1. Chrono Trigger Resurrection - Corridors Of Time
2. Chrono Trigger Resurrection - Battle With Magus
3. Chrono Trigger 3d
4. Chrono Trigger Resurrection Download

*The download is actually a prepatched game, since I don't have the patch itself. Chrono Trigger: Prophet's Guile-49.7 KB. Chrono Trigger: Prophet’s Guile is another extensive hack, and by the same people behind Crimson Echoes.This follows the story of Magus’s rise to power in the Kingdom of Zeal after arriving in 12000 B.C. Thanks to the distortion at his lair. Chrono Trigger Resurrection OST I got ahold of all the music that was finished for Chrono Trigger Resurrection and at first I was just going to upload it here, but I noticed that it was pretty rough around the edges.

The Chrono series is a video game franchise developed and published by Square Enix (formerly Square). It began in 1995 with the time travelrole-playing video gameChrono Trigger, which spawned two continuations, Radical Dreamers and Chrono Cross. The music of Chrono Trigger was mainly composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, with a few tracks composed by regular Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu. The Chrono Trigger soundtrack has inspired four official album releases by Square Enix: a soundtrack album in released by NTT Publishing in 1995 and re-released in 2004, a greatest hits album published by DigiCube in 1999, published in abbreviated form by Tokyopop in 2001, and republished by Square Enix in 2005, an acid jazz arrangement album published and republished by NTT Publishing in 1995 and 2004, and a 2008 orchestral arranged album by Square Enix. Corresponding with the Nintendo DS release of the game, a reissued soundtrack was released in 2009.^[1] An arranged album for Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross, entitled To Far Away Times, was released in 2015 to commemorate the 20 year anniversary of Chrono Trigger.

The original soundtrack has been hailed as one of the best video game soundtracks ever made, and the Original Sound Version album met with similar applause. The reception for the other albums has been mixed, with the releases finding both fans and detractors among reviewers. Songs from the soundtrack have been played at various orchestral concerts, such as the personal arrangements by Mitsuda for the Play! A Video Game Symphony concert series. Chrono Cross music has also been extensively remixed by fans, and such remixes have been included in both official and unofficial albums.

• 2Albums
  • 2.1Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version
  • 2.5Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack (2009 release)

Creation and development[edit]

Chrono Trigger was scored primarily by Yasunori Mitsuda, with assistance by veteran Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu. A sound programmer at the time, Mitsuda was unhappy with his pay and threatened to leave Square if he could not compose music.^[2]Final Fantasy developer Hironobu Sakaguchi, one of the three designers for the upcoming Chrono Trigger, suggested he score the game, remarking, 'maybe your salary will go up.'^[3] Mitsuda reflected, 'I wanted to create music that wouldn't fit into any established genre...music of an imaginary world. The game's director, Masato Kato, was my close friend, and so I'd always talk with him about the setting and the scene before going into writing.'^[2] Mitsuda has said that he was unsure of how to start, saying that he 'must've tried to start writing the music 4 times' and that it took 'a month and a half' before he knew how to compose the music for Chrono Trigger.^[4]

Mitsuda slept in his studio several nights, and attributed certain songs, such as 'To Far Away Times', to inspiring dreams.^[3] He later attributed this song to an idea he was developing before Chrono Trigger, reflecting that the song was made in dedication to 'a certain person with whom I wanted to share a generation.'^[5] Mitsuda tried to use leitmotifs of the Chrono Trigger main theme to create a sense of consistency in the soundtrack.^[6] He also suffered a hard drive crash that lost around forty in-progress tracks.^[7] After Mitsuda contracted stomach ulcers, regular Final Fantasy series composer Nobuo Uematsu joined the project to compose ten songs and finish the score.^[2] Mitsuda returned to watch the ending with the staff before the game's release, crying upon seeing the finished scene.^[7] Mitsuda considers Chrono Trigger a landmark title which helped mature his talent.^[8] While Mitsuda later held that the title piece was 'rough around the edges,' he maintains that it had 'significant influence on my life as a composer.'^[5] At the time of the game's release, the number of tracks and sound effects was unprecedented, causing the soundtrack to span three discs in its 1995 commercial pressing.^[9]

Albums[edit]

Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version[edit]

Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version is a soundtrack of the music from Chrono Trigger, produced by Yasunori Mitsuda and Mitsunobu Nakamura. The soundtrack spans three discs and 64 tracks, covering a duration of 2:39:52. It was published by NTT Publishing on March 25, 1995 and re-published on October 1, 2004.^[11]

Chrono Trigger Resurrection - Corridors Of Time

The majority of the tracks were composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, while ten tracks were contributed by Nobuo Uematsu after Mitsuda contracted stomach ulcers.^[2]Noriko Matsueda composed one track, 'Boss Battle 1', which was arranged by Uematsu. The soundtrack tunes have been described as covering a wide variety of moods, from 'simple, light-hearted tunes' like 'Spekkio' to 'sad themes' like 'At The Bottom of Night' and 'darker themes' like 'Ocean Palace'.^[11]

The album was well received by reviewers such as Liz Maas of RPGFan, who termed it 'well worth its price' and noted that the tracks were very memorable and 'always fit the mood in the game'.^[11]IGN termed it 'one of the best videogame soundtracks ever produced' and said that the music was a large part of the game's ability to 'capture the emotions of the player'. It furthermore called the soundtrack 'some of the most memorable tunes in RPG history'.^[12] The game itself won the 'Best Music in a Cartridge-Based Game' award in Electronic Gaming Monthly's 1995 video game awards.^[13]

The original CDs for both releases were only published in Japan and include only Japanese track names. The official English track names were later released on Chrono Trigger Official Soundtrack: Music from Final Fantasy Chronicles and Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack [DS Version].

Track listings[edit]

All music composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, except where noted.

Chrono Trigger Arranged Version: The Brink of Time[edit]

Chrono Trigger Arranged Version: The Brink of Time is an album of acid jazz rearrangements of the music from Chrono Trigger, arranged and performed by GUIDO (Hiroshi Hata and Hidenobu Ootsuki). The soundtrack spans one disc and 10 tracks, covering a duration of 52:47. It was published by NTT Publishing on June 25, 1995, and reprinted on October 1, 2004.^[14]

The Brink of Time came about because Mitsuda wanted to do something that no one else was doing, and he noted that acid jazz and its related genres were uncommon in the Japanese market.^[6] It was the first album for which Mitsuda had to work with live recordings.^[15] The cover art of the album depicts a plate of fried eggs between a fork, knife and glass, while the inside booklet depicts a rooster which was specifically brought into the studio for the photo shooting. Several eggs had to be fried before the designers could settle on the correct shape.^[16] Mitsuda has stated that Ootsuki's arrangement technique left a strong impact on him and notably influenced his next score, the soundtrack to Front Mission Series: Gun Hazard.^[15]

The album received mixed reviews from critics. Freddie W. of RPGFan, while calling the album 'pretty good' overall, said that several of the tracks including 'Zeal Palace' and 'Warlock Battle' were 'absolutely horrible' due to the 'disgustingly bad' distorted guitars. He cited the overuse of guitars as the worst part of the album.^[14] Simon of Square Enix Music Online had a different reaction; he enjoyed the guitars in the songs and said that the album had 'skill, class, and a feel that's relatively original'. He concluded, however, that he could not seem to 'connect' with the album, and that the CD was 'very much down to personal taste — a love or hate arrangement'.^[17]

Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack[edit]

Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack, also referred to as 'Chrono Trigger '99' or 'Chrono Trigger PSX OST', is a greatest hits album featuring 21 tracks from Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version and nine arranged tracks from the release of Chrono Trigger for the PlayStation. The arranged tracks come from the cutscenes added to the game, while Tsuyoshi Sekito composed four new pieces for the game's bonus features that weren't included on the soundtrack.^[6] The album was released by DigiCube on December 18, 1999 to coincide with the PlayStation release and re-released by Square Enix on February 23, 2005. The album is 1:14:12 long and spans 30 tracks.^[18]

A version of the album was re-published by Tokyopop in North America as Chrono Trigger Official Soundtrack: Music From Final Fantasy Chronicles on August 21, 2001, to coincide with the release of the Final Fantasy Chronicles collection of Final Fantasy IV and Chrono Trigger. The first 21 tracks of the album out of 25 were identical to Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack, while the next three tracks corresponded to tracks 22, 23, and 29 of the Original Soundtrack and the final track was the same as the first track of Brink of Time. This version of the album is 1:13:03 long.^[19]

Original Soundtrack received mixed reviews by critics. Ryan Mattich of RPGFan termed it 'an excellent selection of music', primarily due to the arranged tracks, saying that the Original Sound Version album's tracks were better than this version's as they were looped and thus played longer.^[18] Patrick Gann was disparaging of the North American version of the CD, however, saying that its shortened track list destroyed the main reason to buy the album.^[19] Don Kotowski of Square Enix Music Online was dismissive of the Original Soundtrack album, saying that while the Original Sound Version tracks truly represented the 'best of' the game's soundtrack, the arranged tracks were 'either too short, too much like the original, or lifeless compared to the original', giving no incentive to purchase the album over the Original Sound Version.^[20]

Chrono Trigger Orchestra Extra Soundtrack[edit]

Chrono Trigger Orchestra Extra Soundtrack is an album of orchestral arrangements of Chrono Trigger songs, arranged by Natsumi Kameoka. Published by Square Enix on November 20, 2008 exclusively as a pre-order bonus of the Nintendo DS port of Chrono Trigger, this soundtrack consists of two tracks, 'Chrono Trigger ~Orchestra Version~' and 'Chrono Trigger Medley ~Orchestra Version~', the latter spanning the songs 'A Premonition', 'Guardia's Millennial Fair', 'Yearnings of the Wind', 'Frog's Theme', 'Battle with Magus', 'Epilogue ~To Good Friends~', and 'To Far Away Times'.^[21] Mitsuda expressed difficulty in selecting the songs for the orchestral medley, eventually picking a song from each era and certain character themes.^[5] While both tracks involve a full orchestra, 'Chrono Trigger' is more heavily horn-based, while 'Medley' relies more on stringed instruments.^[22] The CD itself came in a single sleeve with a short note from primary composer Yasunori Mitsuda. The album as a whole has a length of 6:18, with 'Chrono Trigger' lasting 2:07 and 'Medley' having a length of 4:11.

The album has been described as showing that Mitsuda was 'well ahead of the curve' when he composed the Chrono Trigger soundtrack.^[22] IGN described 'Chrono Trigger ~Orchestra Version~' as having a heavy 1970's influence and as being 'a testament to Mitsuda's compositional skills', while calling 'Chrono Trigger Medley ~Orchestra Version~' 'playfully romantic' with 'a fairy tale element' in the beginning of the song that later transforms into 'an entirely more grandiose arena'.^[22] Patrick Gann described the soundtrack as 'awesome' and said that 'Kameoka is really good at orchestral arrangement'.^[21] His primary complaint was the length of the album, as he wished it had been a full album instead of a 'mini-album' of only two tracks.^[21]

Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack (2009 release)[edit]

Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack is a Square-Enix re-release of the Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version soundtrack that was made available for purchase on July 29, 2009. This soundtrack corresponds to the Nintendo DS version of Chrono Trigger, with different instrumentation from the original Super NES version. This 3 disc soundtrack contains additional tracks that were not included on the original release, as well as a bonus DVD.

The track lengths for a number of tracks on all three discs are different than the Original Sound Version release. On the first disc, tracks 24-27 are new arranged version tracks that were included as the music from those tracks corresponded to the video animated sequences that were added originally on the PlayStation version. The same applied to tracks 25-27 on the second disc and tracks 18-24 on the third disc.

The Bonus DVD included a special Mitsuda interview and two music videos for the tracks that were on the Orchestra Extra album: 'Chrono Trigger ~Orchestra Version~' and 'Chrono Trigger Medley ~Orchestra Version~'.^[1]

The asterisk indicates the additional tracks that were not in the original Original Sound Version.

Track listings[edit]

All music composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, except where noted.

To Far Away Times: Chrono Trigger & Chrono Cross Arrangement Album[edit]

On a live performance at the Tokyo Dome in July 2015 commemorating the 20 year anniversary of Chrono Trigger, Mitsuda announced that the long requested Chrono series arrangement album, entitled To Far Away Times: Chrono Trigger & Chrono Cross Arrangement Album would be released. This was eventually released by Square Enix Music on October 14, 2015.^[23][24][25]

Covers and adaptations[edit]

Music from Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version has been arranged for the piano and published as sheet music by DOREMI Music Publishing.^[26]Chrono Trigger's soundtrack has been heavily remixed by fans, sparking several albums. These include the officially licensed Time & Space - A Tribute to Yasunori Mitsuda, released by OneUp Studios on October 7, 2001 and containing 18 remixes over a span of 1:00:58, with a second version of the album released on June 17, 2003. In 2009, another album, 'Chronotorious', was released by the same band under the name 'Bad Dudes'. Another album release was Chrono Symphonic, an unofficial download-only album release by the remix website OverClocked ReMix on January 3, 2006 containing 25 remixes over 2 'discs'.^[27] Selections of remixes also appear on Japanese remix albums, called Dōjin, and on English remixing websites such as OverClocked Remix.^[28] In 2013, Video game composer Blake Robinson officially licensed the compositions and released his new arrangements as 'The Chrono Trigger Symphony'. Volume 1, 2 and 3 are available for paid download from iTunes and Loudr.^[29]Video game cover artist Malcolm Robinson also licensed and released arrangements of 30 songs from the soundtrack as 'Chrono Trigger: Orchestral Selections'. Volume 1 and 2 (Published in 2015 and 2019, respectively) each contain 15 remixes, and are available from iTunes and Spotify.

Live performances[edit]

The main theme of Chrono Trigger was played at the fifth of the Orchestral Game Music Concerts in 1996, and released on an accompanying album.^[30] Mitsuda has arranged versions of music from Chrono Trigger for Play! A Video Game Symphony video game music concerts in 2006, presenting the main theme, Frog's Theme, and To Far Away Times.^[31] Music from the game has also been performed in other video game concert tours such as the Video Games Live concert series and in concerts by the Eminence Orchestra.^[32] Music from Chrono Trigger and Cross made up one fourth of the music in the Symphonic Fantasies concerts in Cologne in September 2009 which were produced by the creators of the Symphonic Game Music Concert series and conducted by Arnie Roth.^[33][34] The concerts featured a suite of music from both games interspersed together with the songs from Trigger comprising 'A Premonition', 'Battle with Magus', 'Chrono Trigger', 'Peaceful Days', 'Outskirts of Time', 'Frog's Theme', and 'To Far Away Times', as well as a boss battle suite that featured 'Lavos’ Theme'.^[35] 'Crono's Theme' was performed at the Press Start -Symphony of Games- 2007 concerts in Yokohama and Osaka, Japan, and a suite comprising music from Chrono Trigger and Cross was performed at the Press Start -Symphony of Games- 2008 concerts the following year in Tokyo and Shanghai.^[36][37] An arrangement of 'Light of Silence' was performed on July 9, 2011 at the Symphonic Odysseys concert, which commemorated the music of Uematsu.^[38]

For the 20th anniversary in 2015, Mitsuda, along with his performing group Millennial Fair, performed songs from the game at the Tokyo Globe in Tokyo, Japan on July 25 and 26. The event, titled 'The Brink of Time', included Mitsuda performing on the piano, guitar, and Irish bouzouki.^[39]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^ab'CHRONO TRIGGER ORIGINAL SOUND TRACK'. Video Game Music Database. Archived from the original on 2009-09-01. Retrieved 2010-09-12.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
2. ^ ^abcdKohler, Chris (2004). Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life. DK Publishing. ISBN0-7440-0424-1.
3. ^ ^abMitsuda, Yasunori (2008-01-28). 'Radical Dreamer: Yasunori Mitsuda Interview from 1UP.com'. 1UP.com. Archived from the original on 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2008-02-08.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
4. ^Mitsuda, Yasunori (1995-01-21). 'Chrono Trigger Original Sound Version liner notes'. NTT Publishing. PSCN-5024.
5. ^ ^abc'Chrono Trigger DS'(Flash). Square Enix. Archived from the original on 2009-02-26. Retrieved 2009-03-13.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
6. ^ ^abc'Yasunori Mitsuda Talks Chrono Trigger'. Original Sound Version. 2008-11-24. Archived from the original on 2011-03-24. Retrieved 2009-03-13.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
7. ^ ^abFamitsu, ed. (July 2008). Chrono Trigger DS (in Japanese). Famitsu. pp. 67–70. Archived from the original on 2009-06-13.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
8. ^Gay, James (2006-10-13). 'Yasunori Mitsuda Interview'. PALGN. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2007-05-22.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
9. ^Averill, Alan (July 1995). Nintendo Power. Nintendo. p. 52.
10. ^'Yasunori Mitsuda / Nobuo Uematsu / Noriko Matsueda – Chrono Trigger: Original Sound Version'. Discogs. Archived from the original on 19 May 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2012.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
11. ^ ^abcMaas, Liz (2002-05-19). 'Chrono Trigger OSV'. RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2009-02-21. Retrieved 2009-04-16.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
12. ^IGN staff (2001-07-04). 'IGN: Final Fantasy Chronicles Review'. IGN. Archived from the original on 2014-10-25. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
13. ^'Electronic Gaming Monthly's Buyer's Guide'. Electronic Gaming Monthly. 1996.
14. ^ ^abW., Freddie (2000-06-10). 'Chrono Trigger: The Brink of Time'. RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2009-02-21. Retrieved 2009-04-23.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
15. ^ ^abProcyon Studio staff (April 2000). 'This month's friend… KALTA'. Procyon Studio. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Retrieved 2008-07-22.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
16. ^Mitsuda, Yasunori (April 2002). 'Questions from April, 2002'. Procyon Studio. Archived from the original on 2008-03-25. Retrieved 2008-07-22.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
17. ^Simon. 'Chrono Trigger: Brink of Time :: Review by Simon'. Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
18. ^ ^abMattich, Ryan (2000-06-10). 'Chrono Trigger OST'. RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2009-02-21. Retrieved 2009-04-23.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
19. ^ ^abGann, Patrick (2006-10-05). 'Chrono Trigger Official Soundtrack: Music From Final Fantasy Chronicles'. RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2011-07-09. Retrieved 2009-04-23.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
20. ^Kotowski, Don. 'Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack :: Review by Don'. Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
21. ^ ^abcGann, Patrick (2009-01-05). 'Chrono Trigger Orchestra Extra Soundtrack'. RPGFan. Retrieved 2009-04-16.
22. ^ ^abcD., Spence (2008-12-09). 'Chrono Trigger Orchestra Extra Soundtrack Review'. IGN. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2009-04-16.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
23. ^Greening, Chris. 'Yasunori Mitsuda records long-awaited Chronos arranged album'. Video Game Music Online. Archived from the original on 29 July 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2015.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
24. ^'ハルカナルトキノカナタヘ'. Square Enix Music. Archived from the original on 31 July 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2015.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
25. ^'Chrono Trigger & Chrono Cross Arrangement Album (CD)'. Square Enix Music. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 23 October 2015.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
26. ^'Doremi Music Web Site' (in Japanese). DOREMI Music Publishing. Archived from the original on 2013-01-20. Retrieved 2008-09-14.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
27. ^'Album: Chrono Trigger: Chrono Symphonic'. OverClocked ReMix. Archived from the original on 2011-08-13. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
28. ^'Game: Chrono Trigger (1995, Square, SNES) - Remixes'. OverClocked ReMix. Archived from the original on 2009-09-04. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
29. ^[1] 'Chrono Trigger Symphony'. The Chrono Trigger Symphony. Archived 2013-09-25 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2013-09-21.♙
30. ^Orchestral Game Concert 5 (1996-01-21). Sony. SRCL-2739.
31. ^Driker, Brandon (2006-05-30). 'Play! A Video Game Symphony'. N-Sider. Archived from the original on 2008-05-03. Retrieved 2009-04-30.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
32. ^Johnson, Stephen (2009-04-13). 'Video Games Live to play E3'. G4TV. Archived from the original on 2017-12-03. Retrieved 2009-04-28.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
33. ^'Symphonic Fantasies'(PDF). Symphonic Fantasies. 2009-09-01. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2009-11-02.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
34. ^'The Concert Programs :: Symphonic Game Music Concerts'. Merregnon Studios. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2009-08-11.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
35. ^Sorlie, Auden (2009-09-17). 'Feels Like A Dream: Symphonic Fantasies Report'. Original Sound Version. Archived from the original on 2011-02-01. Retrieved 2009-09-21.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
36. ^'Press Start -Symphony of Games- 2007'. Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2013-01-20. Retrieved 2010-03-25.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
37. ^'Press Start -Symphony of Games- 2008'. Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2012-09-20. Retrieved 2010-03-25.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
38. ^'Symphonic Odysseys Program'(PDF). Symphonic Odysseys. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2011-07-08.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
39. ^'The Brink of Time - Yasunori Mitsuda & Millennial Fair'. Procyon Studio. Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2015.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)

External links[edit]

• Chrono Compendium Music - Listing of track information, official releases, fan albums, rearrangements and remixes

Chrono Resurrection, also known as Chrono Trigger: Resurrection, is an unreleased fangame developed by North American team Resurrection Games under Nathan Lazur's direction. It is based on the critically acclaimed Super NESrole-playing gameChrono Trigger by the Japanese company Square. The project was initially called CT64 and was meant to be a complete remake of the original game for the Nintendo 64, with both 2D and 3D playing modes.

After a first interruption in development, the project was redefined as a short interactive demo for Windows-based personal computers. New team members, including professional artists and designers, were recruited for the demo, which would feature ten scenes from Chrono Trigger and most of its playable characters. In 2004, the project was publicly closed after Square-Enix issued a cease-and-desist letter to Resurrection Games for trademark and copyright infringement. Despite its closure, the project has received critical and popular praise.

• 2Second version

Nintendo 64 version[edit]

Nathan Lazur initially planned to create a Chrono Triggerremake for the Nintendo 64, called CT64, using GNU-based homebrew tools. Lazur's motivation for the project came in 1999 when playing Chrono Trigger and Super Mario 64.^[1] The remake, developed by a team of four people, was Lazur's first attempt at creating a complete title. The game was intended to have two playing modes and the same battle system as the original.^[2]

The first mode would feature 2D and pre-rendered graphics enhanced with 3D spell and battle effects. Some of the effects created by Lazur would rely on software programming rather than the Nintendo 64 hardware, as the latter would not be capable of rendering them directly.^[2] The second mode would be a full 3D mode played in either regular or high display resolution, and would feature different level of detail textures depending on camera distances, to maximize clarity and performance. Both modes would be in a top-down perspective, although more cinematic camera angles, similar to those from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, were also considered for the 3D mode.^[2]

A gallery feature was also planned and would allow players to unlock bonus material depending on their progression in the game. Fan artwork and music would be unlockable through this feature, as well as minigames, including a card game similar to Triple Triad from Final Fantasy VIII.^[2] The remake was expected to be released on the Internet for free and played on console emulators, since there would be no cartridge version due to financial constraints.^[2] Only a semi-working 3D test was actually completed, and the project was discontinued in mid-2000 due to a number of factors, including the accidental loss of Lazur's data and his desire to improve his programming skills.^[1][3]

Second version[edit]

Development[edit]

The second version of the project, tentatively called Chrono Trigger: Brink of Time^[4] then Chrono Resurrection, started development in April 2003.^[3] Lazur has given several reasons to explain his willingness to restart the project, including his experience coding for the DreamcastVisual Memory Unit,^[1] programming for game developer DC Studios,^[3] and playing Chrono Cross, the official sequel to Chrono Trigger for PlayStation.^[1] Unlike CT64, the second version would be a short demo developed in a cross-platformengine with a single 3D playing mode. The Windows version was planned for a free Internet release, while Nintendo GameCube and Xbox ports would be reserved for official developers with access to development kits of either of the two consoles.^[5]

The new development team was mostly recruited on the game developers website Gamasutra and worked in a small studio in Lazur's apartment, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The team included up to nine members, most of which had about two-and-a-half years of experiences in the industry.^[6] Lazur has admitted that he began to seriously focus on the quality of the demo only after art director Luis Martins joined the project.^[1] Other professional designers in the team included Moise Breton, a 3D artist who had worked on character models for the commercially successful movie The Matrix Reloaded,^[3] and Michel Cadieux, an animator who had worked for game company Microïds. Difficulties were encountered in the game engine development as Lazur was the unique programmer and worked from scratch.^[3][6]

The score for the demo was composed by Mathew Valente, who had been with the project since its Nintendo 64 version.^[1] The score was to consist in arrangements of the official Chrono Trigger soundtrack written by Yasunori Mitsuda, Nobuo Uematsu and Noriko Matsueda.^[7] Valente's goal was to retain the feeling of the original music while enhancing it for a modern platform.^[8] Most of the arrangements were created in the Impulse Tracker format, then converted to MIDI and enhanced with a number of tools.^[7]

Chrono Trigger Resurrection - Battle With Magus

Content[edit]

The team tried to capture the feel of the original game with updated graphics and sounds in the demo.^[6] It was to feature ten short interactive scenes from Chrono Trigger.^[9][10] Despite receiving requests from fans, the development team did not intend to create a complete remake of the original game since they would not have the necessary resources, and because they thought the result would not have been on par with Square Enix-developed titles.^[3] The story of the game was altered slightly to allow for the ten scenes to better flow from one to the other.^[6]

The demo was meant to be played using a 'default party' of characters, with other party members unlockable for additional replay value. Due to time constraints, the development team expected that two of the seven characters of the original game, Robo and Ayla, would have 50% chances of not being featured.^[3] While the team tried to capture the feel of the original game with updated graphics and sounds,^[6] the artists and animators faced difficulty in reproducing the characters due to the differences of style between the sprites, artwork and PlayStation version anime sequences.^[3] They noted, however, that they overcame the issues and managed to add a bit of their own art style into the game.^[6]

Closure and aftermath[edit]

Chrono Resurrection was originally set for a Christmas 2004 release.^[11] However, Square Enix issued a cease-and-desist letter to Resurrection Games before the release for trademark and copyright infringement.^[12] Faced with a threat of legal action, the project was publicly closed on September 6, 2004.^[13] According to the development team, the website of the project had received significant hits from Square Enix Japanese IP addresses for a period of three months before the letter issuing. They assumed these visits were mostly from employees rather than top executives,^[13] and hoped the company would see the demo as how the team sees it, a tribute to Chrono Trigger rather than a replacement.^[9]

Gaming websites 1UP.com and GameSpot called the project's second version 'ambitious' and praised its graphics, noting that the art style is mostly faithful to that of the original game's character designer Akira Toriyama.^[13][14] Website Nintendo World Report praised the game's graphics and music, and called the quality of the artwork 'professional'.^[5][11] 1UP.com judged the project's closure 'unfortunate' but deduced that Square Enix could not leave the possibility of a 'competing' Chrono Trigger remake open.^[7] GameSpot also expressed their disappointment in Square Enix's decision to shut down the 'furthest along' of Chrono Trigger fan remakes, pointing at the fact that with no news of another official sequel, fans of the Chrono series 'have been left in the cold'.^[14] Website GamePro Australia called the project 'possibly the greatest fan remake to get crushed under the huge shoe of a big-time developer'.^[8]

Several Internet petitions were created by fans to pressure Square Enix into green-lighting Chrono Resurrection; none have had any effect, however.^[13] Nathan Lazur, though disappointed, holds no ill will towards Square Enix for protecting its intellectual property, and he has stated that he 'felt honoured to even be recognized' by the company.^[1] He added that to avoid legal issues, developers of fangames should present their polished demos directly to the original publishers so that the products can be handled in a 'more traditional business procedure'.^[13] Before the closure of Chrono Resurrection, Lazur had stated that his team had no plans to remake other games after the project's completion and would have liked to develop an original concept based in feudal Japan.^[3]

References[edit]

Chrono Trigger 3d

1. ^ ^abcdefgJones, Darran (November 2004). 'Chrono Trigger resurrection is no more'. gamesTM (24). Imagine Publishing. p. 130.
2. ^ ^abcdeGameSpot Editorial Team (2000-06-16). 'Chrono Cross N64?'. GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2008-07-19. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
3. ^ ^abcdefghiThe Stagbeetle (2004-08-20). 'Chrono Trigger: Resurrection Interview'. VGPro.com. Archived from the original on 2005-02-25. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
4. ^Lazur, Nathan (2004-05-07). 'Chrono Trigger Update!'. Opcoder.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
5. ^ ^abCole, Michael (2004-05-09). 'Chrono Trigger Comes to Nintendo GameCube!'. Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on 2009-02-20. Retrieved 2008-06-27.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
6. ^ ^abcdefRagan, Jess (2006-04-26). 'The Brews Brothers: Nathan Lazur'. The Gameroom Blitz. Archived from the original on 2008-03-31. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
7. ^ ^abcMaragos, Nich (2005-08-18). 'Gaming's Rhapsody: Third Movement'. 1UP.com. p. 1. Archived from the original on 2012-12-08. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
8. ^ ^abNoble, McKinley (2010-02-15). '13 fantastic fan-made game remakes and demakes'. GamePro Australia. p. 2. Archived from the original on 2011-08-14. Retrieved 2010-03-09.
9. ^ ^abBaker, Chris (November 2004). 'Back to the Beginning'. Electronic Gaming Monthly (184). Ziff Davis.
10. ^Lazur, Nathan (2004-09-18). 'Update'. Opcoder.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
11. ^ ^abCole, Michael (2004-09-06). 'Chrono Trigger Resurrection Update'. Nintendo World Report. Archived from the original on 2009-02-20. Retrieved 2008-06-27.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
12. ^Stanford Center for Internet & Society. 'Infringement of Chrono Trigger trademarks and copyrights'. Chilling Effects. Archived from the original on 2008-06-16. Retrieved 2008-06-27.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
13. ^ ^abcdeRagan, Jess (2006-03-20). 'Singing the Brews: The History & Philosophy of Homebrew Game Development'. 1UP.com. p. 7. Archived from the original on 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2008-06-26.Cite uses deprecated parameter |deadurl= (help)
14. ^ ^ab'The Original Time Trotters'. The Greatest Games of All Time. GameSpot. 2006-04-17. Archived from the original on 2007-03-21. Retrieved 2008-06-26.

External links[edit]

Chrono Trigger Resurrection Download