Article by: Paul Watkins (watkinzez)
Created by: Square
First appearance: 1995
Bio
Of all the role-playing games that have graced gaming systems over the years, Chrono Trigger probably starred the most famous mute of all. Created through a collaboration between Final Fantasy's Hironobu Sakaguchi, Dragon Warrior's Yuuji Horii and Dragon Ball's Akira Toriyama, the RPG release in the twilight years of the Super Nintendo told of a teenage boy who traveled through time to prevent the awakening of Lavos in the year 1999, and thus prevent the apocalypse. The player's immersive role through the character is one of the most influential in the genre.
Crono lives in 1000 A.D. with his mother in the Kingdom of Guardia. Upon arriving at the anticipated Millennial Fair he meets Marle, the tomboy princess of the land. His world is turned upside down as his childhood friend Lucca accidentally sends Marle into some kind of time warp with her teleportation machine, sparked by the necklace of the princess. Such are the threads that fuel Crono onto a journey concerning many different eras, personalities and adventures.
It is Crono's astounding fearlessness that energizes him on his quest, almost to the point of foolishness. While never directly speaking in the game, Crono displays a behavior capable of influencing people around him and accomplishing his goals. He plays several of the classic roles seen in RPGs and stories throughout history — one to save his companions and his supposed love interest Marle, and another to defend his values from the forces of evil. His magical attribute — lightning — is an homage to his personality.
Crono's weapon of choice is the katana, and his general fighting stance is on the offensive. Many of his special attacks involve channeling the power of lightning through his weapon to attack his foes. Through the use of the Tech system, he can team up with other characters to deliver attacks containing attributes of both members.
Selected game appearances
Super NES
- Chrono Trigger (1995)
PlayStation
- Chrono Cross (1999)
References
