is a
fictional character
In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life perso ...
in the 1995
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
''
Chrono Trigger
is a 1995 role-playing video game developed and published by Square. It was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as the first game in the ''Chrono'' series. The game's development team included three designers th ...
''. She is a cave woman in 65,000,000 BC who joins a group of time travelers in their quest to prevent antagonist
Lavos from ending the world in 1999 AD. She is the leader (chief) of Ioka Village, and often clashes with a reptilian race called the Reptites.
She was created by ''Chrono Trigger'' director
Takashi Tokita
(born 24 January 1965) is a Japanese video game developer working for Square Enix. He has worked there since 1985, and has worked as the lead designer for ''Final Fantasy IV'' as well as the director of '' Parasite Eve'' and ''Chrono Trigger''. ...
and illustrated by
Akira Toriyama. Her character design was among the most drastically changed in ''Chrono Trigger'' and took inspiration from singer
Ouyang Fei Fei
Ouyang Fei Fei (; Japanese: ; Romaji: ''Ōyan Fīfī''; born September 10, 1949) is a Taiwanese-Japanese singer.
Biography
In 1967, Ouyang Fei Fei made her musical debut at the ''Central Hotel'', a theatre in Taipei, before coming to Japan to ...
. Her name comes from the ''
Clan of the Cave Bear
''The Clan of the Cave Bear'' is a 1980 novel and epic work of prehistoric fiction by Jean M. Auel about prehistoric times. It is the first book in the ''Earth's Children'' book series, which speculates on the possibilities of interactions be ...
'' character of
the same name. She has received generally positive reception for her defiance of gender norms and stereotypes.
Concept and creation
Ayla was created by ''
Chrono Trigger
is a 1995 role-playing video game developed and published by Square. It was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as the first game in the ''Chrono'' series. The game's development team included three designers th ...
'' director Takashi Tokita and illustrated by
Akira Toriyama.
She is a cave woman who lives in the year 65,000,000 BC. Tokita was inspired by singer
Ouyang Fei Fei
Ouyang Fei Fei (; Japanese: ; Romaji: ''Ōyan Fīfī''; born September 10, 1949) is a Taiwanese-Japanese singer.
Biography
In 1967, Ouyang Fei Fei made her musical debut at the ''Central Hotel'', a theatre in Taipei, before coming to Japan to ...
when making her and her name was taken from the ''
Clan of the Cave Bear
''The Clan of the Cave Bear'' is a 1980 novel and epic work of prehistoric fiction by Jean M. Auel about prehistoric times. It is the first book in the ''Earth's Children'' book series, which speculates on the possibilities of interactions be ...
'' character of
the same name.
He also added her due to a lack of simple, instinct-driven characters and the potential for humor. He identified her as his favorite character in the game.
Her design, along with fellow protagonist
Robo
Robo may refer to:
*robot, an electro-mechanical device that can perform autonomous or preprogrammed tasks
*Automation (robo-), roboticization
*Robo (musician) (born 1955), Roberto Valverde, drummer in punk bands Black Flag and The Misfits
*Robo ( ...
's, was the one that changed the most of the main cast.
Ayla's hair was originally straight, but graphic designer Masanori Hoshino wanted her hair to be a "wilder, wavy style," so they had Toriyama change it.
Her design was changed to be neater and tidier.
Ayla's breasts originally had more bounce until producer Kazuhiko Aoki made them reduce it, though the bounce is somewhat retained in the final version.
Also cut from the English version of the game was her love of
sake
Sake, also spelled saké ( ; also referred to as Japanese rice wine), is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indee ...
.
Ayla is possibly bisexual, as suggested in a piece of dialogue in the Japanese version between her,
Crono, and
Lucca Ashtear, where she identifies that she is attracted to both of them due to their power.
The scene was changed in the English version, instead having Ayla show respect for Lucca's power.
In the English version of ''Chrono Trigger'' on the
Nintendo DS, the scene is written to only imply Ayla's attraction to Lucca. In both Japanese and English, Ayla speaks in
caveman
The caveman is a stock character representative of primitive humans in the Paleolithic. The popularization of the type dates to the early 20th century, when Neanderthals were influentially described as "simian" or " ape-like" by Marcellin Bo ...
speech. Her vocabulary is considered rude by others, and she uses the personal pronoun "あたい" in Japanese to refer to herself, which represents femininity and toughness. The English version loses this context in localization.
Appearances
Ayla appears in ''
Chrono Trigger
is a 1995 role-playing video game developed and published by Square. It was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System as the first game in the ''Chrono'' series. The game's development team included three designers th ...
'' as one of seven protagonists.
She first appears when Crono and allies appear in the year 65,000,000 BC where she saves them from a race called Reptites. She recognizes their power and invites them back to her village for a celebratory party. She challenges Crono to a drinking contest (soup eating contest in the US version) with a valuable Dreamstone as a prize that Crono wins. The Gate Key, an object Lucca created to travel through time, is stolen by Reptites and its leader Azala due in part to her partner Kino, and they manage to take it back. After an assault on antagonist
Magus
Magi (; singular magus ; from Latin '' magus'', cf. fa, مغ ) were priests in Zoroastrianism and the earlier religions of the western Iranians. The earliest known use of the word ''magi'' is in the trilingual inscription written by Darius th ...
, they are sent back to 65,000,000 BC by a time portal created by fellow antagonist
Lavos. When they awaken, Ayla joins their party and assists them in their quest to prevent Lavos from destroying the world in 1999 AD. After assaulting the Reptites and Azala, Lavos begins to come down to Earth. Ayla tries to save Azala, but Azala resigns herself to death. Ayla and company escape and Lavos then makes impact with Earth. This causes the world to enter an
ice age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...
and the Reptites to go extinct. The name Lavos is given by Ayla ("la" meaning "fire" and "vos" meaning "big" in Iokan), and she continues helping them defeat Lavos. When Lavos is defeated, Ayla returns to 65,000,000 BC and marries Kino. It is revealed that fellow protagonist
Marle is a descendant of Ayla and Kino.
Reception
Since appearing in ''Chrono Trigger'', Ayla has received positive reception. ''Bitmob'' staff called Ayla their favorite character in the game due to her beauty and power.
Author Madeleine Brookman discussed Ayla's defiance of gender norms, noting that her otherwise "inherently sexualized" outfit is still less restrictive than women's outfits in other time periods and that her proposing to Kino is uncommon based on percentages of women proposing to men in 2014. Loraine for ''
Autostraddle
Autostraddle is an independently owned online magazine and social network for lesbian, bisexual, and queer women ( cis and trans), as well as non-binary people and trans people of all genders. The website is a "politically progressive queer femin ...
'' had an initially negative reception due to her outfit, but was more positive due to her defiance of gender roles. She discusses her dominant role in her relationship, her powerful position, and stats that are more typical of male role-playing game characters. Author Francis Montpetit discussed how Ayla breaks away from "militarized masculinity" by having her being the strongest among the protagonists. ''
Playboy
''Playboy'' is an American men's Lifestyle magazine, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from H ...
'' model Pamela Horton identified Ayla as one of her favorite video game characters due to her assertiveness and independence. She
cosplayed as Ayla, and it was the only cosplay she had done. Meghan Sullivan for ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' praised her introduction and her scene with Azala as two of the best in video games. John P. Hussey of ''RPGFan'' however found her forgettable. Author Michael P. Williams felt that she came close to the "dumb blonde" stereotype, but avoids it by being the most capable member of the cast. He cites her nobility and pragmatism as examples of this.
He also called her the sexiest character in the game.
A statue featuring Ayla, Crono, and Robo was shown at Toy Fair 2010.
References
{{Chrono series
Chrono (series) characters
Video game characters designed by Akira Toriyama
Female characters in video games
Fictional bisexual females
Fictional hunters in video games
Fictional prehistoric characters
Woman soldier and warrior characters in video games
Role-playing video game characters
Square Enix protagonists
Video game characters based on real people
Video game characters introduced in 1995
Video game characters with superhuman strength