Summary
With games likeOctopath Traveler,Tactics Ogre: Reborn, andThe DioField Chronicle, Square Enix has hit a steady stride of consistently good role-playing offerings. This is on top of the acclaim thatFinal Fantasy 16has been showered with, showing that the company still has immense range to go along with the quality. It’s been at the top of the JRPG pile for decades, but in recent years it feels like there has been a renewed interest in the retro, and graphics can be a make-or-break factor. There areplenty of games that deserve a makeover in that HD-2D art stylethat has been used by some to great effect. Still,Chrono Triggermay be the most obvious choice.
After it was announced thatDragon Quest 3will be next to get the treatment, rumors have been rife about which IP that Square Enix (formerly Squaresoft) could adapt next. There’s no shortage of options, and whatever it chooses to bring back will likely be met with excitement, butChrono Triggerhas needed a new release for a while, not only because it is as good as it’s ever been but also because it can be tricky to find out in the wild.
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Chrono Trigger Needs a Console Makeover
While it can be played on PC and Steam Deck as well as mobile devices,Chrono Triggercan be challenging to find on consoles, especially in physical form. The Nintendo DS release from 2008 is increasingly hard to track down, and the Super Nintendo and PlayStation versions have become sought-after classics, and mean dragging out old hardware to play. For a game as renowned as it is, not having a seamless avenue to play it can be annoying, and its lack of availability is more obvious with the release andsubsequent success of theFinal Fantasy Pixel Remasters.
It would be a welcome development to see the original sprites come to modern hardware, asChrono Trigger’s 16-bit visuals have done well to stand the test of time. However, updated graphics could help breathe new life into the time-traveling story. That’s not to say thatit needs aFinal Fantasy 7-esque remake(though that would be an exciting prospect), but it could use some kind of glow-up to go with a fresh release, as it would help new players to appreciate how groundbreaking the Squaresoft RPG was when it launched in 1995.
HD-2D is Beautiful, but Nostalgic
Though games likeOctopath TravelerandTriangle Strategyare original titles, the HD-2D art style they deploy is a perfect fusion of modern and nostalgic. It has been proven to elevate the potential for immersion with new projects, but also with thelaunch and critical success ofLive A Live, the style has shown that it can be used to reinvigorate classics from decades past, giving them more depth of field that adds hugely to immersion.Chrono Triggermay not be desperate for it, but there’s no denying that locations like Zeal and the Millennial Fair could look truly stunning with a modern twist.
BringingChrono Triggerback by way of an HD-2D remaster would kill two birds with one stone. It would allow one ofthe best JRPGs of all timeto shine in front of an entirely new generation of gamers while also improving its already timeless visuals in a way that stays true to its roots, pleasing longtime fans. It’s a game that has stayed in the hearts of many for almost three decades, and Square Enix has shown with six recent remasters ofFinal Fantasy’s sprite-era games that the NES and Super Nintendo age of role-playing still has more to give. IfLive A Livegets a second chance, then Chrono, Marle, Lucca, and Magus have more than earned it.
Chrono Triggeris available on Mobile, Nintendo DS, PC, PlayStation, and Super Nintendo.
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