Chrono Cross is my favorite video game, and it is widely considered a classic among fans of turn-based role-playing games (RPGs). However, I was unable to play Radical Dreamers as a child. Radical Dreamers is a text-based adventure game released in 1996 (Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Hōseki, n.d.). The game served as an inspiration for Chrono Cross and maintains narrative ties to Chrono Trigger. Its soundtrack also shares notable similarities with Chrono Cross’s. Masato Kato, the director of the game, explained that “the plot threads in Radical Dreamers and the particular part of Chrono Cross that is reminiscent happen in parallel universes, which means that the plot of one cannot be used to shed light on some events in the other” (Radical Dreamers Review – Super Nintendo, 2025).
Radical Dreamers follows the adventure of Serge, Kid, and Magil as they enter Viper Manor in search of the “Frozen Flame.” This theme carries over into Chrono Cross and is central to both narratives. As a result, the gameplay of Radical Dreamers allows players to utilize what scholars of game studies call agency. Bettina Bódi (2022) defines agency as “our ability to act in the world, within the societal context that proscribes our everyday life” (p. 13). There are multiple approaches to examining agency in game studies, but in relation to Radical Dreamers, the most relevant framework focuses on agency as a means by which players can alter the direction of a video game’s story (Bódi, 2022).
Although Radical Dreamers, released in 1996, lacked the multitude of options offered by later titles such as Diablo II, it nevertheless provided meaningful agency. The story does not follow the linear model common to many turn-based RPGs. While the game could be considered “short” at under 40 hours, it still offers a complex and engaging narrative (Green, 2017). Throughout the game, players must make choices that determine which areas of Viper Manor the party explores. Players can also encounter monsters, and if the “wrong” choices are made, Serge can die. These decisions ultimately lead the party toward a confrontation with Lynx while integrating elements later expanded upon in Chrono Cross, such as the enigmatic Frozen Flame.
Steinkuehler (2010) argues that many traditional forms of storytelling are largely predetermined and fixed, whereas digital storytelling requires players to advance the narrative and construct meaning through their agency (Green, 2017). In this sense, Radical Dreamers grants players a level of agency similar to that found in the Goosebumps “Choose Your Own Adventure” series. Additionally, players can further exercise agency by achieving one of seven possible endings (Team, 2022). Players must be careful not to alienate Kid and ensure that Serge remains unharmed, as their actions directly determine the story’s outcome.
This emphasis on agency and narrative consequence will be familiar to fans of turn-based RPGs. For example, Final Fantasy VII allows players to influence which character accompanies Cloud on a date at the Gold Saucer, depending largely on the player’s earlier decisions. Scholars of game studies, researchers, and video game fans alike should continue to examine how agency shapes narrative experiences in video games. The ability to choose allows players to create meaning and advance stories in diverse ways, transforming them from passive participants into active contributors within immersive narrative worlds (Green, 2017).
References (APA 7)
Bódi, B. (2022). Video games and agency. Taylor & Francis.
Green, A. M. (2017). Storytelling in video games: The art of the digital narrative. McFarland.
Radical Dreamers: Nusumenai Hōseki. (n.d.). Chronopedia. Retrieved January 1, 2026, from https://chrono.fandom.com/wiki/Chronopedia
Radical Dreamers Review – Super Nintendo. (2025, April 23). Cubed3. https://www.cubed3.com/games/reviews/super-nintendo/radical-dreamers
Steinkuehler, C. (2010). Video games and digital literacies. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 54(1), 61–63.
Team, C. C. R. W. (2022, December 28). Radical Dreamers endings guide | Chrono Cross Remaster: Radical Dreamers. Game8. https://game8.co/games/Chrono-Cross-Radical-Dreamers-Edition/archives/376548
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