Chrono cross review childhood nostalgia6/20/2023 ![]() ![]() ![]() So, when I found out that Kid, one of the central characters in Chrono Cross, was Schala’s clone, and that you were fighting to free the real Schala from the Time Devourer, I had mixed feelings. ![]() I awkwardly, nervously lied and said, “I heard somewhere that there was a way to prevent her from dying so I, uh, just wanted to check.” The Game Counselor™ was like “uh… yeah, I don’t think so.” I tried! Believe me! I tried. I loved Schala so much that I called the Nintendo Tip Line for the first time ever and asked if there was some way to save her from her fate in the Ocean Palace. Even the major inclusion of Schala, one of my favorite characters from Chrono Trigger, seemed somewhat tenuous, at best. There were nods to the first game, but this felt like its own thing, and that was something of a letdown, if I was being honest. Did Crono still have all of those cats? What did Marle’s eventual reign look like? Where did Magus go? It felt, at the time, like Chrono Cross purposely neglected any and all questions of the sort. I wanted to know what my favorite characters were up to after Lavos was defeated. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the game, and it was one of my favorite RPGs, but (like many) I was undeniably disappointed that the story wasn’t a direct continuation of the previous game. My original encounter with Chrono Cross was not quite as magical as my experience with Chrono Trigger was, which seems like a pretty common experience among Chrono fans. The strategy guide, published by BradyGAMES, was released almost a week before the game and I snapped it up and tried my best to avoid flipping through it and ruining any surprises that were in store. I had only recently gotten the internet (insert old man emoji here), but I scoured sites like IGN and Gamespot for any rumor or news, and any gaming magazine that even mentioned it was an instant buy. ![]() I avoid prerelease hype for the most part now, but back then I devoured any scrap of info or media that I could find about this mysterious new sequel. The game wouldn’t release until 2000 in the US, which made the wait that much more excruciating. It also seems wild to me because I am old now and four years seems like such a short period of time, whereas when I was 15 it seemed like a lifetime to wait for a sequel to the best game of all time. Looking at the two games, that seems wild. Chrono Cross was released in 1999 in Japan, just four years after Chrono Trigger. I could probably literally go on until the End of Time (eh? eh? get it?) about Chrono Trigger but suffice it to say I was beyond excited when Square announced a sequel would be coming to the PlayStation, which I had only recently acquired. My intense love for Chrono Trigger made me realize how deep my love for the hobby ran. I’d loved games since I was a small child, but it never felt like much more than a fun distraction. If I had to mark a specific time when I went from a kid who played games to a “Gamer,” it was just then. Not only did it distract me during those tumultuous times, it also fundamentally changed my relationship with video games and my identity on the whole. I got it for my 15 th birthday – my first after my parents had gotten a divorce and just as I was preparing to leave my middle school friends to start anew at a huge, intimidating high school. I played it at a turning point in my life. It’s an objectively great game, but it’s also very important to me on a personal level. It is my favorite game of all time, after all. I’m sure I’ve brought up Chrono Trigger before. ![]()
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