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["D"]

I played and beat it at launch and thought it was pretty good, even after having played Chrono Trigger. I just recently started a playthrough of it and I guess with me being older than I was when it released, I really appreciate the game that much more.

So why the hate or dislike? Is it because people were expecting it to be a straight up Trigger sequel? I mean, I enjoyed many aspects of the game...the Element System was dope because none of your Elements were technically useless because you could just allocate them to a higher slot to get more out of them...the stamina/strength of attack based combat was nice and made you apply some strategy as far as to either go all out and attack or build Element level and unleash some high level magic. The environments were absolutely beautiful and colorful, with a nice mood-fitting OST to top it off. The story was pretty good too, but its even better if you completed Trigger and have knowledge of the Radical Dreamers. And hell, you could recruit like over 30 party members! My only complaint about the game WAS the character design, as I felt like it wasn't that many of them that looked good and also the lack of character development for everyone that isn't tied to the main story. Other than that, I personally feel like its a strong title and a classic. I kinda feel like its wack that the series got shelved, I think mainly due to the lukewarm reception of Cross, and after playing through it both times I really do feel like it got slept on by the public and is really under-appreciated.

 

[Begaria]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

 

[Acquiescence]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

.

Did the game get a lukewarm reception? I think it's actually one of the most critically-acclaimed JRPGs of its gen.

 

[Vincent Grayson]

I fucking loved it at launch and still love it today. I grew up loving CT too, but CC worked for me on a different level and I wish like hell there was more.

 

[Seth]

.

 

[cheststrongwell]

I hated the combat and the goofy ass characters.

 

[LiK]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

Exactly.

Also, they had to shove

Spoiler

Schala

in there to tie up that loose end from CT.

 

[Slayven]

Liked it more than Chrono Trigger. The element system is still one of my favorite battle systems

 

[Umbooki]

I love me some Chrono Cross, but I wasn't a big fan of how the game did the cast. Unless you were one of a dozen characters that the story focused on, you were kinda just...there. Half of the party members have a little blurb once you recruit them, and that's all you get. Now they're this colorful unit with nothing else going for them.

It's a shame when every other aspect of the game was top notch. Like, do we even have to mention the greatness of the OST?

 

[AtomicShroom]

What killed the game for me was how painfully tedious and slow-paced it was. Battles took forever, having to swap and re-organize magics every time you changed party members was long and painful. Especially when you keep having to swap characters for various story reasons or to access character-specific areas. Having such a high number of possible characters to place in your party (It was something like 40, no?) made it much harder to relate to any of them or care about their own little pieces of story.

Basically it felt like a chore to play and I wasn't really enjoying it. The story was convoluted and hard to follow. I just didn't feel bothered to care.

 

[NintendosBooger]

I wanted a sequel; instead they gave me a rehaul I had never asked for.

 

[Plinko]

I'm a noted Chrono Cross lover on this board. I will argue that it has the best battle system and best soundtrack of any RPG ever.

I do agree, however, that many characters just seemed tacked on and didn't really have any reason to be involved.

 

[cooperma]

I loved Chrono cross. Probably beat it 15 times. Still have my ps1 save with all characters including harle unlocked.

 

[Sectorseven]

It wasn't Chrono Trigger 2.

Spoiler

Also too many characters made it hard to care about any of them.

 

[FRS1987]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

Well said. Otherwise I really enjoyed it but not as much as Trigger.

 

[decoyplatypus]

Here's your reason.

EDIT: I think the (relative) dearth of affection for Chrono Cross has a lot to do with the fact that its story leans heavily on CT at times (Lucca and Schala won't mean much to series newbies) but breaks from CT's tone and treats some beloved characters quite strangely (e.g. Lucca and Robo). So CT fans get more out of the story but are also most likely to be frustrated by it.

 

[Omegasquash]

I think it's because people wanted a sequel to Chrono Trigger, with characters and all.

 

["D"]

Liked it more than Chrono Trigger. The element system is still one of my favorite battle systems

Its almost criminal how slept on this system was

 

[Syril]

I think I'd have liked it more if it wasn't related to Chrono Trigger at all. I didn't like how it handled the aftermath of the Trigger story, and I think its own story could have been stronger if it wasn't tied down to that, especially when it's the total opposite thematically.

 

[platocplx]

I think it's because people wanted a sequel to Chrono Trigger, with characters and all.

^^^

Yep people expected more of the same. Art style etc it was a jarring sequel for some. But it was really great in its own way.

 

[Bjoern the Smexy]

I liked the game but the overarching story was hard to understand for me.
Granted it's been at least 10 years since I last played it and my English wasn't as good back then.
I should definitely give it another try. Maybe play through it this time, too.

 

[sanstesy]

Here's your reason.

It's like taking a pretty stinky shit on some of the best cake you will ever eat.

 

[Mikey Jr.]

Yeah, million characters.

Im super interested in the back story of skeleton clown and you know, NOT Magus or anything.

 

[Skulldead]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

this and for me even the combat system was well done and complex, the game give 0 challenge. You don't need to use magic system well, summon are useless, upgrade weapon feel useless and not well done. If you fix levelling for make the game always challenging, then they really miss the point here.

 

[antitrop]

Here's your reason.

I forgot how awful this was, but I've always thought Chrono Trigger's battle theme was one of the weakest parts of its soundtrack, anyway.

 

[poodaddy]

It's actually one of the best JRPG's of all time, but it was doomed in following Chrono Trigger which IS the best JRPG of all time. Trying to develop a sequel to follow one of the best games of all time is always gonna be a failed mission, and as such it will invite plenty of detractors.

 

["D"]

^^^

Yep people expected more of the same. Art style etc it was a jarring sequel for some. But it was really great in its own way.

As much as I liked Trigger, I kinda was expecting a sequel too but when this released I still gave it a chance...and even back then I figured that they were trying to give the game its own identity while still making it familiar to the previous one. I understand not everyone sees it that way though...or wants it that way as well

 

[Lee Chaolan]

It was a poor "Sequel" to Chrono Trigger.

It was a great game in its own right though. fantastic soundtrack, even if a notch below CT's.

 

[Mr. Poolman]

The music is outstanding.

But the game falls short of being a Chrono sequel, the game's story is confusing just for the sake of being confusing.

Less recruitable party members and more deep to the ones that matter would have helped.
Also, most designs were weird/goofy or plain silly.

 

[Omegasquash]

^^^

Yep people expected more of the same. Art style etc it was a jarring sequel for some. But it was really great in its own way.

I didn't even mind the art. Or the music. Or the battle system.

Too many characters to think about and, IIRC, the story of Cross shared that the future did not go very well for the heroes of Trigger.

 

["D"]

I liked the game but the overarching story was hard to understand for me.
Granted it's been at least 10 years since I last played it and my English wasn't as good back then.
I should definitely give it another try. Maybe play through it this time, too.

You should. If you played Trigger too then I'd say play it first before you jump into Cross. You'll understand whats going on more

 

[Shifty1897]

The plot was bad, and having 44 characters in the game made each one feel so samey to play. Honestly if they had fixed the plot, limited the character roster to 8 and scrapped the element magic system in favor of traditional solo, double, and triple techs, then yeah, the game would've been amazing.

I am shocked reading this thread and finding out anyone had a problem with the music.

 

[Fbh]

Trigger still has one of my favorite cast of characters in gaming. All the characters were great, likable and well developed.
Cross Swapped that for a giant cast of characters that we only ever get to know on a superficial level.

I also found the Story to be way too convulted for no real reason. Had no idea what was going on half of the time when playing it as a kid and even when replaying it as an adult I had a hard time following the plot

Music and Art were amazing though
It's hands down my favorite soundtrack ever.

 

[dragonzdogma]

I actually liked it but it didn't feel very chrono trigger

The already perfect combat was replaced with a more Final fantasy like random encounter system.

The Story and overall akira toriyama design was replaced by some generic fantasy rpg setting.

Music isn't even that memorable imo.


Those are just a few reasons why I think the game was disliked.

 

[poodaddy]

I forgot how awful this was, but I've always thought Chrono Trigger's battle theme was one of the weakest parts of its soundtrack, anyway.

Here's your reason.

You guys are both high, that battle music is absolutely amazing. One of the most interesting compositions I've ever heard for battle from a JRPG.

 

[Izuna]

It ruined the end to chrono trigger

Music is one of the best tho

 

[Fou-Lu]

The biggest reason I've seen is there are far too many characters with plot lines that either go nowhere or are inconsequential to the overarching plot. This is my biggest beef with the game, even though I like it.

This is the ONLY thing I don't like about Chrono Cross. It is still one of the best games ever made.

I can never decide if I like Trigger or Cross more. Phenomenal games and both show the heights RPGs can reach.

 

[bionic77]

Because it was not as good as ChronoTrigger.

By itself it is a decent game.

However, the gameplay was a huge downgrade and a lot of people did not like the story.

CT is one of my favorite games of all time. I was really let down by CC. In the end I felt the same way about CC as I did about the SW prequels. Just not good enough to live up to the OG series.

 

[Doorman]

The graphics and sound/music and the overall presentation was all top-notch, but Cross has a number of things holding it back too, particularly the story and cast.

The ability to recruit up to 40 party members sounded great on the back of the case, but in reality you wind up with so much bloat and the way they deal with it is basically by writing one throwaway line for each character for each situation you might bring them into. For it not to impact the central story, it means once most people join your party, they contribute nothing of substance at all save for increasingly annoying speech pattern quirks, and meanwhile the story itself starts off compelling, but from what I recall the final act spirals into a grand mess of things and by the time they do start directly tying things to Trigger, it actually becomes unwelcome. I would have preferred it remain a Final Fantasy-esque separate deal. I've always felt like it's a good game, but a poor Trigger sequel.

 

[Easy_D]

It lacks character in its characters. Going with a million recruitable party members made scenes lack impact.

And the battle system is slow and boring as hell compared to Trigger's, unfortunately. Music and art is great though. Probably Mitsuda's best work.

 

["D"]

This is the ONLY thing I don't like about Chrono Cross. It is still one of the best games ever made.

No lies detected

 

[th4tguy]

Graphics and Music were best for their time. Really amazing.
Gameplay was good but pretty standard JRPG fair for the time.

Where the game didn't hold up as well and is the area that tends either really help or hurt a game of this nature is the story.

The story was a little too loose for my tastes. The number of characters was a major factor in this. So many barely had any contribution to the plot and backstories for them were minimal at best.

If they had stuck to 8 or so total party characters and heavily developed their stories and made them part of the main narrative, the would have been so much better.

 

[Bjoern the Smexy]

[QUOTE="D";249225796]You should. If you played Trigger too then I'd say play it first before you jump into Cross. You'll understand whats going on more[/QUOTE]

Chrono Trigger is my favorite RPG of all time, just played through it and all its ends again over the last few months (always an hour or so before I went to bed, DS version is perfect for that).

About understanding what's going on in CC:
I know what's going on, but it was kinda hard to follow at times. I don't even remember where I stopped playing the game. Gonna look for my discs and fire up ePSXe some time soon for sure.

 

[KTallguy]

- Middling standard battle theme (rest of the music is amazing)
- Too many characters that were not explored very much
- Plot became somewhat nonsensical at the end
- Battle system is OK but I felt that it was needlessly complex and confusing.

I did beat it as a kid, but when I tried to play it again recently, although the world is beautiful it just didn't grab me.

 

[JustSomeone]

Because it's a (much better) sequel to the most overrated game of all time that dared to do things differently

 

[Garlador]

Friend of mine summed it up well...

Chrono Cross is an amazing game... and a poor Chrono Trigger sequel.

That doesn't even mean it's inferior to Trigger, just that it's NOT a good sequel. It's almost more of a spin-off or a related game, like Drakengarde and Nier, or Final Fantasy XII and Revenant Wings.


For me, Chrono Cross is a masterpiece. Its visuals, story, and core cast of characters are all great, and that soundtrack is legendary.

The big cast has its ups and downs, but I liked most of them well enough, even if some had very minimal roles. Most had at least SOME side-story of their own as well. It was a very Pokemon "get them all" approached to getting the whole gang together.

I love the game and I always will. It's one of the best games I ever played.

 

[Silvergun-Blue]

Chrono Trigger is a hard act to follow, and I'd much rather they left the narrative alone. Chrono Trigger finished off brilliantly as long as you take the best ending as cannon, and there was just a little bit of mystery left with Magus searching for his sister. It didn't need any more.

But, Chrono Cross is a fantastic game by any measurement and I'm capable of looking at it without thinking of the first game. The complaint about the amount of characters is a valid one, but the rest of the game makes up for that. Stunning visuals both technically and artistically, and arguably the best soundtrack in video game history, good battle system with some original ideas, but as a previous poster said, it can be tedious setting up everybodys skills.
The narrative is actually very good, even if it does things to the original lore that I don't like.
Overall there's a lot of love put into the game, and one of the standout jrpg's of the gen imo.

 

[MegaSackman]

Liked it more than Chrono Trigger. The element system is still one of my favorite battle systems

Me too, one of the best RPG I've ever played.

 

[atbigelow]

I like CC's overall story. It was whacko and goes all over the place, but I think it plays with a lot of cool ideas sourced from CT.

The characters are 90% trash, though. It'd be incredible if they cut it down to even something like 12 or 16 (which is still a LOT) and refocused it. There are a few obvious characters who had more effort put into them (Glenn). And then 30 of them are just filler.

It's too bad, really. I love the idea of meeting different characters hopping between dimensions. But that doesn't mean you waste all that development power in letting you recruit them.

The game became more about collecting all the characters rather than caring about any of them.

EDIT: Also I really liked that idea Kato stated about a third Chrono game that "fixes" what happens after CT. Maybe someday...

 

[george_us]

Coming from someone who played CC on release date while waiting until the DS release to play Chrono Trigger, it's easy to see why people were disappointed with Cross. Trigger is damn near perfect while Cross is a merely great. It's the same feeling I felt playing Resident Evil 5 for the first time after playing Resident Evil 4.