Chronicles

History and Features of the Chrono Trigger SNES Release


The History

"Passing through a variety of eras
from the past, present, and future, it is a story
of a fight against monumental evil.”
- Announcer from Chrono Trigger V-Jump preview video (1994)

Having anticipated a late 1994 release date, Square co. (also branded as Square Soft in North America) and Chrono Trigger's “Dream Team” – comprised of the famed Hironobu Sakaguchi (creator of Final Fantasy), Yuji Horii (creator of Dragon Quest), and Akira Toriyama (creator of Dragon Ball) – decided to push back the game to the following year.1 Prior to this release, early alpha versions of the game were shown at the 1994 and 1995 Japanese magazine V-Jump festivals and subsequently, a beta version of Chrono Trigger was also released to magazine subscribers and video game reviewers.2 Within each cartridge, it is reported that “three save-games allowed further exploration beyond programmed stop points,” which when reached, would begin to play an ending foreshadowing the final release of Chrono Trigger. A collection of holographic cards depicting Akira Toriyama's artwork and scenes from the beta versions were released as well. A full list and interpretation of the cards can be found via the Chrono Compendium website. 


Following this publicity, three Satellaview specials were released on July 31, 1995 that were entitled: “Character Library,” “Jet Bike Special,” and “Music Library.” “Character Library” (which reveals information about characters and monsters) and “Music Library” (which allows players to listen to any and all songs from the game) would later become part of the “Extras” mode featured on the PS re-release for both Japan and North America. “Jet Bike Special,” on the other hand, is a mini-game in which you race against Johnny (a robot from the 2300 A.D. era) in two different modes – one that allows the use of a boost feature, and the other without such an advantage. This special, in particular, is a direct replica of an in-game Chrono Trigger level.

These early depictions of story and gameplay footage excited fans at the time, and now serve the purpose of providing significant commentary on the developmental history of Chrono Trigger – which has been analyzed in detail on the Chrono Compendium.


Chrono Trigger began its legacy in Japan on March 11, 1995 on the Super Famicom and later the North American version of the console, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) on August 22 that same year. Although the two systems are identical in hardware specifications, discrepancies between the two releases are noticeable even at this early date – although the North American release isn't considered a re-release itself.[3][4] In this instance, unique changes between localizations play a part in differentiation.
  

Features

 
Firstly, design distinctions between both systems affected outward appearances of the consoles, game cartridges, and controllers, in the end creating separate playing experiences and regionally locking the Super Famicom and the SNES to their locales. It is also noted that the North American version lacked art for the game's ending as well as hosted various translation discrepancies, along with various omissions enforced by Nintendo of America, including references to breastfeeding, consumption of alcohol, bisexuality and religion.5


Differences in character depiction are fascinating as well. Most notably, Frog (a prominent anthropomorphic character) is removed from his original Japanese characterization, which was serious and informal in tone – whereas the North American translation imbued Frog with Elizabethan English dialogue characteristic of a knight; Robo, (a robotic companion) along with other androids found in the Chrono Trigger universe, all communicate in capital-casing; Ayla (a prominent cave woman) uses a dubbed down form of speech in both localizations, however in Japan she has an exclusive nickname for the protagonist Crono called Cro; and Magus – Maou in Japan (which translates to “Demon King”) – in the Japanese localization is a manifestation “of obstacles that prevent one from achieving enlightenment,” a concept in Buddhism.5

Most of these alterations are attributed to translator Ted Woolsey, who was asked to localize Chrono Trigger within a thirty day time period.6 Lacking the contemporary setup of a dedicated localization team, Woolsey had to rely upon marketing materials – and in some cases were incomplete.6 Memory constraints also hampered the process, in the end leading Woolsey to having to rethink an entire plot without actually changing any of the parameters that govern how the plot has implications on the rest of the game.7

"So, inevitably,
some depth is lost in the translation
from Japanese to English.”
- Ted Woolsey Super Play Magazine interview (1994)

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