Final Fantasy Chronicles

"Two of Square's best games..together at last!"

Just what is Final Fantasy Chronicles anyways? It's quite possibly the best compilation of two Square games, with all-new movies and features! This is a great pack which I highly recommend for a long time RPGer, or a new player to RPGs. This is actually two separate reviews, one for each game.

I'll start with..

Final Fantasy 4

Gameplay: 9/10
This was the first RPG to implement an Active-Time based system. What this means, is that characters are ready to attack at different times. Unlike the first three FFs, where you just entered your attacks and watched them play out, monsters may attack at any time, and you have to strategically plan your attacks. Each person has a certain strength, like Rosa being a master of White Magic, Rydia is the only summoner, Cecil has good overall stats. You can have up to 5 members in your group at one time, meaning lots of different strategies. Characters join and leave your group as they please, so you can't have a set group.(Well, except until the very end :-P) Control is very good, basically either move up, down, left or right. A new dash feature has been added to help you move faster in towns and caves. (Hold the O button) It helps if you're an impatient gamer. The load times that plagued Final Fantasy Anthology are virtually extinct in FF4! The only time that loading is obvious is when saving, and boy, does it take a while. (18-21 seconds, on my regular PSX) However, the game makes up for that with a Memo option. It lets you do an instant save on the console itself, so that if you are defeated, it won't take a long time to load your game. However, you still need a Memory Card to save progress after the power is off.

Graphics: 8/10
You may be wondering about the graphics, and why I rated it well. The graphics are quite colourful, and the magic effects are pretty neat too. Enjoy the rich 16-bit graphics of 1992!! They are actually very good for the time, and I enjoy them. Of course, some people may be turned off by the old graphics, but if you enjoyed the old FFs (like me), then this will be a treat. The only graphical problem is that the PSX does not support Mode 7 scrolling, so there is some slowdown when flying the airship.

Story: 10/10
The story is even better than some of the PSX RPGs. The game starts you off as a Dark Knight named Cecil, who commands Baron's airship squadron, the Red Wings. Cecil is ordered to take the Crystals from different countries for a reason unknown to Cecil. He feels remorse for his actions, and questions the King's orders. The King relieves Cecil of his command and orders him to deliver a BombRing to the village of Mist, accompanied with the dragoon Kain. I won't spoil any more, as this game has an awesome story that is not to be missed.

PSX special features: 9/10
The game has been completely re-translated from the American Version. The one that we got first was called Final Fantasy 4 ''Easytype'' in Japan. The game in this collection is called Final Fantasy 4 ''Hardtype''. It has been re-translated, along with some new items (Smut comes to mind..) and minor cuss words. It was a great translation, with no errors that I have seen.

Overall for FF4: 9/10

And now,

Chrono Trigger

Gameplay: 9/10
This uses the same Active Time Battle system as FF4, only an improved version of it. It has power bars which let you see how much time it is until a character's attack. It also implements a multiple attack system, letting two or three members combine their powers to do massive damage. There are more Double Techniques than Single Techniques, meaning there is a double tech for almost any combination. As for Triple Techs, there are roughly as many as there were Double Techs in Chrono Cross. (There were only 2 Triple techs in CC, as I remember) However, loading time is quite present in CT. It takes about 4 secs to load the menu, and about 4 secs to load a battle. It's only a few seconds, though, so just take the time to savour the game.
Saving is much faster than FF4, taking about 6 seconds total. There is also quite a bit of slowdown in areas with mist, or multiple background layers. All but one of the characters have their own element, and there are 4 elements: Lightning, Fire, Water, and Shadow. A very good gameplay system.

Graphics: 10/10
The graphics are great, rivalling some of the PSX's first games. The characters were designed by Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball fame, which explains Crono's striking similarity to Goku. The magic effects are top notch, an example is the magic attack Delta Storm, it has to be seen to be believed. They are unrivalled for any SNES game. I have yet to see one complaint about the graphics in this amazing game.

Story: 10/10
You are a teenager named Crono, who lives in the year 100 AD. Crono goes to the Millenial Fair, not knowing that he will be trapped in a quest to save time itself...He meets a girl who claims to be Marle, but in reality, she is really Princess Nadia of the Guardia Kingdom. They meet Crono's inventor friend, Lucca, who has invented a Telepod to transport people from one place to another. Marle gives it a try, but the mysterious pendant that she wears sucks her back to the year 600 AD. Again, I won't spoil the rest of the story. There are 12 different endings, giving the game tremendous replay value.

PSX extra features: 9/10

You will notice as soon as you turn on the game, it starts with an amazing Japanese anime intro, animated by Bird Studios and Toei Animation. (Another reason it looks so much like the Dragon Ball series) There is a whole Extras mode, which offers you the chance to listen to the music in the game, watch all the in-game anime sequences, look at a bestiary, and much more. You have to earn these by seeing all of the different endings.

Chrono Trigger overall: 9/10

Final Fantasy Chronicles overall: 9/10

So, this ends my first review submitted to GameFAQs, and I hope it has helped you get an idea of what to expect. And of course, the all-important question...

Rent or Buy? Definitely a Buy in my book, get this before it's too late!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/20/01, Updated 07/20/01