Show Posts
This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.
1
General Discussion / Let's Play 2024 - Chrono Trigger
« on: December 25, 2023, 03:58:35 pm »
Welp, we're officially here! It's Christmas 2023 and I'm jumping into a playthrough of Chrono Trigger. Do you want to just keep using this thread or start a new thread?
EDIT: Regardless, I'll go ahead and kick us off...
The opening song ("Morning Sunlight") always stands out to me. It's strangely nostalgic. Really, all of the 1000AD music is stellar -- "Peaceful Times" and "Memories of Green" both have strange qualities to them that strikes me very soul. I like to just stop in the worldmap and listen to Memories of Green and watch the clouds slowly go by.
Damn, this game is a masterpiece.
I remember the first time I heard of Chrono Trigger was around Christmas in 1995; my friend David and I were in the van riding somewhere, and he was telling me all about it - specifically about the events in 2300AD with the ruined future. I was picturing Mega Man in my head, and I wasn't overly familiar with jRPGs (but had recently played LoZ: A Link to the Past, so I understood isometric view).
I remember asking my mom if we could rent it from the local game store, which she did when she was buying groceries. I came home from school and she had handed it to me. My entire family went to a basketball game, but I convinced my parents to let me stay home and play the game. I ate pizza pockets and the game rocked my world. I had never played anything like it. Like you, I spent hours exploring the Millennial Fair, trying all the various games and racking up Gold Points. I spent considerable time fighting Gato and eating that old man's lunch to refill my HP/MP.
I played for hours and eventually time traveled to 600AD. I remember it taking me me ages to find the hairpin in Manoria Cathedral; I didn't know where to go and kept running around Truce and Guardia Castle thinking that I was somehow missing something important.
Anyway, I played today and got to that spot. I haven't grabbed the hairpin yet, but will next time I play. Hopefully tomorrow.
Oh, and btw - I'm playing it on my mobile, so it's the most current PC version that includes all of the 3DS enhancements.
Anyway, I've started palying
EDIT: Regardless, I'll go ahead and kick us off...
The opening song ("Morning Sunlight") always stands out to me. It's strangely nostalgic. Really, all of the 1000AD music is stellar -- "Peaceful Times" and "Memories of Green" both have strange qualities to them that strikes me very soul. I like to just stop in the worldmap and listen to Memories of Green and watch the clouds slowly go by.
Damn, this game is a masterpiece.
I remember the first time I heard of Chrono Trigger was around Christmas in 1995; my friend David and I were in the van riding somewhere, and he was telling me all about it - specifically about the events in 2300AD with the ruined future. I was picturing Mega Man in my head, and I wasn't overly familiar with jRPGs (but had recently played LoZ: A Link to the Past, so I understood isometric view).
I remember asking my mom if we could rent it from the local game store, which she did when she was buying groceries. I came home from school and she had handed it to me. My entire family went to a basketball game, but I convinced my parents to let me stay home and play the game. I ate pizza pockets and the game rocked my world. I had never played anything like it. Like you, I spent hours exploring the Millennial Fair, trying all the various games and racking up Gold Points. I spent considerable time fighting Gato and eating that old man's lunch to refill my HP/MP.
I played for hours and eventually time traveled to 600AD. I remember it taking me me ages to find the hairpin in Manoria Cathedral; I didn't know where to go and kept running around Truce and Guardia Castle thinking that I was somehow missing something important.
Anyway, I played today and got to that spot. I haven't grabbed the hairpin yet, but will next time I play. Hopefully tomorrow.
Oh, and btw - I'm playing it on my mobile, so it's the most current PC version that includes all of the 3DS enhancements.
Anyway, I've started palying
2
General Discussion / Let's Play 2023 - LUNAR: Eternal Blue Complete
« on: December 24, 2022, 06:05:52 pm »
Vidkid and I have had an ongoing chat in the "What are you playing" video game thread, and we have been planning all year for an informal "Let's Play" of a Lunar series video game. Well that time is finally upon us!
We'll be playing through the game separately and somewhat slowly, posting screenshots, thoughts, and general hearty discussion here in this very thread. If you'd like to join in, please feel free! If not, feel free to still to participate in discussions.
About the game: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar:_Eternal_Blue
If you aren't familiar with the Lunar series, Eternal Blue is a fantastic jRPG originally released on the Sega CD and later re-released on the PSX as a "Complete" version with updated graphics, events, etc. Although a sequel to Silver Star Story, the two are almost entirely independent.
"The game follows the adventure of Hiro, a young explorer and adventurer who meets Lucia, visitor from the far-away Blue Star. Together they become entangled in Lucia's mission to stop Zophar, an evil, all-powerful being, from destroying the world. During their journey across the world of Lunar, Hiro and Lucia are joined by an ever-expanding cast of supporting characters."
It's a heart-warming story with romance, excitement, danger, and fantastical elements.
We'll be playing through the game separately and somewhat slowly, posting screenshots, thoughts, and general hearty discussion here in this very thread. If you'd like to join in, please feel free! If not, feel free to still to participate in discussions.
About the game: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar:_Eternal_Blue
If you aren't familiar with the Lunar series, Eternal Blue is a fantastic jRPG originally released on the Sega CD and later re-released on the PSX as a "Complete" version with updated graphics, events, etc. Although a sequel to Silver Star Story, the two are almost entirely independent.
"The game follows the adventure of Hiro, a young explorer and adventurer who meets Lucia, visitor from the far-away Blue Star. Together they become entangled in Lucia's mission to stop Zophar, an evil, all-powerful being, from destroying the world. During their journey across the world of Lunar, Hiro and Lucia are joined by an ever-expanding cast of supporting characters."
It's a heart-warming story with romance, excitement, danger, and fantastical elements.
3
Chrono Trigger Modification / Crimson Echoes Plus
« on: July 06, 2021, 11:16:48 pm »
You know, I've seen a lot of talk on Reddit over the past few years about Crimson Echoes vs Flames of Eternity. I'm curious if there'd be any interest in taking the Crimson Echoes beta that leaked and giving it some 2021 polish (QoL). Or we could take Flames of Eternity and work backwards/forwards from there?
Maybe Agent12 and some of the others would be interested in coming back for a little hacking fun, or perhaps not. Plus, now we have a plethora of Mauron's TF addons that weren't available 10+ years ago.
A few ideas:
1.) New techs as originally intended.
2.) Triple techs for Magus!
3.) Human Glenn replacing Frog (or perhaps even an event or quest to show him turning back)
4.) Overall combat balance (let's face it, vanilla Crimson Echoes was hard)
5.) A world map for the Reptite Dimension! (especially now that we can have more than 7 overworld maps)
6.) Some new, enhanced tilesets -- perhaps some new, non-ruined 2300ad tiles for Chronopolis, for example?
7.) New and/or expanded events (I know I always hated the first few chapters of the game; they felt rushed and convoluted, so perhaps we can reshape them a bit to make them flow better?)
8.) Perhaps a new file NG+ ending (a la Chrono Trigger DS' Dream Devourer ending) that closes the door on Crimson Echoes and the legacy of King Zeal? Not sure how feasible this would be technically, but worth throwing out there.
9.) Eighth character patch included with an eighth character? (another long shot, but worth a mention).
Curious to see other's thoughts.
Anyway, just a few ideas I've had buzzing about my head. I feel like a full-length new-story hack is out of the question nowadays, and this could really create buzz and overshadow Flames of Eternity.
Maybe Agent12 and some of the others would be interested in coming back for a little hacking fun, or perhaps not. Plus, now we have a plethora of Mauron's TF addons that weren't available 10+ years ago.
A few ideas:
1.) New techs as originally intended.
2.) Triple techs for Magus!
3.) Human Glenn replacing Frog (or perhaps even an event or quest to show him turning back)
4.) Overall combat balance (let's face it, vanilla Crimson Echoes was hard)
5.) A world map for the Reptite Dimension! (especially now that we can have more than 7 overworld maps)
6.) Some new, enhanced tilesets -- perhaps some new, non-ruined 2300ad tiles for Chronopolis, for example?
7.) New and/or expanded events (I know I always hated the first few chapters of the game; they felt rushed and convoluted, so perhaps we can reshape them a bit to make them flow better?)
8.) Perhaps a new file NG+ ending (a la Chrono Trigger DS' Dream Devourer ending) that closes the door on Crimson Echoes and the legacy of King Zeal? Not sure how feasible this would be technically, but worth throwing out there.
9.) Eighth character patch included with an eighth character? (another long shot, but worth a mention).
Curious to see other's thoughts.
Anyway, just a few ideas I've had buzzing about my head. I feel like a full-length new-story hack is out of the question nowadays, and this could really create buzz and overshadow Flames of Eternity.
4
Chrono / Gameplay Casual Discussion / Ayla is the Best Girl and the Ultimate Waifu
« on: August 19, 2020, 12:31:55 am »
Fight me.
Reason #1: She's the only character in Chrono Trigger so awesome, she doesn't need character growth; she's already at the pinnacle of awesomesauce when you meet her, and that only carries over through the game.
Reason #1: She's the only character in Chrono Trigger so awesome, she doesn't need character growth; she's already at the pinnacle of awesomesauce when you meet her, and that only carries over through the game.
5
Chrono News / The Release of a Chrono FPS -- Chrono Trigger: Reptite Rage
« on: November 08, 2019, 07:00:46 pm »
In an exciting late 2019 gift, our good friend Doc_Cigarette has given us yet another Chrono FPS game! A sequel to his fast and furious Crimson Cold War, this new title, called Reptite Rage, offers roughly 37 levels of SNES-era FPS fun.
Pick it up here!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cfuh5ne4htngaqn/ct2beta.zip?dl=0
And make sure to try out the first game in the series: Crimson Cold War!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/falkuy1y3icyo6o/ChronoTriggerCCWv0.5.zip?dl=0
Pick it up here!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cfuh5ne4htngaqn/ct2beta.zip?dl=0
And make sure to try out the first game in the series: Crimson Cold War!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/falkuy1y3icyo6o/ChronoTriggerCCWv0.5.zip?dl=0
6
Chrono News / Happy Birthday Chrono Trigger! ~ The Release of Chrono Trigger Plus 2.0
« on: August 21, 2019, 10:50:01 am »It's hard to believe that Chrono Trigger turns 24 this year. A quarter of a century later, the game continues to inspire with colorful characters, an engaging story, and time travel shenanigans. Even though the IP remains dormant by SquareEnix, the fandom is alive in well here at the Compendium and across the web.
And for Chrono Trigger's 24th birthday, our current Architect of Kajar, IHBP, gives us a very exciting gift! After toiling in the depths of Kajar Laboratories for some time, we finally have the official release of Chrono Trigger Plus 2.0!
This exciting new enhancement of Chrono Trigger includes a plethora of bug fixes, new locations, and even guest party members.
Check it out at RomHacking.net here:
https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/3691/
https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/3691/
The enhancements include:
Quote
- All 1999 is explorable, and the small part that was previously available is improved as well.
- You can now acquire the ability to go to 1999 via Epoch, however only from the End of Time and only to a set location. Later versions will allow it on the world map but I'll need time to readjust the tile properties.
- Tons of bugs have been fixed including all known ones related to Magus on the Blackbird.
- Added a few flavor scenes.
- End of Time is expanded.
- Crossing Lab 32 on foot is now longer and has some story.
- New area in 2300ad where Porre used to be.
- A few scenes now feature the entire recruited party rather than just the three current members.
- Possibility of acquiring the Speed shoes that allow 50% faster running
- Can now buy a drone that will join you in battle as a sort of AI party member.
7
General Discussion / Another Eden: The Cat Beyond Time and Space
« on: August 12, 2019, 12:13:33 pm »
Well, I have finished the main story campaign for Another Eden. There's more main campaign ahead, but it's more like DLC. I figured now would be a time to discuss the plot, characters, and similarities to Chrono Trigger. WARNING: SPOILERS!!!
The Story:
Our main hero Aldo is forced to travel through three different historical eras in order to save spacetime from collapsing on itself via timequakes. He is at first manipulated into altering history for a better future by an enigmatic Phantom, but later learns this only hastened the destruction of spacetime. This Phantom serves as the main antagonist.
The World:
The game is divided into three eras: Antiquity (20000BC), Present (300AD), and Future (1100AD).
The Present is a time of war, in which humans fight against Beastmen (Interestingly enough, a common plot in this game is that humans abuse the planet and squander resources while both robots and Beastmen live in harmony with the planet). Magical items called Prisma are unique to this era and are empowered with elemental energy (Earth, Fire, Wind, Water), and are a part of everyday life.
The Antiquity is an era mixing magical kingdoms and dinosaur-like creatures. The largest kingdom, Palisfal, has a corrupt king guided by a mysterious Oracle, and the two plot to control the timeline and change it for their own interests. This era also has four elemental deities representing the four elements, who live in seclusion.
The Future is a time when the planet is corrupted, forcing humans to live on floating, high-tech islands. Humans fight against robots, called Synth-Humans, with the Synth-Human goal of eradication of the human race (in order to heal the planet). The Prisma so common in the Present no longer exists, but the human-created artificial Xeno-Prisma is used to help make the islands float.
Last, there is Spacetime Rift -- a strange place that exists outside of time. It is, quite literally, a recreation of the End of Time from Chrono Trigger. It has cobblestone streets, lamplight, a bucket, pillars of light used to time travel, a mysterious creature that can be fought and grows stronger as the party grows stranger, etc.
The Main Cast:
ALDO, FIENNE, and PROFESSOR CHRONOS:
A boy and his sister found abandoned in a forest as babies around the year 300AD. They are adopted by the kindly mayor of Buruoki Village, where Aldo joins the village guard. When they are 16 years old, Fienne is kidnapped by the Beastmen. This sets off the events of the game, with a large portion of the second act dedicated to finally freeing Fienne from the violent Beastmen.
We later learn that Aldo and Fienne come from the far future and are the children of Professor Chronos, a researcher for time travel. Aldo's real name is Eden, and I can't recall nor find (on the internet) Fienne's real name. Anyway, the Professor knew that the future was doomed and wanted to fix history, so he developed mysterious special powers known as GeoPrisma and put them within his children with the intent that they would be able to save the planet if they traveled back in time.
Professor Chronos, his cat, and his two children then time traveled to Antiquity, but he was separated from his children and cat during transit. He arrived in the year 20000BC while the other three went to roughly 300AD. Without the GeoPrisma contained within his children, he continued his research and became the enigmatic Oracle that advises the king of Palisfal in order to manipulate history so that the planet is not destroyed.
Early in his adventure, Aldo is manipulated by a ghost-like Phantom into changing history so that the planet isn't destroyed, and he erases that timeline. This only leads to horrible timequakes that hasten the destruction of space-time, so he is forced to undo the timeline changes, return the future to it's somewhat dire state, and try and find another solution.
Eventually, the truth is revealed -- Aldo isn't the son of Professor Chronos. The enigmatic Phantom is! Like his father, he was separated during the initial time travel journey and was lost to the Dimensional Vortex (similar to the Darkness Beyond Time) and lived for infinity, eventually growing angry and desiring to see history undone and all of space-time destroyed. He is defeated, and upon his death once again finds love and kindness.
But the question remains -- who, then, is Aldo? He is in fact the family cat that time traveled, and magically turned into a human. He is thus the namesake of the game... he is "another" Eden (remember, Aldo's birth name was Eden) and is the cat beyond time and space.
AMY
Originally from the Future, Amy is the blacksmith's daughter in the high-tech city of Elzion. She is a rough and tumble brawler akin to Final Fantasy VII's Tifa, and she is a critical member of the Resistance that fights against the Synth-Humans of the era.
CYRUS
Originally from the Antiquity, he is a frog-knight from the Eastern Lands (not seen in the game), he was once a human but was somehow turned into a frog. I haven't played his sidequests yet, so I know next to nothing about him. However he does have a dual tech with Aldo that is essentially Chrono Trigger's X-Strike.
RIICA
Originally from the Future, she is a customized android with an enigmatic past. Whenever parts of her past start to reveal themselves, her black box deletes them, keeping her past shrouded in secrecy. I haven't done her side quests yet, so I don't know what her entire story is just yet.
HELENA
A Synth-Human from the Future, Helena is a villain that aids the leader of the Synth-Humans. She is spared by Aldo and eventually turns coat to help Aldo, believing that Humans aren't as horrible as she was led to believe.
THE RIFTBREAKER
A giant attack vessel built by the Synth-Humans, it is eventually commandeered by Aldo. It is a mobile base and is actually a living organism with two main personalities. The ship itself is a brave soul known as Hydra, and the boisterous main cannon known as the Main Cannon. It has the ability to travel anywhere, and can even time travel.
Game Mechanics
The game is a traditional turn-based jRPG. Money (called 'Git') and loot from enemies are used to upgrade weapons and armor as the storyline progresses. Aldo can also gain dozens of allies (I currently have about 60) that can be used in battle. Each ally can learn about seven or eight special abilities (either magical or attack-based), but can only assign three at a time.
The game also regularly releases new content, either in the form of lengthy side quests, mini-games (such as fishing, resource management with the building of a new town, etc), or advances to the main campaign (after the initial ending).
There is a gotcha element to the game, however. The player earns Chronos Stones by logging in daily or by earning various achievements, or they can be bought with real money. These Chronos Stones then be used to recruit new allies via a clocktower at the Spacetime Rift.
These characters are ranked by stars, which indicates their potential for stat growth. Five-star characters are the strongest and rarest to obtain, then four, then three. Some characters can also "class change" and move up a star. This requires considerable grinding, certain rare items ('Tomes'), or the character being recruited multiple times via the random draw mechanic.
Since the game was free, I did pay roughly $30 USD upfront in order to buy some Chronos Stones and try and get strong characters off the bat. I felt that was my "support" for the game and the developers and as a thank you to Kato for Chrono Trigger.
The great thing is that the gotcha element is completely optional, as one can gain Chronos Stones through regular play, just at a slower pace. Oh, and each character also has optional side quests that help flesh out their personality and backstory, so each character comes with roughly an hour of in-game content.
Review
I have probably played this game for about 60 hours at this point, maybe more. I've spent $35 total in the gotcha element and don't feel the need to pay any more. I feel like I can properly review the game at this point.
The story is engaging but nothing mind-blowing (and even has a lot of similarities to one of my own Chrono fanquels). The characters are colorful, interesting, and aplenty (think Chrono Cross' roster times 2.5 or so). There is tons of content, both as part of the main story and the tons of optional content. The battle system is also nothing new or inventive, but that isn't a bad thing at all.
All in all, this isn't a Chrono sequel, and that saddens me... But it is the closest thing that we have to a sequel and is very much a spiritual successor, and for that it is absolutely worth playing, if only for the main campaign. I don't think we will ever see a Chrono Trigger sequel, so I think Another Eden will have to suffice. It hands down the best mobile game I've ever played and I enjoy my time with it -- and will continue playing it for time to come.
The Story:
Our main hero Aldo is forced to travel through three different historical eras in order to save spacetime from collapsing on itself via timequakes. He is at first manipulated into altering history for a better future by an enigmatic Phantom, but later learns this only hastened the destruction of spacetime. This Phantom serves as the main antagonist.
The World:
The game is divided into three eras: Antiquity (20000BC), Present (300AD), and Future (1100AD).
The Present is a time of war, in which humans fight against Beastmen (Interestingly enough, a common plot in this game is that humans abuse the planet and squander resources while both robots and Beastmen live in harmony with the planet). Magical items called Prisma are unique to this era and are empowered with elemental energy (Earth, Fire, Wind, Water), and are a part of everyday life.
The Antiquity is an era mixing magical kingdoms and dinosaur-like creatures. The largest kingdom, Palisfal, has a corrupt king guided by a mysterious Oracle, and the two plot to control the timeline and change it for their own interests. This era also has four elemental deities representing the four elements, who live in seclusion.
The Future is a time when the planet is corrupted, forcing humans to live on floating, high-tech islands. Humans fight against robots, called Synth-Humans, with the Synth-Human goal of eradication of the human race (in order to heal the planet). The Prisma so common in the Present no longer exists, but the human-created artificial Xeno-Prisma is used to help make the islands float.
Last, there is Spacetime Rift -- a strange place that exists outside of time. It is, quite literally, a recreation of the End of Time from Chrono Trigger. It has cobblestone streets, lamplight, a bucket, pillars of light used to time travel, a mysterious creature that can be fought and grows stronger as the party grows stranger, etc.
The Main Cast:
ALDO, FIENNE, and PROFESSOR CHRONOS:
A boy and his sister found abandoned in a forest as babies around the year 300AD. They are adopted by the kindly mayor of Buruoki Village, where Aldo joins the village guard. When they are 16 years old, Fienne is kidnapped by the Beastmen. This sets off the events of the game, with a large portion of the second act dedicated to finally freeing Fienne from the violent Beastmen.
We later learn that Aldo and Fienne come from the far future and are the children of Professor Chronos, a researcher for time travel. Aldo's real name is Eden, and I can't recall nor find (on the internet) Fienne's real name. Anyway, the Professor knew that the future was doomed and wanted to fix history, so he developed mysterious special powers known as GeoPrisma and put them within his children with the intent that they would be able to save the planet if they traveled back in time.
Professor Chronos, his cat, and his two children then time traveled to Antiquity, but he was separated from his children and cat during transit. He arrived in the year 20000BC while the other three went to roughly 300AD. Without the GeoPrisma contained within his children, he continued his research and became the enigmatic Oracle that advises the king of Palisfal in order to manipulate history so that the planet is not destroyed.
Early in his adventure, Aldo is manipulated by a ghost-like Phantom into changing history so that the planet isn't destroyed, and he erases that timeline. This only leads to horrible timequakes that hasten the destruction of space-time, so he is forced to undo the timeline changes, return the future to it's somewhat dire state, and try and find another solution.
Eventually, the truth is revealed -- Aldo isn't the son of Professor Chronos. The enigmatic Phantom is! Like his father, he was separated during the initial time travel journey and was lost to the Dimensional Vortex (similar to the Darkness Beyond Time) and lived for infinity, eventually growing angry and desiring to see history undone and all of space-time destroyed. He is defeated, and upon his death once again finds love and kindness.
But the question remains -- who, then, is Aldo? He is in fact the family cat that time traveled, and magically turned into a human. He is thus the namesake of the game... he is "another" Eden (remember, Aldo's birth name was Eden) and is the cat beyond time and space.
AMY
Originally from the Future, Amy is the blacksmith's daughter in the high-tech city of Elzion. She is a rough and tumble brawler akin to Final Fantasy VII's Tifa, and she is a critical member of the Resistance that fights against the Synth-Humans of the era.
CYRUS
Originally from the Antiquity, he is a frog-knight from the Eastern Lands (not seen in the game), he was once a human but was somehow turned into a frog. I haven't played his sidequests yet, so I know next to nothing about him. However he does have a dual tech with Aldo that is essentially Chrono Trigger's X-Strike.
RIICA
Originally from the Future, she is a customized android with an enigmatic past. Whenever parts of her past start to reveal themselves, her black box deletes them, keeping her past shrouded in secrecy. I haven't done her side quests yet, so I don't know what her entire story is just yet.
HELENA
A Synth-Human from the Future, Helena is a villain that aids the leader of the Synth-Humans. She is spared by Aldo and eventually turns coat to help Aldo, believing that Humans aren't as horrible as she was led to believe.
THE RIFTBREAKER
A giant attack vessel built by the Synth-Humans, it is eventually commandeered by Aldo. It is a mobile base and is actually a living organism with two main personalities. The ship itself is a brave soul known as Hydra, and the boisterous main cannon known as the Main Cannon. It has the ability to travel anywhere, and can even time travel.
Game Mechanics
The game is a traditional turn-based jRPG. Money (called 'Git') and loot from enemies are used to upgrade weapons and armor as the storyline progresses. Aldo can also gain dozens of allies (I currently have about 60) that can be used in battle. Each ally can learn about seven or eight special abilities (either magical or attack-based), but can only assign three at a time.
The game also regularly releases new content, either in the form of lengthy side quests, mini-games (such as fishing, resource management with the building of a new town, etc), or advances to the main campaign (after the initial ending).
There is a gotcha element to the game, however. The player earns Chronos Stones by logging in daily or by earning various achievements, or they can be bought with real money. These Chronos Stones then be used to recruit new allies via a clocktower at the Spacetime Rift.
These characters are ranked by stars, which indicates their potential for stat growth. Five-star characters are the strongest and rarest to obtain, then four, then three. Some characters can also "class change" and move up a star. This requires considerable grinding, certain rare items ('Tomes'), or the character being recruited multiple times via the random draw mechanic.
Since the game was free, I did pay roughly $30 USD upfront in order to buy some Chronos Stones and try and get strong characters off the bat. I felt that was my "support" for the game and the developers and as a thank you to Kato for Chrono Trigger.
The great thing is that the gotcha element is completely optional, as one can gain Chronos Stones through regular play, just at a slower pace. Oh, and each character also has optional side quests that help flesh out their personality and backstory, so each character comes with roughly an hour of in-game content.
Review
I have probably played this game for about 60 hours at this point, maybe more. I've spent $35 total in the gotcha element and don't feel the need to pay any more. I feel like I can properly review the game at this point.
The story is engaging but nothing mind-blowing (and even has a lot of similarities to one of my own Chrono fanquels). The characters are colorful, interesting, and aplenty (think Chrono Cross' roster times 2.5 or so). There is tons of content, both as part of the main story and the tons of optional content. The battle system is also nothing new or inventive, but that isn't a bad thing at all.
All in all, this isn't a Chrono sequel, and that saddens me... But it is the closest thing that we have to a sequel and is very much a spiritual successor, and for that it is absolutely worth playing, if only for the main campaign. I don't think we will ever see a Chrono Trigger sequel, so I think Another Eden will have to suffice. It hands down the best mobile game I've ever played and I enjoy my time with it -- and will continue playing it for time to come.
8
Chrono News / Topic: The Race Against Time V - 24h Chrono Trigger Marathon Livestream
« on: July 25, 2019, 09:35:00 am »
The Chrono Compendium saw this post and love the idea, so here's the direct info:
Quote
Hi folks!
I'm part of a group that runs an annual charity livestream to raise money for the Alzheimer Society of Canada, the Race Against Time. Our goal is get all of the endings in Chrono Trigger in under 24 hours, raise as much as we can (ideally beating our previous best of ~$1200 CAD) and having a great time.
This year the event runs August 10 - 11, from noon to midnight (EDT) each day, and we'll be having giveaways pretty much every hour and a few guests too. We'd love it if y'all could donate, join us (https://twitch.tv/theraceagainsttime), or even just help spread the word. More details are available on the main site.
Thanks!
9
General Discussion / Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
« on: May 06, 2019, 02:12:48 pm »
Hey all,
So as most of you know, as a full-time father and overworked corporate drone, I have little time for video games. Most of the time I play on the go via my 3DS or PSP (with emulator). Over the past few months I have slowly meandered my way through Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII for the second time. Suffice to say, I was... underwhelmed this time around.
The graphics were good for 2008 PSP (roughly on par with the PS2-era), the gameplay was good, and it build a new amount of lore around Shinra and the entire world of FFVII. I love the characters: Zack, Aerith, Angeal, etc. It really made me fall in love with the character of Zack Fair.
But oh man am I feeling disappointed. Here are my complaints:
-The game covers a period of over 7 years and does little to nothing to help articulate this.
-Zack has a bunch of random NPC buddies in SOLDIER that email him through the game, but in the end, none of them had a one-on-one face time. I suppose they were to make it appear he was liked by his peers, but in reality, I felt like neither myself nor Zack cared about them in the slightest.
-The addition of Angeal and Genesis as 1st class SOLDIER on par with Sephiroth... I don't mind this, but the play off it all was just... blargh. Angeal was supposed to be wise and mentor-ish, but came across as broody and silly.
-Likewise, Genesis was overly-theatric and was sort of grating. The fact that Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core go a long way to insert Genesis into lore and provided a path for him in future, post-Crisis Core content was just silly.
-Plus, we're supposed to believe Sephiroth, Genesis, and Angeal were best friends?! Sephiroth literally feels pigeonholed into this story for the sake of "oh, it's Sephiroth!"
-The whole plot regarding Project G and degradation was confusing and all over the place. One moment tons of Genesis clones are popping up, the next moment Genesis is dead, the next other characters (ie, Lazard) are defecting from Shinra off-screen for literally no reason. The plot was a hot mess overall. This is probably my biggest gripe.
-Then you have Cloud and Zack being captured and experimented on by Hojo, which was literally for no reason that I could fathom. Was it because they were there when Jenova's remains were stolen by Sephiroth? Was this explained in FFVII and I forgot?
-During the four years Zack was under, where was Genesis and what was he doing? He was all gung-ho about attacking Shinra up to this point, so he just took a four-year break after Zack disappeared? What's up with that?
I am also re-playing FFVII for the first time in about 12 or 13 years. Cloud is such an a-hole at the beginning of FFVII. It's sort of surprising by how selfish and unlikeable he is at first. I'm trying to figure out why he is that way; in Crisis Core, young Cloud is such a nice guy, and his best friend Zack is equally nice and all about being a hero to everyone and anyone. If Cloud absorbed aspects of Zack's history and personality due to the mako poisoning and experimentation, you'd think he would also inherit those aspects of Zack's personality. Instead the post-experimented Cloud is a selfish dude. Maybe this is because Shinra killed Zack and he just wants to stick it to Shinra in any way possible?
Like, I am so frustrated by this entire experience with Crisis Core that I have been jotting down a summary re-write of how much better this game could be. It will be short and sweet, but dude, I have to get this out of my system. I'll be posting here my thoughts.
So as most of you know, as a full-time father and overworked corporate drone, I have little time for video games. Most of the time I play on the go via my 3DS or PSP (with emulator). Over the past few months I have slowly meandered my way through Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII for the second time. Suffice to say, I was... underwhelmed this time around.
The graphics were good for 2008 PSP (roughly on par with the PS2-era), the gameplay was good, and it build a new amount of lore around Shinra and the entire world of FFVII. I love the characters: Zack, Aerith, Angeal, etc. It really made me fall in love with the character of Zack Fair.
But oh man am I feeling disappointed. Here are my complaints:
-The game covers a period of over 7 years and does little to nothing to help articulate this.
-Zack has a bunch of random NPC buddies in SOLDIER that email him through the game, but in the end, none of them had a one-on-one face time. I suppose they were to make it appear he was liked by his peers, but in reality, I felt like neither myself nor Zack cared about them in the slightest.
-The addition of Angeal and Genesis as 1st class SOLDIER on par with Sephiroth... I don't mind this, but the play off it all was just... blargh. Angeal was supposed to be wise and mentor-ish, but came across as broody and silly.
-Likewise, Genesis was overly-theatric and was sort of grating. The fact that Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core go a long way to insert Genesis into lore and provided a path for him in future, post-Crisis Core content was just silly.
-Plus, we're supposed to believe Sephiroth, Genesis, and Angeal were best friends?! Sephiroth literally feels pigeonholed into this story for the sake of "oh, it's Sephiroth!"
-The whole plot regarding Project G and degradation was confusing and all over the place. One moment tons of Genesis clones are popping up, the next moment Genesis is dead, the next other characters (ie, Lazard) are defecting from Shinra off-screen for literally no reason. The plot was a hot mess overall. This is probably my biggest gripe.
-Then you have Cloud and Zack being captured and experimented on by Hojo, which was literally for no reason that I could fathom. Was it because they were there when Jenova's remains were stolen by Sephiroth? Was this explained in FFVII and I forgot?
-During the four years Zack was under, where was Genesis and what was he doing? He was all gung-ho about attacking Shinra up to this point, so he just took a four-year break after Zack disappeared? What's up with that?
I am also re-playing FFVII for the first time in about 12 or 13 years. Cloud is such an a-hole at the beginning of FFVII. It's sort of surprising by how selfish and unlikeable he is at first. I'm trying to figure out why he is that way; in Crisis Core, young Cloud is such a nice guy, and his best friend Zack is equally nice and all about being a hero to everyone and anyone. If Cloud absorbed aspects of Zack's history and personality due to the mako poisoning and experimentation, you'd think he would also inherit those aspects of Zack's personality. Instead the post-experimented Cloud is a selfish dude. Maybe this is because Shinra killed Zack and he just wants to stick it to Shinra in any way possible?
Like, I am so frustrated by this entire experience with Crisis Core that I have been jotting down a summary re-write of how much better this game could be. It will be short and sweet, but dude, I have to get this out of my system. I'll be posting here my thoughts.
10
Chrono News / Cross Symphonic - A 20th Anniversary Symphonic Tribute
« on: May 01, 2019, 09:56:42 am »
The Chrono Compendium is once again proud to support the new launch of the Kickstarter campaign for Cross Symphonic, a beautifully film score-esque interpretation of the islands of El Nido.
Please consider endorsing and helping Kickstart this project. The link is found HERE:
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnpaulhayward/cross-symphonic-a-symphonic-tribute-to-chrono-cros?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=cross%20symphonic
EDIT: As of this post, the initial goal has already been met -- in less than 24 hours! Congrats to CptOvaltine, who has put hundreds of hours into this wonderful project.
Quote
"Cross Symphonic is the reimagining of Yasunori Mitsuda's iconic soundtrack from Chrono Cross as a licensed 17 track symphonic film score. The album carries the listener through the events of Chrono Cross, retelling Masato Kato's expansive story of adventure, deception, jealousy, and determination with music crafted to help you experience Chrono Cross in a whole new way.
Inspired in part by the legendary film composer John Williams, Cross Symphonic's sweeping melodic approach serves as a tribute to both Williams and Mitsuda who are both major inspirations to me personally.
While the overall goal of the Kickstarter is to put Cross Symphonic in front of a live orchestra, the initial goal for this campaign is to record live soloists and have them professionally mixed into the mock up tracks. I built the campaign to be modular. This allows us to replace different virtual pieces of the orchestra with their live counterparts. I believe this offers us the most flexibility to produce a world class product - even in the event that we can't record with a live orchestra.
I sincerely hope that you'll enjoy the music, and that you'll take this journey with me through Cross Symphonic; to experience Chrono Cross and it's story in a way that no one ever has before. As a symphonic film score."
11
Chrono News / Cross Symphonic - A 20th Anniversary Symphonic Tribute
« on: March 04, 2019, 10:44:24 pm »
We'd like to make all aware that the wonderful composer and friend of the Compendium, CptOvaltine, has officially launched his Kickstarer for the Cross Symphonic album. We love this guy and his work and want to fully endorse his vision with this project. Don't know what Cross Symphonic is, though? Take a look!
Check it out here!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnpaulhayward/cross-symphonic-a-20th-anniversary-symphonic-tribu-0
Quote
A fully licensed 17 track re-imagining of Yasunori Mitsuda’s iconic soundtrack from Chrono Cross as a symphonic film score
Cross Symphonic is the reimagining of Yasunori Mitsuda's iconic soundtrack from Chrono Cross as a fully licensed 17 track symphonic film score. The album carries the listener through the events of Chrono Cross, retelling Masato Kato's expansive story of adventure, deception, jealousy, and determination with music crafted to help you experience Chrono Cross in a whole new way.
Inspired in part by the legendary film composer John Williams, Cross Symphonic's sweeping melodic approach serves as a tribute to both Williams and Mitsuda who are both major inspirations to me personally. With your help, Cross Symphonic will be recorded by a 75-piece orchestra with choir in Nashville, Tennessee by some of the best studio musicians in the industry. They’re known for quickly understanding the music and producing a quality recording without wasting any time in the studio. Hiring a professional orchestra that specializes in recording is key to producing a world class product both efficiently and musically.
12
General Discussion / Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!
« on: December 25, 2018, 01:13:00 am »
Happy Christmas and Merry Holidays to all my fellow Chrono fans.
13
Chrono News / Ending 2018 with a Surprise: A New ROM Hack!
« on: December 23, 2018, 01:16:55 pm »
2018 has been a great year here at the Compendium. We've seen some member growth, had a very successful Dream Splash fan event, and even proved that this series is still capable of providing unexplored analytical discussion over two decades later. The Dream of Zeal survives into 2019!!!
Even better yet, we'd like to make a very special announcement to end the year of right: the release of a brand new ROM-hack from our very own Fauntleroy!
We proudly support the release of:
Chrono Trigger: Schala Edition!
DOWNLOAD V1.2 HERE TODAY:
http://www.bwass.org/bucket/010919schalahack.zip
Even better yet, we'd like to make a very special announcement to end the year of right: the release of a brand new ROM-hack from our very own Fauntleroy!
We proudly support the release of:
Chrono Trigger: Schala Edition!
Quote
What if... Schala escaped from the Ocean Palace?
Chrono Trigger fans have been imagining what might've been for almost twenty-five years. Now, for the first time, an extensive ROM hack explores that question in Chrono Trigger: Schala Edition!
By the same author who created the Golbez Edition and General Leo Edition hacks of Final Fantasy IV and VI, this hack alters events so that Schala survives the Ocean Palace disaster. Magus leads Marle and friends on an expanded adventure through 12,000 BC in search of his sister, with a promise to help them retrieve their lost Crono... but only if they help him first. New locations, enemies, bosses and scenes await, ending in one of gaming's most long-awaited reunions.
While recognizably based off of Ted Woolsey's original 1995 translation, this hack features an extended and polished script, new Techs, new items and weapons, and lots of surprises along the way, bringing maximum nostalgia while also offering something new.
The Schala Edition patch will be exclusively available here at the Compendium through January 31, followed by wider release through romhacking.net. The author thanks everybody at the Compendium for their help and support, because this project never would've happened without them!
Try the hack today and thank you! See the included readme for details!
DOWNLOAD V1.2 HERE TODAY:
http://www.bwass.org/bucket/010919schalahack.zip
14
Site Updates / The Chrono Compendium and Fandom in 2019
« on: November 05, 2018, 10:30:17 pm »
Hi all,
I've been working a little on new ideas for fun and engagement in 2019, and I wanted to create a thread to allow feedback and generate new ideas. As far as I'm concerned, this is a community for the community. In 2019 I could see us doing a lot of new things, including...
1.) Dream Splash VII
2.) Some sort of other competition
3.) Events in support of CptOvaltine's Cross Symphonic
4.) Events in support of Fauntleroy's ROM hack release (alternate scenario version of CT)
I'd love to get thoughts and feedback as we head into 2019! This will be another fun year for the Compendium and the Chrono fanon as a whole! We'll make it great!
I've been working a little on new ideas for fun and engagement in 2019, and I wanted to create a thread to allow feedback and generate new ideas. As far as I'm concerned, this is a community for the community. In 2019 I could see us doing a lot of new things, including...
1.) Dream Splash VII
2.) Some sort of other competition
3.) Events in support of CptOvaltine's Cross Symphonic
4.) Events in support of Fauntleroy's ROM hack release (alternate scenario version of CT)
I'd love to get thoughts and feedback as we head into 2019! This will be another fun year for the Compendium and the Chrono fanon as a whole! We'll make it great!
15
Site Updates / Dream Splash VI - Winner Winner Chicken Dinner
« on: October 15, 2018, 12:26:21 am »
Hello all!
It is finally time to formally announce the winners of Dream Splash VI!
First off, I'd like to thank everyone's participation. It had been quite some time since we'd done such an event, and I think it was a real boon to our culture and friendship. Even with the golden years of Chrono fanon, how awesome is it that, after almost two decades, we can still have this place, this community, and still even have turnout for such an event. This community is awesome and I really, truly think this is a bastion of good ol' fashioned internet foruming.
That all being said, it's time to talk about our winners. Each and every entry was awesome, but as such, there can only be one! With no further ado, I'd like announce the winners!
[2d Art] Winner: The Rise of Zeal by TheMage
[Hacking and Interactive] Winner: Attractive Battler by Mauron
[Written Word: Long Form] The Proposal and the Ring by PrincessNadia78
[Written Word: Short Form] Three Way Tie! Winners are ZeaLiTy, skylark, and Negus
[Sound and Music] The Orphan Dreamer by CptOvaltine
Each winner gets bragging rights and a nifty new custom rank tag. You will get to keep your custom tag until the next Dream Splash, in which you will have to either compete to keep your title, or relinquish it to the next winner. Gwah ha ha! In the case of skylark and Negus, we'll just let both of you have the custom rank.
If, for some reason, you don't want a custom tag, please PM me or let me know in this thread, and I'll make sure we keep your forum rank default.
Thanks again for the participation. It's been fun!
Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time I start planning our next big event during 2019...
It is finally time to formally announce the winners of Dream Splash VI!
First off, I'd like to thank everyone's participation. It had been quite some time since we'd done such an event, and I think it was a real boon to our culture and friendship. Even with the golden years of Chrono fanon, how awesome is it that, after almost two decades, we can still have this place, this community, and still even have turnout for such an event. This community is awesome and I really, truly think this is a bastion of good ol' fashioned internet foruming.
That all being said, it's time to talk about our winners. Each and every entry was awesome, but as such, there can only be one! With no further ado, I'd like announce the winners!
[2d Art] Winner: The Rise of Zeal by TheMage
[Hacking and Interactive] Winner: Attractive Battler by Mauron
[Written Word: Long Form] The Proposal and the Ring by PrincessNadia78
[Written Word: Short Form] Three Way Tie! Winners are ZeaLiTy, skylark, and Negus
[Sound and Music] The Orphan Dreamer by CptOvaltine
Each winner gets bragging rights and a nifty new custom rank tag. You will get to keep your custom tag until the next Dream Splash, in which you will have to either compete to keep your title, or relinquish it to the next winner. Gwah ha ha! In the case of skylark and Negus, we'll just let both of you have the custom rank.
If, for some reason, you don't want a custom tag, please PM me or let me know in this thread, and I'll make sure we keep your forum rank default.
Thanks again for the participation. It's been fun!
Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time I start planning our next big event during 2019...