Here's today's crackpot theroy from GameFAQs.

[Teflon]

I agree with Challenger on the general concepts. CC was just a way to leech off of the popularity of Chrono Trigger. It's not a bad game anymore than the U.S. version of Godzilla is a bad movie. They just shouldn't have called the movie "Godzilla" because it has a giant lizard, not Gojira. By the same principle, they shouldn't call Chrono Cross "Chrono", nor should they act as if it's anything vaguely resembling a sequel because they share very little in common. Poorly made versions of Crono, Marle, and Lucca were just put in minor roles so the CC people could try to "prove" that it has relevance to Chrono Trigger.

CHRONO CROSS, IF REALLY RELATED TO TRIGGER, COULD HAVE ONLY BEEN THE RESULT OF AN ENDING IN WHICH CRONO DIED AND WAS BROUGHT BACK, MAGUS JOINED, AND LAVOS WAS BEATEN IN THE DEVASTATED FUTURE. A victory in 1999 A.D. or when Lavos first awakened would NOT be possible if CC is related to CT, because the Magus wouldn't have become an ally if Lavos were beaten when first awakened by the Mammon Machine(for the Magus to join, Crono must die), and Crono is resurrected atop a mountain in the devastated future(meaning that he must have died in the Dark Ages). Going to the Black Omen to beat Lavos in 1000 A.D. would be impossible because that would alter the future so the ruination of the world would have been averted and Robo wouldn't or couldn't have joined. If Robo hadn't joined then Kid wouldn't have known about him and couldn't have drawn his picture at Lucca's house. The New Game + feature is just there for replay value, so I will not take it into account.

The concept of Chrono Cross is flawed. By the end of CT each character is a one person army easily capable of defeating Lynx and Harle in any fight. It's true that Lucca could have been poisoned(or something), but then one or more of the other characters(probably Robo, but definitely not Ayla)would have eventually found out that Luca was killed. Then they would have used the Epoch to go back to a time where Lucca was intact and would have skinned Lynx with ease, saving Lucca's life. Even if one character were killed, that character's existence wouldn't be erased by such a simple act. It's clear that the only way a relatively weak kitty could beat them would be to manipulate time and prevent them form ever existing, which can't or couldn't happen because(if CC is supposed to be related to CT) destroying the CT cast would make it impossible for Lynx to exist to destroy the CT cast. Somehow killing the Chrono Trigger cast in order of who ends up in the future, then the present(around 1000 A.D.), the middle ages,(the dark age isn't listed here because Magus is mentioned as if he is alive in the present in CC)then the past AFTER they completed their major roles is not plausible because Robo/Prometheus is not only aware of FATE, but actively works against its plans. Lucca dies not only chronologically before Robo is deleted, but first in CC as well. The Epoch was created in the Dark Ages and, being strong enough to withstand tearing through time itself, and precious enough to be protected, would exist in every time period afterwards. Robo, who knows about FATE's actions and has the Epoch, would be a nearly flawless failsafe. Lynx couldn't have managed to get the Epoch and kill Lucca, because Crono and Marle would then use their Epoch to kill Lynx before he stole the future Epoch.

If you managed to follow the triple necessities that limit the ending of CT and the reasons(character fail safes and the "...you wouldn't be able to destroy something that resulted in you so that you could destroy something that made you as that would keep you from existing so that..." loop) then you should know that Chrono Cross IS NOT POSSIBLE. I know it may be hard to follow because time-travel messes with the proper tense of things.

http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=24058&topic=17929854&page=2

Hi Mr. "I want the sequals to be exactly like the previous game wahhhh". Die now.

[V_Translanka]

That's obviously someone who didn't understand Chrono Cross or what was happening in it quite enough...Which, I believe is a slightly negative aspect of CC...

I don't even know where they get some of their crazy theories...Like how they explain "The only way CC could happen" is just absurd...And the part where he says "If Lucca died, someone else like Ayla or Robo would just use the Epoch and save her" was so wrong it makes my head go boom!

For an anti-CC post, they left out the only major flaw: lack of character development.

This person deserves to BURN!

I'm talking Lucca's Flare burn baby...A fuggin Time Bomb to the head...okay, now I'm not making any sense...

[Leebot]

Don't you just hate people who say "This isn't really a 'sequel' because (doesn't have all the same characters/takes place too far in the future/the old story finished so it can't have a sequel/etc.)"? They're right up there with people who say "This isn't really an RPG because you don't play a role."

Is there anything more pointless than arguing over whether or not a game can be described with a particular term?

[Hadriel]

Not only that, the theory didn't make any goddamn sense.

[The Arbiter]

Sometimes I don't know where people come up with crap like that. That was some pretty bad commentary. It was also bad judgement on his part to post it.
Maybe he should play both games again and try to get it!

[Hopeful Death]

Here's his new theory.

was recently trying to logically disprove the possibility of Chrono Cross by Chrono Trigger's way of dealing with time. I made some good observations and references, but I also made a few mistakes, including forgetting one thing that disproves the possibility of more than what I originally thought. Over the course of the next few posts I intend to systematically butcher the plot of what I once thought of as one of the best video games ever. I will begin by establishing a few basic points.
There are time periods in the game where all of its events take place. I will refer to them as the Prehistoric Age, the Dark Ages, the Middle Ages, the Present, the Apocalypse, the Future, and the End of time. They are 65,000,000 B.C., 12,000 B.C., 600 A.D., 1000 A.D., 1999 A.D., and 2300 A.D. to be more specific. The End of Time, where recruited characters who are not in your party are placed, is more like a place connected to but not governed by time.
The are two ways in the game to time-travel. There are "gates" that can be activated by a specific pendant and/or activated and controlled by a "gate key." Gates manipulated by the key will lead to the End of Time, which can lead to any suitable time period by the use of other gates. The second is a time machine called the Epoch that was designed in the Dark Ages, activated in the Future, and brought back to the Dark Ages to be completed. Unlike the gates, the Epoch can directly go to any of the time periods and can has mobility when completed.

While the Epoch lists the ages that can be visited, that can be a little misleading. It doesn't select a certain date, but rather, it sends its passengers backwards or forwards at predetermined intervals, as do the gates. Time keeps passing at its normal pace, regardless of when the traveler(s) are.
An item that can be found in multiple time periods can be taken from the latest time period its found in, then the second latest, and so on until the earliest version is taken. Doing that will net several items that are identical save age and the differences that may result from age. Taking an earlier version of an item will remove the later versions by changing their place(s) in time.
Because of the two reasons above, as well as another, Crono will not be able to wake himself up on the day of the Millennial Fair and warn himself about what will happen, because that day will have passed by the time he has returned, the same standard applies to the others as well. There can be two Robos at once if you do the forest side-quest in which Robo travels back to the Middle Ages and remains there until he is picked up again in the Present and then you take the post-forest Robo in the Present to see the pre-forest Robo of the Middle Ages. Robo will remain in a "shut down" state if he is not reactivated in the Present. Lucca can also travel back to her childhood along the same path by means of a unique gate. Though she can change what happens to her mother, either way little Lucca will end up as a scientist.
Note that none of them can do anything to prevent themselves from ending up as time-travelers. That demonstrates another point that follows the same line of thought as the Grandfather Paradox, but reaches the opposite conclusion that is "...you wouldn't have the ability to stop yourself from becoming a time-traveler by using time-travel to stop yourself from becoming a time-traveler, because if you did, then..." That's also why Crono, Lucca, and Frog were used to prevent Marle, who is the catalyst of the original time-traveling, from being erased and causing an impossibility loop.

As the characters are the results of past humans' lives, they will always go back to 65,000,000 B.C. to find a dreamstone to repair the ever-important Masamune and they will always give that blade to Frog(having a reptilian version of Crono makes no sense because the events that produced Crono couldn't have happened if the Reptites won). They will always use it to confront Magus. As Janus, he saw firsthand the ability of Lavos' to rend time and he remembers exactly who it was that set him on the path he is on. The Magus summons Lavos after a battle he can neither win nor die in, and the people he remembers are thrown back to the Dark Ages with him. Their actions must result in the Ruby Knife becoming the Masamune, because if the Masamune is not made, it can't be damaged, and if it's not damaged, nobody would need to fix it, and as there are humans in the present those in the past must have lived to reproduce. The Masamune is the tool used to maintain the Present. It was broken when Cyrus confronted Magus and Co. with it. The actions of that time made Glenn become strong enough to complete his task as well as resulting in a Masamune that would need to be fixed. The Masamune is mended so that it can be used by the resultant Frog to cause Magus to use Lavos to open a gate to the past so that the Masamune can be made and the one who will break it will be made form Janus.

Lavos will always win the battle and Crono will always at least seem to be sacrificed, because if Lavos was defeated, there would be no Magus to start the war and break the Masamune, and if there were no celebratory festival to commemorate the end of the war, the events leading to the repairing of the sword wouldn't have happened. Through the events around the Masamune, Crono, Marle, and Lucca are kept as they are. The only change that is caused by that cycle is not detrimental to the 1000 A.D. time in which the story begins, because the Black Omen is treated as a nominal factor, because it is quiet, inaccessible without the Epoch that they will get, and it has been in the altered time-line for ages.
You may choose to let the Magus join or you may kill him if that is your preference. By the time he can join, he has already set up the Present and is no longer absolutely necessary to the fabric of time. He is cool though. You may also want to use the Chrono Trigger and a clone to get Crono back. If you do so, the C. Trigger must be used at Death's Peak, I believe, to temporarily alter time while the clone is put in Crono's place so that the characters would think that he was dead and endeavour to save his life.
Going to the Black Omen and dispatching Lavos before 2300 A.D. wouldn't be possible because, if Lavos were dead, then he couldn't produce the futuristic wasteland where Crono, Marle, and Lucca learned about Lavos and met Robo.

I am aware of the strange elements of magic, fantastically advanced science, etc., but in this post, the word "impossible" will only be used by me to describe situations in which a character uses time-travel and causes himself or herself to be unable to use time travel. I realize that the game has many endings, but I'm disputing the possibility of all but one, based upon the necessity for the fabric of reality to stay intact while the plot is still followed.

Any ending that would remove the presence of the Fair is impossible because that is where time-travel and the events that lead to time-travel, for lack of a better term, begin. 1000 A.D. staying intact is vital. The Reptites must lose in 65,000,000 B.C., Janus must be sent to the Middle Ages to become Magus, and Frog must defeat Magus in 600 A.D. All of those and the related tasks must be accomplished for the Present to stay basically unharmed. The reason that there seem to be only two possible outcomes rest with Robo in 2300 A.D.

Sadly, there is really only one if the plot is to be upheld and time is to agree with itself.

You should be able to go to the Black Omen in the Future and kill Lavos, but the game will not allow it. Somebody decided to "nice things up" and force the game to give too many "everything's all better thanks to you" type endings instead of one that is hopeful but wouldn't make two or more events directly contradict each other. If you go to the Black Omen in 2300 A.D. you won't be able to enter because the planet isn't in good enough shape to suit the game. You just have to deal with a Zeal security system or something.

Therefore the only ending which respects both the plot and how time should agree with itself is the one in which you keep the Present intact, fight Lavos in 1999 A.D., and LOSE!

If you're into the family history thing, then I suppose that you could have some of the characters just live and die outside of the battle.

It was a flawless manipulation of the CT cast to have them go to the Future and see the footage of the Day of Lavos. Even though it's in the future, the characters still remember it as if it were in the past. The memories became a part of them as they observed and interacted with a world that they shouldn't have seen. Then they go back and forth trying to prevent it from happening, but they only made it happen! Had they just ended up in any other age to start off, then Lavos may have been beaten in 1999 A.D., but they went to the Future and it became so that in order to stop Lavos, they had to learn about Lavos in a future created by Lavos. Ultimately, they're all tricked into believing that the planet is asking for help and they're not the tools of a giant parasite. A single move may have doomed countless planets. The whole "everyone is dead and the world is cold and barren" concept is even more detrimental to Chrono Cross's case than saying that humans "evolved" because of Lavos, when people where already the same except for cultural and magical differences.

I CAN make this point because products of reality cannot destroy the reality that produced them because then they wouldn't have the power to destroy reality. Saying otherwise is like claiming "You don't know what would happen if Bob Dole flew into the sun while wearing a Dracula outfit, because that's never happened and probably won't happen."
Magic, powerful swords made of shells, Materia(which was posted on this board for reasons unknown to me), etc. are all considered acceptable because of the presence of skills, energies, materials, etc. that are unknown to us.
There is only one point in time in Chrono Trigger in which the characters could beat Lavos without creating an impossible loop, but the game won't let you fight Lavos in 2300 A. D.
If you want to believe that CC is possible, because the game did let them fight Lavos then. Then I'll disprove the possibility of Chrono Cross by its own merits.

Chrono Cross would have been a fine story if they hadn't tried to leech off of Chrono Trigger. Kid's background in CC shows that she personally knew Lucca and at least knew about many others. Magus/Janus would be the most likely to help out as Kid as she is supposed to be a relation th his sister.
MAGUS/JANUS IS NOT GUILE! They have different personalities, weapons, skills, clothing styles, appearances, etc. Mention the Sega Channel to try and dispute the undeniable differences between Magus and Guile and I'll entrust whoever is closest to your physical position to cut off your fingers. They took some characters from the Radical Dreamers, made a decent concept, and tried to tie it together with CT, which messed it up.
First off, the archipelago that CC takes place on is an experiment with mass time-travel and memory-wiping. That means that there is some way to send back many people from the distant future.
Secondly, the two different dimensions that are produced are results of the FATE computer's meddling. Even though I believe that there is but ONE reality, I'll go along with this concept to prove my points.

Some say that the Epoch is dismantled. Chrono Cross could only exist with anything resembling logic, if Lavos was beaten in 2300 A.D. Lucca at least would have to be brought back to around 1000 A.D. to have found Kid. Therefore, the very earliest in which the Epoch COULD have been dismantled is that time. Regardless, the Epoch would have to exist or time-travel would have to be rediscovered in a future that Robo is operational in.
The only way that Lynx could have done ANYTHING was if time-travel was kept from the CT cast. Therefore, explanations of why Lynx couldn't kill Lucca by any means if anyone from CT could travel to before Lucca's death and easily slaughter kitty-man are unnecessary.
Lynx and Harle combined are nowhere nearly as powerful as ANY playable character from CT. If Lynx had some uber-poison, capable of instantly paralyzing and/or killing, that makes Hydra venom look like sour milk, then CC makes no mention of it.

DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND THE WORDS THOUGHT BY MY BRAIN, TYPED BY MY FINGERS, POSTED ON THE BOARD, AND READ BY YOUR EYES? LET ME FINISH.

Lynx would have somehow eliminated the CT characters who live during or after the time in which he is supposed to have killed Lucca so that they would not have killed him. They would have to have been killed in such a way as to keep them from finding out about the murder of their friends as well.

Lynx would have also had to get a place in the Porre Military at some point shortly before, during, or after assassinating many CT characters without alerting anyone. I find it strange enough that Porre is even capable of taking anything over.

For the story of Chrono Cross to happen the following things would have to occur:
The CT characters would have to say, "You know that thing we used to save the world? Let's destroy it! I mean, the world can't be imperiled more than once, can it?"
Robo would have to say, "Instead of using FATE's time-travel method to save Lucca, or destroying FATE here and now, I'll transfer my essence into it so that it can delete me!"
Lynx and/or Harle would have to sneak around and poison three or four CT characters without drawing fire. I don't know how they could even be poisoned to begin with. Wouldn't they notice if a giant cat or a harlequin clown was messing with their food or if a dreamstone or ruby shell tipped dart was fired at them? None ot them are stupid enough to sniff some spores because a talking cat or a clown told them to either.
Geographic, militaristic, social, and historical changes would have to be made to the world without altering the future that produced Lynx.

There are a few more CC/CT problems, but they are probably insignificant when compared to the others.

"Poisoning" is the only way I can think of in which a comparably weak Lynx and/or Harle could kill anyone from CT. Attacking any CT character outright would simply anger said characters and result in the certain destruction of the attacker. That includes sneaking up and trying to kill by energy techniques or ordinary physical means. The CT characters grew strong enough to survive attacks that could destroy continents. Lynx's Feral Cats, Forever Zero, or his odd scythe attacks have nowhere near that power in any situation.

Regarding the possibility of time-travel: I don't believe that we'll ever be able to move through time by any other means than waiting, but provided humans can one day, I don't believe that they'll be able to alter history so that the history that produced those who altered history couldn't have existed to make those who altered history(and so on). I won't completely brush-off time travel though, because there are probably many people who said things like, "You can't make a large structure float.", "You can't move a ship or a boat without oars or poles.", "You can't move a ship or a boat without oars, poles, or sails.", and so on about many very real advancements.

Concerning "magic": "Magic" is most often used as a euphemism for a fancy trick. "Magic" is also used to describe things people don't understand at all, but can't disprove. In many fictional settings, CT included, "magic" is more like a skill or a technique than the way we use it. I think that there is certainly more to our current existence and its potential than the limits of our current bodies. I wouldn't use words like "magic or psychic powers" to describe them, nor will I explain here my beliefs about God, souls, etc. as a video game message board isn't the best place to testify. If you want to discuss such things with me, then we can probably exchange email addresses.

In conclusion, believing that something isn't possible because we currently don't have the means to do it is silly, as is disregarding logic in a story(even a fictional one) that is supposed to make sense, but believing that one can't prevent oneself from doing something that leads to oneself being unable to take the first preventative action makes sense if you can follow its peculiar wording.

Long as hell, and probably a waste of time to even read.  But, yeah...

[Peaceman]

we should all give him a formal invitation to chronocompendium, and then just pwn him in our discussions!

[Niccolo]

Geez, why all this talk about the CT cast killing Lynx before he kills them?  The CT cast weren't bloodthirsty vigilantes!

[Peaceman]

Well...
when you kill the son of sun, I still haven't found a place where they justify it.  I mean, the son of sun wasn't a villain or anything.  Crono and co.  just wanted the moon stone.

[Hiroshino]

Dude, that guy is fucking stupid. I didn't even bother to read all of his new theories that Hopeful Death posted. First off, when I read the first one, it went over my head. I don't even remember it because it was ludicrous.

For one, on the back of the CD case for Chrono Cross, it says that it's a sequel to Chrono Trigger.

Chrono Cross was the result of Lavos' demise in 1999 A.D. so there would be a peaceful future and for there to be a Time Crash to occur. And because of that, El Nido exists too so there could be a Chrono Cross story. So I don't know what that guy is talking about when he is trying to explain how CC isn't the sequel to CT. It was Crono and company's actions that eventually had the events in Chrono Cross occur. Think about it; Crono and co. kills Lavos, future is peaceful, Frozen Flame is discovered and is researched upon in Chronopolis, Frozen Flame is activated and the Time Crash occurs, Chronopolis is sent back in time to 7600 B.C. because it was hurled 10,000 years into the past, the Planet sends Dinopolis back from another dimension (Reptite's Dimension, where the Reptites killed off the humans and shit), they battle, Chronopolis wins, Fate uses the power of the Frozen Flame to break down the Dragon God into six lesser entity's, Fate seals them away and creates El Nido among other things (Records of Fate, etc), and the people of Chronopolis have their memories erased and they start new lives in the artificial archipelago that is now El Nido, and in 1020 A.D. we have the Chrono Cross story. Now, if any of this information is wrong then please feel free to correct me. My whole point was that CC is a sequel to CT because the events in CC occurred because of the actions of Crono and company in CT.

Radical Dreamers is the sequel to Chrono Trigger, and Chrono Cross is the remake of said sequel.

What more can we all say to obviously further prove that this person is full of shit when he says that CC is not a sequel to CT? I rest my case.

About the Son of Sun:

Well, when you think about it, there really is no justification for Crono and company's actions to just go and kill the Son of Sun. He didn't do anything to them except fight back when you initiate battle with him, and that isn't a bad thing either. You could say that the Moonstone, once the Sunstone, belonged in Zeal. However, Zeal fell and they are long gone, and this was in the bleak future, way after that. Nobody owned that stone anymore. You could say that they needed that stone, to recharge it, and make weapons to help Crono and company in their quest to defeat Lavos, a great Evil that must be stopped. However, the Son of Sun didn't have to die. So you do have a point there.

[Chickenlump]

When Crono and company walked up to Son of Sun, it initiated battle with them, and they were forced to defend themselves. It's clearly a case of self defense. It's not like they walked up to SoS, and began stabbing at it. Lots of monsters in the CT game just talk to you and shoot the breeze. SoS just decided to be unfriendly. I guess. (yeah, that sounds good..heh... >_> )

[Hiroshino]

When Crono and company walked up to Son of Sun, it initiated battle with them, and they were forced to defend themselves. It's clearly a case of self defense. It's not like they walked up to SoS, and began stabbing at it. Lots of monsters in the CT game just talk to you and shoot the breeze. SoS just decided to be unfriendly. I guess. (yeah, that sounds good..heh... >_> )

Whew. At first for a moment there, I had thought that our beloved heros had gone and harmed a monster who was minding his own business. Man, it's weird, at first I didn't remember what fully happens at that part (it has been a long time since I've played CT and CC and sadly I don't have them anymore... ). But when I read your post, I clearly remember Crono and company running up and having the Son of Sun jump out and initiate battle with them first, and they were the one's who fought out of self defense.

[Peaceman]

No, I actually think it's the other way around.  SoS is just hangin' out in his crib, while three uber-powerful guys with weapons of mass destruction come barging into his pad and bump into him.  Now, I thikn this is a clear case of self defense for SoS!

[seraphim]

No, I actually think it's the other way around.  SoS is just hangin' out in his crib, while three uber-powerful guys with weapons of mass destruction come barging into his pad and bump into him.  Now, I thikn this is a clear case of self defense for SoS!

haha i don't why that's so funny

[DivineDragoonKain]

Lynx and Harle killing Lucca is feasible, since Lucca could not have used her Fire magic effectively inside a BURNING HOUSE FULL OF CHILDREN. I don't think Lucca was killed, though... Lynx staring out the window, no body, Lucca's glasses on the floor... It makes me think Lucca struggled with Lynx but got the hell outta there.