Editing Chrono Cross (section)

==Development==
Square began planning ''Chrono Cross'' immediately after the release of ''[[Xenogears]]'' in 1998 (which itself was originally conceived as a sequel to the SNES game).<ref name="xenogearslink">{{cite web| date=June 28, 2003 |author=Tetsuya Takahashi|title=Xenosaga Creators Talk|url=http://www.playstation.jp/psstyle/talk/02/02.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030814044553/http://www.playstation.jp/psstyle/talk/02/02.html|archive-date=August 14, 2003|website=Playstation.jp| access-date=November 19, 2022}}</ref> ''Chrono Trigger''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s scenario director [[Masato Kato]] had brainstormed ideas for a sequel as early as 1996, following the release of ''[[Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Hōseki|Radical Dreamers]]''.<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /> Square's managers selected a team, appointed [[Hiromichi Tanaka]] producer, and asked Kato to direct and develop a new ''[[Chrono (series)|Chrono]]'' game in the spirit of ''[[Radical Dreamers]]''.<ref name="ultimania">{{cite book|year=1999 |title=Chrono Cross Ultimania |url=http://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/Supporting_Material_Translation.html#Developer_Interviews |pages=478–481 |language=ja |publisher=Square Enix |isbn=4-925075-73-X |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119231921/http://chronocompendium.com/Term/Supporting_Material_Translation.html |archive-date=November 19, 2010 }}</ref> Kato thought ''Dreamers'' was released in a "half-finished state", and wanted to continue the story of the character Kid.<ref name="crossost" /> Kato and Tanaka decided to produce an indirect sequel. They acknowledged that Square would soon re-release ''Chrono Trigger'' as part of ''[[Final Fantasy Chronicles]]'', which would give players a chance to catch up on the story of ''Trigger'' before playing ''Cross''. Kato thought that using a different setting and cast for ''Chrono Cross'' would allow players unfamiliar with ''Chrono Trigger'' to play ''Cross'' without becoming confused.<ref name="ultimania" /> The ''Chrono Cross'' team decided against integrating heavy use of [[time travel]] into the game, as they thought it would be "rehashing and cranking up the volume of the last game".<ref name="ultimania" /> Masato Kato cited the belief, "there's no use in making something similar to before {{sic}}",<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /> and noted, "we're not so weak nor cheap as to try to make something exactly the same as ''Trigger''&nbsp;... Accordingly, ''Chrono Cross'' is not ''Chrono Trigger 2''. It doesn't simply follow on from ''Trigger'', but is another, different ''Chrono'' that interlaces with ''Trigger''."<ref name="crossost" /> Kato and Tanaka further explained their intentions after the game's release:

[[File:Tanaka.jpg|right|thumb|Hiromichi Tanaka, producer|alt=A Japanese man with left-parted hair, a brown leather jacket, and a blue shirt]]
{{blockquote|We didn't want to directly extend ''Chrono Trigger'' into a sequel, but create a new ''Chrono'' with links to the original.<ref name="weeklyfamitsu" /> Yes, the platform changed; and yes, there were many parts that changed dramatically from the previous work. But in my view, the whole point in making ''Chrono Cross'' was to make a new ''Chrono'' with the best available skills and technologies of today. I never had any intentions of just taking the system from ''Trigger'' and moving it onto the PlayStation console. That's why I believe that ''Cross'' is ''Cross'', and NOT ''Trigger 2''.<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" />|Masato Kato}}

{{blockquote|When creating a series, one method is to carry over a basic system, improving upon it as the series progresses, but our stance has been to create a completely new and different world from the ground up, and to restructure the former style. Therefore, ''Chrono Cross'' is not a sequel to ''Chrono Trigger''. Had it been, it would have been called ''Chrono Trigger 2''. Our main objective for ''Chrono Cross'' was to share a little bit of the ''Chrono Trigger'' worldview, while creating a completely different game as a means of providing new entertainment to the player. This is mainly due to the transition in platform generation from the SNES to the PS. The method I mentioned above, about improving upon a basic system, has inefficiencies, in that it's impossible to maximize the console's performance as the console continues to make improvements in leaps and bounds. Although essentially an RPG, at its core, it is a computer game, and I believe that games should be expressed with a close connection to the console's performance. Therefore, in regards to game development, our goal has always been to "express the game utilizing the maximum performance of the console at that time." I strongly believe that anything created in this way will continue to be innovative.<ref name="gameprointerview2" />|Hiromichi Tanaka}}

Full production began on ''Chrono Cross'' in mid-1998.<ref name="gameprointerview"/> The ''Chrono Cross'' team reached 80 members at its peak, with additional personnel of 10–20 cut-scene artists and 100 quality assurance testers.<ref name="gameprointerview" /> The team felt pressure to live up to the work of ''Chrono Trigger''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s "Dream Team" development group, which included famous Japanese [[Mangaka|manga artist]] [[Akira Toriyama]].<ref name="weeklyfamitsu" /> Kato and Tanaka hired [[Nobuteru Yūki]] for character design and [[Yasuyuki Honne]] for art direction and concept art.<ref>{{cite video game |title=Chrono Cross |developer=[[Square (video game company)|Square Co., Ltd.]] |publisher=Square Co., Ltd. |date=November 18, 1999 |language=ja}}</ref> The event team originally envisioned a short game, and planned a system by which players would befriend any person in a town for alliance in battle.<ref name="ultimania" /> Developers brainstormed traits and archetypes during the character-creation process, originally planning 64 characters with unique endings that could vary in three different ways per character.<ref name="gameprointerview" /><ref name="ultimania" /> Kato described the character creation process: "Take Pierre, for example: we started off by saying we wanted a wacko fake hero like Tata from ''Trigger''. We also said things like 'we need at least one powerful mom', 'no way we're gonna go without a twisted brat', and so on so forth."<ref name="gameprointerview" />

As production continued, the length of ''Cross'' increased, leading the event team to reduce the number of characters to 45 and scrap most of the alternate endings.<ref name="ultimania" /> Developers humorously named the character Pip "Tsumaru" in Japanese (which means "packed") as a pun on their attempts to pack as much content into the game as possible.<ref name="ultimania" /> To avoid the burden of writing unique, accented dialogue for several characters, team member Kiyoshi Yoshii coded a system that produces accents by modifying basic text for certain characters.<ref name="gameprofaninterview2">{{cite magazine|date=October 17, 2000|title=Chrono Cross – GamePro.com Interview, Fan Questions Part 2|url=http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/6883/chrono-cross-gamepro-com-interview-fan-questions-part-2/|magazine=[[GamePro]]|access-date=July 2, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202152414/http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/6883/chrono-cross-gamepro-com-interview-fan-questions-part-2/|archive-date=December 2, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> Art director Nobuteru Yuuki initially wanted the characters to appear in a more ''[[Chibi (term)|chibi]]'' format with diminutive proportions.<ref name="missingpiece" /> The game world's fusion of high technology and ethnic, tribal atmospheres proved challenging at first.<ref name="missingpiece" /> He later recalled striving to harmonize the time period's level of technology, especially as reflected in characters' garb.<ref name="missingpiece">{{cite book|year=1999 |title=Chrono Cross Missing Piece |url=http://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/Supporting_Material_Translation.html#Missing_Piece |language=ja |publisher=Square Enix |isbn=4925075721 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119231921/http://chronocompendium.com/Term/Supporting_Material_Translation.html |archive-date=November 19, 2010 }}</ref> The demands of the art style led to Square merging the ''Final Fantasy VIII'' team into that of ''Chrono Cross'' two months before the Japanese release.<ref name="yoshiyukimiyagawa">{{cite web|title=Yoshiyuki Miyagawa – Reasons for supplementing graphics development |url=http://hotmiyacchi.hatenablog.com/entry/20111202/1322819155 |access-date=May 30, 2020 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200530004437/http://hotmiyacchi.hatenablog.com/entry/20111202/1322819155 |archive-date=May 30, 2020 }}</ref>

The ''Chrono Cross'' team devised an original battle system using a stamina bar and Elements.<ref name="gameprointerview2" /> Kato planned the system around allowing players to avoid repetitive gameplay (also known as "[[grinding (gaming)|grinding]]") to gain combat experience.<ref name="weeklyfamitsu" /> Elements were developed while planning the final battle (during which a sequence of specific Elements must be triggered), and then applied in reverse to the rest of the game.<ref name="rdeditionqanda">{{cite web|date=May 3, 2022|title=Chrono Cross Q&A|url=https://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/May_2022_-_Chrono_Cross_Radical_Dreamers_Edition_Questions_and_Answers.html|website=Twitter|access-date=November 14, 2022|archive-date=November 15, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221115025937/https://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/May_2022_-_Chrono_Cross_Radical_Dreamers_Edition_Questions_and_Answers.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Hiromichi Tanaka likened the Elements system to card games, hoping players would feel a sense of complete control in battle.<ref name="weeklyfamitsu" /> The team programmed each battle motion manually instead of performing motion capture.<ref name="ultimania" /> Developers strove to include [[tongue-in-cheek]] humor in the battle system's techniques and animations to distance the game from the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise.<ref name="ultimania" /> Masato Kato planned for the game's setting to feature a small archipelago, for fear that players would become confused traveling in large areas with respect to parallel worlds.<ref name="gameprointerview" /> He hoped El Nido would still impart a sense of grand scale, and the development team pushed hardware limitations in creating the game's world.<ref name="gameprointerview" /> To create field maps, the team modeled locations in 3D, then chose the best angle for 2D rendering.<ref name="ultimania" /> The programmers of ''Chrono Cross'' did not use any existing Square programs or routines to code the game, instead writing new, proprietary systems.<ref name="gameprofaninterview2" /> Other innovations included variable-[[frame rate]] code for fast-forward and slow-motion gameplay (awarded as a bonus for completing the game) and a "CD-read swap" system to allow quick data retrieval.<ref name="gameprointerview" />

Masato Kato directed and wrote the main story, leaving sub-plots and minor character events to other staff.<ref name="gameprointerview" /> The event team sometimes struggled to mesh their work on the plot due to the complexity of the parallel worlds concept.<ref name="ultimania" /> Masato Kato confirmed that ''Cross'' featured a central theme of parallel worlds, as well as the fate of Schala, which he was previously unable to expound upon in ''Chrono Trigger''. Concerning the ending sequences showing Kid searching for someone in a modern city, he hoped to make players realize that alternate futures and possibilities may exist in their own lives, and that this realization would "not&nbsp;... stop with the game".<ref name="ultimania" /> He later added, "Paraphrasing one novelist's favorite words, what's important is not the message or theme, but how it is portrayed as a game. Even in Cross, it was intentionally made so that the most important question was left unanswered."<ref name="gameprointerview" /> Kato described the finished story as "ole' boy-meets-girl type of story" with sometimes-shocking twists.<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /> Kato rode his motorcycle to relieve the stress of the game's release schedule.<ref name="crossost" /> He continued refining event data during the final stages of development while the rest of the team undertook debugging and quality control work.<ref name="crossost" /> Square advertised the game by releasing a short demo of the first chapter with purchases of ''[[Legend of Mana]]''.<ref name="crossdemo">{{cite web|title=Chrono Cross Demo |url=http://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/Chrono_Cross_Demo.html |access-date=August 10, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201062354/http://chronocompendium.com/Term/Chrono_Cross_Demo.html |archive-date=February 1, 2009 }}</ref> The North American version of ''Cross'' required three months of translation and two months of debugging before release.<ref name="gameprointerview2" /> [[Richard Honeywood]] translated, working with Kato to rewrite certain dialogue for ease of comprehension in English.<ref name="edgemagazine">{{cite web| date=February 2006 |title=Edge Online: Q&A – Square Enix's Richard Honeywood|url=http://www.edge-online.co.uk/archives/2006/02/qa_square_enixs_1.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517012317/http://www.edge-online.co.uk/archives/2006/02/qa_square_enixs_1.php|archive-date=May 17, 2006|work=Edge Online| access-date=August 14, 2006}}</ref> He also added instances of wordplay and alliteration to compensate for difficult Japanese jokes.<ref name="edgemagazine" /> To streamline translation for all 45 playable characters, Honeywood created his own version of the accent generator which needed to be more robust than the simple verbal tics of the Japanese cast.<ref name="localization">{{cite web |work=1UP.com |date=April 28, 2011 |access-date=October 8, 2013 |author=Fenlon, Wesley |title=The Rise of Squaresoft Localization |url=http://www.1up.com/features/squaresoft-localization |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160525140009/http://www.1up.com/features/squaresoft-localization |archive-date=May 25, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Although the trademark ''Chrono Cross'' was registered in the European Union, the game was not released in Europe.<ref>{{cite web|title=Chrono Cross|url=https://euipo.europa.eu/eSearch/#basic/1+1+1+1/100+100+100+100/Chrono%20Cross|publisher=EUIPO}}</ref>

After the game was done, the team was merged with those behind ''[[Parasite Eve II]]'', ''[[Brave Fencer Musashi]]'' and ''[[Mana (series)|Mana]]'' to make ''[[Final Fantasy XI]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://we-are-vanadiel.finalfantasyxi.com/post/?id=381&lang=en|title=Naoki Yoshida Part 2|department=WE DISCUSS VANA'DIEL #10|work=FINAL FANTASY XI – WE ARE VANA'DIEL 20th Anniversary Commemorative Website|publisher=Square Enix|date=May 30, 2022|access-date=June 27, 2022|archive-date=June 27, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627043514/https://we-are-vanadiel.finalfantasyxi.com/post/?id=381&lang=en|url-status=live}}</ref> The programming for the game endured as the basis for the engine of ''Final Fantasy XI''.<ref name="yoshiyukimiyagawa" />

===Music===
{{main article|Music of Chrono Cross}}
{{listen
|filename=dreamtimedreams.ogg
|title="Dreams of the Ages"
|description=A 30-second sample of "Dreams of the Ages", illustrating the use in the game's music of melodies established in [[Radical Dreamers]].
}}

''Chrono Cross'' was scored by freelance video game music composer [[Yasunori Mitsuda]], who previously worked on ''Chrono Trigger''. Director Masato Kato personally commissioned Mitsuda's involvement, citing a need for the "Chrono sound".<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /><ref name="ultimania" /> Kato envisioned a "Southeast Asian feel, mixed with the foreign tastes and the tones of countries such as [[Greece]]"; Mitsuda centered his work around [[old world]] cultural influences, including [[Mediterranean]], [[Fado]], [[Celtic music|Celtic]], and percussive [[Music of Africa|African]] music.<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /><ref name="crossost">{{Cite AV media notes |title=Chrono Cross Original Soundtrack |last=Mitsuda |first=Yasunori |url=http://www.chronocompendium.com/Term/Music_(Chrono_Cross) |date=December 18, 1999 |access-date=March 16, 2021 |publisher=DigiCube}}</ref> Mitsuda cited visual inspiration for songs: "All of my subjects are taken from scenery. I love artwork."<ref name="gameprointerview">{{cite magazine |date=October 17, 2000 |title=Chrono Cross Development Team Interview Part 2 |url=http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/6757/chrono-cross-development-team-interview-part-2/ |magazine=[[GamePro]] |access-date=July 2, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202151359/http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/6757/chrono-cross-development-team-interview-part-2/ |archive-date=December 2, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> To complement the theme of parallel worlds, he gave ''Another'' and ''Home'' respectively dark and bright moods, and hoped players would feel the emotions of "'burning soul,' 'lonely world,' and 'unforgettable memories'".<ref name="ultimania" /> Mitsuda and Kato planned music samples and sound effects with the philosophy of "a few sounds with a lot of content".<ref name="weeklyfamitsu" />

''[[Xenogears]]'' contributor [[Tomohiko Kira]] played guitar on the beginning and ending themes. [[Noriko Mitose]], as selected by Masato Kato, sang the ending song—"Radical Dreamers – The Unstolen Jewel".<ref name="ultimania" /> [[Ryo Yamazaki]], a [[synthesizer programmer]] for [[Square Enix]], helped Mitsuda transfer his ideas to the PlayStation's sound capabilities; Mitsuda was happy to accomplish even half of what he envisioned.<ref name="crossost" /> Certain songs were ported from the score of ''[[Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Hōseki|Radical Dreamers]]'', such as "Gale", "Frozen Flame", and "Viper Mansion". Other entries in the soundtrack contain [[leitmotif]]s from ''Chrono Trigger'' and ''Radical Dreamers''.<ref name="ultimania" /> The melody of "Far Promise ~ Dream Shore" features prominently in "Dreams of the Ages" and "Sailing (Another World)".<ref name="ultimania" /> Masato Kato faced internal opposition in hiring Noriko Mitose:

{{blockquote|Personally, for me, the biggest pressure was coming from the ending theme song. From the start of the project, I had already planned to make the ending into a Japanese song, but the problem was now "who was going to sing the song?" There was a lot of pressure from the people in the PR division to get someone big and famous to sing it, but I was totally against the idea. And as usual, I didn't heed to the surrounding complaints, but this time, there was a pretty tough struggle.<ref name="kato-acknowledgment" />}}

[[File:Yasunori Mitsuda (2019).jpg|thumb|left|200px|alt=A photograph of a thin, dark-haired Japanese man|[[Yasunori Mitsuda]]]]
Production required six months of work. After wrapping, Mitsuda and Kato played ''Chrono Cross'' to record their impressions and observe how the tracks intermingled with scenes; the ending theme brought Kato to tears.<ref name="gameprointerview" /><ref name="kato-acknowledgment" /><ref name="crossost" /> Players who preordered the game received a sampler disc of five songs, and Square released a three-[[CD]] official soundtrack in Japan after the game's debut. The soundtrack won the Gold Prize for the PlayStation Awards of 2000.<ref name="mitsuda2008">{{cite web|first=Yasunori|last=Mitsuda|date=January 28, 2008|title=Radical Dreamer: Yasunori Mitsuda Interview from 1UP.com|url=http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3162780|work=[[1UP.com]]|access-date=February 8, 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205003225/http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3162780|archive-date=December 5, 2012}}</ref> In 2005, Square Enix reissued the soundtrack due to popular demand. Earlier that year, Mitsuda announced a new arranged ''Chrono Cross'' album, scheduled for release in July 2005.<ref name="dengekionline">{{cite web|year= 2005|title=New Year's News|url=http://www.dengekionline.com/2005newyear/comment/2004comment02.html|publisher=Dengeki Online | access-date=July 1, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060107065754/http://www.dengekionline.com/2005newyear/comment/2004comment02.html|archive-date=January 7, 2006}}</ref> Mitsuda's contract with Square gave him ownership and full rights to the soundtrack of ''Chrono Cross''.<ref name="sekitopsx">{{cite web|date=November 24, 2008|title=Yasunori Mitsuda Talks Chrono Trigger| url=http://www.originalsoundversion.com/?p=915|publisher=Original Sound Version|access-date=March 13, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110324012728/http://www.originalsoundversion.com/yasunori-mitsuda-talks-chrono-trigger-mysteries-solved-clarifications-made/|archive-date=March 24, 2011}}</ref> It was delayed, and at a [[Play! A Video Game Symphony]] concert in May 2006, he revealed it would feature acoustic music and would be "out within the year", later backtracking and alleging a 2007 release date.<ref name="nsiderinterview">{{cite web |date=May 30, 2006 |title=N-Sider: PLAY! Concert Interviews |url=http://www.n-sider.com/articleview.php?articleid=518&page=3 |work=N-Sider |access-date=July 1, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060620224150/http://www.n-sider.com/articleview.php?articleid=518&page=3 |archive-date=June 20, 2006 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://palgn.com.au/article.php?id=5478|title=Yasunori Mitsuda Interview|access-date=May 22, 2007|last=Peter| first=James|date=October 13, 2006|website=PALGN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081226230416/http://palgn.com.au/article.php?id=5478 |archive-date=December 26, 2008}}</ref> Mitsuda posted a streaming sample of a finished track on his personal website in January 2009, and has stated the album will be released to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the Japanese debut of ''Cross''.<ref name="RPGFARRANGE">{{cite web|url=http://rpgfan.com/news/2008/1555.html |title=Chrono Cross 10th Anniversary Arrange Album Update |access-date=December 27, 2008 |last=Gann |first=Patrick |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227004902/http://rpgfan.com/news/2008/1555.html |archive-date=December 27, 2008 }}</ref> Music from ''Chrono Cross'' has been featured in the September 2009 ''Symphonic Fantasies'' concerts, part of the [[Symphonic Game Music Concert]] series conducted by [[Arnie Roth]].<ref name="symphonicfantasies">{{Cite AV media notes |title=Symphonic Fantasies |last=WDR Rundfunkorchester Köln |date=September 12, 2009 |publisher=Decca}}</ref> That same year, the ''Chrono Cross'' theme "Scars of Time" was voted first place in Hardcore Gaming 101's "Best Video Game Music of All Time" poll.<ref>{{cite web|last=Kalata |first=Kurt |title=Best Video Game Music of All Time – 2011 |url=http://hg101.kontek.net/vgm/bestvgm2011.htm |publisher=Hardcore Gaming 101 |access-date=December 29, 2011 |date=October 25, 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120104202529/http://hg101.kontek.net/vgm/bestvgm2011.htm |archive-date=January 4, 2012 }}</ref> "Scars of Time" was also featured in 2012 by [[NPR]] in a program about classically arranged video game scores.<ref name="npr">{{cite web|title=A Classical Musician's Game Theory |url=https://www.npr.org/2012/12/10/166875717/a-classical-musicians-game-theory |publisher=NPR |access-date=April 20, 2013 |date=December 10, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130602060548/http://www.npr.org/2012/12/10/166875717/a-classical-musicians-game-theory |archive-date=June 2, 2013 }}</ref>