Name: Nathan Lazur

Role: Project Director, Programmer

E-mail: nathan[AT]opcoder[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Chrono Trigger
- Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- Final Fantasy VII
- Super Mario 64
- Final Fantasy VI
- Mortal Kombat II
- Final Fantasy IV
- Street Fighter II
- Xenogears
- Killer Instinct

Biography:

I started programming when I was 16 and haven't been able to stop since.  My first inspiration to start programming was to make a game as good as Chrono Trigger.  I programmed on the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation when I was in High School as guide to understand how a game like Chrono Trigger would be made, with the limitations present on a console.

Due to my previous experiences, I was hired as a professional videogame programmer at the age of 18.  Ever since, I've been constantly learning, trying to better myself to realize that goal I had back when I was 16.  This project is a tribute to that goal and to Square.


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

The battle system, graphics, music, story, and planning.

I think Square did an absolutely brilliant modification to the Active Time Battle system.  The ability to combine attacks made you want to play with every character to find out if they could do techs together.  Anytime I would face the same enemy in a specific part of a world, I would try to defeat it a different way.   Even today, no other RPG's battle sytem has kept me so enthusiastic like Chrono Trigger's.

The characters were excellently designed and each character had a significant contribution to the story.  The fact that you could alter some of your characters (and other NPC's) lives showed me the possibilities of what proper game planning could do to impact the overall feel of the story.

Yasunori Mitsuda's score serves as an inspiration to me and a motivation factor when I'm not working on this project. I personally think that Chrono Trigger would not be the same game without his wonderful music.

Name: Luis Martins

Role: Art Director, Concept/Texture/Lighting/Effect Artist

E-mail: luis[AT]opcoder[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Super Mario 64
- The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- GoldenEye 007
- Metal Gear Solid 2
- Shenmue
- Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo
- Mortal Kombat
- Killer Instinct
- Starfox
- Chrono Trigger

Biography:

I started drawing at an early age of 5.  Ever since, it has been part of my reality through High School and college. During that same period, I had become an avid videogame player.  Being born through the eyes of western cartoons and media in mind, I searched for new grounds and discovered Japanese animation and art.  The sheer variety and quality appealed to me the same way videogames did.

I was lucky enough one day to meet a very talented Art Director, José Holder.  I decided to join his studio and learn to improve my artistic knowledge.  After Freelancing and doing fan base artwork, I was given a chance to join in the videogame business.  That’s when it all started.  3 years later, here I am today being part of this project, hoping to bring quality and justice to this challenging task.


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

Basically, I came a little late to realize how good this masterpiece is.  Never the less, I have been impressed by its popularity and content.  The visuals are really captivating, among the best pixel art ever created.  The game is so colorful and rich, the detail never ceases to amaze me.  Even today, the graphics have aged incredibly well!

Needless to say, the originality of its story, art, and score are truly something to be impressed about.  What is better than having artists like Akira Toriyama and Yasunori Mitsuda to provide richness to this game?

Name: Moise Breton

Role: Background/Main Character Modeler, Texture Artist

E-mail: mo[AT]opcoder[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Xenogears
- Final Fantasy 6
- Final Fantasy 7
- Valkyrie Profile
- Chrono Trigger
- Final Fantasy 5
- Final Fantasy 4
- Soul Blazer
- Y's 6
- Super Mario 3

Biography:

I’ve always been addicted to games and always wanted to make some but never knew where to start until I saw 3D studio Max for the first time in '97. Seeing the Final Fantasy series evolve in the CG field was a great motivational and inspirational factor. Hours of gaming were soon reduced to hours of modeling and texturing...

I was hired as a 3D artist in early 2000 and have been working since... Unfortunately work does not always satisfy my creative hunger so I am soon to find myself working on side projects. I was glad to meet with Nathan and Luis, and seeing the potential this project represents I decided to jump in.


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

Just about everything! Square ruled the SNES era with the best game content and Chrono Trigger is just a good example.

Name: David Ying

Role: Background/Character Modeler, Texture Artist

E-mail: yinako_minako[AT]hotmail[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Chrono Trigger
- Xenogears
- Ultima VIII
- Final Fantasy VIII
- Final Fantasy IX
- Super Street Fighter II Turbo
- Metal Gear Solid
- Vagrant Story
- Star Craft: Brood War
- Command and Conquer: Red Alert

Biography:

I started doing art work with 3D graphics at age 15 ever since I picked up an art magazine with imagine3D demo on it.  (Oh yeah, those were the days.)  My first model was an AT-ST walker from Star Wars, then a madCat, then a Wipeout racer...

I have always been a big fanatic about Manga/Anime (Japanese pictorial novels). Ever since age 15, I have been trying to bring the best of both world of 3D graphics and Manga/Anime. There are advantages to be learnt from both media. I'm pretty much into character works and every time I play a Squaresoft game I mumble to myself about their characters, "God damn, they have already done it."

Today, I work as a freelance 3D artist.


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

The character designs were awesome, flawlessly drawn with pixel art.  You have to admit people at Squaresoft always knew how to use their hardware, even if it's only few pixels wide.

The story was out of this world for me, I was hooked until the end.  The story of my party members was really cool too, and a lot of characters in game had a great and unique background story to them, and I somehow cared about it.

The battle and magic was something unique and actually more fun to play with as you deeper into the game, it's not so confusing and mind boggling like a chess game.  It's simple and yet adds depth with simplicity.  I remember talking to a friend about it after school how he came up with cool triple techs... and then we just talk about it all day in school.

Name: Mathew Valente

Role: Musician, Sound Designer

E-mail: tssf[AT]rogers[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Chrono Trigger
- Final Fantasy IV
- Lunar: Eternal Blue
- Final Fantasy VII
- Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
- Kingdom Hearts
- Super Mario 64
- Capcom vs. SNK 2
- Lufia: Fortress of Doom
- Super Mario Bros.

Biography:

I've been a Street Fighter fan all of my gaming life.  That's all I ever played...  But then I found a game called Final Fantasy 2 (FF IV) on the SNES.  I can remember playing it back when I was in... oh, it must be 8th grade, and I enjoyed every second of it.  The music brought me so into it, and I can remember hearing things from the game in my head that I wanted to try to jot down.  When I came across a few module files made by Andy Church, I said to myself, "Wow, that's cool.  I want to try that.  I think I want to become a game musician." Ever since then, I've been remaking music close to 8 or 9 years now, as a hobby.

I compose original work on the side, but my main love is remaking something that really captured my musical attention.  There's nothing more satisfying to me than to hear that I completely remade an amazingly beautiful song, and kept all the emotion in the remake in the process.


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

The graphics, the story, the music, the idea of screwing with time. ;)

I wasn't too much of a fan of the whole Chrono Trigger idea at first.  I only really got into it once I tried to figure out what happened to Marle when she got transported back to the past. The music drew me in; Yasunori Mitsuda did one fantastic job for his first outing as a game musician.  I can remember when I saw the graphics that I grumbled because I wasn't a fan of Akira Toriyama's style.  I thought Dragon Ball was one of the dumbest things I'd ever seen. Eventually, his unique drawing style grew on me.  When I saw the first concept drawings of Crono in this project, it lacked a Toriyama-feel to the character.  Can you believe that was one of the first things I pointed out?

Yasunori Mitsuda's music was fantastic.  I thought Nobuo Uematsu also did a great job on some of the songs he did for the game.  Remaking these songs was nothing more than a joy.  Except that Boss Battle 2 song. That song was nothing short of a nightmare.

Name: Michael Demirel

Role: Enemy/Boss/User Interface/Effect Animator

E-mail: michael_demirel[AT]hotmail[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Chrono Trigger
- Final Fantasy IV
- Final Fantasy VI
- Final Fantasy VII
- Final Fantasy IX
- Final Fantasy Tactics
- Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
- Vagrant Story
- Warcraft III
- Xenogears

Biography:

Being a video game junky from an early age, Chrono Trigger was in my top ten favourites from the day I've played it, and still holds its place.

I started animation back in High School at the age of 17.  The school had some 3D software and a crappy 2D program that I would create some short clips on to entertain the class.  It usually ended with the computer struggling to play the full animation and would eventually crash. I then signed up to study animation at an institute, and worked several years freelancing as a graphic artist and animator.  No way was I going to turn down this offer to animate the characters for CT:R!


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

Excellent replay value, a dozen different endings depending on decisions you make in the game and at what time you defeat the end boss.  With the option to start a new game over with all your stats and equipment.  CT also has a memorable cast of unique characters, and Magus is the kewlest anti-hero out there.  The art by Akira Toriyama suits the game well and it's good eye candy. :)  This game has soo much more to it, it is well worthy of being called one of the best RPG's ever.

Name: Michel Cadieux

Role: Main Character/Boss Animator

E-mail: Dhawhon[AT]yahoo[DOT]com


Favorite Games:

- Chrono Trigger
- Final Fantasy IV
- Castlevania: SOTN
- Soul Calibur
- Final Fantasy Tactics
- Final Fantasy XI
- Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
- Shinning Force 2
- Super Mario Kart
- Metal Gear Solid

Biography:

Initially, I wanted to do some special FX for movies but I didn't imagine that the game and, mostly, the animation would be so awesome. Anyway, I was playing way too much already. =) Since 17, I used my little knowledge to make anything looking as alive as it could be.

Well, now that I'm working in the gaming industry for a few years already. I needed a challenge -- something more personal. And now, I couldn't ask more than have the privilege to draw that rainbow sword and do what I want with it. =)


Favorite aspects of Chrono Trigger:

Ahhh, where to start! We'll, I must admit that the music is intense, the battle system is unique and the best ever storyline. That game is just simply the one of the best RPG's ever. Characters charisma, replay value, and a drinking contest!

I wish more gaming companies would for stop two seconds and look what is happening to the new "genre" of games. I wish they could take the "epoch" and take a look of what it was like to work on a masterpiece. =)