Chrono Trigger (SNES)

Chrono Trigger
Developer: Square Publisher: Squaresoft Platform: SNES Released in JP: March 11, 1995 Released in US: August 11, 1995 Released in EU: May 20, 2011 (Wii Virtual Console) Released in AU: May 20, 2011 (Wii Virtual Console) This game has unused areas. This game has unused code. This game has a hidden developer message. This game has hidden developer credits. This game has unused enemies. This game has unused graphics. This game has unused items. This game has unused music. This game has unused text. This game has regional differences. This game has a prototype article This game has a prerelease article This game has a Data Crystal page

Chrono Trigger is a well-known RPG featuring excellent graphics and music, and a plot focusing on time travel.

It was later re-released on the PlayStation in 1999 (Japan only), and again in 2001 as part of Final Fantasy Chronicles (alongside Final Fantasy IV, which itself had gotten a standalone PS1 release in 1997).

Sub-Pages

Prototype Info

Prerelease Info

Unused Graphics Mostly background objects, but still!

Unused Text

Unused Enemies

There are several unused enemies hidden away in the game's code. Most of them are still present in the sense that they can be seen normally, but only through hacking can they be fought. Most also feature either a very basic script (usually just repeatedly attacking), or no script whatsoever.

Omicrone

Though its name is similar to the "Omnicrone" enemy, this one is different. It uses the same magenta palette as Spekkio's fourth form, but is graphically glitched in battle. In-game, it appears in the Ocean Palace to summon a few enemies, but flees before the battle begins.

It is Level 0 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after its battle. It has 1 HP, 1 attack, 127 defense, 10 magic, 50 magic defense, 1 speed, and 10 stamina. It has a 1% chance of evading an attack, a 100% chance of landing a hit, and gives 8 Tech Points, 455 EXP, and 600G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is オミクロン, which translates to Omicron.

Ogre

An Ogan with a blue palette that it shares with Spekkio’s third form. While two of them are encountered in Ozzie's Fort, neither is actually fought since Ozzie springs them as a trap on conveyor belts...which lead to pits.

It is Level 0 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after its battle. It has 1 HP, 1 attack, 127 defense, 10 magic, 50 magic defense, 1 speed, and 10 stamina. It has a 1 percent chance of evading an attack, a 100 percent chance of landing a hit, and gives 8 Tech Points, 348 EXP, and 650G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is もんすたー , which translates to "MONSTER".

Octobino

This enemy looks identical to the Octoblushes encountered in Heckran's Cave, and appears to have all the same attacks. Its purpose is unknown, but it may have been intended to be a "henchman" in a boss battle. It also appears in the files of the prototype with a unique grey palette that is similar, but not identical, to the Octopod’s palette, but is just as unused there.

It is Level 0, uses the "Leech" attack used by Octoblushes, and has no Charm or item won after its battle. It has 1 HP, 1 attack, 127 defense, 10 magic, 50 magic defense, 1 speed, and 10 stamina. It has a 1% chance of evading an attack, a 100% chance of landing a hit, and gives 4 Tech Points, 146 EXP, and 250G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is アルビノ, which translates to "Albino".

Octorider

A Blue Imp riding an Octoblush, with mostly intact stats. In the prototype, these can be seen in Heckran's Cave, which is where they'd likely be fought had they not ended up cut. In the final, the only place to see one is in the Developers' Room ending.

It is Level 10 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after its battle. It has 100 HP, 13 attack, 180 defense, 7 magic, 50 magic defense, 10 speed, and 10 stamina. It has an 8% chance of evading an attack, a 15% chance of landing a hit, and gives 2 Tech Points, 30 EXP, and 45G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is ジャリボウズ, which translates to "Jarry Priest".

Bull Frog

These are the two mouthy and cowardly frogs seen periodically throughout the Sewer Access in 2300 AD, and again on the Black Omen if you take a Nu's offer to escape. Interestingly, it has mostly intact stats, suggesting it was cut later in development. It appears in a very early promotional video for the game, where it is known as "Orfan".

It is Level 16 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after its battle. It has 100 HP, 1 attack, 127 defense, 10 magic, 50 magic defense, 1 speed, and 10 stamina. It has a 10% chance of evading an attack, a 20% chance of landing a hit, and gives 4 Tech Points, 127 EXP, and 200G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is オーファン, which translates to "Orphan".

Frog King

Cyrus and Glenn fight this creature during a flashback. It's otherwise never even encountered, much less fought. Like the Omicrone, it's rather glitchy in battle.

It is Level 0 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after its battle. It has 1 HP, 1 attack, 127 defense, 10 magic, 50 magic defense, 1 speed, and 10 stamina. It has a 1% chance of evading an attack, a 100% chance of landing a hit, and gives 4 Tech Points, 10 EXP, and 100G. It does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese its name is カエルだい王, which translates to "Great Frog King".

Johnny

Or as he's known to his robot lackeys, THE MAN! Evidently, he was supposed to be fought at some point. Unlike most other unused enemies, he appears to have actual stats, but still does nothing more than attack.

He is Level 32 and has no attacks, Charm, or item won after his battle. He has 408 HP, 68 attack, 127 defense, 7 magic, 50 magic defense, 9 speed, and 10 stamina. He has a 15% chance of evading an attack, a 32% chance of landing a hit, and gives 8 Tech Points, 246 EXP, and 150G. He does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

In Japanese his name is もんすたー, which translates to "MONSTER".

Magus

While Magus can be fought twice during normal gameplay (with the second being optional), there is an unused third form of him that can be found in the files. This form appears to be an early version of the fight with him at North Cape. If he has over 1/2 HP remaining, he will only attack with his scythe. If he was only attacked by the Masamune, he will either use a blank move with no effect or a "different" scythe attack which is functionally identical to his other scythe attack. Once he gets under 1/2 HP remaining, he will start countering attacks by either attacking with his scythe or using Fire 2, Ice 2, or Lightning 2 (unless attacked by the Masamune).

He is Level 37 and has no Charm item or item won after battle. He has 3333 HP, 100 attack, 127 defense, 19 magic, 50 magic defense, 9 speed, and 10 stamina. He has a 16% chance of evading an attack, a 100% chance of landing a hit, and gives 1 Tech Point, 10 EXP, and 100G. He does not absorb, cancel, or resist any elements, and has no weaknesses.

He does not have a name in both the Japanese and English versions of the game.

Dummy Enemies

There are four dummy enemies that can be found in the files, all of them who have no names. They all share Crono's sprite, do nothing in battle, and have default sprites. The first dummy enemy's sword glows after being hit (it does not appear otherwise); the second and third dummy enemies' sprites are glitched; and the fourth dummy enemy locks up the game upon entering combat with it.

(Source: Kwhazit)

Unused Lavos Forms

In a normal game, challenging Lavos regularly (by completing the Black Omen or using the bucket at the End of Time) pits the player in a sort-of boss rush mode where they have to beat bosses previously fought on the adventure, from the Dragon Tank up to and including Giga Gaia, before continuing on to the actual Lavos Shell battle. A few unused enemies programmed in the game suggests the boss rush was originally intended to drag on a bit longer:

• 1F: Equivalent to Retinite's body. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by the Marilesse, a Naga-ette with default stats and an unused palette.
• 21: Equivalent to Retinite's legs. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by the Duo, a Ruminator with default stats and an unused palette.
• 3C: Equivalent to Mother Brain's displays. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by the Overmagic, a Mage with default stats.
• 5A: Unsure what this was supposed to be. Possibly equivalent to the flames of the Son of Sun, as it has maxed-out physical defense and absorbs all elements. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by the Brajimil, a Jinn with default stats and an unused palette.
• E8: Equivalent to Retinite's core, but with a staggering weakness to water-elemental attacks. It seems at one point water-elemental attacks were to damage Retinite directly, instead of "hardening the sand" to lower its defense. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by an unused form of Spekkio with default stats.
• E9: Equivalent to Mother Brain. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by an unused form of Spekkio with default stats.
• EA: Equivalent to the Rust Tyrano. In the prototype, this enemy slot is occupied by (who could have guessed) an unused form of Spekkio with default stats.

None of these enemies have a battle script programmed in, so they do nothing until you successfully defeat them. Interestingly, all of these bosses are fought during the extra side quests unlocked after acquiring the winged Epoch, which may be a reason as to why they were cut.

Unused Enemy Stats

Mother Brain's Cloak

Mother Brain is technically made up of two enemies: her head and inner cloak, and her outer cloak. Both enemies are loaded in-game, but her outer cloak cannot be fought because it dies as soon as combat begins. However, it has customized stats compared to most other non-attackable enemies: It has maximum physical and magic defense, cancels all elements, and will evade attacks 100% of the time. It has 0 HP and is Level 40 (strangely, Mother Brain herself is only Level 23).

Omnilock Enemy Stats

For some reason, all enemies who use the Omnilock tech have 100 magical defense and cancel all elements, even though it is impossible to use Techs against them.

(Source: Kwhazit)

Unused Areas

While the developers were generally fairly good about making sure all areas were used or deleted accordingly, a few unused maps still remain.

Choras Residence

An extra house located in the same map as the Choras Inn. This is actually present in the prototype, but despite existing in the final (unlike many prototype maps) there are no longer any pointers or events associated with it.

Unknown House

This small house is never used, not even in the prototype, and it's unknown where it even could have been located, as it exists on a single large map used for numerous building interiors in Truce, Porre, and Medina. It's slightly glitchy in appearance due to several black boxes surrounding it, overlapping some of the wall tiles.

Unused Items

There are five unused items in the game's code.

• Dark Saber (くらやみのかたな-Dark Katana) - Attack Power: 50, Stat Increase: 28, Base Critical Hit Rate: 10%, Sell: 4350G. This is a weapon for Crono without any specific special effects. As it's sandwiched between the two prehistoric swords (Flint Edge and Aeon Blade), it seems likely that this would have been found in Magus' Castle, but was cut in favor of the Slasher. Earlier in development, the Slasher was known as the "Soy Sword" and was a weapon for Frog. The developers likely (wisely) decided that it made no sense for Frog to gain a new weapon so soon after having you finish a rather long quest to get the Masamune, so the Soy Sword/Slasher was changed to a weapon for Crono and the Dark Saber was dropped. Another possibility is it was intended to be found in the scrapped Singing Mountain dungeon, as the dungeon was meant to be accessed at some point after the battle with Magus.
• PicoMagnum (ピコマグナム-Picomagnum) - Attack Power: 20, Stat Increase: 14, Base Critical Hit Rate: 20%, Sell: 900G. A rather weak, featureless weapon for Lucca. Its power level is between the Auto Gun from 2300 AD's Arris Dome and the Plasma Gun from the Factory of the same era. The Sewer Access is accessible between these areas and was somewhat more extensive in the prototype; however, even though the item is defined in the prototype, it isn't placed there or anywhere else.
• Graedus (グラビティー-Gravity) - Attack Power: 60, Stat Increase: 40, Base Critical Hit Rate: 20%, Sell: 6000G. Another weapon for Lucca... and a weird one, to boot: if it hits, the target's HP is decreased by half (rounded down). However, it doesn't seem to work very well, and obviously wouldn't have worked at all on bosses. It's likely it was deemed too gimmicky to keep.
• (No Name) (マールのあまり-Marle Extras) - A bow cloned four times in the ROM, with 0 attack and a base critical hit rate of 20%. It cannot be equipped by any character. This was likely a dummy weapon that would have been replaced if any other bows were created for Marle.
• (No Name) (ルッカのあまり-Lucca Extras) - A gun cloned four times in the ROM, with 0 attack and a base critical hit rate of 20%. It cannot be equipped by any character. This was likely a dummy weapon that would have been replaced if any other guns were created for Lucca.
• (No Name) (ロボのあまり-Robo Extras) - An arm with 0 attack and a base critical hit rate of 10%. It cannot be equipped by any character. This was likely a dummy weapon that would have been replaced if any other arms were created for Robo.
• (No Name) (エイラのあまり-Ayla Extras) - A fist cloned twice in the ROM, with 0 attack and a base critical hit rate of 20%. It cannot be equipped by any character. This was likely a dummy weapon that would have been replaced if any other fists were created for Ayla.
• (No Name) (ぶきのあまり-Weapon Extras) - A generic weapon cloned four times in the ROM, with 0 attack and a base critical hit rate of 20%. It cannot be equipped by any character. This was likely a dummy weapon that would have been replaced if any other weapons were created.
• Relic (アクセサリー-Accessory) - An accessory with the same effect as the SightScope (showing enemies' HP when equipped). This was probably unfinished.
• SeraphSong (てんしのささやき-Angel’s Whisper) - An accessory which gradually restored your MP during combat while equipped, by 5 MP per restoration. It would have been rather useful, but given the Gold Stud reduces your MP cost to such a degree that MP restoration is rather trivial, this was probably rendered unnecessary. The MP recovery interrupts all animations when it occurs, which is rather jarring and may have contributed to the decision to cut it.
• (No Name) (アイテムのあき-Spare Item) - There are 10 of this key item in the ROM. It serves no purpose and was likely just a dummy key item.

While all of these items are also in the DS port (some renamed), they're just as unused there and are not included in the in-game item list. Also, of these items only the Dark Saber and PicoMagnum are in the prototype; this means that the Graedus, Relic, and SeraphSong were added later, but inexplicably still left unused.

(Source: Kwhazit)

Unused Music

Famously, two songs appeared on the Chrono Trigger OST but were not used in-game (although they still remain in the game's code). There also exists a third, lesser-known unused song.

Battle 2

(Track 2-11 on the OST)

Just as the name suggests, this was intended to be a secondary normal battle theme. The prototype uses it in the Cyrus vs. Frog King flashback, although not in any actual playable battle. It was later used in the DS port for the monster arena. In Japanese, the song is called "戦い2".

(Source: Chrono Compendium)

Singing Mountain

(Track 3-01 on the OST)

This beautiful song, possibly imitative of Joe Hisaishi's "Laputa: The Castle in the Sky", is more or less all that remains of a scrapped prehistoric dungeon, an unfinished version of which is present in the prototype and indeed uses this song. It was also later used in the DS port for Marle's Dimensional Vortex dungeon. In Japanese, this song is called "歌う山".

Rat-a-Tat-Tat It's... Mitsuda

This song isn't on the OST, and as such was only named later. It's just a short fanfare, the melody taken from the traditional "Shave And A Haircut", possibly intended to be used when you talked to Yasunori Mitsuda in the Developers' Room ending.

The song appears under this title in the PS1 and DS ports, but remains unused aside from the in-game music test.

Unused Location Names

There are several bits of text for world map location pop-ups that exist in the game, but don't correspond to anything.

• Gobb's house (ゴブの家-Gob’s House) - No in-game evidence points to who "Gobb" would have been, but two theories exist for this one. Either "Gobb" is the name of the friendly imp you encounter when you first arrive at Medina, or "Gobb" lived in one of the extra houses that existed in Medina in the prototype.
• Eternal Repose (永遠のいこい亭-Eternal rest shop) - On its own, this doesn't seem to relate to much of anything. However, the Japanese version appends this with "亭", meaning "stop" (as in a rest stop), suggesting this was intended for an inn or cafe, presumably in Truce or Porre.
• Breakwave Pt. (さざなみ亭-Ripple shop) - This one brings to mind "Vortex Pt.", the name displayed for the whirlpool outside Lucca's house in 1000 AD. But it too features the "亭" character in the Japanese version, suggesting another inn/pub.
• Robot village (ロボット村-Robot Village) - This is mixed in with the 2300 AD location names. Either it was an early name for the Proto Dome, or it was linked to the odd coliseum-like building found in the prototype.
• Chanting Mt (歌う山-Singing Mountain) - An alternate translation of the Singing Mountain, a well-known scrapped prehistoric dungeon.
• Ayla's tent - Intended, rather obviously, for Ayla's home in Ioka. However, in-game, "Chief's Hut" is displayed instead, probably because Ayla can be renamed.
• Ocean Palace (海底神殿ビマーナ-Abyssal Temple Vimanam) - The Ocean Palace is technically present on the surface world in 12,000 BC, but it's entered via a teleporter from Zeal Palace and not the world map itself. As a result, this text never appears.
• Exoskeleton (ラヴォス外かく-Lavos Shell) - It's unlikely that it was ever intended for you to be able to roam the 1999 AD world map freely. Possibly the shell would have still been on the map in 2300 AD, or would have been displayed in the menu/save file after saving inside Lavos (the game instead uses "???").

(Source: Kwhazit)

Unused Weapon Effects

There are a few effects on weapons that are not used within the game.

• Deals slightly more damage to dinosaurs - Increase damage against dinosaur enemies.
• Deals slightly more damage than normal.
• Deals slightly less damage than normal.
• Percent damage (high) can't do a critical hit.
• Deal really low damage.
• Kamikaze attack - Upon hitting a target, the user's HP drops to 0 and is KO'd.
• Always miss, 0 damage.
• Inflict instant death - Deals no damage upon hitting, target is killed instantly. This works on bosses.
• Deals more damage vs Unknown race.
• Inflict Poison - Chance of inflicting Poison upon a target.
• Inflict Sleep - Chance of inflicting Sleep upon a target.

Regional Differences

Title Screen

The opening copyright does not appear in the Japanese version. It is simply a black space.

Menu Icons

Japan	US

The "Item" menu marker is darker and more rounded in the American version.

Japan	US

The "Technique" menu marker was changed to read "TEC" in the American version. It was also changed from a tan color to an off-white.

Japan	US

The "cursor memory" icon on the options menu was likewise translated. A thin border around it was removed, and the word "ITEM" was enlarged and re-colored.

Elements

Japan	US

The element graphics used on the menu weren't so much "translated" as "completely redrawn from scratch". Of note is that in the Japanese version the Lightning element is 天 (ten) which translates to Sky or Heaven.

The English versions are considerably larger and more elaborate than their Japanese counterparts.

Era Markers

Japan	US

The era markers that pop up on the world maps were in the opposite order, placing A.D./B.C. before the year in the Japanese version. Interestingly enough, both are incorrect, as A.D. precedes the year while B.C. follows it. The boxes themselves also appear to have been flipped horizontally. Also, note the existence of the 1999 A.D. marker, which actually appears and functions normally if one accesses the 1999 A.D. overworld map via hacking. It is otherwise unused.

Marle's Name

In the Japanese version, Marle's real name is the one given to her plus "-dia/ディア" at the end (Marledia by default). In the English version, her name is always Nadia.

Cro-Magnon

In the Japanese version, Ayla and Kino's dialogue (as well as the name of the "Crono special" meal in 1000 A.D.) has unique code to specifically shorten Crono as a nickname ("Cro" by default). This is lost in the English release.

(Source: Chrono Compendium)

Ending Photo

An in-game depiction of some official art is absent in one of the endings in the American version. It is the regular ending that occurs if you finish the game with Crono dead and the Epoch crashed. The DS version restores this with a higher-quality image.

Lucca's Mother

The name of Lucca's mother in the Japanese version is apparently "Lala" rather than "Lara". This has significance with the button input during a sidequest.

Mammon Machine

The Mammon Machine boss has no fadeout when defeated and will simply disappear. This is a bug introduced in the American version; the Japanese version has it use the proper boss fadeout.

Loading a "No Data" Save File

This glitch has some different effects between the English and Japanese versions. Most notably, the English release makes characters unable to equip swords and fists, whereas the Japanese version disables bows and arms. Via this method, every character can use the immensely-powerful Bronze Fist (among other side effects), which is normally only available to Ayla naturally at Level 96.

(Source: Chrono Trigger New Game+ TAS v2 by inichi - Author's comments)

Other Oddities

Truce Inn Chest

For reasons only known to the developers, the chest behind the counter in Truce Inn, quite unlike every other "behind the shop counter" chest in the game (and most RPGs in general) inexplicably contains a whopping 57,342G. This chest can't be reached without cheating, however; it was likely used for debugging purposes. It also exists in the prototype.

Odd Chest Placements

There are four instances in the game where there are treasure chests hidden under floor/wall tiles, which can be viewed by disabling graphic layers on an emulator. They're just graphics, however, and don't contain anything. Why they're there is a mystery, although most are probably remnants from earlier map designs.

The first one appears near the entrance to Mystic Mountains. There's some speculation that this chest would have held the unused Dark Saber, but due to the sword's power and the chest's ease of accessibility, this is exceedingly unlikely. This chest was added sometime after the prototype.

The second one appears in the "warp room" in the Tyrano Lair, buried under a wall in the lower-right corner. There's really no good explanation for why this one is here, but it's also present in the prototype.

The third chest is on the raised platform in the center of the second area of the Sunken Desert. It's right next to another chest, however, so it was probably going to be used.

The fourth and final instance of odd chests is in the western tower of Guardia Castle. Go up one flight of stairs and disable the background layer to see them way up in the upper-left corner.

Examining the map data reveals that there's actually another set of these chests in the lower-left corner of the map. This may indicate they are intended to be used for tile swapping, similar to how doors are commonly handled. Neither of these sets are present in the prototype.

Missing Carpet

In the back of Zeal Palace, there are three doorways. While the right doorway leads to another two doorways (one of which goes to Schala's room), the left and middle doorways lead to rooms with a flight of stairs going up. Removing Background Layer 1 with an emulator reveals that these stairs were originally meant to be carpeted.

This may have been a programming mistake, since there is carpet leading to the stairs and from the stairs that the missing piece neatly fits between. Also, the previous room in the palace had carpeted stairs, so why remove it from these rooms?

These carpet placements can be seen normally in the prototype, albeit with a different palette.

Jet Bike Race

This string can be found in plain ASCII text in both the Japanese and US versions. The people responsible for the design of the bike race are credited in the game's ending for map design (Mami Kawai, Kaname Tanaka, Akane Haruki, Hiroto Yamamoto) and character graphics (Tazuyo Inukai).

 -- JET BIKE RACE --
 BIKE OBJECT  :MAMI KAWAI
 JONNY OBJECT :TAYZO INUKAI
 MODE7 ROAD   :KANAME TANAKA
 BACK GROUND  :AKANE HARUKI
 PANEL & FONT :HIROTO YAMAMOTO
 THANK YOU FOR 5(!) GRAPHIC DESIGNERS.

Programmer String

This string, on the other hand, has only been found in the Japanese version. Like the above, it's in plain ASCII and can be found in the ROM at 0x30078.

 Visual Program By Koji Sugimoto
 Special Thanks for Sachi Kitano

Unused Text

Found at 0x310C0.

CODE END C3

Extended Party Menu

Since the party is locked to three active members for a vast majority of the game, the maximum amount of party members that can be seen on the reserve sub-menu is four. However, if the game reduces the active party's numbers, the game's coding can allow for up to six party members to stay behind.

There is a single situation, late in the game, where the player has access to all seven characters, but during that time the party is locked and the Warp menu can't be accessed, hiding this otherwise-unused menu functionality.

Erroneous Weapon Descriptions

The descriptions of the Brave Sword and upgraded Masamune erroneously state that they deal 2× damage to magical creatures. This is false, as can be proven when comparing with the Demon Hit, which does deal 2× damage to magical enemies.