Role Playing Games, better known in the gaming world as RPGs, have been pulling players into their magical, exciting worlds for many years. One title stands out among the rest, though, as the greatest RPG of all time according toIGNand many others:Chrono Trigger.
The game took players on an epic journey through the very fabric of time, brought exciting innovations to the classic formula of RPGs, and introduced fans to extremely memorable characters.Chrono Triggerhas an appropriately highMetacriticrating of 92, placing it among thereview aggregator’s greats.
There’s just one problem: the game’s far less loved sequel,Chrono Cross,has an even higherMetacriticof 94.
Chrono Cross Beats Chrono Trigger On Metacritic
The Sequel Isn’t Nearly As Popular As Its Predecessor
Chrono Crossisn’t a bad game by any means. The title takes place in the world ofChrono Triggerand centers around a cast of all-new characters to the series. Rather than traveling through time, this game’s party jumps across parallel worlds. The gamereceived high praise and glowing reviews when it was released in 2000.
The user reviews on Metacritic tell a different story from the official critic scores. WhileChrono Triggerhas a 9.2 rating from fans, matching its 92 “official” rating,its sequel scores far lower with 8.7.
“As a game, Chrono Cross is fine; as a sequel to the most iconic RPGs in gaming history, it’s a disappointment.”
Browsing through the negative reviews, it becomes clear that fans struggled to remove the two games from each other. As a game,Chrono Crossis fine; as a sequel to the most iconic RPGs in gaming history,it’s a disappointment.The criticisms paintCrossas a game that tried to live up to its name but fell short.
Another part of the dissatisfaction withChrono Crosscomes from frustration with Square Enix for remastering the sequel in 2022, and not the original title.Requests for aChrono Triggerremaster have fallen on deaf earsfor years (althoughrumors often surface indicating otherwise), leaving one of the best RPGs of all time firmly and unfortunately stuck in the past.
Chrono Trigger Discrepancy Shows The Flaw In Critic Reviews
They’re Useful But Not The End-All-Be-All
The discrepancy between what fans think and what critics say is clear in this disconnect in theChrono Triggerfranchise. Critic reviews are an important way for fans to stay in the know about current and upcoming titles and industry news. To find out if a game is worth yourincreasingly larger amounts of money, it’s worth reading what the experts are saying.
But sometimes, it’s worth wandering into gaming forums and Reddit posts to see what fans are actually saying. A game can be a critical success and a fan flop—or vice versa. Some games have an integral cultural significance attached to them, andany objective critic’s review might not necessarily capture that.
Despite their scores on Metacritic,Chrono Crossplays second fiddle to its predecessor’s greatness. Its sequel may have been a solid game, butChrono Triggerwill forever remain one of the most important RPG in gaming history.
