Chrono Trigger vs. Final Fantasy VI

[legato10]

Both Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy VI are really great titles for the SNES, but which one is the superior RPG and why? For many this is a tough question to answer, and I'm no exception. They both have an overwhelming number of winning qualities to them, but I know there are people out there that are passionate about one over the other and I want to read your comments.

I've asked this question on other forums to attempt to gather a lot of anecdotal and quantitative data to see how it measures out over time.

[pacmanhat]

This is a surprisingly difficult question. I'm going to go with Chrono Trigger, because of the combat system and time-travelling craziness. FF6's characters and overall world probably have an edge over CT, but I still have to go with the latter overall.

[substantial_snake]

I love both games but Final Fantasy VI by a landslide here.

Chrono Trigger is the most overall polished RPG that I've ever played and its an easy one to recommend to both genera veterans and newcomers. Its pretty much an A+ in the departments of Sound, Graphics, Story with memorable main cast and an great Villain tied up in a neat uncomplicated time traveling tied bow. The game's pacing is great and its combat system while simple is fun enough to play over and over again. CT is almost the whole package from a dream team of devs working at Square, a company defined by its RPG output. My only problem with Chrono Trigger is that I ultimately didn't care. The only character in the game I had any real reaction to is watching Robo being "Killed" by his fellow robots..that got me a little. Outside of that though I didn't care about Marlene, Chrono, Frog, Ayla, Lucca, or even Magnus in each of their character moments or back story reveals. I really just didn't care. It was a fun adventure to be a part of but ultimately with little to no connections to the characters it felt a little hollow to me. Despite that the numerous endings, side quests and the pure settings presented in each time make this a great game for me and is in my top 5 RPG list.

I prefer Final Fantasy VI because despite the flaws it does have I felt something for almost every character presented in the game. Its amazing with music and sprites with expression can do but I felt something for Cyan on the Doom Train platform waving to his wife and son, Locke past love, hints on the man Shadow used to be, Edgar and Sabin's relationship, and both Terra and Celest's struggles at multiple points through the game and everyone else. Its because of this that Final Fantasy VI is a much more memorable game to me then Chrono Trigger can be. It was no slouch in the technical departments either with great art direction, music, and setting. Walking into this game completely blind it also totally blindsided me with its second act, which was fantastic on how it all fell together. It also has one of my favorite villains in gaming at just how memorably he transforms from a weird underling into a completely insane nihilistic monster over the course of the game..and that synthesized laugh.

Overally between the two its what comes to mind first with each game, right off the top of my head it goes from:

Chrono Trigger: Time Travel, Lavos, Arthurian Frog with sword...Dino/Human war?
Final Fantasy 6: Doomtrain, Narshe, Opera Scene, Espers, Terra, WoR, Kefka, Veldt, damn dungeon with the decayed tower thing!! etc.

This isn't a nostalgia fueled opinion either. I beat both games withing months of each other 4ish years ago. Ultimately FF6 is just more memorable and interesting to me then CT despite how good of a game that is in its own right.

[Rickstilwell1]

Definitely FF VI for me. While I really enjoy both games, FFVI was the only game of the two that I actually decided to play all the way through.

[Lady Jaye]

Chrono Trigger, but FFVI is a (very) close second.

[Tanooki]

FF6

It has a much better written if not more cliched though story. The characters are more endearing and has better personal touch moments such as Celes with Aria de Mezzo Caratere(hope I got that right) for example. There was a better battle engine in place backed by a decent job system setup for the characters, and on that point quite a few hidden useful and fun types like Zozo. The big boss Kefka was a total mental clusterfark that was amusing to see act the jerk and then totally melt down. The audio visual package was quite stunning too. CT to me felt a bit more restrictive on the map design, far less endearing music and the visuals jut felt like a reused FF6 engine which I'm sure it was being so late. The story in a way at times almost got a little confusing and convoluted too plus I did not like the multiple ending crap as its a cheap ploy for replaying the game time and again for a little tossed bone that wasn't worth it.

[Haoie]

My vote is for Chrono.

It wasn't done by the Dream Team for nothing!

From a technical perspective, FF6 is way glitchier [a trait some enjoy].

[JSoup]

Final Fantasy IV, all the way. I'm one of those odd people that honestly didn't enjoy any of Chrono Trigger.

[legato10]

This is a surprisingly difficult question. I'm going to go with Chrono Trigger, because of the combat system and time-travelling craziness. FF6's characters and overall world probably have an edge over CT, but I still have to go with the latter overall.

The question is easier to ask than it is to answer, at least on average. Both games have a lot to offer and really two different animals within the same genre, but I find the answers very interesting. Thank you for answering.

This thank you actually goes out to everyone. I hope no one feels as if this is flame bait, as everyone should feel comfortable to express their opinions without any fear of being rejected or attacked in any way. For those that never liked one game or the other, your answer is easier, but your story might hold crucial reasons why one is perhaps better than the other.

[wiggyx]

I love both games but Final Fantasy VI by a landslide here.

Chrono Trigger is the most overall polished RPG that I've ever played and its an easy one to recommend to both genera veterans and newcomers. Its pretty much an A+ in the departments of Sound, Graphics, Story with memorable main cast and an great Villain tied up in a neat uncomplicated time traveling tied bow. The game's pacing is great and its combat system while simple is fun enough to play over and over again. CT is almost the whole package from a dream team of devs working at Square, a company defined by its RPG output. My only problem with Chrono Trigger is that I ultimately didn't care. The only character in the game I had any real reaction to is watching Robo being "Killed" by his fellow robots..that got me a little. Outside of that though I didn't care about Marlene, Chrono, Frog, Ayla, Lucca, or even Magnus in each of their character moments or back story reveals. I really just didn't care. It was a fun adventure to be a part of but ultimately with little to no connections to the characters it felt a little hollow to me. Despite that the numerous endings, side quests and the pure settings presented in each time make this a great game for me and is in my top 5 RPG list.

I prefer Final Fantasy VI because despite the flaws it does have I felt something for almost every character presented in the game. Its amazing with music and sprites with expression can do but I felt something for Cyan on the Doom Train platform waving to his wife and son, Locke past love, hints on the man Shadow used to be, Edgar and Sabin's relationship, and both Terra and Celest's struggles at multiple points through the game and everyone else. Its because of this that Final Fantasy VI is a much more memorable game to me then Chrono Trigger can be. It was no slouch in the technical departments either with great art direction, music, and setting. Walking into this game completely blind it also totally blindsided me with its second act, which was fantastic on how it all fell together. It also has one of my favorite villains in gaming at just how memorably he transforms from a weird underling into a completely insane nihilistic monster over the course of the game..and that synthesized laugh.

Overally between the two its what comes to mind first with each game, right off the top of my head it goes from:

Chrono Trigger: Time Travel, Lavos, Arthurian Frog with sword...Dino/Human war?
Final Fantasy 6: Doomtrain, Narshe, Opera Scene, Espers, Terra, WoR, Kefka, Veldt, damn dungeon with the decayed tower thing!! etc.

This isn't a nostalgia fueled opinion either. I beat both games withing months of each other 4ish years ago. Ultimately FF6 is just more memorable and interesting to me then CT despite how good of a game that is in its own right.

This almost EXACTLY how I feel about them. I still play FF6, not so much CT for these reasons.

[Crystalian]

Yeah, I didn't even bother to read the replies I had to click on Final Fantasy 6 so fast. That's my favorite game of all time. I could probably write a novel or two on it and still leave a bunch out. But Chrono Trigger isn't even in the same league. I know it's a unique game and very pretty on the SNES, but I didn't get into it at all compared to FF6. You just can't compare to taking a two-man party into the dino-forest with an EXP EGG to ultra-grind your whole party up to 99 in a few hours. Put some Minerva Armor on Celes with a Graedus and Atma Weapon, Genji Glove and Offering. Mog with the Moogle Charm and a Pearl Lance to deal with dragons. Umaro with a Blizard Orb and Gogo mimicking. You can run the whole final castle in under a half-hour and beat Kefka with one swing. There's so much more. I love it.

[BlastProcessing402]

CT, though I would've picked FF4 over either.

[legato10]

FF6

It has a much better written if not more cliched though story. The characters are more endearing and has better personal touch moments such as Celes with Aria de Mezzo Caratere(hope I got that right) for example. There was a better battle engine in place backed by a decent job system setup for the characters, and on that point quite a few hidden useful and fun types like Zozo. The big boss Kefka was a total mental clusterfark that was amusing to see act the jerk and then totally melt down. The audio visual package was quite stunning too. CT to me felt a bit more restrictive on the map design, far less endearing music and the visuals jut felt like a reused FF6 engine which I'm sure it was being so late. The story in a way at times almost got a little confusing and convoluted too plus I did not like the multiple ending crap as its a cheap ploy for replaying the game time and again for a little tossed bone that wasn't worth it.

First, I would like to say that I appreciate the passion expressed in your post. Second, and I hope this does not come off as judgmental, while I can see where the multiple endings can come across as a cheap ploy, doesn't it, in a way, fit with a time travel story where you can defeat the main villain at different time periods?

As much as I respect you opinion, I hope you wouldn't consider the special developers ending as a cheap ploy. They did not have to do that, but they did.

[Damaniel]

Damn, that's a tough one. Both are fine games - arguably the best of their generation. However, I'll have to give FFVI the slight edge here - I like its soundtrack a little more than CT's (*just* a little, though).

I'd also like to say that I'm also a huge fan of Secret of Mana, and if that were in the poll, I'd have an even harder time choosing. Between these and FFIV, it's hard to argue that Square wasn't at the top of their game in the early-to-mid 90's (even more so considering how limited the hardware was!)

[Xtincthed]

tough choice.. but looking at the amount of time I spent in Chrono Trigger, no other game can top that
a beautiful game with a great story and amazing music.. nuff said!

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Easily FFVI. It's not only the best SNES RPG, but one of the most impactful games of all time. SO many unforgettable moments including but not limited to: suplexing the ghost train, the entire opera, the villian DESTROYING THE WORLD, Celes's attempted suicide, the 20 minute plus ending.....Chrono Trigger doesn't hold a candle to FF6.

[kupomogli]

Final Fantasy 6.

Chrono Trigger is an amazing game, but at the same time, it's one of the most overrated RPGs. There are a lot of RPGs I'd choose over Chrono Trigger.

[bb_hood]

Ive thought about this alot, both are great games. I think FF6 ultimately is better, the music is top notch and all the animations are great. Chrono re-uses enemy sprites alot and I do think the monsters in FF6 are much cooler. FF6 also has so many magic spells which make the game really awesome. FF6 is one of my favorite games, I remember getting it for xmas when it came out.

[Tanooki]

First, I would like to say that I appreciate the passion expressed in your post. Second, and I hope this does not come off as judgmental, while I can see where the multiple endings can come across as a cheap ploy, doesn't it, in a way, fit with a time travel story where you can defeat the main villain at different time periods?

As much as I respect you opinion, I hope you wouldn't consider the special developers ending as a cheap ploy. They did not have to do that, but they did.

No you're fine and I get where you're coming from too. Your idea fits, just wish it was handled better instrad of causing someine to replay the entire game over to get them is all. In fair disclosure though I'm not a huge fan of either, preferred by far FF4. I just want that out there so it doesn't seem like fanboy goggles.

[Wraith Storm]

What can I say that Substantial Snake, Crystalian, Satoshi_Matrix haven't already? Final Fantasy VI is an epic milestone.

It has moving characters, a great story with unforgettable scenes and arguably the greatest soundtrack of Uematsus career. It also has top notch graphics, art direction, and an amazingly flexible battle system. The ATB was at its best here. You have your standard attack and magic but then each character has their own unique ability like Blitz, Tools, Dance, Rage, Tech. This helped make each character unique and add diversity, then throw in Relics for customization, characters super powerful near death "desperation attacks" and a game so packed full of secrets it makes you wonder if square will ever better themselves. I say no. Final Fantasy VI is a traditional JRPG that holds an epic vision and manages to successfully execute it in every area.

Where as Final Fantasy VI was refining what a standard JRPG could be, Chrono Trigger was doing its best to re-invent the wheel. Its a very different game and while I would say its as impressive as FF VI on a technical level (Graphics, Music, Art direction), I feel its story and characters are not as well fleshed out and therefor I didn't connect quite as much with them. Also it lacked FF VI's epic overworld to explore and basically did away with random battles. I love me some random battles.