Doesn't deliver the true sequel fans are looking for, but manages to do almost everything else right.
Story:
So Serge must go out and rescue the world from some ultimate evil huh? Yeah you've heard this one before in basically every other RPG, but, like most, a new spin has been put on it. Serge almost died in a freak accident many years back. What would have happened to the world if he had in fact died that day? This sets up the great tale of the world split in two through an event that could have gone either way. The plot of course has some twists and turns, and even though none of them are really too hard to see coming, the story still manages to keep you thoroughly entertained throughout. The main story revolves around Serge and Kid, but you can recruit many, many more characters to fight along side you. When I say many, I really mean many. Some see this as a negative of the game since the character development of most of the extra members is severely lacking, but I find it fun to mix and match party members and pick out my own diamond in the rough. 8.5/10
Gameplay:
Standard run-of-the-mill RPG fare when it comes to traversing towns and other points of interest such as caves and the like. The world map is fairly small and it takes next to no time to get from one place to another; plus there are no random battles. As a matter of fact, there are no random battles anywhere in the game. You see all enemies around you and it is up to you whether to fight them or avoid them. The actual battles is where this game is unique. You can have three party members at a time. Combat revolves around the use of weak, medium, and strong attacks. Weak attacks are more accurate but obviously hurt less while strong attacks are the opposite. Each successful attack landed increases the accuracy for the next attack, so progressing weak to medium to strong is a solid strategy. Each attack also builds up your element 'gauge' which is the game's magic system. Depending on where this gauge is you can cast various elements that you have equipped, but you can only cast one of each element per battle. I found this system to be very fun and pleasantly different from the norm. 9.5/10
Graphics:
Oh how I hate writing about the graphics of a game. To be honest this really shouldn't matter enough to someone to make them play or pass on a game. People seem to care enough though so I'll put this in here. The visuals of this game for the time were quite good. The cut scenes especially were top notch and I must say I really enjoyed watching them. They have, in my opinion, withstood the test of time fairly well too. That's really all I got on that. 9.5/10
Sound:
I love the music of this game. I have the soundtrack. I listen to it all the time. The opening movie alone should tell you everything you need to know about the music of Chrono Cross. Each song fits beautifully with the environment that it is played in whether it's a nice calm island theme or a frantic boss battle jam. As amazing as the other aspects of this game are, I find the soundtrack to be the best of the lot. 10/10
Well, there you have it. Chrono Cross is a great game that should not be passed up. It may not be as good as Chrono Trigger, but really are there many games that are? Cross is an outstanding game in its own right. 9.5/10