Chrono Trigger Review (DS)

Retro Gaming With A Stylus

Having owned a Sega Megadrive rather than a SNES, I was a late comer to the whole JRPG genre. Sure I may have been around ten or eleven when I first picked up a Final Fantasy game but I was a late comer.

Owning a Megadrive meant I missed out on a few classic titles, casting envious eyes over Final Fantasy VI, The Super Mario Brothers and Zelda, one that completely went under my radar however, was Chrono Trigger. Developed by Square Enix this game is held as a classic in JRPG gaming and deservedly so, the enhanced version released for the DS is a must for any collection.

Chrono TriggerSquare rather than deciding to completely overhaul the experience have kept the changes fairly limited, the 32bit style graphics are still here, looking like a pixelated manga comic the game still has a certain charm in its visual style, colour and vibrancy being the important factor, although not the most attractive game on the DS it is satisfactory.

Chrono Trigger plays like most Square games, the combat system being a cross between real time and turn based but with a twist. Characters have the opportunity to team up and create a dual attack, this is both a nice change to Square’s usual approach and also gives the game a little more variation with certain attacks being more effective against enemies an element of learning and experience comes into play. Apart from this little more imagination has gone into the combat system offering usually no more than attack, magic/tech and items, however, Chrono Trigger does not need to drastically rock the boat when it comes to its combat system, it is an updated classic rather than a sequel.

The story of the game is a real highlight, with time travel, a wayward princess, evil conspirators and a talking Frog. Chrono Trigger keeps the player intrigued throughout with great story telling and good pacing. I will not spoil anything for anyone here as the story really is the main draw for Chrono Trigger and also any JRPG worth its salt. Sometimes it can feel a little childish and common faire for a Square game but that is only minor.

Coming to Chrono Trigger for the first time on the DS this really is an excellent game, with a great story and gameplay to boot

Additional content from that of the original game comes in the form of Arena mode and a few manga style videos which help further tell the story. These additions are good but from playing an emulated version of the SNES Chrono Trigger It is a little hard to pinpoint exactly what has been added. Arena Mode plays a little like Pokemon meets Monster Rancher. It is fun in a simple and stupid way but never really adds much in terms of overall gameplay and can be quite disposable. Also Square has bundled a music player with the game, this is completely redundant as does anyone really want to relive classic Chrono Trigger tunes?

Chrono TriggerAs you may tell the only criticism that can be levelled at Chrono Trigger is that it just isn’t updated enough from the SNES version, although for someone like myself coming to the game without previous experience this game is brilliant, to others who have already played, it is essentially the same game save a few minor additions.

You can’t help but also feel that Square have under used the DS. With the dual screen abilities never really taken advantage of, the game feels a little plain and again like its original SNES incarnation. With a little more imaginative thinking Square could have really came out with a game that utilises the DS technology, at the moment it feels like it was a toss up between the PSP and DS and Nintendo won out.

Overall, for anyone like myself coming to Chrono Trigger for the first time on the DS this really is an excellent game, with a great story and gameplay to boot. To anyone who has already played this game, Square have done a great job in bringing Chrono Trigger to the DS with a slight added bonus a little bit of new content, don’t expect anything hugely different but enjoy Chrono Trigger without digging out your SNES or indulging in anything illegal.

The Good: Classic JRPG Given To A New Generation; Storyline Is Immersive, Funny and Intruiging; Hours Of Gameplay
The Bad: Not Much In The Way Of Content For Original Players; Does Not Take Advantage Of DS Capabilities; Arena Mode Plays Like A Stunted Pokemon


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Silver Y AwardSilver Y Award
4 4 / 5

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