Chrono Cross: Radical Dreamers Edition | REVIEW | An unneeded sequel (Nintendo Switch) 

Thank you all so much for watching! Look forward to tomorrow for my final video of 2022!! I'll be starting next year with a Dragon Quest VII review! And we'll go from there~! I appreciate all the support you've given me and don't forget to please consider joining the Patreon!! www.patreon.com/PelvicGaming

BANGER. editing was on fire and the script kept me engaged. even though you didn't have the *best* time with this game i always feel like complicated opinions on titles make for more interesting reviews because it feels like the opinion pendulum is constantly swinging. great way to end the year

Your voiceover 'voice' has gotten really good. You provide a lot of character to your recording, and you maintain a conversational tone throughout, rather than just reading a word document. Good job!

It's so refreshing to see a take that's "this would be better as its own game but is still a good game" and not the hyperbolic "this game sullies the name of Chrono Trigger and you should feel bad for enjoying it for its own virtues". I love Trigger, but I hate overzealous fandoms.

I enjoy your reviews. You concisely explain the missteps made in the games without resorting to trash talk. Game designers could learn a lot from your critiques.

You cant drop this many reviews back to back, i wasn't ready! I found this page off of someone else's recommendation for some review (cant remember what) on a game I wanted to buy and the breakdown of the games and the music, the mechanics...ign could never!

I remember buying this game when it came out, I was in high-school, and I never got too far. Now that I've amassed/horded a drawer full of retro handhelds it's definitely on the top of my list of games I need to play.

Your videos are sick ! Hope you enjoy making them as much fun as they are to watch :)

RPGs from PS3/360 and prior were designed to sell physical guidebooks. Thanks for the honest review

Thanks as always for the great vids! Chrono Cross has such an amazing OST.

I love this game and it's soundtrack, thank you for playing!

the nostalgia i'm getting from your explanation of this combat system and just what little i remember of the core game play loop... time to get it for the switch

Just found your channel, I completely respect this review. As a og fan, the plot was crazy but what I comprehend was a blast.

Amazing review, as always!

What's a game to finish out the year. Happy new year Pelvic! Looking forward to many more years of great content

Fun combat, great soundtrack, endless replayability, load of characters, and confusing storyline................it's perfect.

I love this game to death and this review is 100% Facts.

agreed with this whole review. watching the gameplay really bringing back that nostalgia

Bruh why does your hair always go so hard I'm jealous

As Trigger is my favorite game of all time, I adored Cross when it came out. I still do. Though I disagree with your opinions on this game, I respect and understand your opinions. You rock, PG! Happy new year!

Yay new video! 🥳🎊🎉

That's a really cool color of lipstick you chose! It makes you look like a character from the game, lol

Good job healing the enemy, Pel. Proud of you

I have no idea how this showed up in my feed, But thanks for the video.

Classic quote from Masato Kato, director of the series: "Cross is Cross, and not Trigger 2". It got pretty clear to me that many people started to hate CC over the years simply because it wasn't what they expected it to be - they didn't even give it a chance. And honestly, while I understand their point of view, it really shoudn't be a big deal for RPGamers, since the concept of not-so-direct sequel is really commonplace in the genre, thanks to its most popular franchises like Final Fantasy. At the end of the day, their loss for being so close minded - even the haters gotta admit at least that CC OST is ABSOLUTELY LEGENDARY. By the way, as somebody who played Chrono Trigger and Secret of Mana to death as a kid, Mana series has a very similar thing, being Legend of Mana on PS1 very different from Secret. Had I been so close minded, I would never find what came to be two of my favorite games of all time.

I've never considered playing this game as I always thought the experience would be soured by comparison to Chrono Trigger. But honestly, this review makes it sound fun. Like the battle mechanics seem like my jam and while I relate to the limited time struggle, I don't tend to struggle with FOMO like that. So the wide variety available is a real sell for me (I appreciate the heads up on some of the pitfalls though). Great video.

I played it when it came out... and I understood it perfectly. Yes, some details were missed when I was a kid, side plot stuff, but the actual core story? Not that hard to understand. Also, Cross is basically my favorite game of all time, so perhaps I'm biased a bit, but I do think it does benefit from being linked to Trigger. The lack of linkages being overt as you play through the game until later is a direct consequence of them basically screwing over the dev schedule. What would be a really amazing thing to see, is if we could get the funding together and get all the devs back to finish out the stuff that had to hit the cutting room floor. You are absolutely right about the skipped frames, though. Luckily, if you want to, you can go find a fix for that issue readily.

I used to blindly believe that this was a better game than Trigger, but revisiting it as an adult showed me how up its own ass the story is. It also doesn’t quite have the same degree of powerful character moments that Trigger did. It’s absolutely worth playing but it’s not without it’s warts.

It has been many years now since first I played Chrono Cross. Would you know what stuck with me from that game? Solt and Peppor. I have no idea why that still amuses me to this day. As a stand alone game, I liked it. As a tie in to the legendary Chrono Trigger, not so much. That is an awfully long shadow to stand in. I enjoyed this review. The host has an energy and enthusiasm that is contagious. Subscribed.

Hey Amber remember me! Me, julia,you,Lani and my sister Leira used to go to martial arts together with master Robertson off tuskawilla. It's me leira's little sister lol. Long time no see! Just saying hi! I subcribed!

What’s your take on the main battle theme?

Your criticisms are valid. I’m in the middle of the game so far and I’m liking it. But I’m playing with a guide beside me as well and what you say about missing people and items is correct. The guide is helping me get them but I would miss them if I didn’t have it. I wouldn’t call this game a sequel either. The small tie in IMO isn’t necessary to know really. I’m enjoying the story so far but yes I’m in the middle of it so I don’t get the full story yet. As far as the battle system goes the tutorial by that old dude at the beginning helped but the guide helped fill in the blanks I had as well. Good game so far. But I can’t say it’s the best of all time yet like Erick Landon does. I doubt I’ll put it that high when I’m done either.

I didn’t know the game came out already!

I played CC a couple yeats ago when a podcast i like covered it. And enjoyed it enough. But for some reason i always think about it. Now i find myself always listening to the music and being nostalgic of my playthrough. It might just be one if those games that are better in retrospective.

I also really like the opening theme, but "Dragon God" is an amazing boss theme.

That combat lag you’re referring to around 6:55 is in the original game. It was a pain at the ripe age of 8 just as much as it is today 😭 😂

I first played this on a PSP about 8 years ago, and it quickly became an all-time favorite. I'd missed out on it when it was new, mostly because of the leveling system; I borrowed it from a friend, saw individual stats rising, and said, "Individual stat gains like in Final Fantasy 2!? NOPE!" It wasn't until I'd played Radical Dreamers (would that make you believe I understood the plot my first playthrough?) that this started looking interesting again (I'm not a huge reader, myself, but I love me some Shadowgate), and I legit played 8 back-to-back playthroughs to get all rainbow gear for every character... which could've been 7, but a CERTAIN CHARACTER doesn't carry their gear to a New Game +. It does have a pretty deep lull not long after the beginning hook, but once it picked up again, I couldn't put it down. There's a lot about it that I like more than Trigger, and I think the biggest part is the story; Chrono Trigger was a feel-good roller coaster of a game, but it was also very irresponsible, and I liked how Cross pointed out that you can't just go ripping back and forth in time, changing history, without some major consequences.

20 FPS if you're lucky. This port has been known to drop to 10 FPS on PS5.

great video! A couple of things i would throw back at you in terms of your criticisms -This game is a deconstructive look at what happens when you try to mess with time. Like yes, serge's timeline includes the world ending, but the entirety of the game is really about what happens if you fuck with time in the way that Crono and gang did. It's part of the reason they didn't give any of them happy endings. - For that reason, I really enjoy the plot of the game. To some extent the consulted story makes sense- time travel and parallel universes aren't going to be easy to understand. That said, getting the game's full scope on first or second playthrough requires you to pay a lot of attention and look for detail

I was in 4th grade when I played this game. That was back in 2001. So fair to say, I had no idea of the story. I was just playing

Great review!! I do have a suggestion though - there isn't a single video game channel that breaks from the talking head formula. Someone needs to vary it up and show themselves standing or something. Try it out?

Haha, I did NOT raise my hand, promise. I actually haven't finished the game yet because I was feeling so lost in the story. I was just passed what I think might be the first big plot twist thing? I don't know. I bought the ps3 digital port 2 or 3 years ago and found it to run very well, no major hiccups, I was happy. Thanks, Pelvic. I just want to say I'm glad I found your channel, I think you're just great and charming and wonderful.

I loved this game as a kid. Hearing your adult take is interesting. I've got completionist in me, too, however i like customization a lot more, and picking your team was fun for me! I wasn't as sad missing so.e characters if I could get the ones I really wanted. I played this game years before chrono trigger (hadn't heard of it, lol)

I replayed this game so. many. times! You have no idea! CC is very dear to me in all the weird ways you mentioned and YES I did miss Glenn in my first playthrough and I also never got over the fact that the best CT references can't be on the same party in a single playthrough.

We all missed Glenn the first time. But by the time we found him and the beauty of X-Strike. Oh, the joy!

Got this remaster @ launch and haven't played it since. Now that I'm almost done replaying the original FFVII (after finishing Crisis Core), I think it's safe to assume that I do currently have the time to figure out CC. I'm glad that I'm not the only one that didn't "get it" at some points. I thought I was just dumb lol

Wait, the remaster comes with a fast forward feature? Thats funny, cause if I recall one of the rewards for getting to new game plus was a fast forward feature.

First time I saw this was with my buddy at the mall. Electronics Boutique. We were early teens and he loves Chrono Trigger so he bought it. I just loved anything RPG, but I remember what I wanted at the time was memory cards for my PS1, and a new controller. We got back to his place, and I watched as he became increasingly disappointed while playing it. I guess to him, it wasn't Chrono Trigger enough. But then he gave it to me. And as for me. I played the *shit* out of this game. Still own it.

I just remembered , I wanted to remember this release 😭

I was wondering if you planned to play and review the longest ongoing JRPG ever created, Trails Series?

I played as a kid so maybe it was easier for me to understand it all on my first playthrough as an adult. But this game is truly amazing and different from any other RPG I've ever played. I wish they put more effort into this remake.

This video did just make a compelling argument to play the game with a guide. Thanks for the PSA lol

I still think this is one of the most fleshed out battle systems on the PS1. And the sound track? Easily one of the best. Great game. Love it.

Oh jeez! I hate being cutoff from a character or item. I always wanted to play this game, but I probably won’t. Great review.

I really love this game but you're absolutely right about the missables. PS1 era games were horrendous with that because they wanted to you buy the guides. Now they're nearly unplayable without them unless you're okay missing out on tons of content

As legendary as Trigger is, I've never played either. I've watched on and off gameplay of the remaster of this one by friends though, and I admittedly don't ever wanna play Cross lol. Not that it looks bad but that battle system has a lot going on and it was the first time in my life i ever felt like a JRPG system was genuinely daunting and i wasn't even the one playing. Props to you for even explaining it lol. Also the jester girl really fine

I cant unhear the first chords of the battle music for the rest of my life.

It's such an interesting game. The game's story makes it clear in the 3rd act that "Yes, this is a Chrono Trigger sequel" but everything else feels completely unique to this game. And the story- I was following until the dragons and Harle got involved. Gets hella confusing at that point.

great review! just wanted to mention that the music in the remaster IS the original just slightly. slightly cleaned up; as in I don't think any average person would be able to tell. weirdly enough, despite not really liking Chrono Cross(??) maybe I do but it's complicated. I think I prefer it over Trigger? like Trigger is the better game but something about Cross jibes with me, only wish the remaster was better :-( It is an improvement from other ps1 square ports but not the best we've seen and they have shown that they can make a good remaster which only makes it more disappointing. *the start menu does have newly arranged tracks of the OST and so does the opening I think

I adore this game almost as much as I do the original even with its flaws (especially the frame rate issues in this version), I get the story these days but I definitely did not understand all of back in the early 2000's. The slow down feature is only good in my book for the dragon feeding mini game.

dying waiting for this to go on sale

The songs in this game definitely have that "Ohh I REMEMBER that!" vibe to them (like, the Home World theme), but unfortunately, for all those "I REMEMBER that!" moments this game throws at you, it just kind of makes you... Miss Chrono Trigger instead? It's so weird because it's constantly reminding you that Chrono Trigger happened, but that isn't always a GOOD feeling. Plus, I feel like they did the original cast pretty dirty with, well... You know. Everything~ But yeah, great vid, and solid take over all!

When this came out and I originally played it my take was that more people would have liked it had they not put Chrono in the title. It's hard to follow one of the greatest games of all time. One of these days I do need to replay it

While Cross was indeed confusing in its storytelling element - no pun intended - it will still hold a grand place in my heart. I have not acquired the remaster yet (wth is wrong with me?) but I do plan on getting it at some point in time (still no pun intended). God, this post is cringe. Anyway, I appreciate your review. I won't be one of those people who'll be all "if you played it in the 90s/00s, you'd like it better". Hell with that. Enjoy it in whatever era you're in. BTW, what ending did you get the first time around? The true ending or the 'default' ending? I accidentally got the true ending my first playthrough. That was a rich experience.

One of my favorite games ever and you covered it well. Shame about the OST though. My favorite song was the other world theme

I raised my hand. 😂 I first beat this game a couple years after its release when I was in early high school, but I loved the convoluted plot and I really felt I understood it and how 'certain characters' tied in. Loved it. Gotta replay one day.

For the things in this game that are a turnoff for me, there is something else that makes it kind of worth the pain. No random encounters? 👀 but there are way too many party members No grinding required? 👀 but I didn’t fully understand the battle system until halfway in my play through Hearing you explain the plot points made me remember, the game can be a bit over ambitious for what is in the final product. Although I like that there’s plenty that you can imagine they wanted to include. Favorite songs? Gotta be the Shadow Forest and the Final Boss theme

they were trying to go somewhere with it. technically it is its own story that is loosely tied to trigger because trigger is the cause of crosses existence, more importantly the part where all the magic kingdom era fired up the mammon machine and scala got trapped in lavos. i at least understood this much on my first playthrough because of how much i actually played trigger in the 90s. however aside from that and the very little bit you get to see of the original crew as kids (which is more of a projection of them) it is its own thing. i remember reading articles about crono break about how these two stories were meant to be their own thing but were to come full circle and like bleed into each other in crono break which was never fully realized

Cmown pretty lady we need more content and reviews, can’t get enough of your smile. 💪

I've learned long ago not to miss recruiting Glenn into my party, but still for the life of me cannot remember to get that damn hammer for the rainbow equipment! I even made an effort too, but still missed the window...Makes me so angry [at myself]!

I remember when I first played this game around this time in 2001. I did not understand the story either lol. It was not until my 3rd or 4th play through I started to understand it a little.

Thumbs up! Good info. Yes it would have been better to be independent from Chrono Trigger.

you're right sometimes it's cool to grind - towtansua

1:40 Oh you didn't do/knew about the Save Marbule sidequestline? It's possible to resolve this demi-human conflict by doing that sidequest and even get a concert at the end as a reward alongside explaining a part of the huge cast of characters their relations with each other. The Porre Army part was technically lead by an unknown leader which Norris was working under, but the game never directly states who that may be, and that is because Masato Kato expects someone to remember certain moments from CT to detect that Mr Dalton himself is basically a major behind the scenes driving force for some of the events of CC, for he never died in CT. The conflict rather gets pushed back from their search for someone like Serge, Lynx and so forth. That said, I assume (because I was never able to talk to Masato Kato back then) the third Chrono game which was apparently active in development around 2005, hence why the CT DS game later was giving enhanced scenes to connect the games more, was going to tie all of that together. Thing is, Masato Kato's major crew he wanted to do the third Chrono game with was stuck at FF11 eversince, and he doesn't wanna compromise from what I get about that subject. CC overall tho had a troubled development before Masato Kato wanted his "recruit every NPC you like" idea to be fullfilled within this game, which imo hurt the game and focus of what it wanted to be, which is why I see CC as some sorta guilty pleasure game, cuz I know it has issues, it has some loose ends for interpretation and tries to be thoughtful but it isn't a round game in itself. I don't really think CC had trouble explaining it's combat system if you didn't skip that one time you had the chance to get your optional tutorial in a game that isn't really self explainatory, but I get why it can feel too much because the game doesn't pace the battle system explanation very well and the fact you can miss it entirely if you didn't talk to Radius at the start is bothersome if not an unhealthy gamedesign choice :/ Actually Poshul has two(?) versions to recruit her. One is the standard "fetch her the heckran bone" action but the other is just recruiting Leena, cuz Poshul always joins in when Leena does. Funny thing about Kid: You can avoid recruiting her the entire game over, and no there is no extra ending or so for it, as if the game indirectly begs for the player to recruit her.. which lets me wonder why she isn't a forced recruitable, like quite some story parts deal with Kid existing, so why actively have the option to ignore basically a 2ndary main protagonist? It's not like you can get Leena back for example if you don't from what I know. Tbf you don't need the rainbow weapons at all if you play smart. I do prefer the Rainbow Swallow over the Mastermune, and also cuz so the endgame isn't cheesy breezy due to the additional "effective against dragons" bonus, but ultimately one could care less about it, unless someone is struggling with the superboss of this game from a certain easily overseeable island. 11:25 actually you can get that item after Karsh leaves the room, as in after the Viper manor incident. And about the barrel, apparently the barrel says something different in the japanese version to encourage you to talk to it again, like it coughing during the "it's just a barrel" part. 13:10 Quite a shame really, as musicwise you get to hear where the unfitting CC main battle theme comes from and why it works in RD then in CC, and where the burning orphanage music comes from, or why Lynx battle theme from RD wasn't in CC which he definitly deserved. Or how Radius, Riddel and someone working under Dalton which name I forgot acted before they were reworked into their CC self. Or how the Serge of RD feels more expressive then the CC one, also because he is a traveling musician and basically composed "the girl who stole the stars", a tune that Kid knows from years back, heck the dynamic between Serge and Kid from RD feels so much more organic then in CC that it confused the hecksies out of me why Masato kato didn't stay with that concept/idea and polished up the loose ends that RD had in for CC, like it would only positively expanded the CC lore and made more sense for why Kid likes Serge or vice versa then how forced it feels in CC comparetively :/ (Also the joke endings are damn hilarious and RD is like 3 1/2 hours long, maybe faster when you use an online map as the manor has a layout that can get confused to a point that you never find a certain room because of how the choices are mapped out) Why do you criticize "lack of original music"? Like what do you want, remastered tracks that ruin the original composition of CC? I'm happy that they only put in higher quality audio tracks from back then without changing up the music for better or worse (like the main battle theme). Tho if you wanna talk about new content: Beat CC and RD once and watch the credits in the main menu WITHOUT skipping them, as the secret new cutscene explaining something that bothers fans of CT and CC will get shown that way, while also hinting more about a third Chrono title in the future!

I understood the gist of the story on my first play through. Playing it again right away filled in a lot of what I missed. Part of the trouble understanding this game is it’s very convoluted, and once you figure it all out there’s a ton of plot holes. Originally, one of the characters was going to be Magus from chrono trigger but they had to cut his character story in order to have the billion issueless characters.

The stand out tracks for me in this game always include Times Scar Magical Dreamers Fragments Of A Dream Dream Of the Shore Near Another World Prisoners Of Fate Radical Dreamers: Unstolen Jewel

No matter the critique or argument... That OST slaps hard

I think this remaster looks great, but that story and combat system are way too much for my small brain. Thanks for a great informative review!

is it weird that i dont remember this battle system

I definitely didn't understand the storyline the first playthrough, and eventually looked online to figure it all out. Still loved playing through this game not knowing ish about what happened in Chrono Trigger though

Lady Pelvic have you dabbled in the Mega Man RPGs? Battle Network? Star Force? X Command Mission? They are all very unique

I literally have no idea what you just said, buu-u-ut I like it.

Without any plot spoilers for anyone reading the comments the game over screen may be the best ending for the world at large considering what few plot details I remember

Beautiful graphics, outstanding music, and a cool opening concept unfortunately could not override the skin-deep characterizations and confusing-as-hell story. When writing Cross, Masato Kato exorcised many personal demons borne from Chrono Trigger's intense development, but damned if it doesn't do the plot of this game a disservice. Great review as always!!

Fully agree

5 seconds in... YES I HAVE!

I played this game years ago on the ps1. In fact, i still have the game, disc, case and all. I love the game. Next to FF7, they are my favorites. The musical score in this game is very jrpg ish and the battle system is one of the best. Just complete the color bubble with a solid color and let it rip. I replayed the game to collect all the characters and the second time around was a breeze. I'm glad it is now out on switch as the ps1 version looks shitty without a tube TV (standard definition). But yeah, great game whether you play trigger or not.

Story was... odd. But OST was god-level.

I've always been in the camp that hated what it did to CT's story. But its own story had some really moving aspects... so agree it would've been better standalone.

i tried to like this game when it first came out. but i couldn't. one day i'll try it again.

You kind of addressed it but, most of your complaints were commonplace for JRPGs of that era! I recall understanding everything about combat/leveling in Cross but watching your video some 20 years removed, and I'm fuckin' lost in the sauce!

Cross is a pretty game with a bangin’ soundtrack, but it’s story is a convoluted mess told to and through paper-thin characters. Add in a battle system that although interesting, is implemented very clunkily, and you have a game that fails to add up to the sum of it’s parts.

I'm glad to see the younger kids are still enjoying the classics

Honestly, I loved this game for wacky it is. It grows very inwardly and it doesn't like to explain anything but at the same time the true ending really ties it all together for me. Like the game has as much heart as it has wonky pacing. It is one of those marvels of the PS1 era that could never stand in today's market for how egregious yet amusing and compelling it can be at points (the Fort Dragonia sequence 10/10 without a doubt the best part of the game it had me gagged on the floor)

Best OST in JRPG history

Ever thought of doing long form critique of a game? Maybe for one of your favorites of all time?

Me looking at Chrono Cross after this review: Get away from me! Me remembering Radiant Historia and Chrono Trigger: Why aren't you on Switch yet?!

Yeah Chrono Cross is definitely a hard story to follow. I played it years ago and would have a hard time trying to explain the story to someone. I listen to the OST on a regular basis though because its one of the best soundtracks in gaming history.

I understood the plot of Chrono Cross the first time, but I agree that it was crazy convoluted. A bit like Kingdom Hearts in that way.

I was okay once I realized it's temoporal war going on thus naturally confusing. You have to sort of let the details go and just focus on that. Problem was I was so confused that I often didn't even know what to do next.