Chrono Trigger

Chrono Trigger is the greatest JRPG ever made, assembled by Square's 1995 dream team of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest creators. It debuted multiple endings years before that was common, and its time travel narrative remains one of the most coherent in gaming. The battle system eliminates random encounters entirely, instead rewarding party composition with combo techs that still feel fresh. Its pixel art is gorgeous, and Yasunori Mitsuda's soundtrack is transcendent. New Game+ was literally invented here, offering 13 distinct endings across roughly 30 hours of gameplay. Outperforms #4 A Link to the Past in narrative complexity and replay value, setting a standard modern RPGs still chase.