Gotta like it

Let's call it like it is: I have no idea about JRPGs (Japanese Role-Playing Games), especially the old school ones. That's largely because I never had a console and all the Final Fantasys, Dragon Quests, Xenoblades and Secret of Manas originated on platforms like the (S)NES or Megadrive. I probably came closest to the genre with the Gameboy Color, on which I played Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow as well as Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone . I probably won't be able to close this educational gap in this lifetime, but at least I can relive this fundamental pillar of video game history musically.

I'll start today with Chrono Trigger, which was developed by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. I'll spare you and myself a summary of the story here, as there are plenty of other sources for that. The most obvious thing to mention, however, is that the recently deceased Akira Toriyama, whose art style people of my age are most likely to associate with the Dragon Ball-manga/anime he created, was responsible for the look of the game.

The main man responsible for the album - yes, there are official releases - is the Japanese composer Yasunori Mitsuda. He received support for his compositional debut work from none other than soundtrack legend Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy-series, Lost Odyssey), who contributed nine of the 64 tracks. Incidentally, the score for Chrono Trigger has a Wikipedia article and, according to another list is considered “one of the best video game soundtracks”.

Do I agree with this assessment? The answer is: I would like to, but I can't. Not because I don't want to, but because I don't have the temporal context. Because even if I agree with many of the points made by the trade press, the terrible PaRappa the Rapper for example, is also on the list ... which I absolutely cannot understand (apart from the musical theme itself).

But that's not what this is about, it's about my assessment of this score, which is now 30 years old. In this review, I am referring exclusively to the first of the four official releases, called Chrono Trigger: Original Sound Version. In addition to this, there is also

• an acid jazz album called Chrono Trigger Arranged Version: The Brink of Time (1995) with ten tracks,
• the best-of album Chrono Trigger Original Soundtrack (1999) with 21 tracks
• and the re-release of the same name from 2009 with 78 songs.

Have a look at the above mentioned Wikipedia article for more information.

Enough about the background, now to the actual review. The first thing to mention here is the quality of the score. The chiptunes of the Original Sound Version sound good across the board, and it seems as if Mitsuda and Uematsu got the most out of the SNES's SPC700 chip. From this point of view, I would definitely agree with the praise with regard to the genre standard of the time.

In terms of content, the droning from the nineties is also at a high level, even if I miss the peaks of a Final Fantasys here. Tracks like Wind Scene and The Brink of Time are pleasant to listen to with their mixture of strings and piano, while the positive Delightful Spekkio is simply fun with its Disney-charm. Battle tracks such as Boss Battle 2, Decisive Battle with Magus or Last Battle are dramatic, while Corridors of Time or Festival of Stars are a pleasant buzz.

The composers also show their experimental side here and there: Undersea Palace seems sci-fi-like and borrowed from an arcade shooter, Chrono and Marle / Far Off Promise and Epilogue (To Good Friends) become a sugar-sweet children's fairy tale thanks to the music box charm. Tyran Castle meanwhile, completely breaks with expectation and fires off rocking electric guitar action. On top of that, the score uses a leitmotif that flashes through from time to time!

The picture of a good overall performance also extends to the rest of the score, but there is only one piece that stands out at the top: Frog’s Theme. A classic heroic epic with dramatic fanfares, followed by a melody that leads us into battle, accompanied by constant drums. A song in the classic Final Fantasy-guise, simple, moving, skillful - and not by Uematsu, mind you.

All of this leads me to understand the enthusiasm for the score, but I cannot share it wholeheartedly. I just don't have the overarching wow moment to put Chrono Trigger in my favorites or choose it as one of the best scores. But maybe I'm just too picky ... or simply not well-read. Because the reaction to the score can also turn out just like in this YouTube video . Nevertheless, I still recommend it.