVII fans can now enjoy all those mini games once more on their mobile such as the basketball game, wonder square and the popular chocobo racing. Just like in the original game, you will be making use of GP (Golden Points) to play any of the mini games. Besides earning GP by playing the games at Golden Saucer, players may also exchange their RP. As with Free Mode, special items can be obtained by exchanging the GP you collect.
All text and translations are done by Xcomp and is in no way affiliated with Square-Enix.
