<div style='font: 9pt ; text-align: left; '>Final impressions summed up in one word: WOW.
I mean, I was a HUGE fan of Chrono Trigger. I thought it was basically perfect, a game that just blew me away for its time and still is nearly unbeatable 7 years later. There have only been 2 other RPGs I've ever played which left me with that impression: Final Fantasy 3 (6j) and Panzer Dragoon Saga. Those three were RPGs that were far superior to what I ever expected them to be, games I consider to be THE standard by which all other RPGs should be judged, the ageless games. Well, we can add Chrono Cross to that list. For the 32/64-bit RPGs, this is what I was expecting - no, hoping for - from the "next generation" of RPGs (remember, I haven't gotten into the newest generation yet). Considering the number of RPGs released for the PSX, I was amazed only the amazing Panzer Saga from Sega was able to meet that expectation (wish). Really, aside from Xenogears, what we had seen on PSX up until CC was released (summer 2000) was SNES-level or worse RPGs with much nicer graphics and some gameplay tweaks, most of which didn't work very well. Mind you, the production quality and graphics were a huge step up (thank you, FF7) but the actual gameplay wasn't any better, often times worse. We had seen a lot of attempts at new gameplay changes, but very few worked well and non really revolutionized the genre.
To me, Chrono Cross (and PDS) take that next step. Every change made to the ATB system not only worked, but I believe should become standard. The addition of a stamima bar was nothing short of genius. Makes the battles MUCH more strategic and realistic at the same time. The incorporation and enhancement of the Xenogears' weak-medium-strong attack options with hit percentages. I liked the system in Xenogears (not the execution) and I like it even more now in CC, especially in conjunction with the stamina bar. Let's not forget the Element system, which is my favourite part. The fact that "items" (items are something different in CC) and magic are basically the same thing and are used in the same way in a battle is a great idea. Not to mention the fact you can only use spells once per battle without a special item. It really adds a lot of strategy to the battles. You can't just sit back and cast the same amazing spell over and over again. Not to mention the fact that you level up gradually throughout the game, gaining hit points after normal battles and not just when you level up to the next experience level. Then there's the field effect, which just adds that minor level of strategy to the battles, and the innate colours of the people and creatures, adding yet another level of strategy. All these gameplay changes really enhance the battles in the game, making them much more interesting than the standard RPG fare which I'm sure everyone's grown tired of. And they all work beautifully. This part was the most impressive and important change to the traditional RPG format that I've ever seen.
Of course, no RPG can possibly be good without an excellent story, and CC is no slouch there. This one is right up there among the best ever. What makes this story extra special is how well it integrated the events of the original Chrono Trigger. I don't want to leave any spoilers for the 2 people here who haven't played it, but if you've played CT, you'll love how the events of that affected the storyline of the sequel. You can very much enjoy the game without ever having played CT, but you appreciated so much more IMO if you see it as a sequel, a continuation of the original storyline. Particularly in the second half of the game, just as you start to get into the deeper part of the story, and you realize just how much the events of the first affected what's going on now. Just amazing, far better than what I ever expected.
All superb RPGs have excellent music and CC might just have the best overall ST ever in an RPG. Hell, it might have the best ever if it weren't for Symphony. The music never ceased to amaze me how good it was or how well it seemed to fit the areas I was in or how in sync it was with the events that were happening. Just amazing, best Square ST ever, and that's saying a lot considering the amazing work they've done over the years.
Graphics were excellent as well. They might not have been the most impressive aesthetically, but the're probably the best use of graphics I've ever seen. I really like the "painted" feel of the graphics as well as alll the poses/actions the characters were doing throughout the game (like Serge getting out of bed in the beginning; wasn't that familiar? :-). Just beautiful, particularly the techniques used which enhanced the graphics that much more.
The only very minor gripes I have are the difficulty level. This is really, really nitpicking, but I really only fought 1 very hard boss and a couple of others that were challenges. I prefer a bit more difficulty in games, but the games wasn't easy by any means. It wasn't a big problem like in Symphony or PDS where there really wasn't any hard parts. It was just easier than it should of been. To me, difficulty is a minor issue and it didn't affect my view of any of those games very much. The experiences were too damned good. Also, the Element system was fairly stagnant for the first 13 hours or so of the game. I was very worried this game was gonna turn out to be another Xenogears, which had such a promising battle system but ended up shallow at the end. Thankfully, I was very, very wrong, but the Elements should have been more useful early on.
Again, any grips I have are extrememly minor and don't take away from the incredible experience I had with this game in the 43 hours I spent on it. If there's any RPG you should have for your PSX, it's this one. Considering it's only $20 US brand new now, there's no reason whatsoever you should deprive yourself of such an amazing gaming experience. This game is as close to perfection you can get in its genre, a feat only 3 other RPGs have reached IMO. The fact that its prequel was one of those three makes it even more amazing that it could reach this plateau when it had so damned much to live up to. If only all amazing games had such amazing sequels (sorry, couldn't pass up that rib on FF7 :-)</div>
I mean, I was a HUGE fan of Chrono Trigger. I thought it was basically perfect, a game that just blew me away for its time and still is nearly unbeatable 7 years later. There have only been 2 other RPGs I've ever played which left me with that impression: Final Fantasy 3 (6j) and Panzer Dragoon Saga. Those three were RPGs that were far superior to what I ever expected them to be, games I consider to be THE standard by which all other RPGs should be judged, the ageless games. Well, we can add Chrono Cross to that list. For the 32/64-bit RPGs, this is what I was expecting - no, hoping for - from the "next generation" of RPGs (remember, I haven't gotten into the newest generation yet). Considering the number of RPGs released for the PSX, I was amazed only the amazing Panzer Saga from Sega was able to meet that expectation (wish). Really, aside from Xenogears, what we had seen on PSX up until CC was released (summer 2000) was SNES-level or worse RPGs with much nicer graphics and some gameplay tweaks, most of which didn't work very well. Mind you, the production quality and graphics were a huge step up (thank you, FF7) but the actual gameplay wasn't any better, often times worse. We had seen a lot of attempts at new gameplay changes, but very few worked well and non really revolutionized the genre.
To me, Chrono Cross (and PDS) take that next step. Every change made to the ATB system not only worked, but I believe should become standard. The addition of a stamima bar was nothing short of genius. Makes the battles MUCH more strategic and realistic at the same time. The incorporation and enhancement of the Xenogears' weak-medium-strong attack options with hit percentages. I liked the system in Xenogears (not the execution) and I like it even more now in CC, especially in conjunction with the stamina bar. Let's not forget the Element system, which is my favourite part. The fact that "items" (items are something different in CC) and magic are basically the same thing and are used in the same way in a battle is a great idea. Not to mention the fact you can only use spells once per battle without a special item. It really adds a lot of strategy to the battles. You can't just sit back and cast the same amazing spell over and over again. Not to mention the fact that you level up gradually throughout the game, gaining hit points after normal battles and not just when you level up to the next experience level. Then there's the field effect, which just adds that minor level of strategy to the battles, and the innate colours of the people and creatures, adding yet another level of strategy. All these gameplay changes really enhance the battles in the game, making them much more interesting than the standard RPG fare which I'm sure everyone's grown tired of. And they all work beautifully. This part was the most impressive and important change to the traditional RPG format that I've ever seen.
Of course, no RPG can possibly be good without an excellent story, and CC is no slouch there. This one is right up there among the best ever. What makes this story extra special is how well it integrated the events of the original Chrono Trigger. I don't want to leave any spoilers for the 2 people here who haven't played it, but if you've played CT, you'll love how the events of that affected the storyline of the sequel. You can very much enjoy the game without ever having played CT, but you appreciated so much more IMO if you see it as a sequel, a continuation of the original storyline. Particularly in the second half of the game, just as you start to get into the deeper part of the story, and you realize just how much the events of the first affected what's going on now. Just amazing, far better than what I ever expected.
All superb RPGs have excellent music and CC might just have the best overall ST ever in an RPG. Hell, it might have the best ever if it weren't for Symphony. The music never ceased to amaze me how good it was or how well it seemed to fit the areas I was in or how in sync it was with the events that were happening. Just amazing, best Square ST ever, and that's saying a lot considering the amazing work they've done over the years.
Graphics were excellent as well. They might not have been the most impressive aesthetically, but the're probably the best use of graphics I've ever seen. I really like the "painted" feel of the graphics as well as alll the poses/actions the characters were doing throughout the game (like Serge getting out of bed in the beginning; wasn't that familiar? :-). Just beautiful, particularly the techniques used which enhanced the graphics that much more.
The only very minor gripes I have are the difficulty level. This is really, really nitpicking, but I really only fought 1 very hard boss and a couple of others that were challenges. I prefer a bit more difficulty in games, but the games wasn't easy by any means. It wasn't a big problem like in Symphony or PDS where there really wasn't any hard parts. It was just easier than it should of been. To me, difficulty is a minor issue and it didn't affect my view of any of those games very much. The experiences were too damned good. Also, the Element system was fairly stagnant for the first 13 hours or so of the game. I was very worried this game was gonna turn out to be another Xenogears, which had such a promising battle system but ended up shallow at the end. Thankfully, I was very, very wrong, but the Elements should have been more useful early on.
Again, any grips I have are extrememly minor and don't take away from the incredible experience I had with this game in the 43 hours I spent on it. If there's any RPG you should have for your PSX, it's this one. Considering it's only $20 US brand new now, there's no reason whatsoever you should deprive yourself of such an amazing gaming experience. This game is as close to perfection you can get in its genre, a feat only 3 other RPGs have reached IMO. The fact that its prequel was one of those three makes it even more amazing that it could reach this plateau when it had so damned much to live up to. If only all amazing games had such amazing sequels (sorry, couldn't pass up that rib on FF7 :-)</div>
I was there on that fateful day, were you?
