Chrono Cross

The sequel to Chrono Trigger was long and eagerly awaited, until Chrono Cross was finally released in 1999 (2000 in North America). As a sequel it was less than ideal, as there are no familiar characters, locations, or anything, and the connection to Trigger is not revealed until very near the end of the game. However, on its own merits, Chrono Cross is an innovative, elaborate, and lovely game. Retaining the lack of random battles from the previous game, it further abandons traditional leveling, instead adding to your abilities in a "star" form as you progress through plot points, as well as a stamina system that gives you more opportunities for action during battles. Most notable are the massive forty-five member cast of playable characters and the eleven different endings, offering very flexible replay with all the possible combinations.

Serge would have been content to live his life in his small fishing village, marrying his girlfriend Leena, and generally never experiencing the world at large. Unfortunately, Fate has a different plan, and poor Serge is sent to an alternate reality in which he died as a child. His family is gone and his friends don't recognize him, but someone apparently does, as soldiers show up to capture him at his own grave. He fights them off with the help of a young thief named Kid and is quickly pulled into her search for the most valuable artifact in the world: the Frozen Flame. A war between nations, the struggle of humans versus demi-humans, and the six Dragon Gods against the destructive impulses of mankind all follow while Serge simply tries to figure out what's happened and how he can get home again. Pursued by Lynx—also after the Frozen Flame, among other things—and alternately helped and hindered by Lynx's companion, Harle, Serge finds out a lot more than he bargained for as to why he's alive and in this reality. It's not pretty, but that's what friends are for, right?

Images:

Serge
Kid
Lynx
Harle
The Frozen Flame
Serge in action
Opening movie