* * * * * Chrono Trigger - Week 5 * * * * *

(Plain English: Scroll down to the bottom of the "OP" if you're lagging behind for previous weeks)


TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prologue:
i Okami Club
ii Fire Emblem Club

Epic Center:
01 Ogre Battle
24 Secret of Mana
39 Phantasy Star IV (cont'd)
67 Earthbound (cont'd)
99 Breath of Fire II (cont'd)
110 Paper Mario (cont'd)
123 Golden Sun (cont'd)
136 Chrono Trigger

(ALL VINTAGE EC GAMES ARE CONTINUED IN THEIR OFFICIAL DISCUSSION THREADS!)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Hello, true believers! Welcome to Negative World's newest RPG-centric Club Hub, springing off the heels of the Fire Emblem Club. Way back when, Nintendo Power introduced a monthly walkthrough / in depth Role Play Game section (right around the beefiest SNES RPG era), but since they aren't around anymore to use it, Negative World will bring it out of the ashes, dust it off, and roll with it (two things of note: #1, this is not in reaction to Nintendo Force Magazine at all -- I know that because I thought of it in the shower this morning, so THERE; and #2, I just looked up "Epic Center RPG" on Yahoo, and there is apparently another RPG-based site that has that, ugh. I guess we're looking at a "Ghostbusters" / "Real Ghostbusters" thing now... Whatever..).

For anyone who grew playing SNES RPGs, and were a fan of them, they surely resonated to the point where they still hold office as some of your favorite games of your entire videogame life, systems, generations, and decades later. The NW Epic Center (run primarily by myself, with the aid of some special friends occasionally) will help to expose some of those games that didn't quite get the recognition they deserved, and also to relive some of the greatest games EVER as we play through them again -- together -- and open up a whole new dialogue on these lost treasures.


Next up..



Chrono Trigger is held by many (myself included) as The Greatest RPG of All Time, pun not intended. It is a benchmark title in the genre, and even after 20 years the game is discussed daily and held in high regard, even in the face of juiced-up, HD "masterpieces." Is simpler sometimes better? Sure, but we're not talking "Dragon Warrior" simple here; we're talking 16-bit perfection at its finest. I'm personally a bit worried about pursuing this game once more; it's been a long time since my last jog through it, and I'm afraid I might have the rosiest pair of glasses that any shot of nostalgia could ever produce. We find out later this month, for better or for worse. (C'mon, it's gonna be fine -- we're talking Chrono Trigger here!! THE BEST, JERRY, THE BEST!!)

Sunday, August 30th marks the start of Week 1 (if you prefer to start your own quest AFTER Sunday, like Monday, or Tuesday, or Wednesday, thats fine!). Golden Sun ran 6 Weeks. GameDadGrant will be our DUNGEON MASTER for this one, and we figure the playthrough to run about the same length. Less than two months. I'm told the total quest should last you between 20 and 30 hours.


See ya soon!!


CHRONO TRIGGER

Dungeon Master: GameDadGrant

You Did It! Chrono Trigger Complete:
VofEscaflowne
Scrawnton
Mop it up
Ludist210


Week 4 Complete:
GameDadGrant
mrbiggsly
DapperDave

Week 3 Complete:
Mr_Mustache (and Mrs_Mustache!)

Week 2 Complete:
Smerd
Dark weres
warerare
sirmastersephiroth

Week 1 Complete:
Anand

Triggermen:
HammerLord
Koovaps

Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5

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@VofEscaflowne

Time to grind!

@GameDadGrant

I'll give it another shot. I ran out of items to revive. I have a ton of Elixirs and Megalixirs if those aren't cheating

@VofEscaflowne

Good luck!

Do you always take Magus to the final battle? I found he's not very useful against Lavos.

Aaaaaand done! That was a low level one for me! Frog was the lowest on my team at 43 so that was a nice challenge.

So not only was I a heartless bastard by not even saving Crono, I also left Robo in the woods after dropping him off to work Though he popped back up in my team for the ending.

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, but I ended up beating the game =)

Such a fantastic game and the ending theme is fantastic! Replaying this really got me excited for Project Setsuna!

@VofEscaflowne

Congratulations! You heartless bastard!

@Scrawnton

This is the first time I've heard of Project Setsuna!

I'll have to keep my eye on that...and maybe finally cave and get a Vita. Maybe.

@GameDadGrant

So Grant, are you done then? If so, what ending did you end up with?

I'm going to make sure we get 15 cats jumping into a portal. If that doesn't happen, all of the hours spent betting on Catalack, chugging pop, and slamming the test of strength will be for nothing!

EDIT- Oh yeah, and we'll probably make a dent on this Friday, and another huge gash out of it on Sunday w/ no NASCAR to compete with. Won't be done on time, I don't think, as I'll have to invest some Barney Rubble time on Mt. Whoaaaaaah!

@Mr_Mustache

I used the bucket to go to 'The Day of Lavos' and beat the game that way. Got the "best" ending....the canon one, I suppose.

Antiquity? I thought it was the Ice Ages! Either way, the SNES translation gets a little sloppy and vague at this point in the game, so there are some things that make a little more sense the way they're stated in this DS version. For one example, the scene with Dalton when he captures the party. I always thought it was odd how they turn to look the other way when they get shot by the fireballs, but here, Dalton says something like "Look behind you!" A bit of comedy I s'pose that the SNES version forgot to include.

As far as the decision on the northwest cape... I always find this a tough one. I think it makes the most sense story-wise to choose "yes" and have Frog fight Magus, particularly because of its changes on the ending. But then that's one less party member to max out! I decided to choose the "no" option this time, since Magus is nice to have for the snow peak.

Also of note, it's possible to go through the Black Omen three times. Just start with the one in 1,000 AD, and then it will still be there in 600 and 12,000, so you can go through it there too. Most bosses won't return though, but plenty of lessor mooks to beat up. I always like to do that to be extra prepared!

@VofEscaflowne Interesting, I don't think I've done that. I assume that gives a different ending from "normal"?

@VofEscaflowne I was considering that, but I figured you could make up for that by stealing the stat tabs/capsules. Those might not be from repeatable enemies, though.

was it really only 5 weeks long? Sometimes I forget how short this game is. I've been pacing myself to be careful not to play ahead but WHOOPS, I've dropped the game until the forum has basically finished it, since you can play through this whole thing in a weekend without even being on a new game plus. Perhaps devote a week to new game plus and see what other endings people discover.

Still plugging away. Got Magus, rescued Crono, and now I'm just working through a few sidequests before I tackle Lavos.

That's a lot of five-letter words getting censored...

I was chugging along so well, then the break happened and I keep forgetting to finish this

The Rust Tyrano just owned me...need to tweak my party. Right now it's Frog, Ayla, and Marle. I think I'm about to the point where I kill it, but it just keeps getting stronger before I can knock it down.

Not surprisingly, since I was near the end I got sidetracked by some other stuff, including the TriForce Heroes demo, but last night I went back to this for that final push to complete it. I used the Black Omen (x3) so I got the standard ending (number 1 according to DS log). Time from Activity Log shows nearly 30 hours, so I took my time with this one.

It's still a great game, but not as much as my idealised memories would have me believe. Not that I expected it to be, as I knew my more experienced mind would want more out of the story, particularly when it comes to the game having a silent protagonist. With the events that play out, especially later on, it just doesn't fit to have a mute main character, and becomes jarring. The cast as a whole could use a little more depth, but they have some good moment-to-moment dialogue, and the game's full of charm and some humour. And of course, as with any plot involving time travel, there are plenty of plot holes. But that's okay, I'm able to suspend my disbelief pretty far, and the game doesn't try to find ways to explain everything so they're less noticeable.

Story aside, the game is amazing. Top-class visuals from the SNES that still look pleasant today, still one of the most incredible and varied soundtracks around, good world design to explore, some interesting ideas for battles, etc. What really stands out though is the pacing, there's never any pointless backtracking or reusing of areas for a random MacGuffin thrown in to extent the play clock, everything that happens has meaning and makes sense in the overall plot. Even the few optional parts have their own sense of purpose, not just offering items as rewards but more character-building moments as well. It may make the game a bit short, but that in itself makes the game a lot more replayable as well.

It may not be exactly what I remember, but I'll always have those memories. Chrono Trigger is still a great game, and modern RPGs could learn a thing or two from it. I'd also still like to see a direct sequel, because I think there are some interesting ways to expand on the ideas of the battle system.

Still plugging away...life has just gotten busy. I finished all of the post-Crono-rescue sidequests, so I'm on to the Black Omen to finish this (again). Right now my party is Crono (with the Rainbow Sword),Frog (with the powered-up Masamune) and Magus.

@ludist210

Cool man. Don't neglect Ayla though...! That Falcon Strike Double-Tech is nothing to sneeze at!

@GameDadGrant

I switch party members in and out...Ayla is one of my favorites, especially once her fists upgrade. She's a beast.

@ludist210

I really like Ayla, too. She's so Charm-ing!

(But seriously, I got all of the prehistoric weapons before I was supposed to simply by Charming dudes in the volcano. I'll have another crack on Mt. Whoooooooa soon.)

I'm inside of Lavos about ready to wrap this up. I should have it done tomorrow at the latest.

@Mr_Mustache

Yeah, Ayla is a great character. Especially for stealing stuff. Spoilers below:

In the Black Omen, charm lots of enemies. You get good stuff like Turbo Ethers, Megalixers, and some pretty good accessories. But the best stuff in my book comes from the Panels, the enemies on the wall. Charm them successfully and you'll get a Speed Capsule. I was able to max out Crono, Ayla, Frog, and Robo's speed (and got Magus up to 15).

Also, this is a bit of a risky proposition, but use charm on both of Queen Zeal's hands when you fight her second form. One hand gives a Prism Helm, and the other gives a Prismatic Dress, the best armor in the game for the ladies. They both have nasty counterattacks though.