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Crono

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Crono
Chrono series
CronoToriyamadesign
Crono as designed by Akira Toriyama
First appearance Chrono Trigger
Designed by Akira Toriyama

Crono, known as Chrono (クロノ Kurono?) in Japan, is a fictional character in the Chrono series of video games, and the series' namesake.

Concept and creation[]

Chrono Trigger original characters

Crono's original working design (fourth from the right).

Crono's initial design was created by Chrono Trigger's story planner Masato Kato. His final design was created by Akira Toriyama. In the initial design sketches, Crono was a "bad kid" wearing goggles and a cape.[1][2] While he was called Chrono in the Japanese version, this was changed in the North American version. Crono is a silent protagonist who uses facial expressions to communicate; this is never addressed by any characters. Concerning his death in the game, Kato noted that his policy has always been "to try and create games that run counter to users' expectations, surprise them".[3]

Appearances[]

Template:Expand-sect Crono is the spiky-haired silent protagonist of the Chrono Trigger. He never speaks, using facial expressions to communicate; this is never addressed by any of the characters. He lives in the village of Truce with his mother. A chance encounter with Marle at the fair begins a series of adventures and uncovers a pre-millennial evil. In 12,000 BC, when the party is confronted with Lavos in the Ocean Palace of the Kingdom of Zeal, Crono sacrifices himself to save his friends, resulting in his death. With time travel, the player can manage to replace Crono in the moment before he dies with a copy received from the Millennial Fair in 1000 A.D, saving his life. The PlayStation and Nintendo DS versions of Chrono Trigger include an FMV scene at the end that shows Crono and Marle getting married. A second FMV depicts the fall of Guardia Kingdom in the year AD 1005, though it is unknown what happened to Crono during this event.

Reception[]

Since his appearance in Chrono Trigger, Crono has received generally positive reception, and has gained a strong fan following.[4] In a special Chrono Trigger Cross Review, Famicom Tsūshin scored Crono a 30 out of 40.[5] GamesRadar's staff ranked Crono as the 21st best hero in video games; they claimed that while he seemed like a typical hero from a role-playing game, he makes a large impact on the characters around him. They also praised the game's narrative for Crono's quality as a lead character.[6] RPGFan called him the greatest "classic hero" in RPGs; they wrote that despite being silent, he came to be viewed as one of gaming's "greatest RPG protagonists". They added that he "embodies the true essence of a classic hero" due to his many heroic acts.[7] RPGFan's "Bahamut" noted that his silence did not prevent Crono from causing an "emotional response" in players.[8] The Escapist's John Funk wrote that it would be wrong if Crono was given a voice.[9] Crono has also been called a likable "everyman" by IGN's Jesse Schedeen and GamesRadar's Matt Bradford. Bradford claimed that while Crono did have some advantages, he took on his role of a hero without them.[10][11] In his hands-on of the Nintendo DS port of Chrono Trigger, G4TV's John Manalang wrote that the scene of Crono waking up in the beginning brought back "so many nerd memories".[12] UGO Networks staff listed him in their list of the 10 "out of luck video game characters" due to run-in with Marle that causes him to have to go across time to save her.[13] Crono has been referenced in context with the NBC TV show Heroes; the character Hiro Nakamura, a character in Heroes would could travel through time, compared himself to Crono.[14][15] Super Retro Squad developer Jay Pavlina wanted to feature a character based on Crono in the game, but never got around to it.[16] Crono has proven a popular choice for an appearance in the Super Smash Bros. series by IGN and IGN's readers alike.[17][18]

His death scene is considered one of gaming's most memorable moment by critics. IGN listed it as the 39th most memorable video game moments; they called it "unforgettable", and felt that killing off the main character of a video game was both "brave and rare". They added that anyone who experienced this felt a "sting in their heart" when they thought about it.[19] UGO Networks' K. Thor Jensen included his death in his list of the most "shocking deaths in gaming". He felt that among a genre noteworthy for having plot twists, this was one of the most significant examples.[20] 1UP.com's Justin Haywald called his death the most memorable element of Chrono Trigger, which he identifies as one of his favourites.[21] 1UP.com's Charles Hartley included Crono in his list of "Duded in Distress", owing both to his death scene as well as the earlier imprisonment.[22] 1UP.com's Scott Sharkey featured him in a list of the 10 video game deaths that "didn't stick". He commented that the scene in Chrono Trigger felt right out of gospels.[23] Game Informer's Kyle Hilliard called his death the game's biggest surprise, due to the fact that you can beat the game without reviving him. He also expressed surprise that it had not been spoiled for him.[24][25] Game Informer's Dan Rykert commented that while Crono was supposed to be "wish-fulfillment" for players due to his silence, his death contradicted that idea.[26]

References[]

  1. ↑ V-Jump staff, ed (June 1995) (in Japanese). Chrono Trigger: The Perfect. V-Jump Books Game Series. Shueisha. pp. 263–269. http://berriblue.blogspot.com/2009/01/chrono-trigger-v-jump-interview-v-jump.html. 
  2. ↑ Studio BentStuff, ed (January 20, 2009) (in Japanese). Chrono Trigger Ultimania. Ultimania. Square Enix. pp. 584–585. ISBN 978-4-7575-2469-9. 
  3. ↑ GIA staff (July 24, 1999). "Chrono Cross interview". Gaming Intelligence Agency. http://terror.snm-hgkz.ch/mirrors/thegia/sites/www.thegia.com/news/n990724b.html. Retrieved April 20, 2009. 
  4. ↑ "Crono - Chrono Trigger". IGN. http://www.ign.com/characters/crono-chrono-trigger. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  5. ↑ CHRONO TRIGGER CROSS REVIEW - キャラクター: クロノ. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.332. Pg.68. 28 April 1995.
  6. ↑ GamesRadar Staff (2012-11-09). "Top 100 Video Game Heroes". GamesRadar. http://www.gamesradar.com/top-100-video-game-heroes/. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  7. ↑ "Best Male RPG Characters - Classic Hero". RPGFan. http://www.rpgfan.com/features/Best_Male_RPG_Characters/classic_hero.html. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  8. ↑ Bahamut. "Chrono Trigger review". http://www.rpgfan.com/reviews/chronotrigger/Chrono_Trigger-6.html. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  9. ↑ Funk, John (2010-06-06). "Fallout Devs Want to Work on Chrono Trigger". The Escapist. http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/101899-Fallout-Devs-Want-to-Work-On-Chrono-Trigger. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  10. ↑ Schedeen, Jesse (2008-07-08). "Cast of Characters: Chrono Trigger DS". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/07/03/cast-of-characters-chrono-trigger-ds?page=2. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  11. ↑ Bradford, Matt (2013-01-08). "Gaming's Greatest Everyman Heroes". GamesRadar. http://www.gamesradar.com/gamings-greatest-everyman-heroes/. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  12. ↑ Manalang, John (2008-07-18). "Hands On: Chrono Trigger DS". G4TV. http://www.g4tv.com/games/ds/52545/chrono-trigger-ds/articles/67077/hands-on-chrono-trigger-ds/. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  13. ↑ "Top 10 Out of Luck Video Game Characters". UGO Networks. 2010-03-29. 
  14. ↑ "Hiro's Blog: Where to Begin...". NBC. Archived from the original on 2012-02-29. http://web.archive.org/web/20120229211412/http://blogs.nbcuni.com/hiro_blog/2006/10/where_to_begin.php. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  15. ↑ "Hiro's Blog: Mudslide". NBC. Archived from the original on 2008-10-07. http://web.archive.org/web/20081007004138/http://blogs.nbcuni.com/hiro_blog/2006/10/mudslide.php/. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  16. ↑ Splechta, Mike (2012-07-13). "Interview: Talking Super Retro Squad with Jay Pavlina". GameZone. http://www.gamezone.com/originals/2012/07/13/interview-talking-super-retro-squad-with-jay-pavlina. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  17. ↑ IGN Stars (2008-02-07). "Readers Go Smash". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2008/02/07/readers-go-smash. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  18. ↑ Thomas, Lucas M. (2007-11-09). "Smash It Up! It's Hip to be Square". IGN. http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/11/10/smash-it-up-its-hip-to-be-square. Retrieved 2013-08-03. 
  19. ↑ "Top 100 Video Game Moments". IGN. http://www.ign.com/top/video-game-moments/39. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  20. ↑ Jensen, K. Thor (2011-11-10). "The Most Shocking Twists in Gaming". UGO Networks. http://www.ugo.com/games/chrono-trigger-2. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  21. ↑ 1UP Staff (2010). "Favorite Gaming Moments". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/features/favorite-gaming-moments. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  22. ↑ Hartley, Charles (2007-06-06). "Dudes in Distress". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/features/dudes-in-distress. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  23. ↑ Sharkey, Scott (2007-04-08). "They Is Risen - Top 10 Video Game Resurrections". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/features/they-is-risen?pager.offset=1. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  24. ↑ Hilliard, Kyle (2012-04-06). "Why We Love Chrono Trigger". Game Informer. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2012/04/06/why-we-love-chrono-trigger.aspx. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  25. ↑ Hilliard, Kyle (2012-04-19). "This is How I Remember Chrono Trigger". Game Informer. http://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/editors/b/gikyle_blog/archive/2012/04/09/this-is-how-i-remember-chrono-trigger.aspx. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 
  26. ↑ Rykert, Dan (2011-04-27). "Characters That Died Under Our Watch". Game Informer. http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2011/04/27/characters-that-died-under-our-watch.aspx. Retrieved 2013-08-02. 

Template:Chrono series

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