RPGamers Network > Reviews > Game Reviews > Chrono Cross
Originality:
Where Chrono Trigger offered travel between time periods, Chrono Cross offered travel between alternate realities. This was the start of the many differences between the two games. Actually, for a sequel, Chrono Cross only had loose ties to Chrono Trigger. It had it's own plot and goals, a completely re-done battle system, a whole new kind of magic/ability tree, new means of acquiring weapons, armor, and other accessories, the level up format, and many other elements. While many concepts were new to the series itself, they were easily found in other games before it; for example, both the equipping of magic and the building of weapons from materials were both reminiscent of Final Fantasy VIII. Chrono Cross took its own spin at it, but it's clear that the concept isn't wholly original to the game. Little things like that were what really hurt this game.
Gameplay
I often find myself wondering what exactly I should say about the gameplay. It's a very ambiguous term, and yet it can easily say a bunch about the game. Chrono Cross tended to be wishy-washy. At times it felt and looked great. Other times it was rather dull. The controls tended to be a bit finicky, and occasionally there was no apparent path to even follow. Also, the number of characters present within the game made things awkward. While it was always entertaining to come across new characters that would join your party, you could only use 2 (and of course the main character). And because of the way the game progressed characters in terms of levels and fighting ability, rarely did I find myself using anyone other than the same 3 or 4 characters (I generally went with Glenn, Norris, Grobyc, and Harle/Kid). Also, few of the characters had storylines, and rarely were they anything worth pursuing to learn more.
Music:
The music for this game was phenomenal. Every track is worth listening to and fits beautifully in the game. A wide variety of instruments were used, and they performed brilliantly. Every aspect of the music simply did wonders for the game. This is one of the few game soundtracks I find myself listening to time and time again. Simply outstanding work was done in this area.
Plot:
The plot of the game was a lot weaker than the SNES counterpart. For half of the game the plot was relatively simple, and then it suddenly jumped into a complex mix of things. I was intrigued by the themes of racism that occurred occasionally, and I couldn't help but wonder if the script-writers were hinting at problems within humanity in this game. Also, the designers did a very good job of hiding and revealing the true nature of things. While these elements sound great on paper, the game didn't execute it well enough for me to remember a whole lot of it years later.
Battle System:
I simply didn't enjoy this battle system. Rather than a traditional time based system, Square attempted once again the conditional battle system. This time, however, the enemy could interrupt your series of attacks at any time with attacks and spells of your own, and this could make things difficult to recover from. Don't get me wrong; I like the challenge of recovering from lethal damage and such. What I don't like is when I'm given a to hit percentage that increases with every hit, only to find that percentage reduced again because the enemy up and attacked me in the middle of it. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I'll take my time-bar any day. The magic system was also shaky. The player has to "allocate" spells and items to a grid, and could only use said spell once per battle. Items could be used for the quantity equipped, but only 5 per slot. One of the elements lost from Chrono Trigger was the double and triple spell combos. Chrono Cross offered the occasional instance, but they were more often than not coincidental occurrences, and you would have to sacrifice one of your better characters to get a mediocre double or triple spell combo.
Sounds and Visuals:
The maps and areas were well laid out to provide a clear view with few buildings and background in the way of the main focus. However, the game as a whole was rather pixely. A few creatures were even unidentifiable. While the sounds fit well enough, again I found myself forgetting all that had happened rather than having certain parts stick out as good or bad.
Replay Value:
The game does have a decent amount of replay value. This is mostly because it is impossible to get every character in one play through, and there are several parts where the story's path splits, and the player must choose which to follow. Choosing one will allow the player to acquire more characters and will slightly alter the story, but at the same time eliminates the possibility of acquiring other characters. To get the full experience the game must be played 3 times through....but most of us don't have to patience to do that.
Conclusion:
Chrono Cross was worth the once over, but too many problems kept me from playing it a third time. It simply tried my patience to a point where I didn't care anymore. If you're looking for a great game to play go pick up Chrono Trigger, but if you're bored and need something to do Chrono Cross will probably feed your appetite.
| Game Stats | |
|---|---|
| Genre | RPG |
| Platform | PlayStation |
| Format | CD-ROM |
| # of Players | 1 |
| Released Jap | 11.18.1999 |
| Released US | 08.15.2000 |
| Released EU | N/A |
| Aprox. Length | 25-30 hrs. |
| Reviewer Rankings | |
| Battle System | 6.0 |
| Gameplay | 6.0 |
| Music | 10.0 |
| Originality | 7.0 |
| Plot | 6.0 |
| Replay Value | 8.0 |
| Sound | 8.0 |
| Visuals | 6.0 |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Overall | |
| 7.1 | |
Chrono Cross
By: SquaresoftReviewed By: Dominator
Chrono Cross was the highly anticipated sequel to the acclaimed Chrono Trigger. Before I can give you an outright review, however, I have to note that Chrono Trigger is my absolute favorite game. As such, I was skeptical towards this game. Regardless, I played with an open mind. Some parts I thoroughly enjoyed, while others bored me out of my mind. Enough blather. On to the reviewing.Originality:
Where Chrono Trigger offered travel between time periods, Chrono Cross offered travel between alternate realities. This was the start of the many differences between the two games. Actually, for a sequel, Chrono Cross only had loose ties to Chrono Trigger. It had it's own plot and goals, a completely re-done battle system, a whole new kind of magic/ability tree, new means of acquiring weapons, armor, and other accessories, the level up format, and many other elements. While many concepts were new to the series itself, they were easily found in other games before it; for example, both the equipping of magic and the building of weapons from materials were both reminiscent of Final Fantasy VIII. Chrono Cross took its own spin at it, but it's clear that the concept isn't wholly original to the game. Little things like that were what really hurt this game.
Gameplay
I often find myself wondering what exactly I should say about the gameplay. It's a very ambiguous term, and yet it can easily say a bunch about the game. Chrono Cross tended to be wishy-washy. At times it felt and looked great. Other times it was rather dull. The controls tended to be a bit finicky, and occasionally there was no apparent path to even follow. Also, the number of characters present within the game made things awkward. While it was always entertaining to come across new characters that would join your party, you could only use 2 (and of course the main character). And because of the way the game progressed characters in terms of levels and fighting ability, rarely did I find myself using anyone other than the same 3 or 4 characters (I generally went with Glenn, Norris, Grobyc, and Harle/Kid). Also, few of the characters had storylines, and rarely were they anything worth pursuing to learn more.
Music:
The music for this game was phenomenal. Every track is worth listening to and fits beautifully in the game. A wide variety of instruments were used, and they performed brilliantly. Every aspect of the music simply did wonders for the game. This is one of the few game soundtracks I find myself listening to time and time again. Simply outstanding work was done in this area.
Plot:
The plot of the game was a lot weaker than the SNES counterpart. For half of the game the plot was relatively simple, and then it suddenly jumped into a complex mix of things. I was intrigued by the themes of racism that occurred occasionally, and I couldn't help but wonder if the script-writers were hinting at problems within humanity in this game. Also, the designers did a very good job of hiding and revealing the true nature of things. While these elements sound great on paper, the game didn't execute it well enough for me to remember a whole lot of it years later.
Battle System:
I simply didn't enjoy this battle system. Rather than a traditional time based system, Square attempted once again the conditional battle system. This time, however, the enemy could interrupt your series of attacks at any time with attacks and spells of your own, and this could make things difficult to recover from. Don't get me wrong; I like the challenge of recovering from lethal damage and such. What I don't like is when I'm given a to hit percentage that increases with every hit, only to find that percentage reduced again because the enemy up and attacked me in the middle of it. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I'll take my time-bar any day. The magic system was also shaky. The player has to "allocate" spells and items to a grid, and could only use said spell once per battle. Items could be used for the quantity equipped, but only 5 per slot. One of the elements lost from Chrono Trigger was the double and triple spell combos. Chrono Cross offered the occasional instance, but they were more often than not coincidental occurrences, and you would have to sacrifice one of your better characters to get a mediocre double or triple spell combo.
Sounds and Visuals:
The maps and areas were well laid out to provide a clear view with few buildings and background in the way of the main focus. However, the game as a whole was rather pixely. A few creatures were even unidentifiable. While the sounds fit well enough, again I found myself forgetting all that had happened rather than having certain parts stick out as good or bad.
Replay Value:
The game does have a decent amount of replay value. This is mostly because it is impossible to get every character in one play through, and there are several parts where the story's path splits, and the player must choose which to follow. Choosing one will allow the player to acquire more characters and will slightly alter the story, but at the same time eliminates the possibility of acquiring other characters. To get the full experience the game must be played 3 times through....but most of us don't have to patience to do that.
Conclusion:
Chrono Cross was worth the once over, but too many problems kept me from playing it a third time. It simply tried my patience to a point where I didn't care anymore. If you're looking for a great game to play go pick up Chrono Trigger, but if you're bored and need something to do Chrono Cross will probably feed your appetite.
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