Chrono Trigger (Super Nintendo) review on HonestGamers

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Review by Felix Arabia
February 02, 2008

Let’s take a gander at Square Enix’s upcoming titles for 2008!

Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep - In Square Enix’s upcoming Disney thriller, players will be born by sleeping. The title Kingdom Hearts: Birth by C-Section was deemed too graphic.
Dissidia: Final Fantasy - In Dissidia dissident gamers will dissolutely dissuade one another as dissociates because dissonant cries of dissuasion will dissolve any dissipation brought forth in this surely dissable game. ARRGGHHH!!!
Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System - Nothing is better than a sesquipedalian subtitle that adds extra fluff to an already fluffy game! Don’t enough people already own FFXII? Apparently not.
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days - Because Kingdom Hearts 179 Days didn’t sound silly enough.

I don’t know. Perhaps those games will be great – and localized – but if past history has any indication, our future is forsaken.

Gee, I sure miss the days when you could look at a list of Squaresoft titles and actually feel your fingers tingle in anticipation as you knew that you were going to get to experience something really cool and exciting. That’s not the case today. One look at the list above should be more than enough to make you long for the return of the “golden age” of gaming. What has become of Square? Where have all the good games gone, the instant classic titles that often cause effeminate gamers to shed unmitigated tears of sensitivity? I, for one, am not one of those gamers. But I know a good game when I play one, and I’m not about to admit that one of the finest excursions I’ve ever undertaken happens to belong in the ethereal realm(s) of Chrono Trigger.

Most people who enjoy Chrono Trigger love to recount how the game is sooo good because it doesn’t offer the player one linear experience. Instead, it offers the player varying pathways that lead to conclusions both good and bad, epic and underwhelming. The biggest strength that CT has on its résumé is that it has time travel, and that you’re likely to gain one cool experience in 12,000 B.C. that will differ wildly from another cool experience you’re supposed to witness in 2300 A.D. That kind of premise was original for its time, and it still makes for an interesting series of adventures during this day and age. It also guarantees CT a place on countless gamers’ ‘best of’ lists.

But let’s look at another reason why gamers love Chrono Trigger so much. This second reason has baffled me ever since I first played the game because it’s just so silly. People actually adore the title’s star hero, Crono. I don’t understand this. It’s not like he is an angst-ridden androgynous whiner, but he certainly isn’t as iconic as people make him out to be, either. He has appeared in only two games (though his brief cameo in Chrono Cross hardly counts). He also never mutters a single word during the whole duration of CT. A silent hero who has starred in only one game, who has never uttered a single word, and who has abnormally spiky hair, is adored by millions.

That is crazy!

Still, Crono is a good, likeable character. He certainly isn’t the demigod many make him out to be, though. His attacking prowess is exciting to behold, his noble deeds are admirable even to this institutionalized gamer, but let’s not forget that there is more to Chrono Trigger than its silent protagonist. This game was built by the minds of some of the most creative Japanese artists and designers of its day. Let’s not forget about the other characters who inhabit the time-warped world of Chrono Trigger – the motley entourage that accompanies Crono to magical lands strewn across the depths of time.

Let’s not forget about Frog. He’s a frog.

He’s almost as popular as Crono. I guess people dig sword-wielding amphibians that are capable of speaking. His story is a real tearjerker, too, one that really adds some emotion . . . if you find enchanted frog knights to be emotive. Regardless, Frog does seek justice in the form of avenging his fallen friend. He does this by teaming up with Crono in an endeavor to defeat a vile sorcerer called Magus. Speaking with Shakespearean pronouns and utilizing chivalrous manners, he really turns out to be a pretty likeable character. You certainly enjoy seeing his goals come to fruition. Even after Magus has been defeated in a tense battle, Frog will remain as a loyal ally to the very end. He’s just that kind.

Crono and Frog, along with several other characters, will battle their way through numerous realms littered with danger. The combat isn’t like your typical Square RPG fare, meaning that you’ll be able to see the enemies onscreen, thus being able to avoid them. The actual combat is quite exhilarating as RPG combat goes since you’re given more freedom over your party than the typical minimal interface associated with most turn-based battlers.

There is all the typical battle flair – razor-sharp swords, radiant elemental magic, and DEVASTATING assaults known as Techs. These attacks tend to quickly dispatch enemies. This is especially true if Crono and company are decently leveled. What is important to note here, however, is that while Chrono Trigger’s combat may not be overly difficult, it doesn’t detract from the experience in any way. Not every game needs to be overly challenging, ya know.

From the opening moments you begin a new adventure, you vicariously experience a very lush and alive world. It’s not just beautiful to behold – its use of color is vibrant and its detail is breathtaking – but it’s also a highly charming world. Like I have said earlier in this review, the locales are quite varied. One segment may require you to battle prehistoric goons in a lush jungle, and another can take you to an ominous stone fortress, and another can take you to a post apocalyptic scrap world suffocated in sorrow.

The game begins a bit more uplifting, though.

As soon as you undertake a new adventure, Crono and his female friend Marle, who is quite the sassy lass, will head over to the Millennial Fair. I suppose it’s like any typical RPG icebreaker event in that it features an innovative scientific device and standard festival fun. But there are some rather atypical sights to see, such as a singing robot.

They call me Gato
I have metal joints
Beat me up
And earn 15 Silver Points

For real.

That sort of fun attitude is really enjoyable in CT. It has a very charming atmosphere brought forth from its characters, both good and evil, and in the locales. Exploring Crono’s hometown is lovely enough. It’s a green, vibrant place filled with a magical atmosphere you’d expect to see reserved for the Final Fantasy franchise. It’s good that things are uppity at the outset because Chrono Trigger can become quite serious as you near the game’s official denouement. What begins as a simple rescue mission at the adventure’s outset turns into a bid to save the world. And that can only happen on a date known as the Day of Lavos.

Once there, an epic battle will rage as a ragtag troupe of do-gooders spar against an omnipotent divinity. Lavos, the harbinger of destruction, will release his fury upon his foes with extreme prejudice. Will Crono do the same?

We’ll know in the future where great times are destined to await us.

Rating
9	Outstanding The majority of games simply aren't this good. It stands aside from the crowd and you'd be crazy to miss it.
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Game Profile & Content

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Staff Score (Avg): 9.0 User Score (Avg): 9.1 Press Score (Avg): N/A
Reviews: 7 Guides: 10 Cheats: 0 Ratings: 17	High Scores: 0 Screenshots: 1 Videos: 0

Title: Chrono Trigger
Genre: Turn-Based RPG (Fantasy)
Publisher: SquareSoft
Developer: SquareSoft
Release Date: August, 1995
ESRB: K-A
Save: Battery
Platforms: PSX, DS, SNES

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