The thing that puts Chrono Trigger‘s soundtrack above that of most 16-bit SNES RPGs is the fact that while pretty much every RPG of the era tried to emulate the composition and “epic” feel of classical music (the predictable thing that makes most of them so dull nowadays), Yasunori Mitsuda went the extra mile to emulate an actual orchestra as well. It feels closer to a real orchestra performing classical compositions and gives the music the depth its trying to achieve. Still, after you play a bunch of RPGs you grow tired of the same themes and places in the storyline and environments that inspire similar-sounding music, so I can’t get too excited about even the people who do the greatest job at portraying the same feelings I’ve been exposed to a million times before.

The brass victory marches, the gospel church theme with a gentle piano melody, it’s all the same stuff you’ve heard dozens of times before even though Mitsuda’s passion allows it to be expressed better than previous composers. He really presses the SNES sound chip to its full capabilities.

Bottom line is, in a really specific niche of 16-bit fantasy-inspired music, Yasunori Mitsuda offers pretty much the best rendition of said music you can get with the Chrono Trigger soundtrack. Though I still believe Uematsu (compositionally) has the strongest highlights despite not having as much consistency in any of his 16-bit soundtracks as there is here (he’s also weaker instrumentally without that full orchestral feel). It’s funny how the Uematsu compositions are some of the weaker, simpler pieces on here because it conveniently shows how they pale in comparison to Mitsuda’s. They sound plastic. The biggest exception is “Bike Chase”, where Uematsu’s fast-paced electronic battle music fits the futuristic world. Mitsuda’s compositions generally sound the same across all eras in the game, always that orchestral sound emulation with little exception. It’s a good thing Uematsu ended up doing most of the music for the different time eras, because he’s a bit better at portraying them.

There’s also something to be said for Yoko Shimomura, composer of the Live-A-Live soundtrack. She’s certainly got both Mitsuda and Uematsu beat for variety given the amount of different settings and tones in the game (look up the game’s concept if you don’t know), and she certainly matches both of their compositions in quality if not exceeds them, but like Uematsu she doesn’t achieve the orchestral sound Mitsuda does. Still, I find her the most interesting composer out of this 16-bit fantasy “genre.” And of course it’s worth knowing that there’s much, much more to videogame music than the 8-bit and 16-bit soundtracks that we were exposed to as impressionable kids.

NOTE (2/4/2026): I listened to the OST and wrote the above review before finishing Chrono Trigger. Silly, I know. It was over a decade ago. But my opinion is likely more positive now, and this is worthy of reevaluation.