My next three days of Chrono Trigger bring the plot closer to closure, although I’m not sure I’m near the end yet. A key part of the game changes to a more final form, and some secondary characters are starting to rise up and become major plot elements. More really good fights  and more inventive in types and combinations of enemies. But at the same time, the game suffers again from interface problems that make it a little more confusing than it should be. Spoilers within.

I’ve played Chrono Trigger a lot and haven’t had time to post, so look forward to six days in quick succession. The first three days grow my party, see more weird narrative, and take me to an all new time period. The new era is nothing  I would have expected and that’s a quite cool surprise.  But the best in these three days are the fights. The enemies just keep showing new and innovative forms — they keep coming up with cool puzzles with their great combinations. Oh, and a genuinely creepy prophecy. Spoilers within.

Long days 16 and17 and we cover a lot of narrative ground. There’s a series of time jumps, the accomplishment of one quest, some decent backstory on a party member, and the introduction of a major set of opponents. Along the way are some of the most beautiful retro-graphic animations and scenes I have seen, and fights that are pure, unadulterated fun to beat. Didn’t I tell you how you should have bought this game already? Spoilers within.

Next three days of travel are time hopping questing.  The plot of the road I’ve gone done runs all over the place, and involves more and more challenging opponents. Old characters return and brand new party members are introduced. The game retains a host of interesting narrative touches and small set-piece mechanics, and I even think I’m seeing a full-fledged theme here. If you haven’t already gleaned this, Chrono Trigger is very, very good, and you shouldn’t be waiting for me to finish these if you haven’t played it yet. Buy it. Spoilers within.

The next three days of Chrono Trigger get me into the heart of the story, and there’s a major jump in interactivity. I am now able to choose what level I access at what point, and it seems to me even at this early stage that there are plot points that I can activate or fail to find. The potential narrative implications of that are fascinating. Fighting gets significantly harder as I now have to pay much more attention to the strengths and weaknesses of my enemies. Also, my party reaches its limit. Spoilers within.