Version 2.4, SNES and Sony Playstation versions
When Chrono Trigger came out for the Super NES, I made a list of the various endings and put it on my web site. When the game was released for the Playstation, I couldn't find my original list, so I searched the web. I found my list on a bunch of sites, but mostly without my name on it. Worse yet, some of them made it look like they found the endings!
Please, if you use this information, give me credit!
I have reformatted the page, updated the descriptions in certain places, and changed the names of the endings to agree with what they are called in the Extras section. If you find any typos, or you think I missed something important, send e-mail to wrp103@gmail.com.
The most recent version of this file appears in two formats: an HTML file on my home page at http://BillPringle.com/games/ct_end.html, and in text form at http://www.gamefaqs.com/. I recommend that you use the HTML format, since you will be able to take advantage of the HTML links. It might also be more current than the text version.
The text version of this page is created by FireFox, which is the browser I use instead of Internet Explorer. At the end of each link in the web page, FireFox inserts the target address surrounded by angle brackets.
For example, the link to the top of the page
you see after each section is created with
the following HTML code:
<a href="top">Top of Page</a>
which FireFox will change to:
Top of Page <#top>
in the text file.
To let those of you who are using the text file take advantage
of these links, I have inserted the link target within square brackets
at the end of the line.
Links within the same page all start with a pound sign (#).
So, if you see something like:
Introduction <#intro>
you can use the search feature of your text viewer
(or browser) to search for
[intro]
to find the section of the page that the link
is pointing to.
Here are the endings that I have found so far to Chrono Trigger. The times are the soonest (I think) that you can get each ending. If you find anything else out and/or get an ending sooner, or get a different ending, please let me know. Contrary to what the Dream Team tells you (in the SNES version - see ending 3), I found more than 10 endings (not counting minor variations). The numbers and names in bold match the ending titles on the PlayStation; names in italics are the chapter headers (which would be the names in the save areas.)
The best way to see all the endings is to complete the entire game and get the first ending. Take your time so that you can build your levels up for all the characters. (Playing an RPG is like eating at a fine restaurant; you are supposed to enjoy the experience, not see how fast you can finish.)
Once you get Ayla, try doing Charm on all the enemies. There are a number that have magic, speed, or power tabs. Many of these will reappear if you leave and come back. That is an easy way to increase your stats.
Once you have beaten the game, you can start a "New Game Plus", which will start the game over with whatever levels, equipment, and items you ended up with (except for a few key items. This means you will be able to breeze through the game the next time around. The first ending you should be able to get during this second time through is Ending 3, the Dream Team ending. Save just before you go into the back of the Millenial Fair, then hop on the right transport. (If you don't speak to anyone, Marle will be with you; it is possible to beat Lavos with just Crono, but it will take you a lot longer and you had better fight a bit more conservative than if you have somebody else in the party.) After you beat Lavos, restart the game, starting from where you last saved. Then continue through the game until the next ending. You should be able to get all the remaining endings during this second time through the game. If you feel lucky, beat Lavos at the Ocean Palace and get Ending 3 the second way. Once Crono is gone, and you get out of the Blackbird and Epoch, and meet with Magus, you can then beat Lavos again to get Ending 2.
Often, it really doesn't matter how you get to Lavos. If you use Epoch, there is a flight scene where you crash into Lavos. If you use the bucket, you first fight the Lavos Spawn shaped monster. Once you beat this monster, it stays beaten. If you leave at this point and come back later, it will just be a shell.
The endings can be slightly different, depending on if you crash into Lavos with Epoch, step on the teleport pad, if you get to him via the Black Omen, or the bucket at the End of Time. Sometimes, the endings are radically different (e.g., you will see Frog or Glenn, depending on whether you killed Magus or not).
If you want to be able to see any of the endings whenever you want, you will have to set aside an entire memory card. There are 12 endings, each one would require one block. You also need one for the System File. There is room for 15 blocks on a memory card, which means you only have two blocks to work with for saving during the game. One of those you probably want to use just before you meet Magus at the Northern Cape. This will let you recruit or kill Magus and then go for whatever ending you want to see.
The endings are slightly different if you fight Magus or if you let him join you, so you probably want to save just before you meet him to see all the variations. Another variation depends on whether you save Lucca's mother, so you might want to save Fiona's side quest until the end, so you can see the two endings without having to redo too much of the game. So, that's endings 1 through 12 in slots 1 through 12, the save after beating Magus in slot 13, and a save before Fiona's quest in 14 (where Magus has joined you). Finally, the system file goes into slot 15. Now you can see any ending you want within a half hour by selecting the save just before the ending you want to see. After you see the ending, you can load from a different save slot to see a different ending.
There are plenty of ways to beat Lavos. You should experiment with the characters you have and how hard they hit with their double combos. Much depends on the magic level of your characters. Everytime I get a Magic Tab, I usually feed it to Lucca. She is the best offensive magic user; her Flare is very powerful. Marle, on the other hand, is pretty useless, IMHO. Her cure spells don't really do that well, and they are mostly single spells. Frog and Robo, on the other hand, have better multiple character cures. I have found that the best team is Lucca and Frog, who can do Frog Flare, and Robo, who can either do Uzzi Punch or Heal Beam, depending on everybody's status. Your best team might vary, depending on your fighting style and the level of your characters. Eventually, you should be able to beat Lavos with just about any combination of characters.
Start by doing your strongest spells that attack all the enemies. Your goal, of course, it to finish off the right bit. However, as long as the center character is alive, the right bit has high defense. As soon as the center character is killed off, concentrate on the right bit with your hardest attacks. Usually, those are single enemy attacks, but can be multiple instead. For me, Frog Flare was stronger than any single spell, so I tended to use that all the time. The third character healed when necessary, and attacked otherwise. You can safely ignore the left bit.
When the center character is gone, concentrate all your efforts in doing as much damage as possible to the right bit. After the center character is resurrected, you still have a couple of turns to beat up the right bit before the defense gets restored. Take adavantage of every chance you get. Even if one of your characters are somewhat low, keep hitting the right bit. If needed, use a MegaElixer to restore everybody's HP and MP at the same time. Remember, you have saved your game before you started, and you will restart the game using that save. That means no matter how many items you use to beat Lavos, they will all be there when you restart the game.
The following people have helped with suggestions, finding typos, asking questions, etc. This list covers everyone that helped on this list since 1995. I list their real names if they used them (in the early days of the Internet, people usually used their real names), otherwise the user name (but not their e-mail address.)
© 1991, 2001, 2005, 2007 Bill Pringle, all rights reserved.
Permission to use for personal use. May be placed on web sites provided no
fee is charged for access, and this copyright statement is kept intact.