Chrono Cross Game Blog Part 0: Chrono Trigger Recap

Before I get fully invested in Chrono Cross and start this gameblog off properly, I thought it would be helpful if I gave a little background in what Chrono Cross and it’s predecessor, Chrono Trigger. You see, Chrono Cross was made pretty much to tie up the ONLY loose end from Chrono Trigger. CT managed to weave a fairly tight story, leaving only thing incomplete. What is that thing? Read on to find out.

Chrono Trigger was the story of a boy named Crono, who lived in the kingdom of Guardia in the year 1000 A.D. His friend Lucca, an inventor (of course) and a spunky princess (is there any other kind these days) also hail from that time period. Through a malfunction of Lucca’s latest invention, the trio find themselves moving back and forth through time.

They venture to the Middle Ages, which is in 600 A.D. and meet Frog, a swordsman transformed into a human-sized frog by a dark wizard named Magus. Then, they go forward in the future to 2300 A.D., where the world is a bleak wasteland. There, they discover that in 1999, Lavos, a parasitic monster, emerged from beneath the ground and rendered the planet a lifeless husk. Depressing, right?

So, with the help of Robo, a robot, they manage to escape from this terrible future and vow to prevent The Day of Lavos from ever happening. So, yeah, they aren’t setting their goals low or anything. I mean, I realize I am kind of lazy and all, but WARNING the king back in your own time would be a decent start before you decide to fight off this thing. You know, work your way up the ladder.

I hope you are still with me because things are going to get a little more convoluted in a bit. Their next stop is 65,000,000 B.C. (Don’t ask me why it is B.C. in this fantasy world where Jesus doesn’t likely exist, okay?) They meet a really hot cavewoman named Ayla that puts those Geico cavemet to shame and fight off the Reptites, reptilian race of humanoids intent on ruling the world. And while there, they just happen to see a meteorite land. Guess who? If you guessed Lavos, you win the No-Prize! Turns out that Lavos is from another planet and arrives in Prehistoric times before finally emerging, like a beautiful, beautiful butterfly…to wreak havoc on all living things. You know, like Justin Bieber.

After that, it’s back to 600 A.D. where they finally confront Magus. The battle ends with all of them being sucked into a time portal, to a new era, 12,000 B.C. In this land, there is a floating kingdom of magic in the sky, ruled by Queen Zeal and her kindhearted teenage daughter, Schala and young son, Janus. A mysterious prophet has recently appeared and has been advising the queen on certain matters regarding Lavos. Hmm…Turns out that the prophet is Magus and he is actually Janus! See, the Queen has been using a machine to siphon power from Lavos and this pisses it off, so it attacks, sending Schala, and Janus all careening through time. Janus lands in 600 A.D., where he becomes Magus, intent on getting revenge on Lavos for what happened to his sister.Speaking of Schala…no idea.

See, this is the loose end, the ONE loose end in this story and one that drove me bonkers when I was a kid. I searched everywhere, in every dungeon, in every time period for any clues. If you ever come across Chrono Trigger fanfiction, I promise it will involve Schala. Where she is and what happened to her is the biggest mystery of Chrono Trigger.

On with the main story, Crono is actually killed trying to save his friends from Lavos, but through a pretty easy side-quest, is brought back to life. Magus joins your party if you like, which I highly recommend since he is the most bad-ass character in the game. Together, they manage to defeat Lavos and bring about a peaceful future. Crono and Marle get married and become rulers of Guardia. Ayla and Frog go back to their time periods and Robo likely disappears once he returns to the future, as it will no longer be a wasteland. Magus, here playing the role of every frustrated gamer in the world, vows to find Schala.

And that’s where Chrono Cross comes into play. The game finally answers what happened to Schala and in the most confusing way possible. Not only confusing, but infuriating as well. Tune in next week when I start Chrono Cross in earnest and begin the long journey of being pissed off and having characters I love destroyed.