 |
| Special thanks to x-cross. |
I love Chrono Trigger and
I rate it as one of the best RPG's of all time. As I have stated
previously, my family wasn't all that wealthy growing up and being in
a rather isolated area, getting video games was for more difficult so
I only had a few select SNES games to play growing up and sadly I
missed out on a lot of games such as Castlevania IV, Soul Blazer and
Earthbound. However as Internet became more readily available across
the country in the late 90's, I found a whole bunch of games that I
missed out on and Chrono Trigger was included amongst them. When i
first tried the game, I was apprehensive as at the time my only
exposure to RPG's was the Final Fantasy series. I started playing and
of course fell in love with the game and music. As much as I love
this series, I will not be going over every track from the game, only
a select few.
A
Premonition/Chrono Trigger
I rarely use the term
epic when describing things because I feel that the term has been
watered down due to people using it describe every little thing, but
the track Premonition set's the stage of what you can expect in this
game. Using the sound of a clocking ticking is a nice touch as it
draws you in as the music slowly picks up.
The epic part is how it
goes into the track Chrono Trigger and it shows clips of what to
expect with the game. From battling medieval robotic dragon tanks to
venturing on floating continents to running along side a cave-girl as
you are chased by dinosaurs, this game promised an epic adventure
unlike anything you have played before. With the music backing, it is
easily one of the best opening scenes in any game.
Magus' Theme
Magus is by far one of the more interesting jRPG “villains” that
was on the SNES and dare I say Ps1. At first glance he seems like
your typical rule the world type villain and obsessed with power, but
as you go further into the game, you will find that there is depth to
him. He has a reason behind why he does it and through him you find
that there is an even bigger threat to the world and what he was
doing was not a threat.
However, that being said he is still one of the most badass
characters in the game and his music signifies that. It is dark and
menacing and when you first hear it, you can almost be certain you
are facing off against the penultimate boss before the big bad. It is
a song that you can use to visualize a Shonen Anime style fight
scene. The three time travellers vs the Sorcerer Lord of the Mystics.
Zeal Island
Between all the world map themes, the Zeal Island Theme, later Dark
Ages, is possibly my favourite world track from the game. Given the
nature of Zeal, this song set's the mood perfectly. It instills a
sense of awe while the player is oblivious to the nature of what Zeal
contains. The theme also works wonders when you visit Kajar and
people appearing to discuss the meaning of existence and if they are
there, or are they merely a dream.
This sort of content is of course could be too deep for most young
players, but some of the older players, or those returning to the
game after a decade and a half of absence could finally start
understanding the more intricate parts of the game.
Normally when people break the fourth wall, it is for the sake of
comedy, but the people of Zeal, whilst in a state of magical euphoria
seem to be aware that their life may be a lie and they are perhaps
just the dreams of a madman.
To Far Away Times
Lavos
is dead, your friends and Magus are returning to their respective
time-lines to reestablish their lives, or in Magus' case, try to find
his sister.
As
the king blesses Marle and Crono, the two take to the skies with
balloons and overlook the land they saved while their friend Lucca
and her father set off fireworks to celebrate.
That
ending is nice, but I prefer the ending where Lucca, Chrono and Marle
take to the Epoch and travel through time to see their friends again
in the background. Mixed with the songs, it gives the game a sense of
finality and dare I say a bit heartwarming.
~~~~
Chrono Trigger and Final
Fantasy VI are tied for first place in my personal top 10 list of top
games and Game OST's. Both games are nothing short of fantastic and
stand as true examples of what a great jRPG was. These days that
mantle has been taken up by the Persona Games, the Disgaea series and
of course Pokemon.
On Wednesday I will be
doing Crowning Music of Awesome and on Friday I will be doing the top
10 songs from both the game and a separate top 10 of fan remixes.
It's been more then a
year and I am still lost in the music.
No comments:
Post a Comment