Proto:Chrono Trigger (SNES)/Area Differences/1000 AD
This is a sub-page of Proto:Chrono Trigger (SNES)/Area Differences.
 | To do: Medina Square event differences. |
Contents
Overworld
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| To do: Add closer picture comparisons of relevant sections for clarity. |
The map of 1000 AD underwent a few major changes:
- Zenan Bridge is broken. While this does indeed happen in the final during 600 AD, at no point is it in the same state of disrepair in 1000 AD. Since it is still possible to reach the southern continent by ferry in this build (which may well be why the ferry exists to begin with), it was undoubtedly deemed pointless to keep the bridge broken.
- Medina underwent a few changes. First, the well in the center of town was replaced with a more elaborate town square, while two houses near the northern part of town were removed. One of these was made into Melchior's house, which had yet to be placed in its normal location just outside Heckran's Cave. The small patch of forest where it would later be relocated was slightly larger, and several trees were also added in the final.
- Choras downsized, evidently. The two houses in the northern part of town were reduced to a single house in the final.
- The fountains in the center of Truce and Choras were considerably larger in the prototype. Modified versions of the tiles surrounding the fountain are used in the final release, in Medina's town square.
- Several minor decorative changes were made, such as an extra peninsula jutting out towards (but not reaching) the Medina continent from the Porre continent, several trees being added in varying locations, a few fixes to some dirt paths, and a small inlet north of Medina being removed for whatever reason.
Zenan Bridge
| Proto |  |
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| Final |  |
As already stated, the prototype Zenan Bridge is broken in 1000 AD, but more interestingly it's actually possible to enter it from the south, which grants a different view of the broken bridge not normally seen. The tiles for the south/west broken bridge still exist in the final, but aren't used.
Guardia Forest
Fully functional and can be explored in its entirety, though the northern exit is blocked by a group of four Blue Imps who state (Jarry meaning Imp):
| ジャリ「このバージョンではこの先には 行けないジャリ。[END] | Jarry: You can't go any further in this version, jarry. |
Guardia Prison
While identical in layout, there's a few oddities to note.
| Proto | Final |
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Some chests are open here which were removed/closed in the final.
At two points, strange "eyes in the darkness" can be seen poking out from the walls. The first instance is in the hallway with the guards that can be knocked out from behind, while the second set can be found in the closed-off cell with two chests in it. This is the same sprite seen behind the gate in Bekkler's Tent in the final, with one distinct difference:
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The eyes peer back and forth briefly before blinking, then disappearing, eventually reappearing and starting the whole cycle over again. In the final, all these strange eyes do is blink.
Also of interest, although inaccessible, is a copy of the tower exterior mixed in with the rest of the maps. It's much smaller then the used map, and with the exception of a large window is completely devoid of detail.
Medina Residence
A removed room from final containing two blue imps, with a few unused lines of dialog making its purpose clear:
| [Blue Imp in Lost House] この村には、人間をにくんでいる者もいる。 過去にとらわれ、現在が見えなくなっているのだ。 | [Blue Imp in Lost House] Some people in the village hate humans. They're so caught up in the past, they can't see the present. |
| 彼らは、村長の家や村の広場にあつまって 400年前の魔王にいのりをささげている。[END] | They gather in the mayor's house or in the square to offer prayers to the Demon King from 400 years ago. |
These lines make the divide in the town between hating humans or not rather apparent.
| [Blue Imp in Lost House] 西の山の洞窟にすむヘケランという魔物は、 400年の昔より、魔王様の命令をうけて ラヴォス神のねむる地を守っているのだ。[END] | [Blue Imp in Lost House] The monster Hekeran, who lives in a cave in the western mountains, has been guarding the land where the god Lavos sleeps under the orders of the Demon King for 400 years. |
Heckran was ordered to guard the cave by Magus.
Heckran's Cave
One of the areas with the largest amount of differences. It should be noted that the cave is completely devoid of events by default: there are no monsters, and none of the holes work. They can be re-activated using the following Pro Action Replay (PAR) codes:
F72147CA F72148AE F7214AF2 F7214BB2 F7214DDE F7214EB4
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The first room in the prototype is a straight line with a small waterfall and stream. The final room is much smaller, with an overhang and ladders giving a sense of verticality. Also worth noting, the tileset palette in the prototype is much darker.
Immediately after entering, you're greeted by a pair of Octoriders, who deliver a message and then attack. These enemies were left unused in the final.
The dialogue translates to:
| "The Great Demon King led us in the battle against the humans attacking us, four hundred years ago. When our God is reborn, the humans will not matter......" |
Further into the entry tunnel are a pair of broken Jinn Bottles, who also deliver a message before springing to life and attacking. These enemies, while present in the final, never actually appear broken, and also don't speak.
This dialogue translates to:
| "Four hundred years have passed since the Great Demon King brought about the birth of our God, Lavos. Our god's awakening is close at hand......" |
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The main area is where the true differences lie, being a large maze of currents and waterfalls at this point in development. The currents aren't powerful enough to hinder movement, but it's the waterfalls you need to watch out for, as once you've dropped down one you can't get back up it. The entrance is in the upper-left corner, while the exit is in the upper-right. This room is entirely devoid of monsters.
In the final, this area was greatly simplified: instead of bothering with waterfalls, it's a straightforward run through some raised cliffs with a few added battles in between. This has the effect of segmenting the room into two parts, with the passage to the south leading to the left exit, which then requires traversing the water to reach the center cave and, subsequently, the boss.
More of those creepy eyes can be seen lurking in one of the lower tunnels. These ones, unlike the ones in the prison, constantly peer left and right, do not blink, and do not vanish. It seems the developers wanted to use this sprite for atmosphere a lot more frequently than what ended up happening.
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The sub-chambers of the cave weren't changed too much. The big difference is the lack of chests and the presence of several small holes which, if jumped into, all lead back to the waterfall in the entrance tunnel. These are necessary to escape, due to the presence of the one-way waterfalls in the main chamber.
| To do: What text is trying to be referenced here? |
Other things of note include that the dungeon contains only two real treasure chests (as none of the side-rooms with holes contain any; these are merely traps with monsters in them in the prototype), and while the holes are functional the text displayed is incorrect despite the presence of a pointer.
Oddly enough, despite that it's clearly not intended to be used here, the text used for the holes is unique! It translates to:
| "It is said that in the western mountain's cave, the demon Heckran resides, ordered four hundred years ago by the Great Demon King to protect the land where our God, Lavos, slumbers." |
Northern Ruins
The Northern Ruins houses the spirit of Frog's deceased companion.
| Proto | Final |
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- The most readily apparent change is the drastic difference in palette. The prototype uses the same palette as the Guardia Castle of whatever era it's visited in, while the final gives them a much "colder" palette unique to the ruins, giving off a much more foreboding air.
- While the layout isn't much different structurally, some of the rooms received complete redesigns, and certain areas connected by doorways use a ladder graphic not seen in the final instead. Of particular note is the presence of a throne room and dungeon, giving it a look similar to other castles in the game.
| To do: Rip ladder tiles if they're not present in the final tileset. |
- There are a few treasure chests, although they don't contain anything. The sealed chests are missing entirely.
- The background music is "Underground Sewer" in the prototype (complete with water ambiance, as the water-free variation is not yet present), as opposed to "Silent Light" in the final.
West Cape
| Proto | Final |
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As they're simply palette swaps of each other, it should come as no surprise that the 1000 AD West Cape underwent the same redesign as the 12,000 BC North Cape. Toma's grave, however, is not yet present.
Forest Ruins Dungeon
| To do: Which NPC mentions the palace? Is this dialog used in the prototype? |
In the final version, the Forest Ruins north of Medina are rather enigmatic - it's a remnant of the Kingdom of Zeal, as an identical structure can be seen there, and an Enhasa NPC mentions that the "palace to the north" is where Zeal's "elemental weapons are sealed". Once you can finally deactivate the seal in 1000 AD, it comes as something of an anticlimax that all you get out of it is a choice between two sealed chests.
This build shows that it wasn't intended to be this way...
Outside
The mysterious structure.
Mockup animation of how it would have appeared in-game.
The tiles are still present in the final.
In the prototype, there are some extra graphics stored just off-screen, showing a large structure with a sealed door rising out of the blue blocks on the platform. The entrance data for the dungeon is also coded and present. The final version, while still having the tiles necessary in the tileset, deleted the entrance and the structure itself from the map.
Inside
The first room.
The second and third rooms.
The final room.
The interior design is perfectly in line with that of other Zeal architecture, such as the Ocean Palace, Sun Palace, and Black Omen. All the chests use the typical 500G placeholder, but the exits are functional.
The second and third rooms are on the same map. It doesn't matter which way you go, as both upper doors lead to the final room.
The final room was most likely going to have a boss battle, but there is no data present either for it or the "elemental weapons" mentioned, and all three maps were removed.
