Loophole in the three-person time-travel limit?

[Katie Skyye]

Just something that was bothering me about time-travel...

As Gaspar stated, if more than three people travel through time, they will end up at the time period of least resistance--the End of Time.

Okay, fine. So no one can travel in groups greater than three. What is keeping the party from sending three people to the desired time period--say, 600 AD--and then having another three follow? Even if the Gate Key was needed to bring people through the time warps, it would still be possible. We'll just say Lucca holds the Gate Key (as she invented it). Crono, Lucca, and Marle warp to 600 AD using the pillar of light. Lucca returns alone thorugh the gate and grabs Frog and Ayla. She leaves them with Crono and Marle. She returns to the EoT and takes Robo and Magus to 600 AD...

It's already known that Lucca can time-travel alone, as she returned to 600 AD when Marle was pulled into that era (alone) and Crono followed her (alone). She invented the gate key and went to 600 AD alone to rescue Crono and Marle, so obviously it's possible to time-travel alone, though probably only with the Gate Key.

Also, switching out party members is possible at any time, so there must be some sort of teleporter/portable EoT gate that allows the party to switch out at any location in any time. It's not as if they have to run to the nearest gate every time they want to switch.

So what makes it impossible to have more than three people present in the given time period? It seems rather illogical...

[Nickolz]

Indeed it seems illogical.

And note that there's also Epoch. Three of them could go through the gate with the Gate Key, while three others could ride the Epoch to time-travel to wherever-whenever they pleased. Meanwhile, someone would stay behind in that case. Probably Magus, since he's so antisocial and nobody actually loves him. Except for Lucca.

But I see this three people only thing, including Gaspar's statement, as a resource to make a more organized game. Imagine how it would be to control all 7 characters at once. A lot of fun, I guess, but it might not work as well as actual battle system with 3 characters does. Too many variables, too many options and too many characters on the screen would probably annoy many players. Even while just walking or on world maps, it might not feel good for players to have so many characters on the screen. I think a "cleaner" screen would be preferable.

My conclusion: If it wasn't a videogame (I mean, a book, a comic, a series, an ancient tale engraved in stone), everybody would be capable of going everywhere and at every time together. And that includes Magus tightly holding Lucca in lovely hugs and hot kisses.

[Katie Skyye]

But I see this three people only thing, including Gaspar's statement, as a resource to make a more organized game. Imagine how it would be to control all 7 characters at once. A lot of fun, I guess, but it might not work as well as actual battle system with 3 characters does. Too many variables, too many options and too many characters on the screen would probably annoy many players. Even while just walking or on world maps, it might not feel good for players to have so many characters on the screen. I think a "cleaner" screen would be preferable.

My conclusion: If it wasn't a videogame (I mean, a book, a comic, a series, an ancient tale engraved in stone), everybody would be capable of going everywhere and at every time together. And that includes Magus.

Oh...come on, that's the real-world explanation. Besides...in Blue Dragon, all the playable characters are playable at one time (there's five of 'em)...you only show up on the field as one of them, but you battle as all five. So they could've done that.

Surely there's a Chronoverse explanation? Even I'd figured out that there were graphical limitations (and 'too many characters on-screen lags the game' issues), which is why I came to the Compendium forums...for the Chronoverse explanation.

By the way, I think any relationship between Magus and Lucca (while that's certainly a canon pairing, given that they're the two best magic users) would be strictly teacher to student. Magus noticed Lucca's innate magic ability and decided she was worth paying attention to. I doubt there's any romance involved.

[V_Translanka]

They...uh...all come together for the 400 Year Reunion...and the Twilight Parade, of course...>_>

[Katie Skyye]

They...uh...all come together for the 400 Year Reunion...and the Twilight Parade, of course...>_>

I know...which is why it doesn't make sense that they don't do so sooner! (except in the forest scenne...O_o)

[Ekul]

Why didn't Lucca leave Robo in 1000 AD to be copied by modern design, then fight Lavos with an army of Robo-esque robots? She could then give each one TTI and remove Robo from the Present time flow and there you go. I know it's changing the present with future technology and they may not have wanted that, but anything to defeat a parasitic being bent on the annihalation of all living things. Plus, they already violated that when they left Robo in 600.

[4th Triforce piece]

What I am saying applys to the real Chrono world.

I wonder if you had a party of 4 and you went into the Epoch would the rule still exists cause being in the interior of the machine will protect them from the outside elements of time-warping. 

There also is absolutely no sense to the rule because you can only go into the portal ONE AT A TIME anyways so  to Gasper's theory.     

[V_Translanka]

There also is absolutely no sense to the rule because you can only go into the portal ONE AT A TIME anyways so  to Gasper's theory.    

One at a time? What's that referencing...? When a gate is opened, it looks like they all go in at once...The only thing I can think you're talking about would be the pillars of light in the End of Time (you activate them & each party member is beamed into gate space one at a time)...and why would that rule effect those? They're already in the End of Time...

So, I guess to your theory...

[Fireseal]

The whole game series has loopholes here and there. But that one in peticular has also bothered for some time, mostly because I just tend to not like the idea of having RPG's with only being able to use 3 people at a time. 3 people party just doesn't sit right, I dislike FF7 and FF8 very much for this, FF10 I can forgive since you are able to switch them during battles.

To me that whole Gaspar's theorem was the script's reason for letting the player know why the game only allowed to use 3 characters at a time, when it reality it would just be too much for a SNES game to produce fight battles while controling 7 characters at a time, too many variables as such an above poster mentioned.

[V_Translanka]

Yeah...it's kind of pointless to bring up the "it's just game mechanics" idea in the analysis section...This is kind of where we try to connect things beyond such obvious limitations, I guess?

You also have to think that with a 6- or 7-man team...Chrono Trigger would then be RIDICULOUSLY easy...or maybe they'd just have to make a crapload more enemies on screen or something...it'd just end up being too much to have to deal with both then and in general...

[BROJ]

when it reality it would just be too much for a SNES game to produce fight battles while controling 7 characters at a time, too many variables as such an above poster mentioned.

No. The 5-Player limit was an artificial one imposed by Nintendo.
http://digg.com/nintendo/8_player_SNES_game_Load_up_on_spells_bring_your_friends

But I see this three people only thing, including Gaspar's statement, as a resource to make a more organized game. Imagine how it would be to control all 7 characters at once. A lot of fun, I guess, but it might not work as well as actual battle system with 3 characters does. Too many variables, too many options and too many characters on the screen would probably annoy many players. Even while just walking or on world maps, it might not feel good for players to have so many characters on the screen. I think a "cleaner" screen would be preferable.

Bleh... no offense, but this logic is fuzzy at best. This is mostly because you're presupposing that either the premise─more than 3 concurrent PCs makes bad game design─or the conclusion(dependent on the premise, but I'll allow it)─more than 3 concurrent PCs is bad for CT─is true, without any real logical basis. Besides, tactical games do this and most players aren't annoyed.
V's got it right, though, it would be to easy, because the PC damage nerfing and/or enemy health boosting required to fix this would simply be ridiculous.

[Thought]

Well, we know that Crono's somewhat anti-social. I mean really, at the start of the game he has 1 friend, by the end he has like 20 cats, and he never says a single word, and he likes to play with dolls (very large, clone-like dolls, admittedly). Traveling with more than two companions probably stresses him out. Then by the time the party opens up, everyone is so used to traveling in groups of three that no one considers they could have a larger group.

[V_Translanka]

And besides, then people'd start wondering even more why there weren't more Triple Techs w/o Crono...

[Hyriel Mecrith]

Just something that was bothering me about time-travel...

As Gaspar stated, if more than three people travel through time, they will end up at the time period of least resistance--the End of Time.

The more imortant part here is : "As Gaspar stated"
Maybe Gaspar lied.
Imagine that he was the one who somehow brought Crono, Marle, Lucca and Robo in the end of time. But he would not want them to know he is able to do that. He would then invent this false theory of the three person limit.
I know what you think, Gaspar can't possibly be able to do that.
Well the guy can create a Time Egg. Surely he could also temper a little with the time portals.
Additionaly, think about it, after this event, Crono always travel with only two other persons. But strangely he still end up in the end of time.
So Gaspar modified the time portal to make them stop by the end of time. And well the modification is permanent. So whatever, you do after the modification of Gaspar, you'll always end up in the end of time when you use a portal.
So the three person limit, is a lie to cover this up.

[Chocobo_Fan]

Just something that was bothering me about time-travel...

As Gaspar stated, if more than three people travel through time, they will end up at the time period of least resistance--the End of Time.

The more imortant part here is : "As Gaspar stated"
Maybe Gaspar lied.
Imagine that he was the one who somehow brought Crono, Marle, Lucca and Robo in the end of time. But he would not want them to know he is able to do that. He would then invent this false theory of the three person limit.
I know what you think, Gaspar can't possibly be able to do that.
Well the guy can create a Time Egg. Surely he could also temper a little with the time portals.
Additionaly, think about it, after this event, Crono always travel with only two other persons. But strangely he still end up in the end of time.
So Gaspar modified the time portal to make them stop by the end of time. And well the modification is permanent. So whatever, you do after the modification of Gaspar, you'll always end up in the end of time when you use a portal.
So the three person limit, is a lie to cover this up.

The Gate in the Tyranno Lair takes you to 12000 BCE, not the End of Time, so that theory doesn't work... Also, I don't see why Gaspar would lie about something like that... >.>