“What was the start of all this?
When did the cogs of fate begin to turn?“
– Excerpt from the opening intro of the game
Chrono Cross has arguably one of the most memorable opening ever made for a videogame. The quote above captures it really well. What was the start of all this? How did Serge’s peaceful life took a sharp turn? The visual of dragons roaming the sky in the opening intro gives off the feeling of a dreadful journey waiting for the hero, while the accompanying music, Time’s Scar is beautifully composed to give off a sense of sorrow throughout said journey.
The scene where Kid stands at the beach just staring at the ocean before turning towards us was such a beautifully made moment that perfectly captures the brief moment of calm before the storm, and it still gives me chills years after the game’s release. In fact, words themselves may not do justice to how amazing the opening is. Feel free to check it out yourself right here if you are interested.
One of the aspect of Chrono Cross that I liked is the amount of playable characters in the game. There are a total of 44 playable characters that you can recruit in your team, each with their own charm and quirkiness and comes with their own set of Techs unique to them. Most of them share a similar play-style to one another, be it as a physical attacker or a magic user. However, their aesthetic and choice of weapons can be a refreshing change of pace in the long run if you don’t feel like sticking to the same few units especially in multiple playthroughs.
The characters themselves vary a lot, from Nikki the rock-star to Greco the wrestler to Orlha the bartender to a dog named Poshul. You want a baby dragon in your party? Check. Want a cyborg? Check. Want a pirate? Check. Want a mushroom? Check. And if you think a playable mushroom is weird, wait till you see a walking turnip.
Unfortunately, you can’t recruit them all on your initial playthrough. The story offers branching paths throughout the game and the choices you made will affect who will join your party. For example, when trying to break through the Viper Manor you will be given three different methods to choose from. Which methods you choose will determine who will join your party out of the three choices – the traveling magician Guile, the rock-star Nikki or the self-proclaimed hero Pierre. Fortunately, the game has a New Game+ feature that allows you to carry over your recruited characters to subsequent playthroughs. This allows you to have a ‘complete’ save file with all 45 characters (including Serge) for you to play around with once you completed the game.
Many of these characters have a role to play in the story, which helps in fleshing out their character despite the massive roster of the game. Some of them don’t really have a major significance in the overall plot outside of being a random tag-along, and I have seen complaints regarding how it’s only an excuse for the developers to make a bloated roster. Personally I disagree with these views, because in my opinion the randomness of having someone join you for silly or selfish reasons is what makes the roster fun in the first place. Not everyone need a grand reason to join Serge under the pretext of saving the world. Some of them simply join Serge to repay his kindness for helping them, even if the matter seems small at the time. Some of them don’t even look convincing as a hero or a savior of the world (I’m looking at you, Pierre), but it matters not because they still willingly join Serge on his adventure regardless of their status and background.
Regardless of their plot importance, each of the characters have their own sidequests that not only flesh out their characters a little bit, but also unlocks their final and strongest Techs. On top of that, certain character combination in your party allows them to perform special Tech combos known as Double Techs or Triple Techs. With their detailed character model and their own unique attack animations, it’s no wonder that the characters are one of my favorite aspect of the game as mentioned earlier.
Earlier I mentioned about how the game occasionally have branching paths (that can lead to different character recruitment). On top of the branching paths, the game also incorporates the ‘alternate dimension’ theme into exploration really well. Sometimes, performing certain actions in the Home dimension can alter the events of the Alternate dimension and vice-versa. Going back and forth between the two dimensions to find hints or see if anything has changed can feel rewarding at times, though it can feel really frustrating when you’re running back and forth and still couldn’t find the hints needed to progress the plot.
Another aspect of Chrono Cross that made the game really enjoyable is the New Game+ aspect. New Game+ allows you to start a new playthrough while retaining you character levels, equipment and Techs learned among other things. It also carry over your recruited characters from the previous playthroughs once you reached a certain point in the game. Additionally, it also adds new alternate endings for us to discover. However, the biggest (and most convenient) addition that the New Game+ function brings is the ability to fight the final boss anytime you want. This is really convenient if you want to recruit other characters or pick a different story branch quickly without having to go through the entire game again to start a new playthrough.
Lastly, what is a great game without great music accompanying it? While the plot and the characters often received mixed reviews (mostly from hardcore Trigger fanbase), one aspect of Chrono Cross that is universally praised is the OST. The OST brings out the vibrant feel that complements the liveliness of the world of Chrono Cross. For example, the Alternate world map theme gives off the feeling of sorrow and loneliness befitting of the events unfolding when Serge first arrives there. The Arni village theme gives off a homely feel, the kind where you would imagine being a kid and waking up and you would run off to school with your friends with no worries of any danger whatsoever. The boss battle theme gives off a sense of urgency, and it fits in with Cross’s battle system. Should you go in with all your normal attack combos? Or should you save it for Techs or Elements (magic)? Despite the battle being turn-based, the boss battle theme will definitely pump up your adrenaline while the bosses themselves provide you with decent challenges. One of the most memorable moments in Chrono Cross is accompanied by an equally memorable song and the entire Marbule event is simply enjoyable from start to finish. Lastly we have the ending song, Radical Dreamers performed by Noriko Mitose (who is also famous for her songs in the Ar Tonelico series years later).
While Chrono Cross may not be the Chrono Trigger sequel that some people have hoped for, it is still a really enjoyable game that can stand on its own. In fact, it remains fun even in this day and age without the gameplay or graphics suffering from poor aging. With its colorful cast and great soundtrack, Chrono Cross really is a timeless classic.
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