1. No recurring playable characters.
Well, I'd have sure liked to play with Crono and co. again, but I liked the characters I was given. Not all RPGs can have the same characters come back from game to game, hell, most don't.
Maybe Chrono 3 will let us if they ever get around to making it.
2. Small game world is bland, cramped, and monotonous.
It's hardly bland, though El Nido did seem small to me. It was still a pretty big world once you explored everything. I guess I just miss my Epoch.
3. Element system removes almost all character individuality in combat and contributes to a Pokemon-like classification of characters by "color."
I liked the element system, actually. It led to plenty of individuality, Glenn wasn't like Razzly, I can tell you that! Element system was quite fun.
4. Character design is far inferior to Akira Toriyama's work in Chrono Trigger.
Eh, it was about the same, really. There weren't any stand-out characters like Schala was in Chrono Trigger, but that's just my opinion. I liked quite a few of the characters.
5. Huge portions of the game consist entirely of empty filler in the form of dull fetch quests and monster hunting exercises.
Has this person played Lufia II? I really liked how Chrono Cross progressed. There are dull fetch quests in every RPG.
6. Characters limited to three or less unique tech skills.
This I had a problem with, though giving all 40+ characters eight techs might've been a lot of work. I missed the old game, though.
7. Virtually no double and triple techs.
This I also had a problem with. I miss those techs. Again, might've been more work than it was worth.
8. Development for the majority of character is severely lacking or completely nonexistant.
I noticed this a bit, but all the characters I cared about were developed well.
9. Most characters are silly and pointless.
Some, not most. I liked even the silly characters though, they were funny!
10. Some plot "revelations" (like Lynx being Serge's father) make little sense and seem like pointless afterthoughts designed to cover for poor scenario writing.
Eh, this is entirely subjective. I liked most of the Chrono Cross-original plot revelations, though I agree that some of them were BS.
11. Much less varied, interesting, and memorable musical score.
I LOVED Chrono Trigger's score, though this game was quite good as well. Not equally good, in my opinion, but still quite good.
12. Numerous hints that Chrono Trigger characters were killed off in inappropriate, unsatisfying, and difficult to believe fashions.
This I completely agree with. I've gotten into HUGE arguments with people over Chrono, Marle, and Lucca's deaths. You mean to tell me that someone who can punch Cthulhu in the face can be killed that easily? BS BS BS BS BS. This was by far the biggest beef I had with the game, and it really killed my enjoyment of the game from a story standpoint, though the gameplay and other aspects were still quite fun. It doesn't mean that Chrono Cross sucks, though. It just means that in my opinion, that aspect of the story sucks. You can obviously defend it if you want, it's a completely subjective matter and I'm sure arguments over it will go on forever.
13. Schala's appearence in Chrono Cross (wrong hair color, clothing, facial structure, etc) is a blatent continuity error.
Well, her appearance can easily be fanwanked away, but God did I hate what they did to Schala in Chrono Cross. My second biggest beef with the game. You mean to tell me that Schala's clone is Kid and that she suffered for 13,000 years? Dirty pool, DIIIIIIIIIRTY POOL. Whatever, I reject your reality and substitute my own. Hopefully someone resurrects Playable Schala before I die in 60 years.
14. Supposed creation of humans by Lavos is another glaring continuity error.
This story idea I quite liked (and you can actually infer it from Chrono Trigger). No problem here.
15. No interesting flying vehicle (like the Epoch) for players to explore the world in.
I had a bit of a problem with this too, but Chrono Cross is a different game, and the boat was nice, I suppose.
16. Magus character completely invalidated and insulted through implication the he wasn't the one to find his long-lost sister.
Another thing I had KIND of a problem with, Guile is kind of cool but they should've made the Magus connection clearer. Again, subjective.
17. No strong villian. Lynx's motives are about as clear as mud and the threat posed by the final bosses is far too vague to be tension-building.
They TRIED to make Lynx a strong villain by implying that he killed Lucca (I guess they had the same worries). He does do some pretty nasty things, and once you hit the Dead Sea (and later Chronopolis), FATE gets quite compelling as a villain. And then you get Lavos' big return, which was also pretty fun. The game's villains were fine.
18. Final boss posesses no unique attacks at all, despite the perfect opportunity to make use of the classic Lavos attacks from Chrono Trigger.
Final boss was the Time Devourer dragon, dude. Fighting the Lavos Time Devourer isn't the idea, the idea is using the Chrono Cross. It might've been nice to see some Lavos throwback attacks but it didn't bother me.
19. "Good" ending is pseudo-mystical nonsense followed by a brief movie that makes no sense whatsoever. Schala in modern Japan? What were they thinking?
This I agree with. Hated the ending.
20. Fewer alternate endings, none of which as as clever or interesting as the Chrono Trigger alternate endings.
This I also agree with, though alternate endings aren't really a gamebreaker for me.
21. Character have to physically hit enemies in combat before they can cast spells and use tech skills, which makes little sense and slows combat considerably.
I didn't mind this. Combat WAS a bit slow, but the battle system was fun and more interesting than the one in Chrono Trigger. At least the battles weren't as slow as Final Fantasy IX.
22. Fixed rate level advancement removes all the fun and challenge of "building up" favorite characters.
I didn't like the fixed level advancement either. I don't mind grinding. I know some people hate it, so this is another subjective type thing. Maybe if there was the option to grind...?
23. Loading times before and after combats are ridiculously long. Unlike Chrono Trigger, which had none.
Playstation games in general had problems with this. Can't be helped.
24. Characters behave illogically. Those that joined your party when you were Serge will not help you when you are Lynx, even though they often know that you are the same person.
Didn't bother me much.
25. Boring "weapon-forging" system largely eliminates fun of hunting down interesting weapons, armor, etc.
But it's fun to hunt down the materials! It's the same difference, really. I liked it.
IN CONCLUSION: I personally thought parts of the Chrono Cross storyline to be quite intriguing, though I was REVULSED at how they handled the connections to Chrono Trigger and I'll continue to be revulsed until they fix it in a Chrono 3. From a gameplay standpoint, the games are equally fantastic. I liked Chrono Trigger a lot, A LOT more, but the matter is totally subjective. Chrono Cross was a fantastic game, it didn't suck by any means. Judging by sales, of course, is improper (Transformers 2 will outsell Star Trek for Christ's sake), it's ultimately a personal taste matter.
