PS1 REVIEWS: Chrono Cross
In a parallel world, Chrono Cross could have been, with some tweaks, a perfect masterpiece. Maybe, provided more production time (it was completed in less than 2 years) or a more focused vision, it would have been able to reach that pedestal along with its revered SNES predecessor, Chrono Trigger. However, in this world, we see all the elements of a brilliant game, but with enough blemishes not to reach that pedestal.
While the brilliant elements of the game may have contributed to its legendary status and near-perfect scores by the critics of the day, playing the game today reveals gaps in potential. While the game's story, characters, and oh god, the music, are undoubtedly great, the game lacks the almost-perfect pacing of Trigger. 
Yet, despite what I think is a strong plot to the game, I feel that the pacing of reveals is off. Most of the big information is only revealed at the end, with the middle of the game riddled with MacGuffin collection quests and minor character moments. It would have helped if the character moments were as strong as the character designs, but that's where the game's biggest storytelling weakness lies.
"You have no place in this world. Here, you are but a ghost brought from the past"
Similar to the way Chrono Trigger experimented with turn-based JRPG battle systems, Chrono Cross introduces its own twist. The main innovation in the battle system is the introduction of an elemental field. There are six elements in the game, and each time an element is used, one-third of the field changes to that element's color. Changing the grid's color increases the strength of that color while weakening its opposing element.
Using elements becomes the bread and butter of the game, as they represent all of your magic attacks, healing skills, and even items. To use an element, simply equip it to a character's "elemental grid", which increases as they level up. Each element can be used once in battle, except for item elements, which are consumable and can be used multiple times.
By the end of the game, each character's grid can take up to 30 different elements on average, giving you a lot of choices in how to approach battles. To use elements, you build up "heat" by doing normal attacks, which can be devastating for some of the characters.
Overall, the system can be fun, especially in the more difficult battles. However, here again we see how the ridiculous number of characters directly affects any enjoyment you may have. You see, elements are equipable items. Therefore, to use them, you must equip them into a character's grid, and there is a limited number of elements to go around. As such, if you want to change characters, you will have to remove the elements from one and then re-equip them to the other. I would say that at least 15% of my time with the game was spent changing elements because I wanted to experiment with many characters.
Here again, the game would have been better with more focused characters.
"Fate has no forgiveness for those who dare stand against it"
Admittedly, one way in which the number of characters can work is if you plan to play the game several times to see all of the different endings, which you can unlock by playing the final battle at different times during the course of the game after beating the game once. Otherwise, recruiting the characters becomes the main side quest in the game.
Besides character recruitment, some other minor side activities unlock some characters' final special moves, but very few of them are extensive in any way. Other side quests are meatier, with an emphasis on the differences between the parallel worlds. Unfortunately, the game doesn't take full advantage of that concept.
In effect, the game is seemingly built to be completed multiple times, since it is relatively short in comparison to other PS1 RPGs, and that's where the game's battle system and multiple characters can shine.
"Maybe... just maybe... You and your friends have the power to defeat FATE and build a new future for humanity"
When the game starts, and the opening cinematic plays, two things become apparent. First, with the "Scars of Time" playing, is that the game's soundtrack by Yasunori Mitsuda is sure to be sublime. Second, is that the art direction of the game is sure to be interesting.
With its tropical focus, the game's characters and locations feel different from any other Square game of the same era, and the art style of the game reinforces that. While the remastered version streamlines the character portraits and 3D designs, I felt the original portraits and designs had a distinctive style that fit each character and gave them a personality that the story's runtime couldn't.
In Conclusion:
While it is true that Chrono Cross may not reach the heights of Chrono Trigger, its ambition cannot be faulted, and the heart in its story and production is apparent, mostly in the game's sublime soundtrack. Whatever faults the game has, it has due to uncontrolled excess (such as the number of playable characters), which may be a positive for some people.
In the end, the brilliance of the game cannot be completely hidden by the minor blemishes in execution, and your memories of the game will probably conjure up a more brilliant game than you may have experienced.
Final: 8/10 (Recommended)
Pros:
Cons:
Series:
For those reading one of my PS1 review blogs for the first time, here is the basic concept:
I already reviewed both major Generation 4 consoles and am now reviewing Generation 5 consoles. I already finished reviewing the Sega Saturn, so I am now reviewing the PS1. In these reviews, I take a top 100 games list and review the games that interest me in that list. This time, my review series is based on this list from Retro Sanctuary and other sources, since the PS1 can handle a list bigger than a top 100.
Next Game:
As I said in my introduction and conclusion, Chrono Cross is not far away from being a perfect game, but unfortunately, it didn't reach that level beyond its sublime soundtrack. Still, I am happy to have finally played and enjoyed the game.
The next game on the list, Driver at #13, is another game I played as a kid but never finished. In fact, I never managed to get past the training stage, which I know many kids in the playground also got stuck in, since they didn't read English and didn't know what the game wanted from them. So what are my thoughts on the game going to be? And would I even manage to go past that level as an adult?
While the brilliant elements of the game may have contributed to its legendary status and near-perfect scores by the critics of the day, playing the game today reveals gaps in potential. While the game's story, characters, and oh god, the music, are undoubtedly great, the game lacks the almost-perfect pacing of Trigger.
#14: Chrono Cross:-
Year: 2000.
Genre: JRPG.
Publisher: Square.
Developer: Square.
Genre: JRPG.
Publisher: Square.
Developer: Square.
"No one can change or defy time or fate..."
Set in the idyllic island nations of El Nido, Chrono Cross presents a world of turquoise ocean that seems devoid of conflict at first. The main character, Serge, is a boy in a small village who assumes would live his life in these idyllic circumstances forever. Yet, he has survived a deadly disease in his childhood.
What would have happened to the world if he had died?
Thrust into a parallel world in which he did indeed die, Serge finds that his life is of bigger significance to the fate of the world than he could ever imagine, especially when he meets the mysterious girl Kid, who seems to know more than she lets on. Through their eyes, a great story that spans timelines and dimensions slowly reveals itself.
Set in the idyllic island nations of El Nido, Chrono Cross presents a world of turquoise ocean that seems devoid of conflict at first. The main character, Serge, is a boy in a small village who assumes would live his life in these idyllic circumstances forever. Yet, he has survived a deadly disease in his childhood.
What would have happened to the world if he had died?
Thrust into a parallel world in which he did indeed die, Serge finds that his life is of bigger significance to the fate of the world than he could ever imagine, especially when he meets the mysterious girl Kid, who seems to know more than she lets on. Through their eyes, a great story that spans timelines and dimensions slowly reveals itself.
 |
| Kid is the beating heart of the game. |
Yet, despite what I think is a strong plot to the game, I feel that the pacing of reveals is off. Most of the big information is only revealed at the end, with the middle of the game riddled with MacGuffin collection quests and minor character moments. It would have helped if the character moments were as strong as the character designs, but that's where the game's biggest storytelling weakness lies.
 |
| She may also be its chief attempt at humor |
There are simply too many characters. While it is undoubtedly fun to have such a large collection of unique individuals, it comes at a cost. Few, if any, of the characters affect the story meaningfully. Unlike the relationships we built with characters such as Frog and Lucca, there are few character moments in this game. While some side stories do give some characters the opportunity to shine, they rarely interact with the main story, and don't get the chance to shine.
"You have no place in this world. Here, you are but a ghost brought from the past"
Similar to the way Chrono Trigger experimented with turn-based JRPG battle systems, Chrono Cross introduces its own twist. The main innovation in the battle system is the introduction of an elemental field. There are six elements in the game, and each time an element is used, one-third of the field changes to that element's color. Changing the grid's color increases the strength of that color while weakening its opposing element.
Using elements becomes the bread and butter of the game, as they represent all of your magic attacks, healing skills, and even items. To use an element, simply equip it to a character's "elemental grid", which increases as they level up. Each element can be used once in battle, except for item elements, which are consumable and can be used multiple times.
 |
| Controlling the field elemental make up is key to winning fights |
By the end of the game, each character's grid can take up to 30 different elements on average, giving you a lot of choices in how to approach battles. To use elements, you build up "heat" by doing normal attacks, which can be devastating for some of the characters.
Overall, the system can be fun, especially in the more difficult battles. However, here again we see how the ridiculous number of characters directly affects any enjoyment you may have. You see, elements are equipable items. Therefore, to use them, you must equip them into a character's grid, and there is a limited number of elements to go around. As such, if you want to change characters, you will have to remove the elements from one and then re-equip them to the other. I would say that at least 15% of my time with the game was spent changing elements because I wanted to experiment with many characters.
 |
| That must have hurt |
Here again, the game would have been better with more focused characters.
"Fate has no forgiveness for those who dare stand against it"
Admittedly, one way in which the number of characters can work is if you plan to play the game several times to see all of the different endings, which you can unlock by playing the final battle at different times during the course of the game after beating the game once. Otherwise, recruiting the characters becomes the main side quest in the game.
Besides character recruitment, some other minor side activities unlock some characters' final special moves, but very few of them are extensive in any way. Other side quests are meatier, with an emphasis on the differences between the parallel worlds. Unfortunately, the game doesn't take full advantage of that concept.
 |
| Too bad little of that anguish and sorrow is apparent in the game |
In effect, the game is seemingly built to be completed multiple times, since it is relatively short in comparison to other PS1 RPGs, and that's where the game's battle system and multiple characters can shine.
"Maybe... just maybe... You and your friends have the power to defeat FATE and build a new future for humanity"
When the game starts, and the opening cinematic plays, two things become apparent. First, with the "Scars of Time" playing, is that the game's soundtrack by Yasunori Mitsuda is sure to be sublime. Second, is that the art direction of the game is sure to be interesting.
With its tropical focus, the game's characters and locations feel different from any other Square game of the same era, and the art style of the game reinforces that. While the remastered version streamlines the character portraits and 3D designs, I felt the original portraits and designs had a distinctive style that fit each character and gave them a personality that the story's runtime couldn't.
 |
| All the dragons have interesting designs for instance |
One thing that the remastered version could not claim to do was to improve the game's soundtrack, which was perfect as it was. Simply put, this soundtrack is some of Mitsuda's best-known work, and that's for a good reason. Beyond the perfect opening track, there are the two overworld themes, "Plains of Time" and "Shore of Dreams," along with several great tracks.
While it is simple ot say that Chrono Trigger is the better game in every aspect, the soundtrack is one area in which the verdict isn't clear.
While it is simple ot say that Chrono Trigger is the better game in every aspect, the soundtrack is one area in which the verdict isn't clear.
In Conclusion:
While it is true that Chrono Cross may not reach the heights of Chrono Trigger, its ambition cannot be faulted, and the heart in its story and production is apparent, mostly in the game's sublime soundtrack. Whatever faults the game has, it has due to uncontrolled excess (such as the number of playable characters), which may be a positive for some people.
In the end, the brilliance of the game cannot be completely hidden by the minor blemishes in execution, and your memories of the game will probably conjure up a more brilliant game than you may have experienced.
Final: 8/10 (Recommended)
Pros:
- Brilliant story with a promising concept.
- A lot of interesting characters.
- Innovative battle system with a lot of customization options.
- Invites multiple playthroughs.
- Sublime soundtrack.
- Interesting and distinctive character art and design.
Cons:
- The story only reveals itself at the end.
- The number of characters doesn't allow any of them to shine.
- Too much time fiddling in menus if you are going to equip multiple characters.
- Limited side quests.
Tips:
- Several dialogue choices have important effects on character recruitment or story progression.
- For example, refuse to join Kid the first time she asks you if you want to recruit Leena.
- Elemental weaknesses are key to exploit and defend against.
- Focus on strong characters and ignore the weaker ones.
- The yellow elemental characters are mostly bad.
- You can use the auto-allocate function to speed equipping elements up.
- You can run away from some bosses to alter your elements and equipment setup.
- Accessories are key in customizing your characters.
- Diminish and Mag-Negate are critical elements to survive stronger bosses.
- The final boss is a musical puzzle that you must solve to get the best ending.
 |
| The game does have some striking visuals |
Series:
For those reading one of my PS1 review blogs for the first time, here is the basic concept: I already reviewed both major Generation 4 consoles and am now reviewing Generation 5 consoles. I already finished reviewing the Sega Saturn, so I am now reviewing the PS1. In these reviews, I take a top 100 games list and review the games that interest me in that list. This time, my review series is based on this list from Retro Sanctuary and other sources, since the PS1 can handle a list bigger than a top 100.
 |
| Thank God its Friday |
Next Game:
As I said in my introduction and conclusion, Chrono Cross is not far away from being a perfect game, but unfortunately, it didn't reach that level beyond its sublime soundtrack. Still, I am happy to have finally played and enjoyed the game.The next game on the list, Driver at #13, is another game I played as a kid but never finished. In fact, I never managed to get past the training stage, which I know many kids in the playground also got stuck in, since they didn't read English and didn't know what the game wanted from them. So what are my thoughts on the game going to be? And would I even manage to go past that level as an adult?
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