Chrono Cross

by Square Enix

Product Features

• Featuring a story line developed by the creator of "Chrono Trigger" and "Xenogears," Chrono Cross has been christened the "Best RPG Creation" by its development team. Format: PSX Genre: RPG (VG) Age: 662248900087 UPC: 662248900087 Manufacturer No: 9780

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004TC6E
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 5.5 x 1 inches ; 6.4 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: August 16, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (385 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,769 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Editorial Review

Chrono Cross, the sequel to the Super Nintendo classic Chrono Trigger, turns out to be well worth the wait. Taking off 20 years after the first game, Chrono Cross follows a boy named Serge across parallel worlds--both the world in which he lives and one in which he drowned 10 years earlier.

Chrono Cross will wow players with beautiful prerendered graphics and a unique battle system. Elements replace magic and items in battle, and using the same element three times in a row will ultimately increase your power. In addition to using elements, the accuracy of physical attacks is determined by probability, with easier-to-land weak attacks setting up fierce blows.

The plot, while a bit slow to develop, is full of interesting characters. Players will need to travel between the two worlds to advance the plot. While many of these areas will initially appear to look similar, you'll find them to be quite different upon closer examination of the details. For instance, a plant that is extinct in one world thrives in the other.

My only qualm with Chrono Cross is that, despite the complexities of the battle system, veterans will have an easy time with early battles. Still, there's much to like about this SquareSoft epic. --Robb Guido

Pros:

• Lavish, vibrantly colored graphics
• Unique battle system involving elements and casting away role-playing clichés like experience and magic points

Cons:

• Easy battles due to powerful offensive and cure elements
• For hours, players will be saying, "Get to the time travel stuff"

Product Description

Featuring a story line developed by the creator of "Chrono Trigger" and "Xenogears" Chrono Cross has been christened the "Best RPG Creation" by its development team.Format: PSX Genre: RPG (VG)/ Rating: T - Teen UPC: 662248900087 Manufacturer No: 9780

See all Product Description

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PLay this game. Now., August 22, 2000

By 

Jeremy Tollefson (Pasadena, CA United States) - See all my reviews

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Chrono Cross (Video Game)

First, I must admit that I am not an avid video gamer, though I have seen others play plenty. I have played very few RPGs and even fewer held my interest. However, when I played Chrono Trigger on an SNES emulator, I was enthralled, finishing it within a week. When I discovered its semi-sequel was coming out, I could hardly wait the ten months for it to be released in the US. I ordered it in advance in April, received it the Wednesday it came out, and played it nearly straight through to finish by Friday evening. 60 hours of gameplay and about 15 hours of sleep. To say the least--it was all worth it.

First, gameplay-- It is one of the best battle systems that I have seen. It may seem complicated to begin with, but one becomes quickly accostumed to the strategies and nuances of the idea. In a game of chess, the rules are simple but the possibilities are endless. The same goes for Chrono Cross' element system. In addition, being able to see your enemies on screen allows you to fight when and where you want. This is a big advantage if you want to avoid them (if you don't want to fight piddling monsters) or find them (to retrieve extra spells and items). Cross pulls this off even better than its predecessor, Chrono Trigger.

Leveling-- I considered this such an important aspect of the game that I gave it its own category! The reason: you can advance through the entire game avoiding nearly all monsters and still beat the game. Not only is the focus on strategy (the types of spells, colors, and balance between physical attacks) in order to defeat bosses, but you only gain stat bonuses during about five fights between each boss. Continuing to fight others can help with items and extra spells, but does no good to "level up" your characters. I thought this a terrific idea. Your characters still become extremely strong towards the end, but not because of experience. It doesn't exist. Cross is plot-driven, not level-driven.

Storyline-- Speaking of plot, Cross' is pretty good. It can get convoluted at times, and having played Trigger is helpful, though not necessary. Characters are surprisingly three-dimensional and everything fits together if you think about it for long enough. The major ending(s) though, can be dissapointing and because of the plethora of characters, very few of their pasts and conflicts can be resolved. But, all in all, you will enjoy it as mystery after mystery is solved while other take their places. Like a good book, it's difficult to find a place to put the controller down--you want to keep going.

Music-- Outstanding. Better than many movie soundtracks I've heard, both in quality of composition and sound. I highly reccomend buying the soundtrack to listen to during the day, unless you want to leave your Playstation running while doing the dishes. Of course, it would be worth it to do that, too. It's that good.

Graphics-- The people that made the FMV sequences were the same who did those FFVIII. The graphics ares similar to those of FFVIII, in battle sequences, exploration, and the movies--but even better. The colors and attention to detail make the entire game simply . . . beautiful. Let the game run and stare at it if you have to, it can be the only way to appreciate the artwork. Plus, the spells have their own elegantly simple quality. No spell is too long or extravagent, letting battles to continue smoothly. And the detail! When a character pulls something from her pocket, the movements are very human and real. They leave footprints on the beach and the environment casts shadows as you walk through a dark cave or brightened room. Every detail draws you further into the Chrono Cross world.

Do not rent this game--you should definitely buy it. The developers of Chrono Cross claim it can be beaten in 35 hours. They're lying. It took me 67 hours total, including the few times I had to go back to an old save point. And that does not include the amount of time I will spend in the future finding the multiple endings and other storyline branches. (They are a total of 6 different paths you can take, each very different and effecting the outcome of the game) Buy this amazing title for your Playstation and give Square a hand. Or even bow. They deserve all the respect you can give for this fine game.

-Jeremy Tollefson

50 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Worthy Sequel, September 2, 2000

By 

"hobbes_the_tiger" (Calistoga, CA United States) - See all my reviews

= Durability:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars  = Educational:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Chrono Cross (Video Game)

Chrono Cross, like its preddecessor Chrono Trigger, is a very original RPG that excels in almost every aspect; it's not nearly as cinema-intensive as Final Fantasy VIII, but in my oppinion, it's definately a better game. The game has overall better graphics then FFVIII; the soundtrack is one of the best I've ever heard; the story, while somewhat convoluted, is very well done (needless to say, it has some great plot twists); and, finally, the game has an incredible amount of replay (you can play through it three or four times and still not discover everything). Oh yeah, the translation is excellent too. This is one of those rare games where I can't really think of anything derogatory to say about it; everything is pretty much perfect. One word of caution though: while the game is great, if you're a more mainstream gamer looking for a more traditional type of RPG, you may not like this, as it eschews not only the usual styles of battle and experience, but also the usual style of storyline deliverance. But all in all, if this doesn't bother you, you should really enjoy this game.

PROS:

Excellent, original battle system

No random battles!

Challenging, but balanced

The best graphics on PS

Great soundtrack

44 [cool] characters!

9 endings

The most non-linear RPG I've ever played

Incredible replay value

Great story

[great] translation

Tons of sub quests

You can run instantly from any fight (bosses included)

CONS:

The hero's name kinda sucks (but you can change it, so who cares?)

The last boss music is lame (you'll understand once you get to it)

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The RPG you've been waiting for is here., December 5, 2000

By 

"ghettonato" (Wheaton, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chrono Cross (Video Game)

Several years ago when Super Nintendo was king, there was released a game. This game featured superb graphics, sound, and storyline. This game was Chrono Trigger. Now 5 years later, we are treated to the release of the next in the series. This time around, it is Chrono Cross that is prepared to blow gamers away.

The facts:

* From the team that brought you Chrono Trigger * 2 CDs * 40+ playable characters * Excellent music * 11 possible endings

Gameplay:

Very good. The battle system used in this RPG is unique from any other. Each character has a grid, in which he places his elements. There are several different types of elements. Some are attacking, some healing, some defensive, some that make the other elements more powerful or weak. These elements can generally be used by any party member; you get to switch them around between battles. Each of these elements used is one of six colors, and each color is opposite another. Red is opposite Blue, Green opposite Yellow, and Black opposite White. Each character is one of these six colors. Take Serge, the main character, for example. His innate color is White, so therefore he can use the white elements more effectively than other colored elements. If he was fighting a boss who's innate color is Black, Serge's white attacks will work well against the boss, since Black is opposite of White. Conversely, though, the boss' Black attacks will also be very effective against White Serge.

Each character also has up to three special moves, specialized to that character. It may not seem like that many per character, but keep in mind that there are more than 40 playable characters, so that totals over 120 unique elements. Then toss in 9 double techs and 2 triple techs for a whopping total of around 150 (!) unique techs. Wow.

Also important in the battle system are stamina points. You start of with seven points. Depending on the strength of the attacks chosen, your stamina will go down, while the grid lights up more and more with possible elements you can use. When your character is not fighting, the stamina recovers. There also other interesting features of the intricate battle system. It is impossible to mention them all. It sounds very confusing, all of this, and at first it is. But as you play through the game and make yourself comfortable with the system, you will appreciate it as a masterpiece. As for the gameplay outside of the battles, it is perfectly satisfactory. Everything you need, even a little you don't.

Graphics:

Typical to above average, as far as Playstation games go. At times, though, the graphics really shine. The elements are eye candy, and the cinema scenes are always fun to watch. Sound:

Indulge yourself. There is an absolute plethora of tracks, all wonderful. There are even a few remakes of some of the tracks from Chrono Trigger, which veterans of the game will love to hear. All of the music is appropriately placed, and there are lots of nice little sound effects to complement it.

Comments:

This game is great. An excellent storyline sets up multiple excellent endings (depending on when and how you beat the game), and the ride is quite something. Fans of the original Chrono Trigger will definitely want to check it out, as there are so, so many references back to the prequel. Mentioned and/ or seen in the game are Chrono, Lucca, Marle, Epoch, Belthasar, Prometheus (Robo), Ayla, Janus, Schala, Zeal, Glenn, Gaurdia Kingdom, and Lavos. And others. It's great. Don't worry though; the story is still understandable even if you have not played through Chrono Trigger. The game is also very poetic, and the prose is very enjoyable to read.

You won't be disappointed. Although not overly challenging, the game is engrossing and fun, and that's what great games are all about.

Buy it.