Chrono Trigger

Chrono Trigger (クロノ・トリガー) is a console role-playing game created by Square Co. for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It was released in Japan on March 11, 1995 and in North America on August 22 of the same year (see 1995 in video gaming). The game's story follows a group of young adventurers who are accidentally transported through time and learn that the world will be destroyed in the distant future. Vowing to prevent this disaster, they travel throughout history to discover the roots of the world's fated destruction and the means to save the planet.

Chrono Trigger was developed by a group called the "Dream Team", consisting of Hironobu Sakaguchi, producer and creator of the Final Fantasy series, Yuuji Horii, director of the Dragon Quest games, Akira Toriyama, character designer for Dragon Quest and Dragon Ball, producer Kazuhiko Aoki, and Nobuo Uematsu, the composer of several games in the Final Fantasy series. Assisting the team were music composer Yasunori Mitsuda, who completed most of the score, and scenarist Masato Kato, who would later helm the game's sequels.

At the time of its release, certain aspects of Chrono Trigger were seen as revolutionary — including its multiple endings, plot-related sidequests focused on character development, unique battle system, and detailed graphics. It is still regarded by fans as one of the greatest games of all time, and was rereleased in Japan for the Sony PlayStation during 1999. In 2001, it was released in North America as part of the Final Fantasy Chronicles package, which also includes Final Fantasy IV. It has never been released in PAL territories.

Gameplay
Chrono Trigger features standard RPG gameplay, but with various innovations. As with most RPGs, the player assumes control of the protagonist and his companions throughout the game's two-dimensional fictional world, consisting of various forests, cities, and dungeons. Navigation is conducted via an overworld map, depicting the landscape from a scaled down overhead view. Locations such as cities and forests are represented by more realistically scaled field maps, in which players can converse with locals to procure items and services, solve puzzles and challenges, or encounter enemies. However, Chrono Trigger ' s gameplay deviates from traditional RPGs in that, rather than random encounters, many enemies are openly visible on field maps or lie in wait to ambush the party. Contact with enemies on a field map initiates a battle that occurs directly on the field map itself rather than on a separate battle screen. This concept had previously been featured in such titles as Secret of Mana and Final Fantasy Adventure, but was uncommon at the time for RPGs outside the action RPG genre, and is still quite rare, as most modern single-player titles continue to feature a transition from field or overworld map to battle screens.

More in line with traditional RPG elements, players and enemies may use physical or magical attacks and items to wound targets during battles. For both the playable characters and the CPU-controlled enemies, each attack reduces their number of hit points (a numerically based life bar), which can be restored through potions or spells. When a playable character loses all hit points, he or she faints; if all the player's characters fall in battle, the game ends and must be restored from a previously saved chapter—except for specific storyline-related battles that allow the player to lose. Players can equip characters with weapons, armor, helmets, and accessories that provide special effects (such as increased attack power) in battle, and use various consumable items. These items and equipment may be purchased or found on field maps, often in treasure chests. By exploring new areas and combating enemies, players progress through Chrono Trigger ' s story.

Chrono Trigger uses an Active Time Battle (ATB) system, a staple of Square's Final Fantasy game series beginning with Final Fantasy IV. However, the variation used in Chrono Trigger is different than previous versions; the game is defined on-screen as running "Active Time Battle 2.0". Each character can take action in battle once a personal timer — dependent on the character's speed statistic — counts to zero. Magic and special physical techniques &mdash; such as sword abilities &mdash; are handled through a system called "Techs". Techs deplete a character's Magic points (a numerical meter that works like Hit Points), and often have special areas of effect; some spells damage huddled monsters, while others can harm enemies spread in a line. Enemies often change positions during battle, creating opportunities for tactical Tech use. A unique feature of Chrono Trigger ' s Tech system is that numerous cooperative techniques may be used. Each character receives eight personal Techs which can be used in conjunction with others' to create Double and Triple Techs for greater effect. For instance, Crono's sword-spinning Cyclone Tech can be combined with Lucca's Flame Toss to create Fire Whirl. When characters with compatible Techs have enough Magic Points available to perform their techniques and are able to take action, the game automatically displays the combo as an option.

Chrono Trigger features other unique gameplay traits, including time travel. Players have access to seven eras of the game world's history, and actions taken in the past eras affect future events. Throughout history, players find new allies, complete peripheral quests and search for keynote villains. Time travel is accomplished via portals and pillars of light called "time gates", as well as a time machine named "Epoch". Additionally, Chrono Trigger took advantage of Mode 7 texture mapping, employing the technique in a racing minigame and several cut scenes. The game also supports a New Game+ option. After completing the game, players may start the game over using data from the previous session. Character levels, learned techniques and equipment and items gathered copy over, while acquired money and some story-related items are discarded. Other unusual features of Chrono Trigger are that it can be completed without the protagonist in the party and that it features multiple endings. The player's progress prior to the final battle determines which of thirteen endings — some with slight variations determined by small choices — the player will receive. Moreover, some endings can only be viewed on a New Game+ session, in which the final boss can be challenged earlier than normally allowed. Square used the New Game+ concept in later titles, such as Vagrant Story, Chrono Cross, Parasite Eve and Final Fantasy X-2.

Characters
Chrono Trigger ' s seven playable characters come from several different eras throughout the game world's history. The game begins in 1000 A.D. with Crono, Marle and Lucca. Crono is a silent protagonist, and characterized as a brave, fearless young man who is skilled in the use of the katana, while Marle is actually Princess Nadia of the Guardia kingdom, an active, spirited tomboy often at odds with her father, the king. Lucca is a mechanical genius and — more comfortable around machinery than people — has no known friends besides Crono. She has a passionate interest in science, fueled by a mechanical accident during her childhood that devastated her mother's legs, and her home is now filled with science books, laboratory equipment and machinery. From 2300 A.D., Robo is a robot with a bright and curious personality created to assist humans. The destruction of civilization in 1999 A.D. had rendered him dormant, but after he is found and repaired by Lucca, he joins the group out of gratitude.

At the other end of the historical spectrum is Ayla, a prehistoric woman living in 65,000,000 B.C. Characterized as fierce, confident and unmatched in strength, Ayla is the chief of Ioka Village and has been leading her people in a constant struggle against the Reptites, evolved humanoid dinosaurs seeking dominance over the world as well as the extinction of the human "apes." The last two characters to join the group come from 600 A.D. — Frog and the optional character Magus, though the latter was born in the 12000 B.C. era. Frog is a former squire originally named "Glenn;" his once human body was changed into a humanoid frog by Magus. After Magus slew his friend, Cyrus, and transformed him into a frog, Frog dedicated his life to protecting the queen of Guardia and avenging Cyrus by one day killing Magus. Blaming himself for failing his friend, Frog is depicted as chivalrous but mired in regret over the past. Magus is a powerful sorcerer and the leader of the Mystics, a race of demons and intelligent animals who war with humanity in this time period. Magus was originally called "Janus," and was a child to the Queen of the Zeal kingdom in 12000 B.C. However, the extraterrestrial entity known as "Lavos" destroyed his kingdom and sent him to the era of 600 A.D. when he was a child. He was found and raised by Ozzie, the leader of the Mystics at that time. Desiring vengeance against Lavos, and concerned over the unknown fate of his sister, Schala, he is portrayed as cynical and brooding.

Story
Chrono Trigger ' s story begins with the Millennial Fair of 1000 A.D., a celebration of the millennium since the founding of the Kingdom of Guardia. The protagonist, Crono, is awakened by his mother and proceeds to Leene Square, where the fair is being held. After accidentally bumping into a girl named "Marle", they quickly become friends and visit the main attraction of the fair which is a new teleportation device constructed by Crono's inventor friend, Lucca. An eager volunteer for testing the teleportation device, Marle disappears when the demonstration goes awry due to the machine's reaction with a pendant she was wearing, teleporting her through a mysterious portal leaving the pendant behind. Determined to rescue his new friend, Crono retrieves the discarded pendant and steps onto the teleportation device. Lucca activates the machine once more, sending Crono through the same portal that had consumed Marle. He reappears in a forest grove, and upon finding a nearby town he learns that he has gone back in time four hundred years. At Guardia Castle, Crono finds Marle dressed in royal garb and discovers that a search party had found Marle, and — mistaking her for the missing queen, Leene — brought her to the castle. A moment later, Marle vanishes once again and Lucca arrives, having created a device called the "Gate Key" that allows her to open nearby time portals. Lucca determines that Marle is actually the princess of Guardia in 1000 A.D., and that the death of her missing ancestor could cause Marle to never exist. With the help of a talking, humanoid frog called "Frog", Crono and Lucca discover that Queen Leene was kidnapped by the "Mystics", intelligent animals and demonic creatures who worship the wizard Magus. They then rescue her, save Marle and return to their own time period.

There, Crono is placed on trial for allegedly kidnapping Marle. Through the manipulations of the king's chancellor, Crono is sentenced to death, but later breaks free from prison. While making his escape, he locates Lucca and Marle, and the three flee into a nearby forest, where they are cornered by royal soldiers. There, the king asks Marle to return to his side, but she refuses due to his ill consideration of her friends and personal wishes. The three adventurers then stumble into a time gate activated by Lucca's Gate Key, and escape to a future era. There, they are shocked to find a devastated world filled with the ruins of advanced technology. While investigating a large dome structure, they discover a video recording of the destruction of the game world's surface, caused by a creature called "Lavos," who had been dwelling inside the planet's mantle until 1999 A.D. Determined to stop Lavos before it can destroy the world, the group enlists a robot from the future called "Robo" and — via another "time gate" — arrive at the End of Time, where an enigmatic old man offers advice to the player for the game's quest. Additionally, various time gates located here allow access to all eras significant to the storyline.

Crono and his friends return to 1000 A.D., and soon discover that Magus apparently created Lavos during the Middle Ages. They return to 600 A.D. and learn that they must obtain a sword called the "Masamune" in order to defeat Magus, but that only the legendary "Hero" can wield it. After helping Guardia's knights defend against an assault from Magus' army, they climb the Denadoro mountains and discover from its guardians, Masa and Mune, that the Masamune is broken. It is soon revealed that the legendary Hero is actually Frog, who keeps the hilt of the Masamune, and that the sword was made by Melchior, a swordsmith living in Crono's time. Returning to 1000 A.D., Melchior informs Crono and his companions that they require Dreamstone, a rock only found in ancient times, to repair the Masamune. The player must then guide the adventurers to 65,000,000 B.C. via a time gate at the End of Time in order to locate the mineral. There the party meets the cavewoman Ayla, who gives Crono Dreamstone after he wins a drinking contest with her. However, the Gate Key is stolen the next day by Reptites, advanced humanoid dinosaurs who are at war with humans, whom they refer to as "apes". Ayla helps Crono retrieve the Gate Key, and he and his friends return to Melchior's hut. With the aid of Lucca and Robo, Melchior repairs the blade, and Frog agrees to accompany Crono to Magus' castle and wield the Masamune against him.

There, they fight Magus' generals — Ozzie, Flea and Slash — and an army of Mystics before facing Magus himself, who was in the process of casting a spell involving Lavos. Upon his defeat, he reveals that he did not create Lavos, but merely intended to summon it, and that the creature lies within the planet, siphoning its energy. The interruption of Magus' summon spell causes a massive time gate to open, swallowing Magus' castle and everyone within. Crono and his friends awaken in 65,000,000 B.C. once again, and after helping Ayla defeat the Reptites for a final time at their central fortress, it is revealed to the player that Lavos is an extraterrestrial life form that arrived on the world during this era. Discovering a new time gate at Lavos' impact crater, they visit the ancient, enlightened Kingdom of Zeal in 12000 B.C., where they learn more about the creature. This floating kingdom had recently discovered Lavos, and — seeking to drain its power — constructed a conduit for the energy known as the "Mammon Machine" and a facility to house it called the "Ocean Palace". A mysterious prophet in Zeal warns the kingdom's queen about the adventurers, and they are forced to return to 65,000,000 B.C., with the time gate they used then sealed. Unable to return to Zeal via the time gate, they go to the End of Time for advice and learn of the Wings of Time, a time machine constructed by Belthasar, a Guru of Zeal sent to the far future. Locating the machine in 2300 A.D., they rename it "Epoch" and return to 12000 B.C., where they learn that the Ocean Palace is soon to be activated. Rushing to the facility, they witness Lavos awakening, disturbed by the Mammon Machine. At this time, the prophet reveals himself to be Magus and attempts to destroy Lavos, but is defeated and his powers drained.

Crono then challenges the creature, attempting to save the lives of his companions, but Crono is killed, his body vaporized by the monster. Lavos then destroys the entire kingdom, transports its prince, Janus, to the Middle Ages, and sends the three Gurus — Melchior, Belthasar and a man named "Gaspar" — to various places throughout time. Before the remaining party members and Magus can be killed, Schala, Zeal's princess, saves them by transporting them out of the palace and to the only remaining human settlement while she remains behind. However, Crono's friends have little time to grieve before Dalton, a former leader of security in the kingdom, arrives at the village and declares himself ruler of the world. Having saved the Blackbird — an ornate airplane — from destruction, he interns the party aboard and takes to the sky. Additionally, Dalton impounds the Epoch, and has his henchmen give it flight capabilities. The party soon escapes, however, and defeats Dalton in a battle atop the redesigned Epoch, which the adventurers then use to accidentally blast the Blackbird while they escape. Distraught over Crono's death, they meet with Magus, who reveals that he is Janus Zeal, and grew up in the Middle Ages waiting for a chance to get revenge on Lavos. Moreover, he offers the party members the opportunity to settle their feud in a final battle, and informs them that Gaspar could possibly help bring Crono back. Should the player refuse to fight Magus, he then joins the party. Visiting the old man at the End of Time, the player learns that he is Gaspar, transported here during Lavos' destruction of Zeal. He gives them an egg-shaped device called the "Chrono Trigger", which he explains allows for a special form of time travel. Following his instructions, they soon use the device to visit the moment of Crono's death and freeze it in time, extracting him from the moment just before he would have been killed.

With the team reassembled, the group visits Gaspar once again, who relates various issues affecting the world across the eras. He suggests that participating in these optional sidequests will help the party prepare for Lavos. Traveling to 600 A.D., they defeat a creature named "Retinite" who caused a forest to become a desert. To help cultivate the forest and ensure its survival, the party leaves Robo behind, and he spends the next several hundred years working to maintain the land. Returning to pick him up in 1000 A.D., the group holds a campfire reunion in the forest and speculate that the gates through time were created by an entity other than Lavos, who wished for the adventurers to travel through time and fulfill a specific purpose. After the group falls asleep, a mysterious red time gate appears, which Lucca enters. Traveling to 990 A.D., Lucca has the opportunity to save her mother from the accident that cost her the use of her legs. The incident prompts Lucca's younger self to take up an interest in machinery so that she can prevent any future accidents. Additionally, the party confronts the few remaining members of Magus' army in 600 A.D. His former generals, now realizing that he was only using the Mystics, attack the group once again, but die in the battle that follows. In 2300 A.D., the journey takes them to the facility where Robo was constructed. There, they discover that the programming of his AI creator, Mother Brain, has become corrupt, and that she is using the facility as an extermination plant for humans. With much regret, Robo destroys both his creator and reprogrammed friend, Atropos, shutting down the facility's system. Later, in 1000 A.D., the party learns that the ghost of Frog's friend, Cyrus, is haunting ancient ruins near a town. Traveling there, Frog visits the grave he had constructed for his friend, and helps his spirit find peace, even if he did not kill Magus.

On another journey, the party embarks to find the Sun Stone, a mythical artifact once used as a power source in Zeal. They locate it in a lost stronghold of the kingdom, uprooted from the sea floor in 2300 A.D., but learn that its power has burnt out. Taking it to 65,000,000 B.C., they leave it to recharge over the course of millions of years, but later find that it was looted in 1000 A.D. In order to coax it from its captor, the greedy Porre mayor, they travel to 600 A.D. and teach charity to his ancestor by giving food to him and his wife. With the Sun Stone secured, in 600 A.D. they soon discover another legendary artifact, the Rainbow Shell. Located in the underground remains of the Reptite fortress — preserved since its destruction in 65,000,000 B.C. — the large shell is too large for the group to remove, so they procure the aid of the Middle Age's King Guardia XXI, who stores the large shell in Guardia Castle. However, when the party returns to 1000 A.D., they find that Marle's father, King Guardia XXXIII, is being put on trial by his own chancellor for allegedly attempting to sell the shell, now a royal heirloom. Crono and his companions soon publicly reveal the chancellor to be a Mystic imposter, defeat him and help Marle and her father put their differences aside.

Finally, the adventurers infiltrate the arisen Ocean Palace — now called the "Black Omen" — where Queen Zeal still resides, having survived Lavos' destruction of her kingdom and become a puppet to the creature's power. The party defeats the corrupted queen and destroys the Mammon Machine at the heart of the palace, causing the entire facility to be disintegrated. A final confrontation with Lavos itself follows, in which the party first penetrates the creature's shell, and then discovers that Lavos has been harvesting DNA on the planet in self-directed evolution while absorbing the energy produced. Presented with the results of Lavos' controlled genetics, they confront its true form and finally destroy the creature.

The actual ending of the game depends on when the player defeated Lavos, as well as some other choices that can produce minor variations. The first time through the game, team members say their goodbyes during the last night of the Millennial Fair and return to their own eras in time. Additionally, if Magus joined the party earlier, it is revealed that he now plans to search for his missing sister, Schala. Crono's mom then accidentally enters the time gate at the fair before it closes, however, prompting Crono, Marle and Lucca to set out in the Epoch on another adventure to find her while fireworks light up the night sky.

Audio
Chrono Trigger ' s soundtrack was scored by Yasunori Mitsuda and the Final Fantasy series' veteran composer Nobuo Uematsu. The game was the first for which Mitsuda had served as composer, but after he contracted stomach ulcers, Uematsu was brought onto the project to compose ten songs. At the time of the game's release, the quantity of its tracks and sound effects were unprecedented, and the soundtrack was released as a three-disc collection. Additionally, a one-disc acid jazz arrangement called "Brink of Time" was also released. Later, another one-disc soundtrack was produced to complement the PlayStation rerelease of the game, featuring the orchestral tracks used in cut scenes. Yasunori Mitsuda also composed four new pieces for the game's bonus features, though they were not included on the rerelease soundtrack. Recently, Yasunori Mitsuda arranged versions of music from the Chrono series for Play! video game music concerts, presenting the main theme, "Frog's Theme", and "To Far Away Times".

The soundtrack has been heavily remixed by fans, with more than 300 tributes, and a handful of cover performance albums sold at retail. These include Time & Space - A Tribute to Yasunori Mitsuda and Chrono Symphonic. The latter was released by remix website OverClocked ReMix, and sought to provide an orchestrated score to an amateur script for a hypothetical Chrono Trigger film. Additionally, hip hop production team Compromised created a bastard pop album known as "The Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1", produced by mixing the a cappella from rap songs with the instrumental remixed versions of Chrono Trigger songs. Japanese fans often sell their remix work in compilation albums popularly called "dojin" by western fans.

Reception and criticism
Chrono Trigger has sold more than 2.96 million copies in Japan and 290,000 abroad. The first two million copies sold in Japan were delivered in only two months. The game was met with substantial success upon release in North America, and its rerelease on the PlayStation as part of the Final Fantasy Chronicles package topped the NPD TRSTS PlayStation sales charts for over six weeks. This version was later rereleased again in 2003 as part of Sony's Greatest Hits line, and, in recent times, Chrono Trigger has placed highly on all three of multimedia website IGN's "top 100 games of all time" lists. On the first, in 2002, the game placed 4th, while placing 6th on the second in early 2005, 13th on the third list in late 2005, and 2nd on the list for 2006.

Chrono Trigger was not only a best-seller, but also well received critically. Nintendo Power called it Square's "biggest game ever", citing improved graphics, sound, and gameplay over past RPG titles, while Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine described it as "original and extremely captivating", expressing particularly favorable responses to its graphics, sound and story. Additionally, IGN commented that "it may be filled with every imaginable console RPG cliché, but Chrono Trigger manages to stand out among the pack" with "a [captivating] story that doesn't take itself too serious" and "one of the best videogame soundtracks ever produced".

However, other critics, such as the staff of video game websites RPGFan and RPGamer, have questioned the game's length, as it is shorter than most RPGs, and noted that its difficulty level is minuscule. Overall, however, they regarded Chrono Trigger ' s replay value as high due to the game's multiple endings, its gameplay as simple but innovative, and its story as "fantastic yet not overly complex".

Moreover, the game was included in GameSpot's "The Greatest Games of All Time" list released in April 2006, and also appeared as 28th on an "All Time Top 100" list in a poll conducted by Japanese magazine Famitsu.

Different versions
Prior to Chrono Trigger ' s market release, a beta version was given to magazine reviewers and game stores a few months before the final release. An unfinished build of the game, it contains numerous differences from the final version, such as unused music tracks and a location called "Singing Mountain". Curious fans later explored the ROM image through various methods, discovering two unused world map character sprites and presumed additional sprites for certain non-player characters. This has led some to rumor that an eighth playable character exists or was intended for play, but there is no evidence to this claim. The game's formal release — now commonly sold on auction sites — included two world maps, and Japanese buyers who preordered the game received holographic foil cards. This release used a 32-megabit cartridge with battery-backed RAM for saved games, and didn't require any special on-cartridge coprocessors.

An enhanced port of Chrono Trigger for the Sony PlayStation was released in Japan in 1999. This port was later released in North America in 2001 — along with a remastered version of Final Fantasy IV — under the package title "Final Fantasy Chronicles". This version included anime cut scenes created by original character designer Akira Toriyama's Bird Studio, as well as several bonus features, accessible after achieving various endings in the game. This version has received negative criticism for lengthy load times not present in the original. The PlayStation version's color palette also suffered in the translation, and a loss of detail was noticeable from the original.

There have been two notable attempts by Chrono Trigger fans to unofficially remake the game for PC with a 3D graphics engine. The most prominent projects, Chrono Resurrection and Chrono Trigger Remake Project, were forcibly terminated by Square Enix by way of a cease and desist order.

Sequels
Chrono Trigger inspired a variety of sequels and spin-off titles. A 16-minute OVA entitled "Nuumamonja: Time and Space Adventures" was released in 1996. Additionally, three titles were released for the Satellaview in 1995, and a fourth in 1996. The first three were Chrono Trigger: Jet Bike Special, a racing game based on a minigame from the original, Chrono Trigger: Character Library, featuring profiles on characters and monsters from the game, and Chrono Trigger: Music Library, a collection of music from the game's soundtrack. The contents of Character Library and Music Library were later included as extras in the PlayStation rerelease of Chrono Trigger.

The fourth title, Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Houseki, is a side story to Chrono Trigger created to resolve a loose subplot from its predecessor. A short, text-based game relying on minimal graphics and atmospheric music, the game never received an official release outside Japan, though it was later fan translated to English. Elements of its plot, including characters and setting, were later adapted to form the early sequences of a better known PlayStation sequel, Chrono Cross. Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Houseki was consequently removed from the series' main continuity and referred to as another dimension during Chrono Cross.

There are no plans for additional titles in series, despite a 2001 statement from Hironobu Sakaguchi that the development team of Chrono Cross wanted to make a new Chrono game and that script ideas were being considered. The same year, Square applied for a trademark for the names "Chrono Break" and "Chrono Brake" in the United States and Japan, respectively. However, the United States trademark was dropped in 2003 and no new titles have gone into development as of October, 2006.