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Travel Back In Time With Chrono Trigger DS

With the exception of the rare new release (like Infinite Undiscovery), Square Enix has built its business model in the past few years on providing an aftermarket to its classic titles.

The classic title from JRPG luminaries Takashi Tokita, Yuuji Horii, Hironobu Sakaguchi and Masato Kato features music by Nobuo Uematsu and character designs by acclaimed artist Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball fame, and one-day Final Fantasy mastermind Tetsuya Nomura contributed some of his early work to the project. This so-called “Dream Team” of creators is one of the most influential in the role-playing genre.

Even more than a sleek-looking, next-generation port of Rad Racer, one of the games that Square fans clamor for is the SNES classic Chrono Trigger. For years, the only version of the game that was readily available to U.S. enthusiasts was the PlayStation port bundled into Final Fantasy Chronicles alongside Final Fantasy IV (formerly Final Fantasy II - don't ask). That version, which does boast a cool anime intro and animated cutscenes, is also beastly in terms of load times and was a fair bit glitchier than its predecessor, pushing the limits of the console as it did.

The good news is that Square Enix's perpetual remake machine has come around to the too-short Chrono franchise once again and is bringing Chrono Trigger DS to stores in November, only a few short months after its Final Fantasy Chronicles partner FFIV debuted on the platform.

The new, portable version of the astoundingly popular time travel RPG is slated to have several new features, one element missing from the PS1 remake. The most exciting feature for fans is likely to be wireless 2-4 player multiplayer, as well as a brand new dungeon (the Dimensional Distortion Dungeon) not seen in any previous version of the game, as well as two new areas: the Dragon Sanctuary and a Monster Arena. Other bells and whistles include a new translation, touchscreen controls for movement and menu navigation. Rumor from E3 indicates that a perfect, single-screen port of the SNES Chrono Trigger will be included on-card with Chrono Trigger DS.