Ever wish you could have a game like Wario Ware and implement it with the essences and themes of Final Fantasy? Technically, In short... thats what is being done here, in a passable fashion.

But lets get down to the specifics, just what exactly IS this game?
Platform: Nintendo DS
Difficulty: Average
For full game completion: About 15 hours
Multiplayer: 2-4 players for both Single card and Multi card play + Wifi for Pop Up duels

Basically the game settings sets on the main character, a Chocobo who travels into classic children's storybooks (with FF characters instead!), and depending on the story/book you enter, you will have to complete different minigames/competitions against the bad guys (whom mainly are a cast of chocobos as well), as you combat against a dark entity Bebuzzu which you earlier unleashed at the start of the game while you try to save your Chocobo friends.

The gameplay consists of three portions.

-Minigames/Microgames: These mainly are found in the storybooks strewn about the game, but various characters and items will start microgames of all kinds of shapes and sizes. Completing certain objectives or earning high scores nets you cards for pop-up duels, opens areas in the overworld, or saves one of your chocobo buddies.

-Pop-up duels: Basically a battle system that uses a deck of cards of your making in a pretty simplistic way. Each card has 4 zones which can be attack, defense, or just plain blank, and some cards have a extra powers that can help turn the tide of battle, such as doing more damage, inflicting your foe with a status ailment, or giving you a short powerup.

-Overworld: Where most of the story takes place.

On an artistic and graphic's level, it mainly is a mesh between
3D characters and elements and then the 2D like cut-outs from the stories and pop-up characters. Everything is pretty smooth in how it animates and doesn't really appear blocky or blatantly out of place.

Music: If you've played any final fantasy, you'll likely recognize most of the music, as it's been mainly remixed (although a warning: The chocobo theme is very very prevalent in this game).

So where exactly is the appeal in this?
Probably the minigames/microgames. While the story itself is alright and the pop-up duels a pretty neat idea, they both are somewhat lacking in depth that possibly could be gained in both. It's not that they aren't interesting or overly tedious, but they're not quite immersive to perhaps the veteran or casual gamer.
However, the minigames were obviously designed to be enjoyed with others besides yourself (through DS download play), as they often involve a bit of competition between other players and take a bit of skill to master.


While this probably not the most exciting game out there, it does carry what it does fairly well, and is deserving of a 7/10 at best, though if minigames are not your thing... then perhaps a different game you should look for.


Game art and screenshots:
http://gi95.photobucket.com/groups/l143/DPX6NLOMF7/934650_83687_front.jpg
http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m176/GODJonez/Stuff/Chocobotales.png
http://dsmedia.ign.com/ds/image/article/801/801324/final-fantasy-fables-chocobo-tales-20070703025029516.jpg