Chrono Triggeris, undoubtedly, one of the greatestJRPGsof all time. After its release, many tried to follow in its footsteps, but fell short along the way. However, once in a while, a game comes along that manages to reignite that old spark.
That was the case withSea of Stars. While I wouldn’t call it a bona fide spiritual successor—after all, it was made by a studio with no ties to the original creators—it was one of the few games that gave me the same feelings I had when I first playedChrono Trigger.
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Today, I want to propose a different dynamic. Suppose you only have time to play one game, which one would you go for? That’s why I’m here. I’ll tieChrono TriggerandSea of Starsin different categories to see who trumps the other.
Mind you, I love both games almost equally, so this will be a tough write-up. So, without further ado, and as much as it feels like I have to choose my favorite child, let’s see who wins this fight betweenChrono TriggerandSea of Stars.
Sea of Stars
For the SNES era,Chrono Triggerwas like the Marilyn Monroe of its time. There was no comparison for how gorgeous the game was, and, up to this day, its pixel art, animations, battle effects, and everything else still look crisp and lovely.
However, with time and technological evolution on its side, it’s undeniable thatSea of Starslooks and flows better. The artwork, the visuals, the character pixel art, their animations in combat, the environments, all pieces inSea of Starsare a treat.
Sabotage Studio’s JRPG delivers a modern visual presentation while still calling back to past games. It’s the perfect blend of old and new. So yeah, there is no two-way about it.Sea of Starstakes the first round of this extremely friendly and not-at-all controversial showdown.
8Soundtrack
Chrono Trigger
There’s a reason why the developer ofSea of Starsmade sure to highlight in every promo that Yasunori Mitsuda, the composer ofChrono Trigger, had composed a few tracks forSea of Stars. It’s because Mitsuda is that good.
However, not all ofSea of Stars’soundtrack was composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, and,without throwing shade at Eric W. Brown, in the end, the full OST still doesn’t hit the same asChrono Trigger’s.
Whether in the 90s or today, anyone who’s played Chrono Trigger knows the theme of Zeal, Corridors of Time, or the main theme itself. But if you’re somehow drawing a blank and don’t recognize them, justthink of Frog’s theme. I’m sure you remember how it goes.
7Level Design
Sabotage Studio createdSea of Starsafter creating their debut game,The Messenger, aphenomenal Metroidvania. Luckily, they brought all their expertise in platforming and level design intoSea of Stars, which features clever and creative dungeons.
Manylevels inSea of Starsinclude unique puzzles involving gameplay features like switching between day and night, or using a grappling hook to reach the other side. Even the more streamlined areas are a joy to move through, whether sneaking along cliffs or dropping down platforms.
Chrono Triggeralso has its highlights, like Magus' Castle or the entire kingdom of Zeal. But it also has its fair share of annoying dungeons, such as Geno Dome or Death Peak. Oh yeah, Tyranno Lair also sucks. So yeah,Sea of Starstakes the Level Design trophy home.
I fumbled here because I can’t pick one over the other. WhileChrono Triggerhas a straightforward objective of taking down a big, bad villain to save the world (albeit in the future), its narrative and how the events unfold across different times is fantastic.
It’s one of the few JRPGs that can pull offthe time-travel themewithout getting lost in endless loopholes. The primary campaign also ties in nicely with the subplots of your secondary characters, which is always a plus.
On the other hand,Sea of Starsgets us ready for the endgame from the get-go. Our Solstice Warriors are training to stop the Fleshmancer, and well, we set off on a journey to do just that.
A few story beats inSea of StarsoutshineChrono Trigger, while others—mostly involving side characters—don’t reach the same level as Squaresoft’s magnum opus. So in the end,the story in both games stands on equal ground.Thus, a tie.
5Party Members
The one thing I don’t like aboutChrono Triggeris its protagonist, Crono. Not that I dislike him, but come on, he’s a silent protagonist who wakes up on a random day, goes to the fair, and suddenly becomes a warrior out to save the entire planet.
He never questions anything, just risks his life every day to protect a future he won’t even live to see. ButChrono Trigger’sparty members more than carry that weight for Crono.From the heroic Frog to the gaudy Ayla and the mysterious Magus, everyone’s there for a reason, and depending on the ending you get, that’s reflected.
However, I also don’t fancy the protagonists ofSea of Stars. As crucial as they are to the story, Zale and Valere are extremely alike. If you took their names and portraits off the dialogue box, I’d have a hard time knowing who’s talking.
And don’t get me started on Garl—or should I say, Gary Stu. For some reason,Sea of Starstries to hype up his presence so much that I don’t know, it just didn’t sit right with me, and I started liking him less instead of more. It doesn’t help thatSea of Starshas a character subplot pretty much stolen directly fromChrono Trigger, so there’s that.
4Side Content
Listen, I thought long and hard about this one, and, as much as I wanted to say thatSea of Starshas better exploration and side content, one sole reason changed my mind: the fact that the true ending is locked behind hunting downthe rainbow conch collectibles.
The moment you make itmandatoryto do side content — and a pretty annoying one — to see a canon ending, you lose me. Sorry, Wheels, I loved playing you, but nah.Backtracking through almost every map just to see the true ending isn’t a good move,Sea of Stars.
I’ll admit that our first playthrough ofChrono Triggeris linear until we unlock the Epoch. After grabbing the spaceship, we can start doing distinct sidequests, some of which are thebest sidequests in JRPG history.
We learn about Lucca’s past, see Robo working for 400 years, face hidden bosses, find rare minerals, in short, a bunch of totally optional side content, but the game encourages us to go for it without twisting our arm.
And it only gets better when we unlock New Game+. You get a different ending depending on when and with whom you beatChrono Trigger. That’s one creative and way-ahead-of-its-time feature the JRPG invented to promote replayability, and it has become a benchmark for games to this day.
3Progression System
If there’s one thing I love in any RPG, it’s when the game lets me upgrade individual stats every time I level up.Sea of Starsdoes let you do that, although technically, it’s more of a placebo than real customization.
That’s because if you keep raising the same stat, the game eventually stops you and forces you to pick another. Bummer. Still, better than fixed stats like inChrono Trigger, right? Debatable.
What made me pickChrono Triggeris the fact thatevery party member in the Square game can learn up to 8 Techs, plus Double and Triple Techs. Changing just one party member completely shifts the combat dynamic.
InSea of Stars, each character only has 3 skills and an Ultimate, which is not enough variety in my book. The RPG has a combo system, featuring 18 combos in total. But most of those are learned by finding a scroll, not by leveling up, which means they’re potentially missable.
Ultimately, I prefer Chrono Trigger’s simpler, more traditional progression system because it offers more skills thanSea of Stars’slightly more modular one.
This article would’ve been written twice as fast if I hadn’t spent so much time thinking about which combat system I like more betweenChrono TriggerandSea of Stars. I love them both equally, but I couldn’t chicken out and pick a tie again.
A lot of my reasoning here lies in the progression system. After all, the more abilities a character can have, the more layers to the gameplay and the more fun combat becomes, right? Well, supposedly yes. But in practice, not quite.
The biggest issue withChrono Triggeris that many fodder enemies go down with regular attacks, especially since our Jesus boy Crono is insanely strong no matter what you do. That doesn’t exactly translate to engaging combat.
Sea of Stars, on the other hand, has a lock system, which keeps us on our toes.Even the most basic encounters become dynamic, encouraging the use of spells, combos, and any command other than plain attacks. We can also bolster our defenses by pressing an input before getting hit.
Against bosses, both games shine. But putting both JRPGs' combat systems on the scale, considering a complete playthrough, I give the edge toSea of Starsbecause overall, it’s more engaging, even if only slightly.
At the end, it is what it is. There’s a Brazilian saying that goes"who was king never loses his majesty," and that fitsChrono Triggerlike a glove. I tried my best to be fair in my assessments and even gaveSea of Starsa helping hand in a few categories, but in the end,Chrono Triggertakes the honor home.
On the bright side, you can play and experience these masterpieces yourself.Chrono Triggeris often hailed as one of the best JRPGs out there, whileSea of Starsstands as one of thebest indie games. Rather than pit one against the other, we should be thankful they both exist.
Remember, it’s all joy and fun.Chrono Triggerwill forever be used as the gold standard for excellent JRPGs, inspiring games likeSea of Starsand many others. Now,Sea of Starscan also be a reference for other indie creators to break into the industry and craft their own stories.
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