As a hardcore RPG fan whose conquered many a postgame superboss, few things thrill me more than seeing that glorious platinum trophy pop. So when Crisis Core Reunion gave fans a chance to replay Zack Fair‘s iconic prequel with a fresh coat of paint, I dove in headfirst to stack up every achievable accomplishment.
And let me tell you – between missable story moments, luck-based drops, and combat feats requiring perfect play – getting 100% completion demanded all my 18 years of gaming expertise. But the effort paid off with a wildly fun stroll down memory lane that made revisiting oft-forgotten characters an absolute blast.
So for my fellow completionists, I‘ve compiled this comprehensive achievements guide based on my personal playthrough, complete with tips to ensure you don‘t miss a single trophy on the way Platinum glory:
Sizeable Trophy List With Diverse Challenges
Across 10 story chapters, 300+ optional missions, combo-based combat, and various mini-games lies a robust set of 26 achievements – 1 hidden:
- 1 Platinum
- 3 Gold
- 12 Silver
- 10 Bronze
Roughly half the trophies come from completing major plot beats or side content chapters. The rest involve demonstrating combat mastery, partaking in mini-games, finishing collection quests, or simply lucking into rare item drops.
In my first run, the more difficult trophies like scoring 2,000 points on a squat mini-game or defeating the secret post-game superboss took considerable practice and perfect execution.
Meanwhile, missable story trophies demanded careful attention to NPC conversations lest I accidentally skip a cutscene. Limit Breaks and loot drops came down to chance too – had to grind those Shinra MPs for hours praying for a rare background!
But thanks to Crisis Core‘s stellar spheres grid system for tailoring Zack‘s stats and abilities just how you want them, even the toughest feats felt achievable with smart planning (and maybe some borderline game-breaking Materia stacking).
So let‘s dive into all 26 trophies and how to guarantee you join me in the esteemed Platinum club!
Full Achievement List & Unlock Criteria
Here are all achievements available in Crisis Core Reunion:
Gold Trophies
- Soldier of Legend: Complete game on Hard
- Missions Completionist: Finish all missions
- DMW Master: Get 100% DMW progress
Silver Trophies
- Overpowered: Deal 99,999 damage to enemy
- Genji Equipment: Obtain full gear set
- Midgar Full of Flowers: Complete Aerith‘s flower wagon quest
- Divine Rule Broken: Defeat Minerva superboss
Bronze Trophies
- Come and Get It: Win first battle
- Prove Your Honor to Me: Use a Limit Break
- Got Materia Fusion Down: Fuse first Materia
- And 17 more (see below)
Secret Trophies
- My Living Legacy (Platinum): Earn all other trophies
Now let‘s break down exactly how to unlock every last one!
Progressing the Story
Roughly half Crisis Core‘s named trophies come from completing major chapters or reaching certain mission/DMW benchmarks:
Embrace Your Dreams (Bronze)
Finish the opening chapter 0 prologue. Triggers automatically and cannot be missed.
He Wouldn‘t Betray Us (Bronze)
Complete Chapter 1 featuring Zack‘s early days. Make sure to speak with all key characters.
We‘re Not Monsters (Bronze)
Wrap up Chapter 2 and the introduction of Angeal.
Angels Dream of One Thing (Bronze)
Get through Chapter 3 where Zack trains under Angeal. Don‘t skip any VR battles!
Where Did Everyone Go? (Bronze)
Finish Chapter 4 and the attack on Shinra HQ. Remember to grab the keycard and free all prisoners!
Protect Your SOLDIER Honor (Bronze)
Complete Chapter 5 including the fitness exam mini-game. Try to ace it for an Achievement (see below)!
Did Genesis Really Die? (Bronze)
Get through Chapter 6 where the Rodrigo facility falls. Make sure to win the defense mini-game.
I May Have Abandoned Shinra (Bronze)
Wrap up Chapter 7 featuring the motorcycle chase. Enjoy this breather before things get real!
I‘ll Come Visit (Bronze)
Power through Chapter 8‘s emotionally-charged revisit to Zack‘s hometown.
We‘ll All Be Heroes (Bronze)
Complete Chapter 9 including the Gongaga materia fetch quest. Don‘t forget the waterfall chests!
Thanks to You, Zack (Silver)
Watch the end credits after finishing Chapter 10. Grab tissues – it‘s a tearjerker!
Missions Completed 25% (Bronze)
Finish 25% of the 300+ optional missions. That‘s at least 75 – focus on easy early game ones.
Missions Completed 50% (Bronze)
Get through half or 150 of the side missions. Prioritize rare materia gathering quests first.
Missions Completed 75% (Bronze)
Clear 75% or 225 of all optional content. You‘re nearing the end!
Hero of the Wutai War (Bronze)
During Chapter 1‘s fort battle, repeatedly revisit the first screen to spawn more enemies. Beat all 16 troops + hidden ones before finishing.
Missions Completionist (Gold)
The ultimate accomplishment – complete 100% of optional missions. Expect this to take 40+ hours minimum!
Stay vigilant in conversations and don‘t accidentally proceed before fulfilling trophy requirements!
Mastering Crisis Core‘s Combat
Several trophies demand players demonstrate mastery of Crisis Core‘s real-time combat either through feats of strength, collecting every ability, or simply winning your first ever skirmish:
Come and Get It (Bronze)
Win your initial fight against two MPs in the Chapter 0 training grounds. Cannot be missed!
Soldier of Legend (Gold)
Finish Crisis Core on Hard mode. Expect enemy attacks to deal nearly double damage – come prepared!
Prove Your Honor to Me (Bronze)
Use a Limit Break for the first time. These activate randomly so keep battling until one triggers!
Got Materia Fusion Down (Bronze)
Perform your first Materia Fusion by combining two Materias into one. This unlocks during Chapter 3 in the VR training grounds.
Overpowered (Silver)
Deal 99,999 damage to a single enemy using Zack‘s maxed out Buster Sword or a powerful spell. I recommend loading magic attack boosting Materia like Magic Up and Magnify alongside a base spell. Elemental weaknesses help too!
Limit Break Collector (Bronze)
Acquire all 16 Limit Break backgrounds that appear behind Zack during special attacks. These come randomly from Digital Mind Wave (DMW) rolls and can take substantial grinding. Persist and you‘ll get them all eventually!
Put your combat abilities to the test against Crisis Core‘s toughest optional fights. But beware – the last secret boss will oneshot you if you‘re not sufficiently leveled!
Ace Every Mini-Game
What‘s an RPG without silly side activities packed with rewards…and rage when you fail them miserably? Thankfully mastering Crisis Core‘s mini-games just takes practice – and I‘ve compiled tips to help score those coveted prizes:
Immovable Object (Bronze)
During Chapter 6‘s defense of Junon mini-game, stop all 30 invading troops from reaching the exit by using the turret strategically. I recommend targeting bunched up groups first to maximize damage, then concentrating fire on lone tanks to prevent any breaches. With flawless aim, not a single Shinra soldier will pass!
Shinra‘s Squat Champion (Bronze)
Break the 2000 point threshold on Chapter 5‘s fitness test squat mini-game! When the random button prompt appears, quickly input that command – X then Y for example. Chaining together 10+ prompt combos usually clinches the gold trophy. Commit those button patterns to hard memory and claim those bragging rights!
Godlike (Bronze)
Collect all 20 materia stones scattered across the Chapter 4 virtual reality training grounds in 15 seconds or less. First scout a route that minimizes backtracking to grab everything efficiently. I created this route which may work:
Then sprint as fast as possible, skipping all battles to conserve precious time. Activating Haste through Materia helps too!
Master Blender (Bronze)
Perfectly blend a perfume in the Chapter 4 shopping area mini-game. Talk to NPCs beforehand to learn individual scent preferences, then use that knowledge to create each customer‘s ideal fragrance by mixing oils properly. I suggest taking written notes then combining accordingly without wasting retries.
Slicin‘ Soldier (Bronze)
During Chapter 2‘s doomed rocket attack on Shinra, perfectly cut all pods dropping toward the city, don‘t let a single one slip by! The on-rails section only provides one life with no continues so concentrate and react to pod locations quickly as they appear. Maybe grind weapon upgrades prior as well so slicing feels smooth as butter.
Bingo! (Bronze)
In Chapter 4‘s slums, correctly guess the number of playing children exactly to win this mini lottery game. Make absolutely sure to count every visible kid first, even those in the background or partially offscreen. Submit your guess with confidence then hope luck‘s on your side!
While none of Crisis Core‘s mini-games pose mechanical challenges per se, they do demand dedicated practice and learning from mistakes. But stick with them, and satisfying trophies shall be your reward!
Complete All Collection Side Quests
What RPG doesn‘t have fetch quests for rare gear or items to drag playtime out? Well Crisis Core continues that proud tradition with several trophies tied to locating optional collectibles:
Genji Equipment (Silver)
Slowly gather all four pieces of the iconic Genji set through random endgame enemy drops and trade quests. This immensely powerful gear appears randomly so stick with it:
- Genji Helm: Steal from Gifgit enemies (rare)
- Genji Gloves: Reward for achieving SOLDIER 2nd Class
- Genji Armor: Rare drop from endgame enemies like Sonic Speed
- Genji Shield: Trade 99 Dumbapple Potions to in Chapter 9
Mail Completionist (Bronze)
Receive at least one email from every NPC contact in Crisis Core who can send messages. Make sure to frequently access terminals and reply to any notifications to progress side stories. Don‘t worry about failing mail quests – what matters is every person reaches out once which indeed takes numerous playthroughs.
Shop Completionist (Bronze)
Unlock every store across every location in Crisis Core‘s shop list. Due to shops unlocking via story progress, this occurs passively over the course of regular play.
And just to make things even more tedious, there are location-based collection quests too:
Waterfall Chaser (Bronze)
During Chapter 9, grab every single treasure chest while platforming up the flowing waterfall in Gongaga‘s hill region – there are 10 total. Carefully jump between branches to gather them all before reaching the top. Consider equipping Collect Materia to hoover items from longer distances.
Zack the Sniper (Bronze)
At the end of Chapter 9, enter the turret mini-game sequence and kill all approaching mechs without letting a single one flee the combat zone. I strongly advise targeting distant enemies first then working backwards closer to the zones edge since they‘ll escape quickest. Once the coast is clear, the trophy pops!
Master Mako Stone Miner (Bronze)
Gather all Mako Stones for the researcher in Chapter 2, revisiting the M8-2 mission as many times as needed to collect ones initially missed. These small achievements really test an RPG gamer‘s commitment to comprehensive play!
Cell Raider (Bronze)
During the Shinra HQ raid in Chapter 4, grab the 65th Floor keycard then unlock all holding cells to free the occupants. The breakable box with the card lies on the upper walkway. Make freeing prisoners a top priority lest you finish the level and miss this objective!
Now that‘s dedication – hopefully all these tips assist fellow completionists in securing every last Shinra secret. Our efforts shall not be in vain!
Tackling Hidden Challenges
Crisis Core also sneaks a few secret trophies that won‘t appear until certain undisclosed conditions are met:
Fan Club Aficianado (Bronze)
Over the course of the game, seek out and join all nine fan clubs like Occult Fan Club, Study Group, Chocobo Club, etc. This demands completing associated side missions and may require multiple playthroughs if any are missed.
Good Match for Aerith (Bronze)
Raise affection/relationship points with Aerith over the course of Chapter 4 by responding positively during key story moments. If successful, an extra flower wagon rebuilding scene occurs just before leaving the sector 5 slums. Feel free to cheese this by manually advancing the internal clock on PS5 to retry failed encounters as needed.
Midgar Full of Flowers (Silver)
Another Aerith trophy – gather all missing Flower Wagon parts for her across Chapters 4-7 by completing certain tasks that reward said items. In total, there are three separate wagons to rebuild marked A, B, and C with multiple components apiece potentially spanning the entire game. Wagon A unlocks in Chapter 4 with parts coming from the squirrel quest. Wagon B involves helping Kunsel investigate conspiracy theories. And Wagon C requires delivering mail for Aerith consistently in Chapter 7.
Again I heavily advise following an online guide religiously, lest risk missing wagons or parts requiring convoluted triggers.
Divine Rule Broken (Gold)
After achieving Missions Completionist, speak to Director Lazard outside Midgar to challenge the optional secret superboss Minerva, Crisis Core‘s ultimate postgame fight. She WILL instantly kill any party member she targets without massive HP bloating so come prepared with maxed stats and the best gear possible. I‘m talking quad-linked Magic UPs with a maxed Curaga and praying she targets Zack last. Still took me 10 ultra-optimized attempts!
But finally toppling her with a limit break dealt almost entirely by invincibility frames tastes so, SO sweet. Now whenever some young punk tells me they‘ve mastered an RPG‘s combat, I can just smirk knowing few will ever endure such a beautifully balanced torture.
My Living Legacy (Platinum)
Earn every other trophy in the game (all 25 visible ones) to unlock Crisis Core‘s coveted Platinum, proof-positive of your absolute mastery of Zack‘s tale. Then sit back, relax, and let the sweet sound of celebratory plinks rain down! No better badge of honor for us completionist connoisseurs exists.
And that wraps up everything needed to snag all 26 trophies in Crisis Core Final Fantasy VII Reunion! This comprehensive guide drew from my years plunged in RPGs to ensure fellow gamers don‘t miss obscure secrets that gate coveted milestones. The road won‘t be easy – luck runs dry, fingers slip on prompts, and maybe an unbalanced superboss induces the rare ragequit.
But experience every twist, turn, and texture of Zack Fair‘s heroic rise, then proudly display your Platinum commemorating his living legacy. Because for us passionate, obsessed gamers, is there any better testament to total mastery of an iconic tale? I know what my new PS5 showpiece icon will be…
Let me know if this guide helps you clinch Crisis Core‘s Platinum Trophy down below! What was your hardest achievement? And are there any other epic RPG experiences you‘re striving to 100%? Perhaps we‘ll cross paths (and swords) again in those adventures!
