Gaming Defend Chrono Trigger, if you dare!

[SleepingDragon]

Ok, in honor of my 700th post, I'd like to pose a question to some of my Temper brethren out there. It's a question that's haunted me for quite some time and I can no longer hide my contempt for a certain DS game. So, my question is this:

What in the heck is so great about Chrono Trigger???

Now, I have written reviews in the past for gbatemp and I always try to keep an open mind and not allow any outside biases to taint my findings. And although this isn't meant to be a full review by any means, let me give you a quick rundown of how I would rate the various elements of CT.

STORY - 7/10 - this is actually by far the best part of the game
GAMEPLAY - 5/10
CONTROLS - 5/10
GRAPHICS - 3/10 - one of the worst elements of this game and completely unacceptable for a supposed "great game"
MUSIC - 5/10 - ok

Now, in all fairness I should state that I have not played the entire game. In fact, I would estimate that I have only finished about 10%. But, I feel that after a decent chunk of this game, I have a good feel for it. After playing 10% of The World Ends With You, I was intrigued. After 10% of ZeldaH, I was engaged. After 10% of Chrono Trigger, I feel I am incarcerated, locked away and doomed in a dismal, boring, not-much-fun game that has me frantically looking for a noose or razor blade to end my suffering.

I'm pretty conifdent my feelings about this game are dead-on, but I know I'm not perfect. I really want to like this game like everyone else seems to, but I am not seeing it. Can someone out there make a rational case for why this is a quality game? Because to me, right now, I might consider Chrono Trigger the most incredibly overrated DS game EVER!!!

 

[stormwolf18]

You are probably too young little boy cause you didnt had the oportunity to play it on the mighty SNES ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Nintend...tainment_System ).



See, you were probably not even born when i used to play CT on my snes. droo droo droooll nooob

 

[CockroachMan]

Are you 12? Or just trying to troll?

 

[DeadLocked]

Meh, you won't enjoy it if you never played the older ones admittedly, but I suppose there has to be an element of Nostalgia for anyone to stick at this game, or they wanna know what all the hype is about. TBH I didn't get past the second cutscene (The one where the guy/woman/whatever gets pulled into the time hole thing because I ain't a very nostalgic gamer. Except for pokemanz lmao)

 

[Shakraka]

Believe it or not, Chrono Trigger is a port of the SNES game with the same title.

What's the matter, too DEEP for you?

 

[sadak5]

I think we must understand one thing, new gammers will never understand the people who played games some time ago.

Imagine how nostalgic (and how many memories) can recall a game if isn't touched.

I think Chrono Trigger is good as a port. personally I don't like the graphics of FFIV (that was the first FF I played in the SNES era). I prefer the fusion of the original chrono trigger with the videos of the PSX version. but the 2D and over all, 2D graphics as is is good.

What make best of the game was never the graphics, or any othr thing, but the HISTORY. Imagine what could be of any FF game without the history (i know of other games), or Golden Sun without any history.

even, imagine this. What made Tetris the best selling game? No the graphics, no 3D environment. It was THE FUN FACTOR.

If a game is not fun enough, no mater how good the graphics are, it will never be good.

 

[Morgawr]

You are probably too young little boy cause you didnt had the oportunity to play it on the mighty SNES ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Nintend...tainment_System ).



See, you were probably not even born when i used to play CT on my snes. droo droo droooll nooob

I'll reply to the TC ignoring trolls or flamers that just reply to him with "NO U!" answers... I'll try be as more specific as I can.




Honestly, I LOVE Chrono Trigger.. and I've been loving it way before this huge hype it's been getting (similar to FFVII... lol -.-'). Also I'd like to state that I'm not a fanboy of this game, I just like it and I can recognize it has its ups and downs...

Let's start with:

Story:
I like it.. yes sure it has some plotholes (Like why didn't the pendant get sucked into the wormhole the first time?) and such but they can always be explained with some expedients (like those people at ChronoCompendium do). All in all it's a very innovative story... and I'm talking about a point of perspective of 1995... Nowadays the whole time-travel story has been written and re-used a lot of times, however Chrono Trigger's one can still be rated as one of the tops... (at least by me, I don't know about you all). Sure, there is the whole mute-character problem, but that was intended by the developers because they wanted the player to personify with the main character and give him its own characterization without falling into standards.. It can be liked or not...
The characters are somewhat of cliché-type but they all have a very interesting back story, well written, that explains to the player why they ended up being like that. This is something that most games in the past (and present) don't do... We know why Marle is the princess-tomboy type, and even though it can be considered a cliché, it's well put into the game. The same applies to all the other characters except for Crono: that's because YOU the player are Crono, you can give him whatever background you like.
All in all I'd give this story an 8/10

Gameplay:
The gameplay is a very simple and easy to understand one. It's a classic turn based RPG à-la-Final Fantasy. It's got the classical ATB with characters that wait for their turn to strike. BUT! It has its own additions that most games after it don't even use (and that's a shame because those are great I think):

-Double/Triple Tech: Chrono Trigger has a huge array of different Double-Triple tech, each to be used with different character and combinations of teams... most of them are even more than one per couple of characters... It's really something to admire! The acquisition of techs is also something very easy to understand but not so boring or lame... it's just tech points you earn from enemies. Remember, the more elaborated =\= the better! Lots of games nowadays just put into gameplay a lot of useless complex crap that makes the game less enjoyable.

-Battles are played on the normal field: This is very innovative and not a lot of games do this (RPGs at least...). Final fantasy started doing this with FFXII which came out 11/12 years after Chrono Trigger... This is very innovative, isn't it? It's something I love from this game. This also eliminates the whole random-battle crap in the gameplay which makes it even more enjoyable and less annoying. You can decide whether you want to fight a group or enemies or not. It also includes skills in avoiding some enemies (like, wait for them to walk away from a spot or something like that).

-New Game+: Actually, Chrono Trigger is one of the milestones that invented the New Game+ feature. I'm not 100% sure about this but it was surely one of the firsts. Nowadays almost all the RPGs have New Game+ and additional content (Multiple endings, anyone? CT has got 13 ones, most modern RPGs don't have that many!!) and you can decide whether or not you want to 100% complete the game (which isn't even a grind fest like most other RPGs out there that are made just to leech time from players without providing satisfaction in accomplishing things).

Probably I'm missing some points in Gameplay but this isn't supposed to be a full review and I'm writing this during spare time so it'll probably end up messy and badly written >.<

However I give the Gameplay a 9/10

Controls:
Now, you gave 5/10 to CT controls? WTF? Is it a badly developed fps? How can controls be bad on a 2D RPG? You just move around, you press B to run, interaction with the environment is done excellently. The menu is really easy to understand and to use. It's got some minigame (like drinking alcohol or dance or race with a motorbike) which makes this game even MORE vary and fun....

I give Controls a 10/10 because there is actually no real reason to give this any less... >_> Also the DS with the touch screen added stylus control for people who want to play this with the stylus..The more, the merrier I say!

Graphics:
Even after 14 years, I can't stop watching Chrono Trigger sprites and think "wow, these are really well done!!" in the SNES era this was one of the best 2D sprite graphics ever, on par with Star Ocean for SNES and Final Fantasy VI. The remake on the DS doesn't lag a little, it's been perfectly ported and the resolution of the sprites has been improved. They have more frames and it's more enjoyable.. You can't really complain about it. Some sprite-based RPGs nowadays on the DS have very badly drawn sprites and they lack the graphics Chrono Trigger already had in 1995. The anime cut scenes are a Love or Hate thing. They are drawn by Akira Toryiama (yes, that "DBZ guy" ) and you can be either a fan, or a hater of that author. However if you don't like them, you can just turn them off and feel the original feeling of the SNES era..

All in all I give 9/10 on CT graphics.. not 10/10 because it's true, they are a bit outdated, but still they surpass a lot of other NDS games made these years.

Music:
Chrono Trigger's music can't be called bad. You can't give it a 3/10... Yes you can dislike it, I concede you this, but you can't say it's not a masterpiece. It's on par with most other symphonies out there and the OST that's been released after the original game (I think they re-released one after the DS game came out, correct me if I'm wrong) was at the top of most websites.. It's really a masterpiece and some songs are just amazing. I usually just start an emulator with the original SNES game or my DS with my CT game and just listen to them in loop.. Or most of the times I go on youtube just to listen to them. If you youtube "Chrono Trigger Orchestral" or something like that you can see those masterpieces of music played by real musicians with an orchestra.. and they are really amazing!!

After all this, I give 10/10 to Chrono Trigger's music.

In total, I'd rate Chrono Trigger 9/10.

Or maybe I'm just a fanboy, you decide... However I still think that this game is a masterpiece and giving it anything less than 7/10 is not correct.

 

[SleepingDragon]

Wow, CockroachMan, I expected a little better from you. "Am I 12?" Seriously? That's a very rational, enlightening argument you put forth there. Not quite sure what my age has to do with anything, but for the record I am a 35 year old man with 3 kids. I was playing Pong on my Atari 2600 while 80% of the members here hadn't even been conceived yet. I am also fully aware of the fact that CT is a port of an older game. Thanks soooo much for that insight.

The only reason I asked this question is because I have never understood the fascination with Chrono Trigger. Take Ninja Gaiden, for example. The first version of this series was one of the worst video games ever invented. And yet, as the series has grown and moved to new consoles, the graphics and gameplay have become wonderfully fun and intuitive. I think a case can be made for the more recent Ninja Gaiden on the DS being considered in the top 10 of all DS games. The same can be said for many popular series' such as Final Fantasy and Zelda.

Unfortunately, Chrono Trigger has never seemed to improve and grow as some other titles have. I just honestly want to know why so many people seem to place it in the "Top 10" lists and consider it such a tremendous game. I just don't see it.

 

[DeadLocked]

Don't get me wrong I can see why people want to play this game if they played it on the SNES, but what I'm saying is if you never played it before, don't start in this era with all this fancy 3d technology games like xbox 360s. You just won't appreciate the game for what it is. I'm not a new gamer as such, I had an Atari which phailed compared to the graphics of the SNES! pixels the size of my fingernail lmao (almost)

I can't see where the hype of TWEWY comes from either

 

[Jax]

Just go back to your Haloz and leave the good game to us "grown ups".

 

[sadak5]

Also, the game was succcesfully enough to spawn a non oficial sequel (radical dreamers). Chrono trigger also gave basiss to the system used in Chrono Cross (i don't remember if the History is related too, correct me if wrong).

CT gave fresh air to the long lived SNES, and was one of the few RPGs good enough to be played (one for getting the ending, another for other and so on).

By example, a couple of weeks ago i finished the Hack GU series in the PS2, and have no will to play them again (maybe in the arena as a PVP emulation), but now I'm playing again CT and Golden Sun in my DS (Golden sun is the 3rd time, i like the Summons animations).

I'm not young but not too older, so I played with my atari too, and like those games. But you can't compare the NEW Nija Gaiden with the CLASSIC CT. If you think that, imagine how the people who is waithing for the Persona (PSX) port to the PSP (the never moved graffics).

Each Nija Gaiden is a new game, yes, but I preffer the old fashined Starcraft with the nice graphics for 10 years ago than many of the modern RTS (I don't like the 3D style of Warcraft III), well, until Starcraft II comes

.

 

[Depravo]

Fee Fi Fo Fum!

I smell Troll-fodder.

 

[DeadLocked]

Nothin wrong with Halo

 

[War]

It's just a port. You seem to be one of those people that only judges games based on graphics, so I'm sure you would have enjoyed it more if it had been remade with 3D graphics. The story is awesome, the gameplay is really fun, the songs are great, there's tons of different endings... etc.

 

[zogenie]

I still own an original japanese SNES, but i played it first about when N64 came out. I thought the story and battle system is the best. The graphic is what turned me off. By graphic i mean the color and scheme and design overall. i do not mind bad graphic with big pixel but the theme in CT just makes me feel depressed somehow so i avoid playing it despite my friends call it best RPG ever.

 

[Phynx]

The only reason I asked this question is because I have never understood the fascination with Chrono Trigger. Take Ninja Gaiden, for example. The first version of this series was one of the worst video games ever invented. And yet, as the series has grown and moved to new consoles, the graphics and gameplay have become wonderfully fun and intuitive. I think a case can be made for the more recent Ninja Gaiden on the DS being considered in the top 10 of all DS games. The same can be said for many popular series' such as Final Fantasy and Zelda.

Ouch, that's one of my favorite games.

To understand what makes these games great you pretty much have to forget everything you know about modern gaming. Pretend you've never played anything past the game you're judging. If you'd been in the NES generation, you'd see that comparatively Ninja Gaiden offered far more than you average platformer game of the time, the tunes were great and levels were well designed and it was tough while being fair and balanced.

The same applies with Chrono Trigger. Get back to your roots, play FFI-FV, the Lufias and Dragon Warriors, ect. All the games of it's time, to see what gamers expected in that era. Again, Chrono Trigger was a breath of fresh air and pretty innovative for it's time. Honestly, these games you compare it to would not be what they are now were it not to the influence of games like CT.

 

[DragorianSword]

I like CT A LOT. I think it's a superb game. I'm only 16 so I never even TOUCHED a SNES (I DO play SNES games on my computer) but I think it doesn't have to be 3D games all the time.
What's wrong with 2D?

Sorry if I misspeld something.

 

[SleepingDragon]

For those of you looking for a flame-fest, you picked the wrong guy. I do find it interesting, though, that of the dozen or so posts so far, only a couple have had any logical reasons why they actually like the game. Why such an emotional reaction? For God's sake, people, I didn't insult your mother, I just asked why you liked a certain game. It's like there are some people (granted, only a few) that seem to seek out a fight whenever they can.


And as for the controls of the game, I gave it such a low number because they are just very vanilla, nothing special. Yes, they are functional, but the types of games that I would give an 8 or 9 in the "control" department are games like TWEWY, Ninja Gaiden, ZeldaH, etc. Creative, engaging control systems that took some thought and energy to develop.

And I don't just like games for the graphics. I still remember spending hours upon hours in my dorm room playing Tecmo Bowl on my NES with my buddies. We didn't play it because the graphics were great, we played it because it was a blast. Oh, and the fact that if you chose the LA Raiders (yes, kiddies, they were once in LA), that meant that you handed the ball on every single offensive play to the unstoppable Bo Jackson!

 

[Rod]

Yeah, Chrono Trigger is overrated. That's no news. Unlike you, I liked the game a lot when I played it a few years back, but I didn't love it enough to put it in my Top 10 RPGs, per example. Still, it's a good game, I've got my own opinions I don't mind if people want to overrate it - better than if they overrated a bad game, anyway.

Can I create a Final Fantasy VI hate topic now?


PS: You were incredibly wrong about the music, though.

 

[Morgawr]

Looks like everyone ignored my wall of text... sounds fair xD It was long and boring..

However to everyone saying "To like Chrono Trigger you have to think in the same way as people thought in 1995". That is utterly false!!!! Chrono Trigger is far more enjoyable than most other DS games (RPGs) nowadays... some of them are REALLY REALLY badly done...
There are two different style of game:
-2D sprite based
-3D

(well, 2D/3D mix too, but whatever) and 2D doesn't mean "old and outdated"... some people like 2D and some other prefer 3D.. to me, I prefer 2D in RPGs, 3D in other games.... it's all up to opinions.. but in all objectivity: you can't give Chrono Trigger a below average rate. You just can't.