I was begging for a shorter game after SMT II. If delivers on that in the most backhanded way possible. Whose sick idea was it to entice the player with four routes only to put them through dungeons so bad they won't want to replay the game? There is a war crime level time waster in this game. Combine that with asset and soundtrack reuse from the first two games and now I'm being tempted to skip this entry altogether. What's even worse is the most unique part of the game is in the fourth route locked behind new game plus. Reiko's ending is enjoyable but when the most enticing content is in playthrough two of a game that's already more of the same, I can't be bothered.

initially was going to convey this in a meaner, snarkier way for the bit but with how this game tied into trigger closer to the end i decided not to. the game is not subtle about how it feels having to follow up a dream team project like trigger and a certain set of characters basically have to refrain themselves from explicitly saying serge ruined chrono trigger, and because of that i would honestly feel kind of bad bringing that kind of attitude with this review. regardless, while i played chrono cross, the main thought that went through my head was "how is it that people thought cross didn't live up to trigger rather than the other way around?" but as i finished the game and write this review i feel as though cross didn't need to live up to trigger and that hinging its value on whether or not it does is a very childish way of looking at things.

to me, chrono trigger is a game that is held back by how near perfect it is. there's so little wrong with it that at least to me nothing really stands out anymore. there's nothing to grab onto, no imperfections to make it feel "complete" to me and as such i feel as though its reverence, while not necessarily misplaced, is harder for me to grasp because to me a "perfect" game without imperfections, as contradictory as it sounds, will never be perfect to me. meanwhile, chrono cross i found to be an amazing, thought provoking, mesmerizing game that pushed the playstation to its limits aesthetically, a game with so much to say about what it means to live and exist, what it means to dream. chrono cross is messy and imperfect in such beautiful ways, it knows its following up chrono trigger and while it still intends to be a continuation of a work like trigger it doesn't care what kind of shadow its living in and intends to be its own experience, flaws and all.
whether or not it lives up to chrono trigger is irrelevant, the arguments surrounding such are just attempts at insecure and childish posturing because these games, while connected are so different that its hardly worth comparing in that sense. i understand that nothing exists in a vacuum, let alone a sequel, but maybe it would do some people a lot of good to both understand the context of something like chrono cross while also letting it be its own experience.

Overall I found it to be a downgrade from the first game. Story and atmosphere are where it shines but SMT1 does them better. Combat is still mostly brain dead, negotiation is dumbed down, and progression is either tedious backtracking or just too obtuse. Perhaps my biggest complaint is the game is too long. An issue in their other SNES offerings. They wring out so much game time with so little unique assets. It feels like it doesn't know when to end. I'd have preferred a shorter, tighter experience.

I wanted to love it a lot more. It's visually stunning with a score and world to match. Yet the story provides very few emotional payoffs. As much as I love the cast, little is done to back up Vaan's claim of friendship at the end of the game. The party doesn't interact enough and performances aren't very emotive. A shame because there is so much content to do character work in. Preparation is fun but I find the battles less so. As neat as it is to automate, boss battles and dungeon crawling are dull due to how little input is required after set up. I'd like to see them give Gambits another go.