I just beat Chrono Trigger for the first time (on the DS)! Now what should I do?

I played Chrono Cross first and vastly prefer it.

One of the biggest complaints with Chrono Cross is that it isn't a simple sequel, as the story gets kind of nuts at times. Since I played it first, its minimal connections to Trigger didn't really bother me. I liked the story, the characters, the combat's superb, awesome music and art. And from what I recall, if you want "epicness" then I feel Cross provides that far more often.

I'd say just do New Game+ to get the earliest possible ending where you get to go to the developer room, and then go find a different game to play. Getting all the endings in CT is insanely tedious because each run you have to start from the very beginning of the game.

Chrono Cross or Okami are both good picks. You can't go wrong with either. Cross has a lot of cool things that caught me off guard, but just approach it like its own thing and you'll enjoy it.

I really really really like Chrono Cross, but maybe don't play it immediately after Trigger. Not because it's inferior, but because it will likely invite unnecessary comparisons when that game is best treated as a spiritual successor rather than a direct sequel.

Then again, if you weren't in love with Trigger then maybe that's not a real concern. It's a very different thing, so maybe you'll appreciate it more. It feels more ambitious by today's standards compared to Trigger, but also arguably doesn't execute everything it tries to do quite as well as Trigger.

Chrono Cross gets an unfair rap because of the expectations of being billed as the "sequel to Chrono Trigger". With that being said... In y memories the battle system in Cross was obtuse and completely unnecessary for 90% of the game, it suffered from an inflated cast of paper thin characters with side quests that don't go anywhere for most of them and serve as padding, and an ending that required you to be some sort of musical savant to unlock the best ending.

On the other hand, you might like it. But if you didn't like Trigger, then you probably won't like Cross.

@gaff: I'll maybe give you those first two (the comments about the characters moreso than the battle system), but you definitely didn't need to be anything resembling a musical savant to get the best ending. There are several clues to how to get the best ending in one of the late game dungeons and all you have to do is use elemental attacks in the proper order during the fight. I have zero musical talent and I've gotten that ending many times.

Liking Trigger is also completely inconsequential to liking Cross. They share little in common.

If you're a fan of music, Chrono Cross probably has the best score of any game ever.

@hunkulese: +1

I voted both because Chrono Cross is a lot of fun and has a cool story, and the high level gear in Chrono Trigger is super awesome (and it's fun to steam roll stuff that you struggled with the first time)...but then I saw you didn't exactly love Chrono Trigger, so I'd say look into Chrono Cross since it's only loosely tied to Trigger at best and see if its combat looks appealing to you since you'll be doing a lot of it, and even then if you decide to play it keep a character guide handy so you don't miss out on the essential characters like Glenn.

Also, just because NG+ has come despite not being the biggest fan, in case you're some kind of obsessive completionist (I have a bit of this in me myself) you should be warned you can't get every character in Cross on your first play through, and the dialogue during just about every conversation in the game adjusts in some ways both small and central to the plot depending on who you bring along with you. In a game with 100+ characters that can be very stressful when you're trying to decide between who you like for the combat and who you like for the story.

I thought Chrono Trigger felt so epic at least in part because it builds a pretty consistent story across such a vast span of time and I can't think of any other game that really does that. I'd say more but I'm on a phone.

I would say play Chrono Cross. As has been said, don't look at it like a sequel to Chrono Trigger. It's pretty much its own thing, but it's a fun PS1 JRPG in any case.

Play Chrono Cross. But don't go in expecting it to be a sequel to Trigger. It has the best OST from a game in the PSONE era. Or, Play my favorite childhood game, The Legend of Dragoon. I'm going to just start recommending that to anyone now that asks for which JRPG to play next.

I think chrono trigger is a neat game. I think chrono cross is the greatest game ever made, bar none. Regardless of your feelings toward trigger, play cross. Please, everyone, play cross.

Okami all day. Absolute joy that video game.

I can vouch for the OST. I had to get it for myself.

Chrono Cross is very different but absolutely worth playing. I probably prefer it slightly more than Trigger. Maybe.......

Or maybe I just love pre-rendered backgrounds?

Playing one of the best Zelda games to have ever come out. You gotta play Okami.