Chrono Cross / Vagrant Story - PS Games

[Brasel]

I downloaded Chrono Cross and Vagrant Story from the PS store onto my PS3 the other day. I have Chrono Cross on the PS, but the disc is scratched and I can't get past the first FMV. I went ahead and downloaded it for $10 so I could actually play the game again. The first time I played CC, I didn't beat the Time Devourer correctly and got the bad ending. I've been actively playing this again and I'm really enjoying it. I guess the lack of random encounters and the classic gameplay really motivate me to play more. I'm playing Chrono Trigger on my DS concurrently, so I'm getting a double dose of Chrono.

Vagrant Story has an interesting gameplay style to it that I really enjoy. I didn't get too far into it when I had originally played it years ago. The game is set in the same Ivalice as Final Fantasy Tactics, and the story is kind of neat. I'll probably start playing this after the slew of other games I need to finish. My only gripe so far with Vagrant Story is the camera control. It's not modern in that it doesn't use both control sticks. I have to use the L and R buttons to swing the camera back and forth, and if I hit the right control stick, it throws the view into a first person view.

Both games amazed me in how well Square was able to push the limits of the PS hardware at the time. The graphics aren't terrible to look at, even if they are a bit grainy.

Who else has played Chrono Cross or Vagrant Story? Any other good PS games that people recommend (games that aren't Final Fantasy)?

[Ventus]

I've played Chrono Cross!, That game was one of the best games on the PS that I've played besides FF7. But I haven't given Vagrant Story a play yet. I own the game but yet I haven't played it yet.

Now some PS games that I think are pretty good. and you might like.

Koudelka - Its too good things put together. Horror and Tactical RPG. Oh man. this game is amazing. it even has voice acting :D

Breath Of fire 4 - Another great game. Note I have this game and I'm still working on it. So I can't tell you much about it.

Suikedon 1&2 - Two truly hidden gems. that are worth a play.

[Brasel]

I actually own a copy of BoF 4. I played BoF 1 - 3 and finished all of them. I just never got around to even playing BoF 4.
I downloaded Suikedon 1 on my PS3, but when I played it, it was incredibly hard! It seemed like a grinding game to me and I just haven't been up to grinding yet. I plan on playing it one of these days. I like collecting characters.
I rented Koudelka years ago. I don't remember much about it. I don't think I ever got very far in it. Was it set in modern times? I can't remember.

[King Aquamentus]

I've played Chrono Cross, as I was a fan of Chrono Trigger, however Disc 2 would hang up any time someone tried to cast. So, didn't get too far after that. (had the mastermune too...)

One of the nice things about the Chrono Trigger franchise is that really, the sequels could go in just about any direction (though so far they've only gone in two.), thanks to the time travel subject matter from the first game.

[Ventus]

I downloaded Suikedon 1 on my PS3, but when I played it, it was incredibly hard! It seemed like a grinding game to me and I just haven't been up to grinding yet. I plan on playing it one of these days. I like collecting characters.
It seems that way in the start. but once you get further in the game doesn't need much grinding. But trust me it don't take long to level up in the game.



I rented Koudelka years ago. I don't remember much about it. I don't think I ever got very far in it. Was it set in modern times? I can't remember.
In my official game guide I have it says the game takes place in 1898. So pretty long ago.
I have to say out of all the shadow hearts games this is is one of my favorites.

Not many people know that Koudelka is the very first Shadow hearts game. But it is :P

[Glenn the Great]

Chrono Cross was a good game, but not on the level of Chrono Trigger.

If you were to change some of the music and names and remove a few references that have little importance to the game's story, it would be unrecognizable as being at all related to Chrono Trigger.
Then the game would have fallen through the cracks as yet another mediocre RPG.

In this sense the game reminds me of Doki-Doki Panic: a pretty good, but not spectacular game in it's own right that no one would know anything about if it hadn't of been changed up and had the Mario name slapped onto it.
I actually kind of wonder if Chrono Cross didn't begin as an original property (or maybe even a new SaGa game considering the mechanical similarities and large cast of characters), but was converted into a Chrono game to improve its chances on the market.

[King Aquamentus]

The other sequel, Radical Dreamers, was a bit more interesting, imo. The Serge of that alternate tangent provided his own personal view of the adventure, though to my knowledge, never directly speaks to anyone in the story (so he does kinda speak, but only to you.) The fact that Magus is a confirmed member of your trio (yes, *that* Magus) sweetens it even further.

[CJC]

Played Chrono Cross, but didn't get far. I blame it on reliance on a walk-through. In my zeal to obtain as many characters as possible I refused to treat Kid for her poisoning and then subsequently I got stuck on a haunted ship. I don't remember the exact portion of the game this occurred in, as it was years ago, but it soured me on the whole deal.

Glenn mentioned that Chrono Cross seems like an independent RPG that was coated in intellectual property to make it more appealing to an audience. I agree that this seems likely (Don't misinterpret this as me saying it's a bad game. It's not. I just know that certain companies will attach unrelated endeavors to their cash cow intellectual property to ensure they do well).

Coincidentally, I'd like to mention a game that experienced the OPPOSITE assignment during development. Xenogears, a Square RPG with religious and psychological overtones, was originally conceived as a possible candidate for Final Fantasy 7. It was rejected for being too dark for the franchise and subsequently developed into its own stand-alone game. If I remember correctly, you can find Lucca in the first village and she teaches you about save points. ...But that might have just been in the demo disk.



I never played Vagrant Story, but my brother did. He spoke highly of it, but the game didn't interest me enough to try.



Oh! One more thing: While we're discussing awesome PlayStation games, I'd like to bring up Alundra. It's a great platform romp, similar to the early Zelda games, and its story quickly ensnares you. The game has an emphasis on platform puzzles, which start off easy but quickly balloon into complicated and dangerous ordeals.
Skip Alundra 2, though. It's related only by the production company and it's really not worth the time of day.

[King Aquamentus]

Chrono Cross was more based on Radical Dreamers than Chrono Trigger, but it was a Chrono game from the start. Just... yeah.

[Gleeok]

I've got Vagrant Story. I also have Chrono Cross disk 2, since when I sold old PS1 before I moved I left it inside the tray. :P (Does anyone need disk 2?) - I haven't played those in years, but I'd definitely have to go with VS as being the better game...though the replay for me is low due to the combat button timing mechanic (gets kind of repetitive)

...PS games that aren't FF? hmm.. Have you played Valkyrie Profile? That's another interesting title from Tri-Ace. Can't think of any more that weren't mentioned.

[Aliem]

I played Chrono Cross through when it first came out. The unique gameplay was pretty incredible, but I really feel the massive amount of playable characters hindered the game; I would have liked fewer, more developed characters myself. I have been meaning to play it through again for a while.

I've never played Vagrant Story, and I have no idea why. I'm gonna put that on the top of my list.

[mrz84]

Chrono Cross is a fav in my family since we first played it. Haven't played it in awhile due to one reason or another, but its still a good game in its own right I think.

Haven't played Vagrant Story yet, but have been wanting to for the longest time. That and Dragon Quest/Warrior 7 (3DS port/remake coming to 3DS, woot!)

I recommend the Valkyrie Profile games. They are great games, as well as the prequel (on ps2) and sequel (ds, though it might be a spin-off, idk, haven't
played it yet), too.

I've only played the first two Breath of Fire games (I have BoF2 on the Wii VC), but have wanted to play the other games. Too bad the
only copies of Bof# I can find for psp are international copies, while 4 is on psn, but I haven't bought it yet (wanna play 3 first)

The SaGa games are good, too. Though I didn't start playing them until Unlimited Saga and Romancing Saga on ps2.

[King Aquamentus]

I played Chrono Cross through when it first came out. The unique gameplay was pretty incredible, but I really feel the massive amount of playable characters hindered the game; I would have liked fewer, more developed characters myself.

It's funny you mention that. Magus, from Chrono Trigger, was going to be a playable character in the game (just as he was in Radical Dreamers), but due to the large number of playable characters, whatever he did or said in the endgame would have dramatically overshadowed everyone else, and it's a little hard to write endings for 42 other characters that are on par with "Janus reunited with Schala"

[Glenn the Great]

BTW, Serge + Glenn + Orlha FTW.

[vegeta1215]

I had mixed feelings about Chrono Cross, mainly because many of the Chrono Trigger connections felt really forced, and there was so much exposition (especially at the end), but I did have fun playing it. I wrote a review for Chrono Cross on AGN long ago, but I don't think the post is there anymore - it may have been pruned.

UPDATE: I found my old review! I thought I made my own thread for it, but it was actually buried in another one: http://armageddongames.net/showthread.php?69339-Chrono-Cross&p=634266&viewfull=1#post634266

[Glenn the Great]

UPDATE: I found my old review! I thought I made my own thread for it, but it was actually buried in another one: http://armageddongames.net/showthread.php?69339-Chrono-Cross&p=634266&viewfull=1#post634266

I just read your review, Vegeta, and your thoughts pretty much sum up exactly how I felt about the game.

I too found it very confusing and hard to keep track of what happened in Home World vs. Another World.
I remember having several frustrating episodes of going to an area in one world, only to discover that I wasted my time because I needed to be at the same place but in the OTHER world.

By the time I finished the game, I wasn't really sure what the fuck I had really accomplished or why I even had to do these things in the first place. It wasn't until I read a pages-long story explanation on the Chrono Compendium website that I sort of understood what was going on. I guess their explanation makes logical sense, but some of it is just too fantastic to be believable, such as the notion that many of the game's events were orchestrated by Balthazar like we were pawns in one big inter-universal chess game. I get that Balthazar being one of the 3 gurus is supposed to have god-like intelligence, but he should stick to inventing airplanes and time machines next time.

I wasn't so great a fan of the battle system. While I did enjoy the feel of dishing out multiple melee attacks per turn couple with the satisfying controller rumble with each blow, I felt that the free-wheeling element system combined with the lack of double techniques kill the strategic element in battle.

In Chrono Trigger, you had the following to strategically consider:

- Party composition: Each character had a fixed list of abilities, only deals certain types of elemental damage, and may or may not have healing capabilities. You have to make sure that your party covers all the bases, offensively and defensively, for whatever enemies you are up against.
- Battle decisions: You have to decide when is the appropriate time to use a Double Techs vs. having everyone fight individually. For example, there's this powerful enemy that is weak to lightning. Do I have Chrono and Frog team up to use Spire on it, or do I have Frog heal the party while Chrono and Lucca deal damage together or individually? If Chrono and Lucca fight individually this round, do they use regular attacks to conserve mana, or do they blow it using spells?

In Chrono Cross, you pretty much pick whatever party tickles your fancy and then spend 5 minutes giving them your pick of all the magic spells you've found during the entire course of the game. Every character can be a healer and be able to deal damage of any element type. Everyone can be a generalist and no one has to specialize in anything. Every battle is the same routine: characters use regular attacks to charge up their spells, then use whatever spells are most appropriate for the enemies at hand. Not having MP to worry about means that you can use the same strategy and your most damaging spells against every encounter, regular or boss. The only thing you do differently against a boss is to take the time to buff up your party so you can deal more/take less damage. It's rinse-wash-repeat for every battle and made battles a tiring and repetitive exercise.

I also hated the fact that characters that were dead when a boss died didn't partake in the massive stat increases that only happen after killing bosses. I had a few characters that were seriously gimped and had to be replaced because they didn't survive enough boss fights and weren't able to keep up with the ones that did.