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The Weakest Link: Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross

Posted by Nadia Oxford

Chrono Cross is the official sequel to Chrono Trigger, and I often wonder if it should have been. I really enjoyed Chono Cross: the graphics are beautiful, the music is stunning and the cast (even though it numbers in the trillions) is generally fun to hang with. As its own game, Chrono Cross is a Playstation must-have. As a sequel to Chrono Trigger, however, it's kind of off-colour. Following up Chrono Trigger with Chrono Cross is like eating a zuccini right after an ice cream cone. Both taste good, but for entirely different reasons that don't mix well.

There stands an excellent chance that Chrono Trigger DS will hammer some hasty bridges between it and Chrono Cross, and I really wish it wouldn't. The Playstation re-release of Chrono Trigger (avoid avoid avoid) already established links between the two, so I fear it's too late.

You may have noticed that I mouth off a lot about how the quality of game stories can stand to be closer to what you'd find in a book. I don't know if there has ever been an author who took over a beloved universe and promptly killed off its cast in the most half-assed manner possible in order to move in his roster, but if there is, I doubt he made any friends.

The death of Crono and his buds bothered me because there was nothing about Chrono Trigger that indicated the Kingdom of Guardia was at war with Porre. Porre never even gave any indication that it wanted to be more than a three-house town with a fuzzy monster who called himself the Piano Man. Chrono Cross puts the two at war and it was as baffling as watching a little boy play Death Army with Barbies and My Little Ponies.

It's not to say every link between the two is impotent. The trip through the Dead Sea is appropriately spine-tingling, and even though I have big problems with Chrono Cross making burnt offerings of my favourite characters to tell its own story, I can acknowledge that it is a good story.

But when I play Chrono Trigger DS this winter, there will be a great sadness in my bosom. :(

Related Links:

OST: Chrono Cross
The End of Time and the Beginning of Fan Drama
Chrono Trigger Port: Are You Excited or Disappointed?


+ DIGG + DEL.ICIO.US + REDDIT

Comments

John Constantine said:

Lest we forget, Miss Nadia, the world of Chrono Cross is a parallel dimension to the world of Trigger. And the murder of Lucca (it's not explicit that Marle and Crono died of anything other than natural causes. At least, I don't think there is.) is justified given its context.

I actually kind of adore Cross' story, specifically as a sequel to Trigger. Everything that takes place is the chaotic result of three noble but naive kids' actions. Yeah, the defeated Lavos, but look at what they caused! The only real problem is the sprawling cast. Since there are so many characters, almost all of them poorly defined, you never get to form the all too important emotional bond you do in Trigger.

Considering that one of Trigger's new scenarios is called The Dimensional Distortion, I think it's a sure thing that Kato's creating a more explicit link to Cross in Trigger DS. Awesome I say.

Now, about that Chrono Break, wherein everyone in Trigger and Cross are brought back in the opening minutes and immediately slaughtered by Kefka.

October 27, 2008 8:15 PM

Roto13 said:

I liked that Lucca died. :P I thought it was disturbing in its own way. She wasn't the type of character you could ever see getting killed, but she did die.

You know, I'm incredibly pissed off by the fact that I'm itching to play Chrono Cross but apparently it freezes up on the PS3. I don't want to have to play it on my PS2, dammit. I want my wireless controller and the ability to turn it on and off without getting up.

October 27, 2008 8:42 PM

epenthesis said:

I remember once reading an argument that the best CC ending, in uniting the two timelines, also erases the fall of Guardia and the destruction of Lucca's orphanage.

Can't remember exactly what the rationale was, but I'm eager to buy it--I was as upset with CC for doing this as I was with Alien 3 for ruining the ending of Aliens.

October 27, 2008 8:58 PM

John Constantine said:

Nothing is more of an ending-ruiner than Alien 3, epenthesis. That movie as a whole is a crime against humanity, redeemed only by the presence of Charles S Dutton.

October 27, 2008 9:23 PM

Amber Ahlborn said:

I'm a Chrono Cross hater and its relationship with Trigger is only secondary to my hate.  I agree it's a beautiful and fun game and I actually love it to a point.  That point is when the big plot dump during the last half occurs and you realize the world went stupid at some point.  I like my stories clearly told.  I like stories that are as complex as they need to be and don't just toss crap around for the sake of convoluting a basically simple idea.  Cross is like video game gumbo with too many ingredients tossed in for my tastes.  I really, really wanted to love the game too.  

October 27, 2008 10:01 PM

Demaar said:

I definitely agree that CC definitely had some serious pacing problems, but I don't think that makes you (or I) a hater.

Really though, the overly complicated story was kind of a JRPG trope by that stage.

October 28, 2008 1:13 PM

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about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Hooksexup, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia prizes the certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.


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